Your man in Manila

jay helfert said:
Round trip air to Hong Kong approx 1K. From HK to Manila about 250 RT. Deals can vary from month to month and based on advance purchase.

Today is moving day at the WPC. 64 continue and 64 go home (or go to One Side). Only about two dozen certain yet. The rest of the spots are still up in the air. This is a tough format with the small groups.
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Thanks for the trip costs.

A couple of questions about the WPC, ONLY IF YOU HAVE THE TIME. It sounds like you are quite busy and having a great time.

How are the players selected and who does the selecting?
Where (and when) will the WPC be held next year?


Thanks,
JoeyA
 
Colin Colenso said:
Didn't realize that was you Jay. I did enjoy the commentary. Jerry's been doing a great job throughout.

The only thing to improve is the pronunciation of the Chinese player's names.

Here are a few tips:
'Name' : 'Approx Sound'

Xu Meng = Shoe Mung
Li He Wen = Lee Her Won
Yang = Young
Wang = Wung
Chao = Chow
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Real nice Colin, if Jay gets one-up on the other commentators about the pronounciation of the players names, he is sure to be in demand in the future.

Hearing your name getting butchered is second only to an ass-whipping on the field of green. :-)

How do you pronunce "gukehua"? (Or is that a first name and a last name). YOu can PM so we don't hijack this important thread.
JoeyA (had both)
 
nice commentating on the orcullo-davis match, jay. that one was for the books. this format really is bringing a lot of drama to the tour, wouldn't you think so?
 
Hi Jay,

Seeing as your in the comm box now, great work BTW, can you ask some of the ESPN Star Production staff on news of the IPT ESPN Star broadcast deal?

Thanks!
 
Jay,
Good work on the Davis v Orcollo match. You sound like 30-40yo btw.

I did like your reply when Jerry saw the sleeping toddler, saying 'I wish that was me' and you replied, 'With the girl you mean?'

I thought you were gonna say 'Laying in that girl's lap?' but you kept it clean:D

Colin
 
Colin Colenso said:
Jay,
Good work on the Davis v Orcollo match. You sound like 30-40yo btw.

I did like your reply when Jerry saw the sleeping toddler, saying 'I wish that was me' and you replied, 'With the girl you mean?'

I thought you were gonna say 'Laying in that girl's lap?' but you kept it clean:D

Colin
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That was the last match of the night and final match of the group rounds, ending at 1:30 AM. I talked to Steve afterward in the hotel bar. He knew he only needed 7 games to go thru. After he reached seven, he made a couple of errors and "let" Orcollo take the match. It effectively shut out Nyugen from Viet Nam who was sitting tableside.

That is the problem with this group format. There will always be the possibility of players not trying so hard at the end, because they are already advancing to the next stage. There were several matches like this, most notably one that caused Efren to get thru and Tony Crosby to get knocked out.

The only way around it that I see is to eliminate the Group stages altogether and make it a Single Elimination 128 man board. The promoters do not favor this because it means a player may travel great distance at great expense to play one match.

Other questionable matches included the loss by Jerome Pena to the Prince of Brunei. And Francisco's match with the Prince on TV had to be pulled after a few games because Busty was giving him games. It looked BAD! There is talk that someone in the Brunei contingent is paying these guys off to dump games. He has a 36 person entourage here, and is treated like royalty by all present.

I'm all for the guy tho. He is a LEGITIMATE billionaire. Not like some pretenders we have seen lately. Pool needs a few more Princes to fall in love with the game. He can play a little, about C+ to B- speed. With proper coaching and hard work, he could become a decent B player. If I can ever get past his four bodyguards I may have a chat with him. You know me, I'll talk to an elephant if I think it will help.

Chapter One
 
jay helfert said:
That was the last match of the night and final match of the group rounds, ending at 1:30 AM. I talked to Steve afterward in the hotel bar. He knew he only needed 7 games to go thru. After he reached seven, he made a couple of errors and "let" Orcollo take the match. It effectively shut out Nyugen from Viet Nam who was sitting tableside.

That is the problem with this group format. There will always be the possibility of players not trying so hard at the end, because they are already advancing to the next stage. There were several matches like this, most notably one that caused Efren to get thru and Tony Crosby to get knocked out.

