Known as “The Magician,” Efren “Bata” Reyes is one of the world’s most famous pool player alive today. He holds the record of being the first non-American winner of the US Open Nine Ball Championship and the first player in WPA history to win world championships in two different disciplines. Efren was propelled to international fame after defeating the likes of Earl Strickland, Mika Imonem, Marlon Manalo, Mike “the Mouth” Sigel, and Rodney Morris. He’s been named the top earner in the pool industry by the AZ Billiards Money List on five occasions. Yet in spite of all that, Efren is yet to change his ways and act like a real celebrity entitled of the accolades and reverence due him.
Efren claims that he could see the game eight moves in advance. In order to be a good pool player, one has to quickly see probabilities. Efren’s strength is his analytical thinking and skill in calculating his shots. When others don’t see a way to make a good shot, Efren manages to find one and flawlessly executes it. He was called the magician for that very reason. For sheer talent and guts, he was named by the United States Billiards Media Association’s (USBMA) best player of the decade.
Nick Varner, the man he defeated in the 1994 US Open Nine Ball Championship only has nice things to say about Efren:
Efren Knows 