Billiards masters clash in knockout series

The country’s four "Supreme Masters of Billiards" -— Efren "Bata" Reyes, Francisco "Django" Bustamante, Rodolfo "Boy Samson" Luat and Leonardo "Dodong" Andam -— clash in a one-day, knockout tournament today at the Metropolis, Alabang.

The opening match, a race-to-11 affair, pits Reyes, voted the "Most Popular Player" in the United States, beating such American superstars as Earl Strickland and Johnny Archer, against "The Rattlesnake" Andam, who says he is "not afraid of the reputation" of his more illustrious and popular rival.

In the other semifinal clash, Bustamante takes on giant-killer Luat. The winners battle for the top prize of P100,000.

A ladies one-on-one race-to-five will provide pool fans as well as the players a welcome respite before the finals which will be a race to 13.

"Supreme Masters of Billiards" is sponsored by San Miguel Beer and the finals will be telecast at 10 p.m. by Viva Vintage Sports over IBC 13.

The semifinal matches will be aired to kick off the weekly billiards show "Let’s Play Pool" on Mondays from 6:30 p.m.-8 p.m. right before the top-rated game show "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire."

Reyes, Bustamante, Luat and Andam promised to demonstrate why they are considered the "Supreme Masters of Billiards" even as Puyat Sports which has been at the forefront of the sport and charting the highly successful careers of the country’s billiards pros, plans several major tournaments this year.

Aristeo "Putch" Puyat, whose partnership with Vic Del Rosario, president of Viva Vintage Sports has pushed billiards into the top three sports in the country, disclosed that Reyes "is eager to get back" at Strickland who beat him in their last encounter in Manila.

Plans for a possible three-day showdown between "The Magician" and "The Pearl" are being worked out possibly after the Japan Open in the last week of March.