How a novel concept is changing the culture of pool in the Philippines and creating champions in the process.

By Mike Panozzo
Photos by Taka Wu

It's 7 pm and the Marboys are seeking comfort and familiarity in the hot, dry dessert night of in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The six players — Johann Chua, James Aranas, Jeffrey Ignacio, Bernie Regalario, Jefrey Roda and Patrick Gonzalez, along with “Boss” JR Velasco, have just arrived from Manila for the World Pool Championship in the Saudi Arabian city on the Red Sea, fresh off an 11-hour flight, a three-hour layover and another three-hour flight.

While other arriving players settled into their hotels, freshened up and headed to the Green Hall arena to shake off jetlag and get in some practice, the Filipino contingent has opted to ease into the sport's biggest-ever 9-ball event by eschewing table time for decompression and camaraderie in the form of some home cooking and karaoke.

It's a Marboys thing.

And so, with Filipino legend Alex Pagulayan in tow, the group climb into a few cars and head to a nondescript commercial area just south of the Jeddah airport. In the corner of a horseshoe-shaped building that has seen better days, through a ground floor storefront and up a creaky metal circular staircase, the group enters the tiny Batangas Soup and Grills, a Fiipino oasis in the Middle East. They are greeted by the restaurant's owner, who welcomes them in their native Tagalog language.

For the next two hours the group, gathered around a long table draped with a white plastic tablecloth, will eat, laugh and sing. They'll slip on clear plastic gloves (no cutlery here) and savage oversized seafood boodle trays, packed with shrimp, mussels, crab, corn on the cob and rice.


(Clockwise from left) Chua, Ignacio, Regalario, Roda and Aranas are part of the group of stars waving the Marboys flag on the international pool scene.

Following dinner, it doesn't take long — nor does it require much effort — for Velasco and Pagulayan to coax Ignacio to the microphone, where be belts out a trio of Filipino hits. The others roar with laughter, sway with the rhythm and sing along.

It is an evening better suited to the end of a tournament than the beginning, but this is the Marboys and everything about this group is different.

And the difference starts with Velasco, a 40-year-old businessman whose enterprises include a resort, catering business and real estate, and whose political science and diplomatic affairs background led to his working as a campaigner and strategist for former Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte prior to his election in 2016.

In fact, Velasco didn't even play pool until 2019 and started a “pool club,” a group of amateur players in Paranaque City, a wealthy urban city south of Manila, who traveled from one poolroom to another to play. They called themselves the Marboys, a tag that blended the names of a former poolroom (“Marbles”) and popular bar (“Cowboy Grill”).

After the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered poolrooms and limited the club's ability to play, Velasco decided to open a room and called it Marboys, a 5,000-square-foot, two-story room with six tables on the main floor and five on the second floor. Like most commercial businesses in Paranaque City, Marboys was bright, clean and modern, with top-tier equipment, a sophisticated atmosphere and even air conditioning. In short, it was nothing like the crowded, rundown poolrooms customarily showcased in social media videos of gambling matches in the Philippines.

“It was like playing in the U.S.,” Velasco says, while sipping coffee in the lobby of the Holiday Inn in Jeddah. “The first player to walk in during our soft opening was Carlo Biado. He really liked the room and started to play there from time to time. Of course, others would stop and watch him play.


Marboys “bosses” Paringie (top center) and Velasco (far right) are fully invested in players like (l-r) Chua, Aranas, Regalario and Roda (bottom).

“Jefrey Roda was already part of the group and was playing there,” Velasco adds, “but he was mostly still a snooker player then.”

When Velasco met talented then-17-year-old Bernie Regalario, who was also from Paranaque City, he invited the budding star to play at Marboys.

“Bernie had the talent, but he never played international tournaments or against top players,” Velasco recalls. “So, we started inviting all the top players — other than Carlo — to come and play Bernie. Bernie beat everyone until Anton Raga came in. It was even after 20 racks. Raga eventually won but Bernie realized what it was going to take to get to the next level and compete internationally.”

But the idea of creating an official Marboys team — a specific group of players training, practicing and competing as a team — didn't come to fruition until James Aranas found his way to the club.

