Francisco ‘Django’ Bustamante was born December 29, 1963 in Tarlac, Central
Luzon, Philippines. His sister ran a café next door to a poolroom there and early
on he became fascinated with pool, and the money changing hands, and the
seeming ease of both the pool and the money. He spent as much time as he could
in that poolroom, becoming a “spotter” racking the balls for tips during the day,
and practicing by himself late at night.
By the time he was 15 he was becoming the best local player, and it was not long
after that he started to travel to other parts of the country. For Francisco, like
many other talented young players in the Philippines, this meant a more
experienced manager was taking him around and making the games for him. His
backer would give him money when he won and he didn’t have to pay when he
lost. It wasn’t until he was older that he was making most of his own matches.
All that pool caused him to miss out on his formal high school education, which he
does not recommend to other young players.
“The only player who I admire is Efren Reyes. Personally, I have learned a lot from
him. In my opinion, Efren is the best player alive.” (Philboxing.com)
“I like action,” Bustamante said. “Gambling in pool makes you strong. It builds
your heart, your nerves, and you get the experience. … There are a lot of good
players in the Philippines. And everybody’s hungry.” (Pool & Billiard magazine
10/24/10)
Bustamante picked up the nickname Django as a teenager in the Philippines, from
the 1966 movie character.
In his 20’s a Filipino friend brought him to Europe for a tournament, and it was on
his way through Germany that he stumbled on “Rick’s Poolroom” in Kiel, where
the owner suggested he stay on and become the paid house pro there. It was a
different pool world from the Philippines, and he had to adapt his game from the
full rack Rotation he grew up on to 8-Ball, 9-Ball and Straight Pool. Suddenly he had a new home, a new pool scene, and the window to his international all- around pool success had opened.
Later still, he began competing in the US, and like many foreign players, the Derby
City Classic “all-around” format made him start taking One Pocket seriously.
According to his good friend and fellow One Pocket HOF inductee Alex Pagulayan,
Bustamante has a unique ability to see a shot once, and then make it his own,
which has been huge for both his One Pocket and Bank Pool games ever since.
Major One Pocket titles:
Derby City Classic 2018, 2019
Scotty Townsend Memorial 2020