The only way around it that I see is to eliminate the Group stages altogether and make it a Single Elimination 128 man board. The promoters do not favor this because it means a player may travel great distance at great expense to play one match.

Other questionable matches included the loss by Jerome Pena to the Prince of Brunei. And Francisco's match with the Prince on TV had to be pulled after a few games because Busty was giving him games. It looked BAD! There is talk that someone in the Brunei contingent is paying these guys off to dump games. He has a 36 person entourage here, and is treated like royalty by all present.

I'm all for the guy tho. He is a LEGITIMATE billionaire. Not like some pretenders we have seen lately. Pool needs a few more Princes to fall in love with the game. He can play a little, about C+ to B- speed. With proper coaching and hard work, he could become a decent B player. If I can ever get past his four bodyguards I may have a chat with him. You know me, I'll talk to an elephant if I think it will help.

Chapter One
Click to expand...


I also met Yen Makabenta yesterday. The name is not familiar to you but it should be. He is the man most responsible for bringing the WPC to Manila. He raised the necessary sponsorship monies to make it happen. Very nice man and a tremendous supporter of Pool in the Philipines. He is also talking about perhaps a second big International tournament to be held here. I'll say more about this when the time is right.

I will say this though. The Philipine people are gracious, kind and friendly to a fault. At first you are taken aback by their outgoing nature until you realize it is sincere. So un-American, I love it. And it very inexpensive to visit here. Like I said earlier, your money has about five times the value here as in the US. I have a nice hotel room for $40 a night. Eat good meals for two or three dollars, take cab rides for a dollar or two,

The other very important unsung hero of this event is an expat American named Ted Lerner. It was his dream to bring the WPC to the Philipines and he worked for two years to put all the pieces together. The story is a long one, but suffice to say that if not for Ted, this event would not be happening here. He is a great guy, with a fun loving personality. And he is doing TV commentary for the Philipine feed of ESPN Star.

Chapter two
 
BlowFish said:
He goes by the nick CuyCuy here. I hope it's him. It says so in the sig. :)
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After the matches we all head for the Hotel bar (with a pool table). I sit and talk with the Director, George Green. He is a big fun loving guy, unlike some of the uptight directors I've worked with in the states. When they first put my name on the screen it was spelled Hay Helfert. He went a little ballistic until I said on air, "You can call me Jay, you can call me Ray, you can call me Hay". He started laughing over the headset, and we had fun after that little miscue.

John MacDonald, the world's best arena anouncer came in with two filipino lovelies. What a guy! Did I tell you the girls are beautiful over here. Good thing I'm so busy. Righhhttt.

The girls wanted to shoot pool and the guys wanted to watch. Yeah, that's what I'm talking about. Steve Davis joins us and tells the story about how he and I end up at the same table at the World Series this year. Only difference is he went on the finish 537th in the field of of 8,713. He won 20K by the way.

More to come
 
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jay helfert said:
After the matches we all head for the Hotel bar (with a pool table). I sit and talk with the Director, George Green. He is a big fun loving guy, unlike some of the uptight directors I've worked with in the states. When they first put my name on the screen it was spelled Hay Helfert. He went a little ballistic until I said on air, "You can call me Jay, you can call me Ray, you can call me Hay". He started laughing over the headset, and we had fun after that little miscue.

John MacDonald, the world's best arena anouncer came in with two filipino lovelies. What a guy! Did I tell you the girls are beautiful over here. Good thing I'm so busy. Righhhttt.

The girls wanted to shoot pool and the guys wanted to watch. Yeah, that's what I'm talking about. Steve Davis joins us and telles the story about how he and I end up at the same table at the World Series this year. Only difference is he went on the finish 537th in the field of of 8,713. He won 20K by the way.

More to come
Click to expand...

I had two pale dry Pilsner (one over my limit) and promptly got toasted. Pretty soon Steve announces that Jay knows a bunch of trick shots. What a guy. So I show the girls a couple of little fun easy shots and they are delighted. Now I tell Steve I'm going to teach him a shot I taught Efren many years ago. He's all eyes.