“I met James shortly after he was banned from returning to the U.S.,” Velasco says. “At that time, he was really lost. He said he wanted to come and play Bernie. And after he played, he sat down beside me and asked me about sponsorship. I like that about James. He had the courage and took the initiative to sit down and listen to me and ask questions. He told me that Johann (Chua) had asked him about the World Pool Championship that year (2023). “He said, ‘Boss, send me to the World Championship.' I said, ‘Okay.'”

“He was the one who gave me the idea to send players to events.”

Aranas finished 17th in the event in Poland, but Velasco's Marboys logo was on an international stage.

“I was shallow back then,” Velasco laughs. “He was disappointed, but I got to see my logo on TV.”

After Aranas received an invitation to Matchroom's World Pool Masters, Velasco decided not only to sponsor Aranas' trip, but to join him in London. And Velasco's friend, Marvin Paringie, who was listening in on the conversation, asked if he could chip in to support the trip and join the journey as well.

“It wasn't about making money,” Velasco insists. “We just wanted to give this kid a chance. I could see that James is a good guy.”

What Velasco couldn't see was that the 2023 World Cup of Pool would help create the foundation for what was to become the official Marboys team.

In London prior to Aranas' opening round matchup with reigning World Champion Francisco Sanchez Ruiz of Spain, the trio stopped in a betting parlor, where the Spaniard was a 4-to-1 favorite.

“I asked James, ‘Can you beat FSR?' Velasco remembers. “And James said, ‘Yes.' He wasn't nervous at all.”

Velasco decided to bet all the money he had in hand. The cashier asked why we were betting so much on this underdog. He even asked if Velasco knew the player.

“This guy right here is my player,” Velasco told the clerk. “The guy ended up Googling James' name. I think he ended up betting on him, too!

“I told James, ‘Just win this first match. It will show you belong and this stage and then we will go shopping for your wife and kids.'”

True to his word, Aranas defeated Sanchez Ruiz. They then loaded up on Aranas before his next match against Wiktor Zielinski of Poland and won again.

“We had already won more than $6,000 from our bets and had $10,500 guaranteed for reaching the semifinals.”

Aranas lost to eventual champion Pin Yi Ko in the semis, after which Velasco and Paringie hired a driver and whisked Aranas to a one of the U.K.'s most popular designer outlet shopping centers — Bicester Village — for a full-fledged eight-hour shopping spree.

“The driver had an Audi A8,” Velasco says, “and the trunk was completely full with packages.”

“I didn't realize that Marboys would grow so big from this event,” Aranas recalls. “At first, it was just a pool hall. When they came and supported me in London, I thought, ‘Wow!' That was amazing. That was the start.”


The Marboys are well represented in youth, with young guns (clockwise from bottom left) Gonzales, Asis, Roda and Regalarios.

Flush with money and confidence, Marboys sponsored Aranas and Chua, who had been invited to represent Team Philippines in the World Cup of Pool.

“They were going to the Spanish Open first and would have to stay in Europe for a week ahead of the World Cup,” Velasco says. “I said, ‘We have the money. You can go.'”

Sure enough, Aranas and Chua sailed to victory in Lugo, Spain, collecting $60,000 as the winning team.

And how is the money split? Unlike typical stakehorse arrangements, Velasco insists the Marboys model is altruistic.

“This is not about the money for me,” he explains. “Marboys is about the culture of the players and the team. This is about providing them opportunity and pride and bringing honor to the Philippines. It's about tournaments and exposure. It's about helping them grow and become successful and provide for their families.

“Our deal with prize money,” Velasco goes on, “is that the expenses we paid out gets covered first. Half of the remaining money goes to the player(s) and the other half goes into the Marboys pot for future events and team expenses. And after the World Pool Masters and World Cup of Pool, we had a good pile of money for the Marboys to do more as a team.”

“They're not stakehorses,” Aranas concurs. “They saw what they could build. I really feel like I'm part of a team. And it's not just top players. It's helping young kids who are coming up. Marboys is helping players achieve dreams.”

True to the Marboys philosophy, Velasco was now able to add Marboys teammates Regalario and Marvin Asis to the Hanoi Open field in Vietnam. Suddenly, Marboys was relevant as a brand.

“We were sending these players to events and people took notice,” Velasco says. “People started calling me to talk about the players. Sponsors started to contact me. And I tell the promoters, ‘Just send the invites. We'll send the players.'”

And when Velasco says, ‘We'll send the players,' he's talking gift wrapped. Velasco handles the visa process and travel documents for the players, including plane tickets and hotel reservations. He has provided lawyers when needed and has a secretary to keep paperwork organized.

