Manny Pacquiao has given up in the round-of-32 at a pool tournament being held in Davao City as part of the celebration of “Araw ng Dabao” under the auspices of Mayor Rodrigo Duterte.
According to reporter Romy Sabaldan of the government radio station in Davao, Pacquiao was being badly beaten when he decided to call it quits.
Sabaldan told Manila Standard in a long distance telephone conversation that the pool tournament was part of a whole range of sports events being held to celebrate the city’s anniversary. The semifinals and finals would be staged at the newly constructed NCCC Mall some 4 km from the urban center.
Pacquiao was playing in division C where the top prize is reportedly a mere P7,000.
Sabaldan said Pacquiao, who won his first two matches in the 128-player field at the Boy Cherry Billiards Hall, abandoned his match after being down 1-5 in the race-to-nine against tournament organizer Freddie Garcia because he had another appointment. However, Sabaldan said Pacquiao has been doing roadwork in the morning and working out in the afternoons and was “playing billiards as a form of relaxation.”