It's a good little One Pocket shot where the object ball is frozen to the point of the corner pocket. You double kiss it in and play shape for the other balls. I set it up, and Steve shoots it right the first time. Damn! Ok smart guy, I got one for you. I set up two frozen balls on the spot, in line. Make the second balll straight in the corner if you're so good. He tries a few times and can't do it. It's nearly impossible if you don't know the trick. I make it the first time and Steve's eyes get as big as saucers.

I'm not going to tell you how here, but if you ever see me and ask about this shot, I will show you.

That's all for now.
 
jay helfert said:
Just came from the TV booth after working a match with Jerry Forsythe. We started out with Engert and Van Corteza, but got switched over to Alex P. vs. Kun Lee from China. This match determined who went thru. Good match, went hill-hill and Lee made a great break, dropping two balls and leaving a wide open table. He cleaned up and sent Alex to the sidelines.

The Chinese are coming up big here. Filipinos started with 21 players and the Chinese had 16. Looks like they will both have 9 (possibly more) in the final 64. It looks like I'll get more time in the TV booth. I enjoyed working with Jerry. It was our first match together and it felt like we had done this many times before.
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Hi Jay, Pablo here... Were you commentating the Lee - Pagulayan match this morning, CST?
BTW, great posts, I've enjoyed the reading.
 
Jay!!! I was at Rack N Roll delivering some cues yesterday at about 5pm. I headed down to OneSide, left my car and took the 5 minute walk, and played a few with Joe Gonzales and Gene while having a few brewskies with Gene. Bobby Hunter split a couple of sets with another visitor and he and Joe promptly retired back in their hotel. I took Gene home at 3am after winning a bill (US$100) on a side bet on the next table and waiting for his take home food.

I'll catch you at the venue later and we can also do lunch tomorrow at the fresh seafood market. Catch you ater.
 
jay helfert said:
... John MacDonald, the world's best arena anouncer came in with two filipino lovelies. What a guy! Did I tell you the girls are beautiful over here. Good thing I'm so busy. Righhhttt.

The girls wanted to shoot pool and the guys wanted to watch. Yeah, that's what I'm talking about...
Click to expand...

Yeah, right..... you have 2 Filipina lovelies.... :D

Filipino = Guy
Filipina = Gal
Filipino Lovelies = Gay
 
jay helfert said:
That was the last match of the night and final match of the group rounds, ending at 1:30 AM. I talked to Steve afterward in the hotel bar. He knew he only needed 7 games to go thru. After he reached seven, he made a couple of errors and "let" Orcollo take the match. It effectively shut out Nyugen from Viet Nam who was sitting tableside.

That is the problem with this group format. There will always be the possibility of players not trying so hard at the end, because they are already advancing to the next stage. There were several matches like this, most notably one that caused Efren to get thru and Tony Crosby to get knocked out.

The only way around it that I see is to eliminate the Group stages altogether and make it a Single Elimination 128 man board. The promoters do not favor this because it means a player may travel great distance at great expense to play one match.

Other questionable matches included the loss by Jerome Pena to the Prince of Brunei. And Francisco's match with the Prince on TV had to be pulled after a few games because Busty was giving him games. It looked BAD! There is talk that someone in the Brunei contingent is paying these guys off to dump games. He has a 36 person entourage here, and is treated like royalty by all present.

I'm all for the guy tho. He is a LEGITIMATE billionaire. Not like some pretenders we have seen lately. Pool needs a few more Princes to fall in love with the game. He can play a little, about C+ to B- speed. With proper coaching and hard work, he could become a decent B player. If I can ever get past his four bodyguards I may have a chat with him. You know me, I'll talk to an elephant if I think it will help.

Chapter One
Click to expand...

