S’pore pool ace Aloysius Yapp looking forward to break after helping Team Asia retain Reyes Cup

SINGAPORE – Having been away from home for eight out of 10 months in 2025 to compete in Vietnam, Bosnia, Taiwan, England, Indonesia, the US and China, Aloysius Yapp was feeling burnt out as he had a similarly hectic 2024.

But, just as winning the inaugural Reyes Cup with Team Asia in the Philippines in 2024 helped him turn a corner and unlock his winning streak, Singapore’s top pool player is hoping that retaining the Reyes Cup on Oct 19 will provide him with another timely boost.

The 29-year-old told The Straits Times: “It definitely feels sweet to win it back-to-back for (Filipino pool legend) Efren Reyes and our captain Francisco Bustamante.

“After all the travelling, I am quite burnt out. But this tournament gave me a bit more energy and spirit to play again.

“Last year, they gave me pep talks to give me more belief and help me enjoy playing the game more, and it’s similar this year.

“With the format, I had teammates pushing and motivating me. We all had quite a bit of fun in competition and in practice, and it kind of lifted the pressure off me a bit.”

Comprising World Nineball Tour (WNT) world No. 2 Yapp, Filipinos Carlo Biado (3rd), Johann Chua (4th), Albert Manas (66th) and Vietnam’s Duong Quoc Hoang (23rd), Team Asia made it back-to-back titles.

They registered an 11-3 thumping of Team Rest of the World consisting of Russian-American Fedor Gorst (1st), German Moritz Neuhausen (7th), Spaniard Francisco Sanchez Ruiz (11th), Briton Jayson Shaw (17th) and American Skyler Woodward (27th).

Modelled after the Europe v United States Mosconi Cup, the Reyes Cup features doubles and singles matches, with the first team to reach 11 points winning. The 2024 edition saw

Team Asia beat Team Europe

11-6.

While there are no ranking points, each of the winning players pocketed US$20,000 (S$25,900), and those on the losing team took home US$10,000 each.

Yapp contributed five points in the dominant win through singles, doubles and team events.

But he reserved praise for 18-year-old Manas, who evolved from captain’s pick to Most Valuable Player as he recorded a nerveless singles victory over Gorst and played some sterling pool.

He said: “Manas is really fearless and he doesn’t let the occasion affect him. He just plays his game and does his thing. He probably can still improve in his safety game, but he is definitely one to watch for the future.”

For Yapp, victory represented an extension of the purple patch he has enjoyed in the last 12 months. He won the International Open in November 2024 and UK Open in May, before an awesome August when he clinched the Florida Open, US Open, Formosa Cup Taipei Pool Open and Anti-Drug Cup.

But, even as Team Asia partied with the partisan home fans at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium, Yapp was busy fiddling with his equipment to find the best fit.

Over the last few tournaments, he had experimented with new shafts and butts and adding weights to his cue, but in the end, he may revert to the set-up that helped him become the first player to

win three consecutive WNT majors.

With a laugh, he said: “I used a different set-up for the first two days and didn’t get to shoot much. But with the cue that I used at the UK, Florida and US Open, I shot so much in the last two days and my luck was so good, I don’t think I should change it.”

For now, Yapp is making a conscious effort to give himself a much-needed break as he skips the Oct 21-25 Philippines Open, even if it means he could be overtaken by Biado in the WNT rankings.

After returning home on Oct 20, he will remain in Singapore to recharge and practise for about three weeks before he flies to Florida to defend his International Open crown in November.

He said: “I also need to rest and spend time with my family. It’s been a very long time since I last hung out with them.

“I’m really looking forward to eat all the local food, and top of my list is definitely chicken rice.”