What started as a way to earn some extra money became this student-athlete’s opportunity to seek glory.

Long before he became a UAAP juniors tennis champion, Aser Laurence Delos Santos was just a “pulot boy” at a local tennis court in San Francisco, Agusan del Sur — learning the sport with makeshift wooden rackets and equipment given by peers who saw potential before he fully understood it himself.

Now 17 years old, he returns to the same province — not as a local hopeful, but as an NCR representative in the Palarong Pambansa, carrying a UAAP championship and a journey that began on the very soil he once called home.

Delos Santos was introduced to tennis at six years old by his older brother, Junel Canal. He initially picked up balls during games and would later train with him.

“Tinuruan ako ng kuya ko, when I was six years old. Nagapulot-pulot pa lang ko dira sa tennis court.”

(My older brother taught me when I was six years old. I was just picking up balls on the tennis court back then.)

But even then, he had no proper equipment to fully enter the sport.

At first, he trained with makeshift wooden rackets until friends stepped in to help him continue playing and improving.

“Gihatagan rakog mga gamit sa ako mga amigo tong nagasugod pako,” he said.

(My friends gave me equipment when I was just starting out.)

Those small acts of support became the difference between stopping and continuing.

And he made sure not to waste them.

Delos Santos said he experienced pressure and criticism during training while growing up, alongside financial struggles at home.

“Daghay pressure, daghay criticism sa ako during training, nga di daw ko matured mudula, di daw ko kabalo mudala sa ako dula,” he said.

(There was a lot of pressure and criticism during training, that I wasn’t mature enough to play, that I didn’t know how to handle my game.)

But instead of pulling him away, it pushed him deeper into the sport — seeing tennis as both an opportunity and a responsibility.

In 2021, while competing in a tournament in Medina, Gingoog, University of the East tennis head coach Roel Licayan noticed his potential.

“Nakita ko ni coach [Roel Licayan] sa isa ka tournament sa Medina, gichattan dayon ko niya the following year para kuhaon ko sa UE, full scholarship,” he said.

(I was discovered by coach in a tournament in Medina, he messaged me the following year to recruit me to UE, full scholarship.)

The opportunity was life-changing, but not immediately easy for his family to accept.

“Lipay kaayo ko kay wala nay gasto akong ginikanan sa pagskwela sa akoa, nagduha-duha pa to sila ug sugot kay bata pa daw ko,” he said.

(I was very happy because my parents no longer had to spend for my studies, but they were hesitant because I was still young.)

In the end, he took the leap.

“Gipatunayan nako sa ila na di nako bata, and I grabbed the opportunity kay sayang man pud,” he added.

(I proved to them that I’m not a kid anymore, and I grabbed the opportunity because it would’ve been wasted.)

Under University of the East, Delos Santos developed into a championship-caliber player.

Training became more intense, more demanding, and more exhausting.

“Grabe namog training ato, kakuyapon nami ato na training,” he said.

(Our training back then was intense, we were always exhausted.)

In his first UAAP season, he delivered immediately — winning the juniors tennis championship and earning Doubles MVP honors.

“First entry namo to sa UAAP, wa ko nag expect na muchampion,” he said.

(It was our first UAAP stint, I didn’t expect we would become champions.)

But before his UAAP success, Delos Santos went through setbacks on the national and regional stage.

“First palaro nako sa Marikina sa 2023, Caraga pa ako girepresent ato and wala mi naka podium,” he said.

(My first Palaro was in Marikina in 2023 when I still represented Caraga, and we didn’t make it to the podium.)

In the years that followed, he continued competing and settled for silver medals in regional meets, failing to qualify for the Palaro.

After those back-to-back near-misses, he made a key decision in his career — transferring to University of the East for senior high school.

Each attempt brought him closer, but not yet there.

Now competing in the Palarong Pambansa in Agusan del Sur, Delos Santos returns home representing NCR — a contrast that defines his journey.

He plays on familiar ground, in the same province where he first picked up the sport, but now shaped by Manila training and a UAAP championship.

“Mao jud ni gihatag ni God sa akoa na opportunity,” he said.

(This is truly an opportunity given to me by God.)

From a “pulot boy” around the courts of Agusan del Sur to a UAAP juniors tennis champion now donning NCR colors on the very ground where he first learned the sport, Aser Laurence Delos Santos is back on familiar territory, but not as the boy who once picked up what others left behind, but as the player others now look up to.