The game played in dirt-floor pool halls with bumpy tables in thousands of little towns has provided an escape route from the grinding poverty endured by millions.

Though competition is ferocious from places like Taiwan and China, the Philippines is today the only country with a man and woman shooter in the top five of the World Pool-Billiard Association rankings.

“If you miss that shot, you might not eat,” said Ted Lerner, a US-born journalist who has made a life in the Philippines, summing up the pressure they play under.

It means the Philippines will be well placed for the billiards, pool, snooker and carom events at the Southeast Asian Games, starting in and around Manila this week, where 10 gold medals are on offer.

Perhaps the best example of the Philippine tradition is Efren ‘The Magician’ Reyes, a former world champion in both eight- and nine-ball pool and considered one of the best to ever pick up a cue.