In 1983, Reyes took on Pepito Dacer in the finals of the Philippine Professional Pocket Billiards Championships which was played in rotation.
The finals was played in race-to-39, and the players played 11 racks on a weekly basis.
On the seventh week of play, Reyes defeated Dacer 39–32.
During the 1980s, when Reyes was considered a top-class player in his homeland but not yet internationally recognized, he went to the U.S. to hustle.
Reyes claims to have earned $80,000 in a single week, making him a folk hero back in the Philippines.

Reyes began winning a number of tournaments in the United States, Europe, and parts of Asia, garnering attention and recognition worldwide.
At the start of his career, he used aliases such as "Cesar Morales" to hide his identity so he would be allowed to compete.
Reyes became internationally known at the U.S. Open 9-Ball Championship in 1994.
Having finished third in 1985, he defeated Nick Varner in the finals and became the first non-American to win the event.

Two years later, Efren Reyes and Earl Strickland were chosen to compete in an event, named after the recently released The Color of Money movie.
The event was a three-day race-to-120 challenge match of nine-ball.
It was held in Hong Kong, with a winner-take-all prize of $100,000.
Reyes won the match 120–117 despite being 17 racks behind, to win the largest purse in any professional pool event of all-time.
In 1999, Reyes won the first televised 1999 World Professional Pool Championship.
At the time, the tournament was not recognized  by the World Pool Association, who ran their own event, they later acknowledged the event was an official world championship.
In 2001, Reyes participated in the 2001 Tokyo Open, with over 700 partipants and a total purse of ¥100 Million ($850K).
Reyes dominated the event, beating Niels Feijen in the finals 15–7, earning ¥20M ($170K) first prize.
At the time, this was the biggest first prize in a pool tournament.

Reyes won the 2002 International Challenge of Champions, defeating Mika Immonen in a deciding rack.
He reached the final of the 2004 WPA World Eight-ball Championship, where he met Marlon Manalo in the final.
He trailed 0–4, but won eight straight racks, and won the final 11–8.
The win made Reyes the first player to win WPA world championships in more than one discipline.

Reyes won the 2005 IPT King of the Hill eight-ball Shootout, which offered the highest top prize of any pool event to that date – $200K. In the final, he met Mike Sigel in a best-of-three sets match, winning 8–0 in the first set and 8–5 in the second.
That following year, Reyes won the IPT World Open Eight-ball Championship over Rodney Morris 8–6, earning $500K—a larger sum than that he earned at the King of the Hill event.
However, due to IPT's financial problems, he has not been able to claim this sum.

He partnered Francisco Bustamante to represent the Philippines at the inaugural World Cup of Pool.
They reached the 2006 final, where they met Earl Strickland and Rodney Morris representing the United States.
They won seven consective racks to win the final 13–5.
He also won the 2009 event once again partnering Bustamante.
The pair met the German team of Ralf Souquet and Thorsten Hohmann in the final and won 11–9.
Reyes is the most successful player at the Derby City Classic, having won the overall championship on five occasions.
In 1983, Reyes took on Pepito Dacer in the finals of the Philippine Professional Pocket Billiards Championships which was played in rotation. The finals was played in race-to-39, and the players played 11 racks on a weekly basis. On the seventh week of play, Reyes defeated Dacer 39–32. During the 1980s, when Reyes was considered a top-class player in his homeland but not yet internationally recognized, he went to the U.S. to hustle. Reyes claims to have earned $80,000 in a single week, making him a folk hero back in the Philippines. 
Reyes began winning a number of tournaments in the United States, Europe, and parts of Asia, garnering attention and recognition worldwide. At the start of his career, he used aliases such as "Cesar Morales" to hide his identity so he would be allowed to compete. Reyes became internationally known at the U.S. Open 9-Ball Championship in 1994. Having finished third in 1985, he defeated Nick Varner in the finals and became the first non-American to win the event.
Two years later, Efren Reyes and Earl Strickland were chosen to compete in an event, named after the recently released The Color of Money movie. The event was a three-day race-to-120 challenge match of nine-ball. It was held in Hong Kong, with a winner-take-all prize of $100,000. Reyes won the match 120–117 despite being 17 racks behind, to win the largest purse in any professional pool event of all-time. In 1999, Reyes won the first televised 1999 World Professional Pool Championship. At the time, the tournament was not recognized  by the World Pool Association, who ran their own event, they later acknowledged the event was an official world championship. In 2001, Reyes participated in the 2001 Tokyo Open, with over 700 partipants and a total purse of ¥100 Million ($850K). Reyes dominated the event, beating Niels Feijen in the finals 15–7, earning ¥20M ($170K) first prize. At the time, this was the biggest first prize in a pool tournament.
Reyes won the 2002 International Challenge of Champions, defeating Mika Immonen in a deciding rack. He reached the final of the 2004 WPA World Eight-ball Championship, where he met Marlon Manalo in the final. He trailed 0–4, but won eight straight racks, and won the final 11–8. The win made Reyes the first player to win WPA world championships in more than one discipline.
Reyes won the 2005 IPT King of the Hill eight-ball Shootout, which offered the highest top prize of any pool event to that date – $200K. In the final, he met Mike Sigel in a best-of-three sets match, winning 8–0 in the first set and 8–5 in the second. That following year, Reyes won the IPT World Open Eight-ball Championship over Rodney Morris 8–6, earning $500K—a larger sum than that he earned at the King of the Hill event. However, due to IPT's financial problems, he has not been able to claim this sum.
He partnered Francisco Bustamante to represent the Philippines at the inaugural World Cup of Pool. They reached the 2006 final, where they met Earl Strickland and Rodney Morris representing the United States. They won seven consective racks to win the final 13–5. He also won the 2009 event once again partnering Bustamante. The pair met the German team of Ralf Souquet and Thorsten Hohmann in the final and won 11–9. Reyes is the most successful player at the Derby City Classic, having won the overall championship on five occasions.
Efren Reyes