The legend of Efren "Bata" Reyes continues to weave magic with the inaugural Reyes Cup this October.
For 2010 world eight-ball champion Karl “Box Office” Boyes, there’s no question who’s the Greatest of All Time is or the “G.O.AT” in the billiards world.
It’s the Magician himself, Efren “Bata” Reyes.
“There’s no doubt about it. He’s the G.O.A.T of our sport. All the top players say it,” Boyes said in a press conference held at the Cignal Launchpad in Mandaluyong on Friday, Sept. 13.
The 39-year-old cue artist bared that the emergence of Reyes in his heyday paved the way for billiards to grow into a world-wide attraction that it is today.
“Without Efren [Reyes], pool wouldn’t be where it is today.”[It] doesn’t matter if you’re Filipino, American, or European. Everybody knows how good Efren played the game.”
Boyes will serve as the captain of Team Europe as they face Reyes and Team Asia in the inaugural Reyes Cup which takes place in the country from October 17 to 20 at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
Home to legendary pool players such Reyes, Francisco ”Django” Bustamante, and Dennis Orcollo to name a few, the Philippines will host probably the biggest billiard event of the year that will pit Asia's finest against the best of Europe in the four-day event.
It will follow the format of the Mosconi Cup, a yearly nine-ball competition in which five players representing both Europe and the USA battle it out for billiard supremacy.
The Europeans already boast a stacked roster headline by world no. 2 and reigning world eight-ball winner Joshua Filler of Germany, two-time world 10-ball champion Eklent Kaçi of Albania, and Mickey “The Viking” Krause of Denmark.
As for the man behind the tournament namesake, Reyes admitted the event has been a long time coming.
“Itong tournament na ‘to, matagal ko nang hinihintay itong Reyes Cup na ‘to,” the legendary pool player bared.
Although he will not play in the event, Reyes will be the captain for Team Asia and the 70-year-old sees that his squad has what it takes to beat Team Europe.
“Ang daming magagaling ngayon [lalo na] ‘yung team Europe. Pero tingin ko, may panalo tayo, itong Team Asia. Kaya lang hindi ako pwede dahil matanda na ako.”
“Kaya pumili kami ng mga magagaling na team natin dito sa Asia. Merong Singapore, Taipei, [at] Philippines kaya pwede maipanalo.”
Already included in the five-man Asian team are Singaporean sensation Aloysius Yapp, 2023 World Cup of Pool doubles winner Johann Chua of the Philippines, and Ko Pin-yi, the 2023 World Pool Masters champion.
Still to be determined are the final two wildcards of each team with a little over a month before the tournament starts.
“To be here, ready for the inaugural Reyes Cup is very exciting. It’s going to be a special moment,” Boyes spoke when asked on returning to the Philippines for the first time since 2012.
The 39-year-old cue artist also recalled the time when he didn’t believe Reyes was a popular household name around the world until he visited the Philippines.
“[Efren] Reyes, you know, is so famous in his country. I remember coming in 2007 and some of the pool players were saying “Efren, you know really famous in the Philippines” and I was like, ‘no pool player are famous anywhere.’
“I didn’t believe it. When I arrived, I was asking the taxi driver, the person behind the bar, the waitress and everybody knew [who's] ‘Bata’ Reyes.”
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