Pagulayan starts bid in World Pool Masters

MANILA, Philippines – Alex Pagulayan hopes to add another feather to his cap as he seeks to become the first back-to-back champion in PartyPoker.net World Pool Masters, which unfurls its 17th edition today at the Riviera Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Pagulayan, the 2004 World Pool Championship titlist, will be defending the crown he won last year by beating Mike Immonen in a come-from-behind 8-6 victory in the finals against 15 other topnotch cue artists from around the world.

“For me, this is one of the toughest tournaments in the world, and I’ve always wanted to win it,” said the 30-year-old pride of Cabagan, Isabela, who will begin his title defense against European No.3 Nick van den Berg of Holland.

Pagulayan, who was a runner-up in 2006, is just the second Filipino to win this prestigious event after Francisco “Django” Bustamante, who triumphed in 1998 and 2001. Efren “Bata” Reyes was the only other Filipino to reach the World Pool Masters finals, doing it twice in 1999 and 2002 and losing both.

Former world No.1 Dennis Orcollo joins Pagulayan in carrying the Philippine flag in this three-day event organized by Matchroom Sport, which offers a total pot of $66,000, including a champion purse of $20,000.

“I’m very honored to be invited in this tournament, and I will do my best to win it for our country,” said Orcollo, a member of the star-studded Bugsy Promotions of businessman Perry Mariano, who will debut against Canadian Tyler Edey.

Pagulayan and Orcollo, whose campaigns are supported by the Billiards Managers and Players Association of the Philippines, the Billiards and Snooker Congress of the Philippines and Senator Manny Villar’s Villards: Tulong sa Pagsulong ng Philippine sports, were bracketed in the opposite ends of the draw, meaning there’s a chance of an all-Filipino finale.

“I hope it would happen. That would be a very good scenario,” said Pagulayan, a mainstay of Puyat Sports.

Other players competing in the event are five-time champion Ralf Souquet of Germany, Niels Feijen of Holland, Imran Majid and Darren Appleton of England, Fu Jianbo of China, Ruslan Chinakov of Russia, Tony Drago of Malta, Raj Hundal of India, Immonen of Finland, Shane van Boening and Johnny Archer of the United Sates and lone female entry Yu Ram Cha of South Korea.

The tournament will run under the single elimination (knockout) format with all matches race-to-8 racks and winner’s break.