jay helfert said:
Why am I not surprised? Like Ron said, this is the one way these kids have from escaping a life of poverty. They start very young, as soon as they can hold a cue. And play day and nite. Yes, no school, just the school of hard knocks. And it's true, there's always a bet. Maybe very small by our standards but significant to them.
They know that if they can win tournaments and become well known, they have a "chance" to get a visa, and travel abroad. Most of these kids will never leave the PI. It's very difficult to get a visa. Notice, only filipino champions seem to make it over here. Last time I was there, I played a couple of youngsters. One kid (about 18) rarely missed a ball, but had no clue about playing safe in Eight Ball. He quit after a few games and turned me over to the owner of the pool room (Pool Fusion), a Chinese-Filipino man. He was an excellent player, better than me. But I still held my own. I play good in spots like that, always have. I got out some nice racks and made him think twice.
You're right there on the money Jay.
In relation to your post this article came out.
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryId=117784
I don't necessarily agree that they should drop out of school,
but hey some of them are very successful even without enough
formal schooling.
Pinoy dropouts use billiards as passport to success
Unless you?re a master cue artist or an established superstar that tours the globe for international meets, billiards won?t likely be a lucrative sport for you.
But for three Filipino high school dropouts, it was billiards that became their passport abroad.
Ruben Cullar, 22, was only able to finish first year high school. Now, he manages a billiard center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
He admitted being hooked by pool games while he was still in school. This was the reason why he neglected his studies.
Cullar, however, said that failing to have a formal school degree didn?t stop him from going abroad.
The former dropout said that he has found that success has overshadowed his past failure because of his focus and enjoyment of the game.
Cullar?s friend, 23-year-old Roel "Iking" Aclao, said he started hanging around pool halls at 16. After that, he was employed to man a billiards shop in Cagayan de Oro for two years.
"Hanggang sa pakiramdam ko maganda-ganda na tira ko, pumunta na ko'ng Maynila," he said.
He said that before going to Manila, he became a billiard champion in the provinces at 17.
After years of working in Manila, he went to Bahrain to work at pool halls until his transfer to Saudi Arabia.
"Hindi na rin ako nagsisisi, kasi ito na ang buhay ko eh. parang tulad nina Efren ["Bata" Reyes], ?yung ganun na rin nung mga bata pa sila," said Aclao.
Paul John "PJ" Ortega, 24, has a similar background. He is now working in Saudi Arabia to finance his brother?s studies.
Ortega won pool titles in Bacolod City and Iloilo before working abroad. He landed third place at a billiards meet in Abu Dhabi last year.
"Ako na mismo ang nagdesisyon na 'di na ko mag-aaral. kasi nakita ko na may asenso ako sa bilyar. sinuportahan ako ng magulang ko, sabi nila kung ano ang gusto mo, nasa likod mo lang kami," he said.
Cullar, Aclao and Ortega are considered as strong contenders every time there are all-Filipino tournaments in the Middle East.
But despite the victories they have reaped, they conceded that education is still important.
They added that they are saving up to prioritize the education of their future chidlren.
