Filipino cue artist Dennis Orcollo has hired legal counsel in his bid to fix his visa issues after being denied entry into the United States last week.

According to Orcollo, he flew to the US and landed at the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) on January 2 but was refused entry on arrival. He was sent back to the Philippines the following day.

"I have been blessed with wonderful fans and a successful career, and being able to travel to the United States has been a big part of that. I do not take that for granted. It has been my honor to represent the Philippines in the United States," Orcollo said in a message to GMA News Online.

"I have deep respect for the laws of the United States and was very surprised when I was recently refused entry into the United States because I really did not understand the officer's decision."

Orcollo is back in the Philippines and is currently working to fix his visa issues in order for him to continue competing in the States.

"Through my wonderful supporters in the United States, I have now hired legal counsel who has explained to me why the officer may have had the impression that I was doing something wrong," he said.

Orcollo is a decorated professional pool player.

The 42-year-old athlete boasts four gold medals and one bronze in singles division of the Southeast Asian Games while he copped one gold and one bronze in doubles.

He also has one Asian Games gold plum after ruling the 2010 singles edition.

Recently, Orcollo reached the semifinal round of the 2021 US Open Pool Championship but ultimately fell to Aloysius Yapp of Singapore. Yapp was then defeated by another Philippine bet Carlo Biado, who went on to win the title.

"I am fortunate to have much support in the United States and in the Philippines, and with that support, we are actively working on a solution to fix this misunderstanding, so that something like this will not happen again in the future," Orcollo added.

"Again, I thank you all for your support and good wishes. I wish everyone a happy and successful New Year and look forward to continuing to compete for the Philippines worldwide once my U.S. visa situation has been resolved."