Jay,
I heard about a year ago??? that the Prince of Brunei played about Tony Watson's speed and likes to gamble but due to religon and public perception refraines from "one on one" tournaments in your opinon does he really play that far away from champion speed? I do consider Tony Watson a champion especially when he is clean, focused, and practicing (he never is, is, and does) What would the prince need from someone like Santos 10 ahead 9ball on a shimmed Diamond? If you talk to him or his contingent please rave about Derby City. I think this year may bring out a lot of high profile non pool playing gamblers like years past (Tony Stewart, Josh Arieh, Corey Liddle, Amarillo Slim, Ben Affleck, Tobey McGuire, etc.) I am planning to go and organize a nice mixed Pot limit and No limit poker game to draw action. I wonder if a room would be big enough to set-up a poker table and spread a nine-handed mid to high limit mixed game.
 
huckster said:
Jay,
I heard about a year ago??? that the Prince of Brunei played about Tony Watson's speed and likes to gamble but due to religon and public perception refraines from "one on one" tournaments in your opinon does he really play that far away from champion speed? I do consider Tony Watson a champion especially when he is clean, focused, and practicing (he never is, is, and does) What would the prince need from someone like Santos 10 ahead 9ball on a shimmed Diamond? If you talk to him or his contingent please rave about Derby City. I think this year may bring out a lot of high profile non pool playing gamblers like years past (Tony Stewart, Josh Arieh, Corey Liddle, Amarillo Slim, Ben Affleck, Tobey McGuire, etc.) I am planning to go and organize a nice mixed Pot limit and No limit poker game to draw action. I wonder if a room would be big enough to set-up a poker table and spread a nine-handed mid to high limit mixed game.
Click to expand...

They had a poker table set up in a room last year. Had a game every night.

The Prince isn't in the same zip code as Tony Watson. You got the wrong info. Must have been from his personal PR man.

Spoke to Dennis O. early today. He did not play Chao this year. He has played him in years past and beat him. His biggest game was for $600 with Yang from Taiwan. Dennis won. I was sitting with him and Corey. Corey asked him who the best player in the US was, and Dennis said you Corey.

The only money games he lost were to Corey playing Eight Ball and Tony Chohan drilled him in One Pocket. Just worked the Busty-Engert match and Francisco seemed out of sorts. Not to happy about the 40K the IPT owes him. Corey is owed 50K and Dennis 66. They want to get paid and forget about the IPT. Corey said he would never play another IPT event even if he got paid.

Looks like I may get to do the Orcollo-Reyes match. Too cool, what a first round match-up.
 
jay helfert said:
That was the last match of the night and final match of the group rounds, ending at 1:30 AM. I talked to Steve afterward in the hotel bar. He knew he only needed 7 games to go thru. After he reached seven, he made a couple of errors and "let" Orcollo take the match. It effectively shut out Nyugen from Viet Nam who was sitting tableside.

That is the problem with this group format. There will always be the possibility of players not trying so hard at the end, because they are already advancing to the next stage. There were several matches like this, most notably one that caused Efren to get thru and Tony Crosby to get knocked out.

The only way around it that I see is to eliminate the Group stages altogether and make it a Single Elimination 128 man board. The promoters do not favor this because it means a player may travel great distance at great expense to play one match.

Other questionable matches included the loss by Jerome Pena to the Prince of Brunei. And Francisco's match with the Prince on TV had to be pulled after a few games because Busty was giving him games. It looked BAD! There is talk that someone in the Brunei contingent is paying these guys off to dump games. He has a 36 person entourage here, and is treated like royalty by all present.

I'm all for the guy tho. He is a LEGITIMATE billionaire. Not like some pretenders we have seen lately. Pool needs a few more Princes to fall in love with the game. He can play a little, about C+ to B- speed. With proper coaching and hard work, he could become a decent B player. If I can ever get past his four bodyguards I may have a chat with him. You know me, I'll talk to an elephant if I think it will help.

Chapter One
Click to expand...


Jay, are you accusing JharomePena and Busti of dumping games against the
prince? For how much? :D

You could be mistaken or you could right. It's ALLLLL about the Benjamins! :D
 
Tarantula said:
Hi Jay, Pablo here... Were you commentating the Lee - Pagulayan match this morning, CST?
BTW, great posts, I've enjoyed the reading.
Click to expand...


Hey Buddy. Yes, that was me.
 
jay helfert said:
Hey Buddy. Yes, that was me.
Click to expand...



Jay, you got 40 minutes to chat before the Reyes/Orcolo match starts.
Are you doing the commentating? Who's with you?
 
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