“All they have to do is shower and play,” Velasco laughs.

As Velasco chats, he's interrupted by Aranas, who asks about buying a takeaway meal to bring to Ignacio, who will be playing later that evening. Velasco gives him the okay and tells him to charge it to the room or use the Marboys credit card.

“These guys all take care of each other,” Velasco points out.

Velasco also handles the team's social media, always promoting the players and looking for media exposure for them, in part because increased notoriety and awareness aids the visa process.

The assistance is invaluable to young players like Regalario, Roda (24) and Asis (24), who might lack the knowledge, connections and money to manage international travel on their own.

“Traveling around the world to tournaments is no joke,” understates Aranas. “There are so many things you have to think about and take care of. Now, Marboys does this for us.”

“They help us for nothing,” Chua says with a modicum of astonishment. “We can just relax and practice and get ready to play. It's amazing. I hope the young players appreciate this. Not a lot of players will get this opportunity in the Philippines.”

Currently, the Marboys stable includes the six players who played in Saudi Arabia, as well as Asis. Hong Kong's Robbie Capito and Indonesia's Alvin Anggito, who often train in the Philippines, are considered ceremonial Marboys. Biado and women stars Rubilen Amit and Chezka Centeno are also Marboys regulars.

According to Velasco, becoming an official Marboy is based on more than just talent. And acceptance comes with rules and understanding.

“The most important thing to me when talking to these young players is character,” Velasco says. “I always tell them, when you lose money, you lose nothing. When you lose character, you lose everything. Never lose your name. When you lose your integrity and your name is tarnished, you lose everything.

“A lot of young players in the Philippines now want to be part of Marboys. But it's not that simple. I tell the players they are role models, and they have to act a certain way. Kids want to be like you. You can inspire people who are struggling. That's why you have to take good care of your name. You have to be responsible because you influence a lot of people.”

Velasco's biggest influence through Marboys may well be his insistence on ethical behavior in a nation with a long and sometimes questionable gambling reputation.

“My number one policy is that you can't be a habitual gambler,” Velasco says. “I'm not talking about money games. I'm talking about gambling like baccarat and cock fights. Betting on things. You have to provide for your family. If someone is staking you, that's one thing. If you're gambling with the money that is supposed to go to your family, to your kids, then no.”

One player who tested the Marboys strict ethics policy and lost is promising 21-year-old Kyle Amoroto, who was part of the contingent representing Marboys in Saudi Arabia. In early August, however, Amoroto was dropped from Marboys for allegedly rigging several matches, including one at Marboys.

“I was able to confirm improprieties,” a clearly disappointed and disheartened Velasco said in a recent streaming video from the club. “It was game fixing, and it was done here in Marboys.

“We take great pride in our brand,” Velasco added. “The culture here is very important. I want to change the culture of pool in the Philippines. A lot of parents won't let kids play pool because of the way they see it in the Philippines.

“We want to change that, but to make champions who inspire others, you have to play in international tournaments and see what the level of play is around the world. You can't just sit in the Philippines and play money games.”

“Before Marboys, I'm just playing money games,” says the baby-faced Regalario, who still lives at home in Paranaque with his parents and three younger siblings.

“There was no real purpose. JR said, ‘Come to Marboys. We will help you.' Now, I go every day. They are like my second family. And I learn from all the players there.

“Marboys is always there for me,” he adds. “Everyone helps each other. I've never seen anything like this. I feel like I have a future. JR teaches us about more than pool. He tells us how to be a good person. We talk about the future of pool. I know they will help me become a successful person in the future.”

The changing culture is evident in many ways with the Marboys, right down to their shoes. Velasco insists they dress sharply and in uniform, all wearing black pants and black shoes. In fact, Velasco outfitted the team with new Cole Hahns before the trip to Saudi Arabia.

“You have to respect the game,” Velasco insists. “You can't expect people to look up to you if you don't look the part. They need to see pride and success.”

For the Marboys, the World Pool Championship, with its $1 million purse and $250,000 top prize was the perfect testing ground. And both the team and fellow Filipinos acquitted themselves quite well.


Daily practice sessions among the team members is paying dividends, with Aranas (top), and Regalario (bottom) producing solid results in WNT events.

