No one expected that in just a moment, the entire Tokyo audience would explode when Efren “Bata” Reyes – the living legend of Philippine billiards – unleashed a shot that no one dared to believe was real. The person opposite him, the young Japanese player nicknamed “Slingshot”, famous for his fast – strong – precise style, was completely “frozen”, blushing and almost falling off his chair because he did not understand what had just happened.
The incident took place within the framework of the 8-ball 2025 Asian Friendly Tournament, held in Tokyo this week. This is a tournament that aims to connect the region’s top players, attracting a large number of fans to the field as well as hundreds of thousands of people watching live via livestream.
Before that “once-in-a-lifetime” shot, the Japanese Slingshot was showing great confidence. He continuously pressed and created pressure with high-speed shots, making the home audience cheer with excitement. Many believed that Efren Reyes, at the age of 70, would have a hard time standing firm against his opponent’s youthful energy and ferocity.
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But then, in just one moment, the tables turned completely.
Faced with an almost impossible situation – the cue ball was stuck close to the rail, and the target ball was in a tricky position – the entire audience held their breath. People waited for a safe save, or a concession of the game.
But Efren Reyes chose an unexpected approach:
He gently turned the cue,
made a fake slablay,
then suddenly threw a dangerous backspin that sent the cue ball through the narrow gap, hit the double rail, then turned back… and hit the target ball straight.
A “click” sounded, and the target ball fell neatly into the pocket.
The audience exploded. Filipino fans screamed, Japanese fans held their heads, and “Slingshot” blushed, froze for a few seconds, then slumped down in his chair in disbelief.
That moment was quickly captured by many fans. Just a few hours later, the video appeared all over TikTok, Facebook, and YouTube with hundreds of thousands of views with the hashtag #EfrenMagic.
Comments on social media exploded:
“I watched it 3 times and still don’t understand how the ball went!”
“This isn’t billiards anymore, this is table magic!”
“Slingshot falling off his chair was the best moment of the tournament!”
Even some Japanese sports newspapers had to report with shocking headlines:
“Efren’s magical shot petrifies the home player.”
Immediately after the match, some veteran players were interviewed:
Alex Pagulayan, Efren’s compatriot, commented: “I’ve played with Efren all my life, but I’m still fooled by his shots like that.”
Nobuyuki Oei, a veteran Japanese player, admitted: “Slingshot plays well, but against Efren, experience and magic are the deciding factors.”
Many fans have called this Efren Reyes’ “secret move that has never been revealed.” Although it was just a friendly match, that moment will certainly go down in history as the most memorable shots of the “Wizard” of the Philippines.
At the age of 70, how many “secret moves” does Efren Reyes have yet to unleash?
And does the Japanese “Slingshot” – who once confidently challenged the legend – still have the courage to ask for a rematch?
No one expected that at an age when many other legends have chosen to retire and enjoy their old age, Efren “Bata” Reyes, known as the “Wizard of Billiards”, could still make the world bow. Last night, in an exhibition match as part of a friendly tour in Europe, Reyes faced off against a promising young star from Germany.
What few expected was that this match would become an earthquake in the billiards world, when thousands of spectators at the stadium stood up and screamed in shock at what happened.
Reyes’ opponent in this match was a young player known as the “rising star” of German billiards. He is famous for his powerful, confident style of play, and often causes a storm in European youth tournaments. Before the match, many spectators believed that age was a big burden for Reyes, and he would have difficulty with the excitement of a young, energetic opponent.
Right from the first turns, the German star showed his passion. He launched decisive shots, scored continuously and quickly took the lead. The atmosphere in the stands at that time was filled with excitement, many young German fans started to cheer early, believing that they were about to witness an icon being defeated.
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However, they were wrong. Once Reyes started to “hold the cue seriously”, nothing could stop him. Despite being over 60 years old, Reyes still maintained his composure and his ability to “read the table” far beyond that of ordinary people. Every ball of his seemed to follow a trajectory that only he could see.
In an important turn, the German star revealed a difficult situation, the cue ball was stuck in a dead corner that seemed impossible to save. Everyone thought Reyes would have to accept defeat in that turn. But no! With his sharp eyes and decades of experience, Reyes executed an extremely dangerous kick shot, sending the cue ball to the ice and then turning it back with incredible precision, breaking the situation and opening a divine sequence of cues.
The audience immediately exploded! Hundreds of people stood up, screaming nonstop. Some German fans held their heads, unable to believe that such an impossible situation could be turned into a work of art by Reyes.
While the audience was screaming, the young German player’s face showed shock. He stood rooted to the spot, eyes wide open, mumbling a few sentences that the stage microphone recorded: “Das ist unmöglich! (Impossible!)”. The image was immediately captured by the camera and broadcast on the big screen, causing the entire stadium to explode once again.
Reyes remained calm, smiling gently as usual. To him, it was just a normal shot. But to the audience, it was a miracle right before their eyes. Each of Reyes’ next swings was incredibly accurate. From a losing position, he turned the situation around spectacularly, ending the match with endless cheers.
Immediately after the match ended, short clips of Reyes’ “magic shot” appeared everywhere on Facebook, TikTok and YouTube. Within hours, millions of views were recorded, accompanied by a series of comments like:
“He is not an ordinary person, he is a real wizard!”
“We just witnessed a historic moment in billiards.”
“The young German player is too young to compete with Reyes.”
Many fans even compared this shot to the classic highlights of Reyes’ career, affirming that age cannot overshadow his natural talent.
Last night’s event once again made fans exclaim: “Age is just a number, a legend is forever a legend.” Reyes not only won the match, he also captured the hearts of the audience with his unique playing style – gentle, artistic but full of power.