John Morra

Roy Steffensen

Roy Steffensen

locksmith
Silver Member
He is in Manila again. On my last trips here I have seen him in more action than anyone, only local hero Lolong is in more action. (Lolong, the guy with more wifes than teeth)

Lolong is now giving a whale 5-6-7-8-9-10 race to 17 for lots of pesos. He is up 45 000 so far, winning 17-2 and 17-8. Both me and Morra is backing Lolong in the third set.

John has been playing one-pocket and bank-pool for many, many hours, for 5000-10000 pesos a set, and there are many waiting to play him.

No wonder his game is getting better and better. He is in constant action in the poolhall where it is probably hardest to win money.

Respect!

(if he can only finish this match I will back an old grey-haired man willing to play him, getting the 8 for 10000 pesos) :-)
 
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Tell Lolong that Jay is coming to play him some more Banks, 10,000 a set. And he better not dog it this time! :smile:
You can bet some too Roy! I won't be mad at you.
 
i'm thinking about comming there for a few months, i'd love to play there. i'm a whale by dimensions, as far as action goes i'm not sure how i'd bet there, probably kinda consertative and i'd need tons of weight. I figure to learn lots.
 
jay helfert said:
Tell Lolong that Jay is coming to play him some more Banks, 10,000 a set. And he better not dog it this time! :smile:
You can bet some too Roy! I won't be mad at you.
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Chop'em up Jay!!! I really need to go there. All i'm doing in LA is blowing way to much $$$ on food and not playing pool. I'm finished with Vegas I need to re-organize my life. Paint my Black Boar black and buy a one way ticket.
 
Johnny is hungry to get better and win. Good for him. Always admired and respected that about him. He and I are friends and I'm sure he'll be interested in playing again. Not a problem, Im up a lot on him and never quit winner. Safe trip kid and dont get too good :)
 
MexPoolPlyr said:
Johnny is hungry to get better and win. Good for him. Always admired and respected that about him. He and I are friends and I'm sure he'll be interested in playing again. Not a problem, Im up a lot on him and never quit winner. Safe trip kid and dont get too good :)
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there is a great rematch, I'm sure Morra will play you again.
 
Fatboy2 said:
Chop'em up Jay!!! I really need to go there. All i'm doing in LA is blowing way to much $$$ on food and not playing pool. I'm finished with Vegas I need to re-organize my life. Paint my Black Boar black and buy a one way ticket.
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Dude!....I'll trade you ANY one of my cues to take along....please dont paint a black boar! :)

BTW....how many $US is 10k pesos?

G.
 
Gerry said:
Dude!....I'll trade you ANY one of my cues to take along....please dont paint a black boar! :)

BTW....how many $US is 10k pesos?

G.
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$ 1000 = 42 600 PESOS

Hotel 100 yards from One Side cost 1000-5000 pesos a night, depending on standard

Beer at One Side cost 65 pesos, pizza at pizza hut 235 pesos and burger at fridays for 250 pesos. You can eat and drink cheaper at non-international places.

Waitress-salary is app 7-8000 pesos a month, think average salary in Philippines is about 12 000 pesos, but not sure. (it seems however like everyone is out of work)

Just to make a point that it might not seem much with 5000 pesos, but for these guys it is a lot of food on the table

On Lolong's last match, around 10 guys were backing him for a total of 30 000 pesos.
 
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Type this in Google: 10000 PHP in USD
Result: 10000 Philippine pesos = 233.8090 US dollars

That's still big money around where I play these days! :p
 
Hey Roy are there any new talents there you dont mind telling us about? I and many others I'm sure are jealous you get to spend a lot of time in the poolhalls in the Philippines.
 
JohnPT said:
Hey Roy are there any new talents there you dont mind telling us about? I and many others I'm sure are jealous you get to spend a lot of time in the poolhalls in the Philippines.
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Well, I'm not spending much time in the poolhalls, in fact I didn't even bring my own cue this time. I don't play pool anymore, even though I just played Lolong a cheap set for 1000 pesos with a housecue :)

Not much to tell about talents. To be honest, things have changed, dramatically it seems like, since my first visit here in February 2007.

In 2007 there were lots of tournaments going on around the world, with the biggest of them, the 2006 and 2007 World 9-ball going in Manila, plus many other tournaments. In 2008 there were two billiard organisations here who put up maybe dozens of national tournaments with $10000 first prize, and during these years Philippines sent many players to international events.