Both Chua and Ignacio placed in the top eight, with Chua reaching the semifinals and Ignacio reaching the quarterfinals. Teammates Gonzales (17th), Aranas (33rd) and Regalario (33rd) reached the final 64. In all, the Marboys collected nearly $90,000 in prize earnings. Also repping the Philippines, Raga reached the quarterfinals and Lee Van Corteza finished 17th.

During the matches, teammates could be seen gathered tableside wherever another Marboy was playing. And a healthy contingent of expats routinely cheered the players on and remained in the stands after matches for photos with the heroes.

“Filipino pride is big all around the world,” says Chua. “They support us everywhere we go.”

“There is nothing greater than representing our country,” adds Aranas. “It means so much. When I'm old, my kids will see that I was part of the history of representing Philippines.”

All the Marboys point to Velasco as more mentor than benefactor or coach.

“JR is more like a life coach,” Aranas qualifies. “He always gives us financial advice and talks about how we need to treat our families. Also, he always asks us what we're going to do with our money. That's important, especially for the young players. They need someone to guide them. There are so many good players in the Philippines, but they have different priorities. It's more about instant money that is gone tomorrow. We are learning to build our name and our team and our future.

“Take someone like Bernie,” Aranas adds. “He's lucky because he's growing with Marboys. He's with the right people. We can guide him and share our experiences so he can avoid going in the wrong direction.”

“I just want to give more Filipinos a chance in life,” Velasco says. “I love being part of their journey and their success. That's where I get paid back. That's where I get my satisfaction. Even in their failures because when the chips are down people reveal their true character. I will always be at their side as long as the stay focused and passionate.”

As a bonus, Velasco has a seasoned, mature player like Chua in the Marboys stable, a model of the team's philosophy on display for his contemporaries to follow. In fact, Aranas credits Chua with steering him in the right direction through Marboys.

“I've known Chua for 17 years,” says Aranas of a lifelong friendship that also included the 31-year-old Gonzalez, a fierce longtime money player who is just now dabbling in international tournaments. “Chua is like a brother for me. He's very mature. I'm 32 and Chua is 31, but I think of him like my older brother. I'm the one from the ‘other' circle. He dragged me to be in Marboys and do things the right way. He never gives up on me. I've made many wrong decisions over and over, and he never quit on me. He keeps pushing me to change myself. He said he will show me how. Jeffrey Ignacio and I are the same. We made money and threw it away. Now, we try to follow Chua. He said, ‘I hope when you're 40 we have stability and not have to rely on going to the poolroom all the time.'”

“I like being the big brother for them,” responds Chua, who would follow up his World Pool Championship with runner-up finish at the WNT European Open. “I tell them that anything they need to know about pool or life, I'll listen to them. They know that. I'm very close with James and Jeff.”

From a business and branding perspective, Marboys presents a unique opportunity, the success of which could well result in more independent “pro teams” — teams not tied or beholden to national federations.

“We are getting to the point where companies want to sponsor the brand, the whole team,” notes Velasco, who now counts Rasson and TP Chalk among the team's sponsors. “Some of the players have personal sponsorships for cues and things like that. But the Marboys brand is becoming a real thing.”


Aranas (left) and Chua are the leaders of the Marboys pack, having delivered the Philippines a World Cup of Pool championship in 2023.

Velasco is quick to point out that while he fields and negotiates the contracts on behalf of the team and players, he and Paringie don't make commissions or agent fees from the contacts.

“The things I do are personal investments made from my various businesses.”

Velasco has high hopes for Marboys' future, although he is cautious in walking before he runs.

“At some point, we want to send every Marboys player to every event,” he says. “The players put in the time and the practice. They all deserve the chance. And we'd like to start sending junior players to the junior events, so they get experience in international tournaments. It will be great for them to travel with the team.”

The Marboys model is sure to be closely watched in coming years, although it will be difficult to duplicate.

“We are family,” Velasco points out. “It's not about money or sales. It's about being a better person through sport. We don't even have contracts with the players. Everything here is a handshake.”

In the end, the goal of the Marboys is simple: help create champion players both on and off the table.

“I think we will produce a world champion and a U.S. Open champion soon,” Velasco boasts. “But the most important thing will be to see these players gain fame and fortune and put both to good use.

“I want them to be champions, but I want to see them with their own cars and houses and providing for their families. That is our goal.”

 

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