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Photo provided courtesy of Dan Meadows.

By a slim margin, Alex Pagulayan, IS the player to watch next year. This Filipino, originally from Manila, who smiles and laughs all the time, just turned 21 in June and became eligible to play on the Camel tour. With the full fields, Alex was only able to play in one event, where he placed 49th. He won one match and lost the other two hill-hill.

In one of Alex's two other Pro event appearances this year, he finished an impressive fourth at the BCA Pro 9-Ball Open at the Riviera in Las Vegas, and scored wins over such notable players as Buddy Hall, Allen Hopkins, Jim Rempe and Nick Varner. All this at the ripe-old age of 20!

Although he has only played in a handful of pro events, this doesn't mean that Alex has not been out there matching up with some of the best players on the road. Alex is known as a fierce money player. He was once asked about gambling and he smiled and said he couldn't get rid of his money. Said he tried over and over but just kept winning more. That's his style!

Alex's peers obviously know about this talented player with a great game; they voted him as the Player to Watch Next Year. Watch out world; watch out for Alex Pagulayan!

Players Votes Votes Player 18 Alex Pagulayan 14 Corey Deuel 5 Jeremy Jones

Fans Votes Votes Player 21 Alex Pagulayan 11 Corey Deuel 9 Jeremy Jones