Only a handful of Filipinos have left an indelible mark in the history of sports. Once their names are mentioned, it becomes synonymous to greatness in that sport: Gabriel "Flash" Elorde and Manny "The Pacman" Pacquiao in boxing, Efren "The Magician" Reyes in billiards and a man whose legacy in his sport needs no moniker. He is simply known by his regular nickname: Paeng.
Little did the then 11-year-old Rafael Nepomuceno know that a brief rainstorm during a junior golf tournament he was competing in would redefine not only his future, but the history of the sport as it is known today.
In what many believed to be mere urban legend, Nepomuceno and his father Angel sought shelter from a sudden downpour at the Camp John Hay golf course in Baguio City and finally managed to stay dry at the Mile Hile Bowling Club. During the stoppage, the young Paeng saw bowling for the very first time.
"I really got into golf early and I was really passionate about it," said the 62-year-old bowling icon. "When we were waiting for the rains to stop, I got to witness bowling for the first time and I was initially curious. Eventually, I became interested."
Paeng, whose family resided in Quezon City at the time, got beginner's lessons at a nearby Coronado Lanes and four years later won his first title in the 1972 Philippine Open for the Junior Masters event.
"I started out using a rubber ball," Nepomuceno recalls. "I also used a plastic ball for several years. I won my first World Cup using a plastic ball. Not very many people believe that story."
In 1976, Paeng, who had just turned 19, went on to achieve his first of three Guinness World Records by becoming the young champion of the Bowling World Cup held in Tehran, Iran. That record stands to this day. His other two records are having won the World Cup in three different decades and the most number of championships won by a bowler-now updated to 132 after coming out of "retirement" last December and winning the 2019 PTBA Open Bowling Championship in the Mixed Open Masters category in July.
He could have won his 133rd in the recently concluded Bowling World Cup National Finals but had to settle for second place behind new Philippine bowling protégé Merwin Tan. Had Paeng won that, he would have set a few more records of sorts.
"If I had won, it would have meant that I qualified for the (Bowling) World Cup in five different decades," he said. "And if I would have gone to Palembang (Indonesia-the site of this year's edition), I'd be gunning to be the oldest world champion."
Remo Fornasari of Italy still holds that distinction when he won the 1987 edition in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia at the age of 51.
Nepomuceno wasn't even supposed to be competing in the Bowling World Cup National Finals. His name was not among those seeded-since he was allegedly retired-and decided at the last minute to join the tryout process "just for fun".
"I really had not been practicing consistently so just for fun I joined with everyone else," he shared.
From going through the three-day grind, Nepomuceno managed to survive a shaky start on the final day and finished as the second seed, defeating national team member Paulo Valdez in the semifinals and coming within five pinfalls shy of "upsetting" Tan, who was the top seeded defending champion, in the first game of the finals. The 20-year-old Tan went on to dominate Nepomuceno in the second game and book his second straight entry to the World Cup after representing the Philippines last year in Las Vegas, Nevada.
"Merwin (Tan) is special," he said. "I really haven't raved about a young bowler in awhile but he's going to be a big name in the sport."
But during Nepomuceno's epic run in the National Finals, fans were treated to the same enthusiasm, competitiveness and energy he has displayed in his 51 years in the sport. He still swayed with the pins as they were dropping, he still pumped his fist after an emphatic strike and still took every shot as if it were the one for the win. Trademarks that had endeared him to aficionados for decades.
However, age, a number of surgeries on his left wrist and an "empty nest" ultimately led to the decision to finally step away from being immersed in bowling, even from being one of the coaches of the national team.
"Our children have all gone their separate ways already," he explained. "Being involved in the sport on this level usually makes me come home late. I really wanted to spend more time with my wife (Saira "Pinky" Puyat) and also get the chance to relax more now that we have an 'empty nest'."
Nepomuceno is now going to take on more of an advisory role as opposed to being one of the main coaches of the squad in its preparations for the upcoming Southeast Asian (SEA) Games this December.
"(Coaches) Biboy (Rivera) and Jojo (Canare) have been doing a great job with the team," he said. "I'll be more of an adviser to them from now on."
With his decision to stay in the background nowadays, Nepomuceno is still the larger-than-life figure that has been hailed as a bowling luminary not only in the Philippines, but all over the world.
"When Paeng walks into an international event, people would still stop what they're doing to welcome him and give him respect," Pinky Nepomuceno, Paeng's wife of 36 years, shared. "Even the younger bowlers know who he is because the ones that he went up against before are all coaches now and still tell stories of Paeng. That's his impact."
Losing to Tan last Friday appeared to be the proverbial passing of the torch from Nepomuceno to the next generation. Many, including Nepomuceno himself, see Tan as the budding heir apparent.
"He's only starting to learn how good he is," he said.
Paeng Nepomuceno, the shy, soft-spoken former junior golfer from Quezon City who went on to be a six-time world bowling champion, will forever be known as one of the greatest athletes in Philippine history. His legacy encompasses being the youngest world champion to garnering 132 crowns to being the only Asian to be certified by the United States Bowling Congress (USBC) as a Gold Level Coach (only one of 25 in the world today). He even has a statue at the entrance of the International Bowling Hall of Fame in Arlington, Texas.
Despite all the accolades, Nepomuceno still maintains his low-key demeanour and his desire to keep proliferating the sport.
"I encourage all youngsters and even the not so young to get in sports, and also try bowling," he said. "In bowling, we don't need height or speed to be successful. All that's needed is to be open to learning. I believe that the Filipino can truly excel. Anyone can do it."