A young artist from Pampanga paid tribute to his sports hero, Efren "Bata" Reyes Jr., gifting the billiards legend a portrait.

John Marko David Dadulo visited Reyes' residence in Pampanga to present a 34 x 24-inch charcoal portrait to "the Magician."

"Idol ko po siya magmula nu'ng bata pa po ako," Dadulo said.

"May bilyaran po kase ang mga lolo't lola ko dati sa likod ng bahay namin kaya lagi ko po naririnig pangalan niya hanggang sa mapanood ko po mga laro niya."

The 19-year-old artist is taking up Industrial Technology, majoring in graphics technology, at Don Honorio Ventura State University, Bacolor town. He will be shifting to an architecture course soon.

Reyes was delighted to see the portrait, Dadulo said.

"Nagpasalamat po siya at natuwa dahil sobrang laki po daw nu'ng artwork," Dadulo added.

It took the artist 2 months to finish the artwork because of the paper size and details he put into the portrait.

But when he saw Reyes appreciating his work, Dadulo said it was all worth it.

"Sobrang nakakaalis po ng pagod. Worth it lahat ng pagpupuyat du'n sa artwork. Wala po akong masabi nu'ng pinapakita ko po sa kanya yung artwork. Mangiyak-iyak po ako sa tuwa," he said.

Reyes is considered to be the greatest billiards player of all time.

He has won over 70 international titles, including the World 8-Ball Championship (4 times), the WPA World 9-ball Championship, US Open (3 times) and the World Cup of Pool (2 times).

Reyes is often referred to as "the Magician" because of his ability to do trick shots on the pool table.

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