This attracted lots of players and lots of backers, and much money was changing hands in the poolhalls.

Since 2006 the IPT died, World 9-ball quit, the World Ten Ball in Manila stiffed/delayed payments, pool got bad rep it seems like, cause now there are very few top players around playing the game from day to day like before. Fewer Filipinos is also sent to international events. Even Efren skipped US Open and DCC two years ago.

In 2007 Django, Efren, Alcano, Orcullo, Gomez, De Luna etc were all at One Side, playing eachohter for 10 000 - 200 000 pesos a match. Those matches doesn't excist anymore, or are atleast very rare to happen.

Now the players who are just below these guys plays all the time, for 500-5000 pesos a match, and sometimes 15000-25000. The top guns stay away, and most of the backers have moved on. Maybe they practise on daytime, but the days of daily moneymatches between worldchamps seems to be gone.

It is still more than enough challenges for anyone who wants, there are lines of players eager to take on any white guy arriving, but I have to admit it was more fun playing moneymatches when you had players as Efren, Django and Alcano doing the same on the table next to you.

I will still recommend One Side and Manila for anyone who would like to improve their game, I'm just saying it is not what it used to be, and that I'm happy I was here three times during 2007 and 2008, when it most likely was at it's best.

Both pooladdict and Jay Helfert have been here a lot since 2006, so I would like their inputs on this. Maybe I have the wrong impression.
 
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MexPoolPlyr said:
Johnny is hungry to get better and win. Good for him. Always admired and respected that about him. He and I are friends and I'm sure he'll be interested in playing again. Not a problem, Im up a lot on him and never quit winner. Safe trip kid and dont get too good :)
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Our friend Lolong lost a match with me as backer. I didn't see the end of the match, but I guess you can understand the sad face he must have had when he texted this:

"Roy the fish my friend im very sory lolong no lucky. tomorow i play jhon mora again. sory score 15-12 no lucky lolong. luv u"

Priceless :-)
 
Roy,

Any Alcano sightings? Missed him at the Derby this year. I'm dying for some new footage of him...wish the Star stream was going :(
 
mudball said:
Roy,

Any Alcano sightings? Missed him at the Derby this year. I'm dying for some new footage of him...wish the Star stream was going :(
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Alcano was here on Tuesday, watching a match for a few minutes, then left. Sorry :(

Maybe there will be action tonight, because Django is playing Ko Pin Li (sp?) for $5000 tomorrow night at a casino
 
Yesterday was a good day for John Morra, winning several matches, including the one where me and Lolong bet 15000, plus winning against Jek Jek for I think the same.

Today was the day for rematches. 18000 vs Lolong, but I said handicap had to be + 2 games and the 8, not +1 and 8, race to 18. Morra agreed. I didn't see the match, I left when it was 4-4 to see Fransisco Bustamante vs Ko Pin Li (sp?) at a casino.

I came 2 minutes late for the django-match, but still mananged to get a 10000 pesos bet on Bustamante at the sportsbookmaker, maybe because django was already 1-0 down in a race to 9. Neither of the players did well in the match, and Bustamante won 9-7 and $ 5000 live on TV in front of a crowded audience. This was match 2 of 16 in the casino, all matches being played over 16 saturdays live on tv, Philippines vs Asia.

At One Side Lolong mananaged to win 18-10 over Morra, and Morra tried his luck against Jek Jek after that, with no handicap, but lost 15-9. Yesterday Morra played superb, but failed to bring that game today. He will definitely be back again tomorrow. Always in action, I admire that.

I also tried to get him to play poor, old Bert, a guy who looks like he started to play pool at the age of 120, and is now 150 or so, but they can't agree on handicap. Bert wants the 8 in 10-ball, but Morra refuse to play him with that handicap, so no luck there so far. I think Morra has lost to the old guy before. Old Bert has, after Efren, the most beautiful stroke in Manila.

Alcano practised at One Side today. He played the 10-ball Ghost and won 10-0 while I was watching. Rumour says he and Django will play for 50000 pesos tomorrow.

I met Efren at the casino, and he will most likely drop into One Side tomorrow also.
 
Roy Steffensen said:
Yesterday was a good day for John Morra, winning several matches, including the one where me and Lolong bet 15000, plus winning against Jek Jek for I think the same.

