Billiards
German champ Hohmann to play in Pacquiao pool tilt to meet idol
Thorsten Hohmann won his first major title in the Philippines last year.
But apart from coming back to the place of his greatest victory, the German cue artist’s return to Manila this December is special for another reason — meeting his idol Manny Pacquiao.
“He’s a big Pacquiao fan, and part of the reason he’s coming here to play is because of the people’s champ,” said Biboy Soriano, a personal friend of Hohmann.
Hohmann is one of several pool champions who have agreed to take part in the $60,000 Pacman International 10-Ball Cup, which gets underway on December 13 at the Star Billiards Center in Quezon City.
Last year, Hohmann won the Philippine Open Pool Championship, beating compatriot Ralf Souquet in the finals.
In the Pacman event, Hohmann will face a cast of crack competitors which include reigning world No. 1 and current world 8-ball title holder Dennis Orcullo, up-and-coming star Carlo Biado, and former world pool runner-up Roberto Gomez.
The three Filipinos’ participation has already been confirmed by Bugsy’s Promotions manager Perry Mariano.
Prizes in the Pacman Cup will be distributed all the way to the 24th placer. Entry fee is pegged at $200 and deadline for the payment of the entry fee is on December 12, according to tournament director Edgar Acaba.
Soriano said that several players from Europe want to participate in the Pacman 10-Ball Cup, but most of them are scheduled to play in major tournaments overseas.
“The Mosconi Cup is currently ongoing in Europe while another tournament is lined up for most of them in the United States,” said Soriano, who added that he’s also convincing another player – Hunter Lombardo – to play in the Pacman 10-Ball event.
