Filipino Idol

On a pool table or chessboard, Reyes thrives on strategy and competition. [Photo by Ted Lerner]

Because of a misunderstanding several years back, Morales and Reyes became estranged, but have recently patched over their differences. According to Morales, who can usually be found hanging around wherever in Angeles there's a money match, the Red's ploy was a time-honored tactic which he, Reyes, as well as Rodolfo Luat and Efren's long time manager, Rolando Vicente, had used countless times in the Philippines back in the 1970s. The group would travel from town to town hustling matches against top local players. These were the days before big tournaments and televised pool in the Philippines. Even a basic landline telephone was difficult to come by. Players in the neighboring towns had often heard of this phenom Efren Reyes, but weren't sure of his face.

"We always make good money," Morales said. "But sometimes when they find out they just got beat by Efren, they want to fight us. One time we even had to give the money back to avoid a fight."

Some of the easiest pickings for Efren and the boys came from the nearby Clark Air Base, which had over 50,000 American military personnel. The GIs' pockets were brimming with coveted American dollars, and they were always eager to blow it on a good time.

"We'd hustle in the Officers Club, the Airmen's Club," Morales said. "That was easy money. No handicap. They get tired of us kicking their ass."

Anyone seeking to discover the roots of Reyes' legendary magic, and the Filipinos' insatiable love of pool, need look no further than the U.S. military at Clark Air Base and Efren's home town of Angeles City, which is adjacent to the base. Located 60 miles north of Manila, Angeles City has, for more than 50 years, been one of the world's great outposts of the American game of pool. The sport was mostly introduced to the country by Americans through the base and subsequently Angeles, where a raucous, low-rent, honky-tonk collection of nightclubs and girlie bars catered to GIs on R&R. Back in the 1970s, Angeles was home to the world's largest-ever weekly 9-ball league. Some long-time expat shooters will tell you that some of the current BCA rules of 9-ball came out of that league.

Not surprisingly, the Angeles City area has produced other greats as well, among them Luat and Francisco Bustamante, who comes from the neighboring town of Tarlac. Filipinos, who have traditionally liked to play 15-ball rotation, took to the game naturally, as it fits perfectly with their laid-back way of doing things, and, especially, their love of gambling, which they do for days on end and never seem to tire. Growing up dirt poor, Efren, and countless other guys like him, had all the time in the world to learn the incredible kicks and pattern play which would one day make them world-famous. They didn't have to work a job, then play pool. There were no jobs. From childhood, pool has always been their livelihood, their means of survival.

The eruption of Mt. Pinatubo may have driven out the American military in 1991, but Angeles' notoriety as a dusty, raunchy, Wild West cowboy town has lived on to this day. This is a town where you can walk into a bar and instantly get a 60-cent beer, a con story from some hardscrabble, loudmouthed traveler, a game of pool with a bet, and, of course, an easy date. Is it any wonder that the man many consider to be the greatest billiards money player in history came from a place like Angeles City? Indeed, where else would a character like Efren Reyes come from?

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