Sharks billiards’ advocacy

The ongoing Philippine 10-Ball Open organized by Sharks billiards and streaming online is a huge testament to one family’s lifelong advocacy to support pool. With over 400 players, this mammoth event is the product of dedication and expertise of father and son Perry and Hadley Mariano in re-energizing a sport that has been in the doldrums for the past decade. It all started when Perry was in college, and the forbidden lure of playing in smoky billiard halls became his favorite hangout.

“Even though our parents didn’t want us to go there, there was a lot of camaraderie,” says the elder Mariano, whose various businesses have made him a symbol for steadfastness in entrepreneurship in Quezon City. “We played, we had fun, we would tease each other. I have a lot of good memories with billiards.”

In the intervening decades, Mariano pioneered in organizing local tournaments and training local players to get fit for international play. He and well-known sportsman Putch Puyat became pillars of the billiards industry, with the latter personally supporting players who would travel abroad to compete for prize money and bring honor to the country. Their joint efforts paid off more than 20 years ago, when the likes of Efren Reyes and Django Bustamante inspired a generation of cue stick artists who dominated the world. At the onset of the new millennium, billiard halls multiplied several times in urban centers all over the country.

“It’s hard, but someone has to support the sport,” adds Hadley Mariano, an architect by profession. “Without local tournaments, players don’t earn anything. They don’t improve, and they can’t compete abroad. We feel a certain responsibility to get involved and help however we can.”

Billiards is not a live spectator sport. There are no large volumes of tickets to earn your investment back. After the heyday of the early 2000’s, Philippine billiards began to decline as local events waned. Many of the best Filipino players had no recourse but to leave the country to play overseas or teach Chinese, Japanese and European beginners, further strengthening their own rival nations. But now, streaming services and online betting have given billiards the potential to reach larger audiences and become self-sustaining through advertising and other revenue streams. So for close to a year now, the Sharks group has been using its resources to bankroll daily pro-am tournaments and special events as a non-profit endeavor. The online viewership has gradually grown. This has allowed several old and new players to earn a living and not need to gamble a fortune traveling to competitions. At its own expense, Sharks has also been flying in the best players in the world for one-on-one matches against the best Filipinos champions. The Philippine 10-Ball Open is the zenith of this yeoman effort of Perry and Hadley.

Luckily, in the coming months, all the hard work will start bearing fruit. Sharks has forged strategic alliances with Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte, a handful of sponsors, and politicians like Rep. Arnie Teves. And with a rapidly growing online viewership, Sharks will now get the recognition and support it fully deserves.