Sucal to face Augusto in Samboan

IN RESPONSE to public demand, the municipality of Samboan, Cebu, under the leadership of Mayor Emerito Emmanuel D. Calderon, will hold an exhibition match featuring one of the country’s rising young billiards players, Jaybee Sucal.

Billed as “Showdown in Samboan,” the 16-year-old Sucal from Sarangani will go head-to-head with veteran Cebuano cue artist Boots Augusto of Lapu-Lapu City on Thursday, Sept. 25, 2025, at 1:00 p.m.

“Actually, the original plan was Sucal against Efren ‘Bata’ Reyes, but Reyes had a prior commitment. So we decided to match him against someone from Cebu instead,” said Ramil Abing, one of the mayor’s trusted event organizers.

Abing, who collaborated with this writer and Allan Cortes of Jancor Billiard Hall to make the event possible, said the special match is part of the activities lined up for the town’s fiesta celebration.

To ensure a fair contest, Augusto will give Sucal a 9-10 handicap since he has more experience and a higher skill level in the sport.

“The people of Samboan are very excited. They’ll finally get to see their idol (Sucal) in person. The mayor also wants them to arrive early, as a lot of local players want to play against Sucal,” Abing added.

Team Sucal arrived in Cebu on Monday, Sept. 22, and is scheduled to travel to Samboan this Wednesday afternoon.

Augusto’s group will also be heading to Samboan from Lapu-Lapu City on the same day.

While in Cebu City, Sucal also played friendly matches against well-known Cebuano billiards players at Jancor Billiard Hall on V. Gullas (formerly Manalili) Street.

Among those he faced was Keane Rota, son of international cue artist Ismael Rota, who is now based abroad. / JBM