Veteran snooker ace Jimmy White was in Pattaya recently where he gave up his time to play against local pool and snooker enthusiasts at different venues, and all for charity.
Players paid 1000 baht to take on the ‘Whirlwind’ at four bars across the city for the Father Ray Foundation educational fund. This was hot on the heels of a press conference announcing a high profile snooker event that will take place in August 2015 which will also raise funds for Father Ray.
Jimmy has a long affinity with Pattaya and recently purchased a unit at the Palm Condo, so for him Pattaya is like a second home and is a familiar and friendly face around town.
Jimmy White plays for the side pocket in one of his many charity games played last week to raise money for the Father Ray Foundation.
On Sunday the 7th of September Jimmy first played a number of regulars at the Sportsman Bar where 13,840 baht was raised.
The following night Jimmy played at the Kilkenny Bar on LK Metro where a further 20,660 baht went into the pot.
On Tuesday he ventured out by Mabprachan Lake to the very popular Brasshouse where things started to get a bit crazy. 68,000 was pledged to play Jimmy, then there was an auction for a signed snooker cue which went for 51,000 baht, which was then doubled by a generous guy making it 102,000 for the cue – so a total of 170,000 baht was raised.
Jimmy Deakin from the Brass House and his lovely wife present Jimmy White with flowers as a small token of appreciation.
And finally, on Wednesday the 10th Jimmy went to a small bar off of Soi Khao Noi which used to be called the Golden Gate but recently changed hands and has been rebranded as The Dukes Lounge. 26 players took on Jimmy raising 26,000 baht. This was followed by a raffle which made 5,400 baht, which Jamie Saunders from the Dukes Lounge and Jimmy Deakin from the Brasshouse doubled to make it 31,400. An auction followed that raised a further 22,000, and finally, to top it all off, some very generous donations of 42,000 made a total of over 126,000 baht for the night.
In an exclusive interview with PMTV Jimmy stated that some of the most competent opponents were Thai women who play a lot of pool and are confident and determined.
Jimmy also stated that for him it was a pleasure to be involved in events like this and that he was amazed at the generosity of people.
Over the four nights, over 330,000 baht was raised for the Father Ray Foundation, a charity that is well loved here in Pattaya and that takes cares of over 800 children across its various communities. With Jimmy White’s help these children are promised a brighter future.