Today was the day for rematches. 18000 vs Lolong, but I said handicap had to be + 2 games and the 8, not +1 and 8, race to 18. Morra agreed. I didn't see the match, I left when it was 4-4 to see Fransisco Bustamante vs Ko Pin Li (sp?) at a casino.

I came 2 minutes late for the django-match, but still mananged to get a 10000 pesos bet on Bustamante at the sportsbookmaker, maybe because django was already 1-0 down in a race to 9. Neither of the players did well in the match, and Bustamante won 9-7 and $ 5000 live on TV in front of a crowded audience. This was match 2 of 16 in the casino, all matches being played over 16 saturdays live on tv, Philippines vs Asia.

At One Side Lolong mananaged to win 18-10 over Morra, and Morra tried his luck against Jek Jek after that, with no handicap, but lost 15-9. Yesterday Morra played superb, but failed to bring that game today. He will definitely be back again tomorrow. Always in action, I admire that.

I also tried to get him to play poor, old Bert, a guy who looks like he started to play pool at the age of 120, and is now 150 or so, but they can't agree on handicap. Bert wants the 8 in 10-ball, but Morra refuse to play him with that handicap, so no luck there so far. I think Morra has lost to the old guy before. Old Bert has, after Efren, the most beautiful stroke in Manila.

Alcano practised at One Side today. He played the 10-ball Ghost and won 10-0 while I was watching. Rumour says he and Django will play for 50000 pesos tomorrow.

I met Efren at the casino, and he will most likely drop into One Side tomorrow also.
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John can rob those guys at Banks if they will play. I've played both of them and came out okay. Only 1000p a game, so not a big bet. That old guy Bert is a lifetime pool hustler and a damn good one. I offered to play him some Banks and he passed, just smiling at me. I'll be back in 3 weeks and I'm looking to play. You can get a rematch Mr. Roy, a little One Pocket action. :wink: I'm an old pool hustler myself and not afraid to admit it.
 
Roy Steffensen said:
Well, I'm not spending much time in the poolhalls, in fact I didn't even bring my own cue this time. I don't play pool anymore, even though I just played Lolong a cheap set for 1000 pesos with a housecue :)

Not much to tell about talents. To be honest, things have changed, dramatically it seems like, since my first visit here in February 2007.

In 2007 there were lots of tournaments going on around the world, with the biggest of them, the 2006 and 2007 World 9-ball going in Manila, plus many other tournaments. In 2008 there were two billiard organisations here who put up maybe dozens of national tournaments with $10000 first prize, and during these years Philippines sent many players to international events.

This attracted lots of players and lots of backers, and much money was changing hands in the poolhalls.

Since 2006 the IPT died, World 9-ball quit, the World Ten Ball in Manila stiffed/delayed payments, pool got bad rep it seems like, cause now there are very few top players around playing the game from day to day like before. Fewer Filipinos is also sent to international events. Even Efren skipped US Open and DCC two years ago.

In 2007 Django, Efren, Alcano, Orcullo, Gomez, De Luna etc were all at One Side, playing eachohter for 10 000 - 200 000 pesos a match. Those matches doesn't excist anymore, or are atleast very rare to happen.

Now the players who are just below these guys plays all the time, for 500-5000 pesos a match, and sometimes 15000-25000. The top guns stay away, and most of the backers have moved on. Maybe they practise on daytime, but the days of daily moneymatches between worldchamps seems to be gone.

It is still more than enough challenges for anyone who wants, there are lines of players eager to take on any white guy arriving, but I have to admit it was more fun playing moneymatches when you had players as Efren, Django and Alcano doing the same on the table next to you.

I will still recommend One Side and Manila for anyone who would like to improve their game, I'm just saying it is not what it used to be, and that I'm happy I was here three times during 2007 and 2008, when it most likely was at it's best.

Both pooladdict and Jay Helfert have been here a lot since 2006, so I would like their inputs on this. Maybe I have the wrong impression.
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Yeah the big games have almost dried up, unless Manny Paquiao is around. :wink:
When Shane comes to town everyone shows up too. He takes on everyone! A good player can still get a game, the backers are out there!
There are lots of 5-10,000p games though with foreign players from all over taking on filipinos. I can always get action there for Banks or even One Pocket. I play the third echelon players, who are still pretty good.
 
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