Alex "The Lion" Paglulayan
1978 - HOF
Alex Pagulayan of Toronto won the world pool championship early today, beating Taiwan's Pei-Wei Chang 17-13 to take the $75,000 top prize in the Nine Ball Tournament - The Toronto Star - 7/19/2004
Alton "Baby Face" Whitlow
Michigan state pocket billiards champ - The Morning News - 12/23/1937
Luther "Wimpy" Lassiter - "Babyface Whitlow" is still around Detroit. Doesn't shoot much, I don't think. Married a young girl and that was the end of him" - The News and Observer - 1/12/1988
Alfred M. "The Boy Poollist" Frey
1864- 1890
Albert M. Frey, "The Boy Poollist" as he is familiarly called, who took first prize of $200 ($6,000 in 2025$), was born in New York City" - Democrat and Chronicle - 3/11/1883
Alfredo de Oro
1862-1948 - HOF
The three cushion billiards champion at the turn of the century. He was the only one to hold both the billiards and pocket pool championships at the same time. - Daily News - 5/22/1966
Allen "Young Hoppe" Hopkins
1951 - HOF - One Pocket HOF
Holds 6 American or World 9-ball titles, a full time pool pro who spends 6 months each year on the road, claims a high run of 410 balls, given nickname by Mizerak - "I used to hustle all over the US, I've beaten everyone from here to California and back" - The Star Ledger - 2/4/1982
Allison "Duchess of Doom" Fisher
1968- HOF - WPB HOF
Allison Fisher, the top ranked player in the Women's Professional Billiards Association, beat 47 others to win her seventh national championship. Known as the "Duchess of Doom", England's Allison Fisher beat a field of famous players from around the world, including Jeanette Lee, the "Black Widow" in the semi-final bracket - Statesman Journal - 11/29/2007
40 years old - I've won 74 professional titles in the US, four World Championships and eight nationals. I've been player of the year 11 times out of the past 12 years. - Sunday Telegraph - 2/15/2009
Alvin Clarence "The Titanic" Thomas
1893-1974
While he was counting his money, someone asked Snow Clark (who he just beat out of $500) what his name was. "It must me Titanic, he sinks everyone" - Corpus Chrisi Times - 12/27/1972
Segments of his new book "Titanic Thompson" describes Thompson's killing of 5 men and his serial relationship with teen-aged girls, 5 of whom he married. And then there was a 8 months stay in Prima County, Arizona jail in 1954 for messing with a young girl when he was in early 60s - Albany-Democrat Herald - 1/16/2011
Andrew "Andrew Ponzi" D'Alessandro
1903-1950 - HOF
Ponzi became a proficient pool player at the time Charles Ponzi, notorious Boston swindler, was in the headlines. He won so many bets that friends dubbed him "Ponzi" and later he adopted the name professionally. - The Pittsburg Press - 4/12/1950
Anthony "Chef Anto" Riniiti
1969 -
A trained chef from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park - Times Record New - 2/20/2009
2 time national trick shot champion. I've been playing pol since I was 4 or 5 years old. My grandmother was a pool hustler. - The Sentinel - 2/23/2003
Archie "the Greek" Karas
1950-2024
In 1992, hard core Archie Karas drove into Ottawa with $50, and went on what is now known in Vegas legend as "the Run". After borrowing $10,000 seed money, Mr. Karas won more than a $1,000,000 playing pool" - The Ottawa Citizen - 2/5/2000
Arthur "Babe" Cranfild
1915-2004 - HOF
The Babe, a nickname he got as a child at his father's billiard hall frequented by Babe Ruth and other Yankee players - Daily News - 1/24/1965
In his career, Cranfield is the only player to win the National Junior, National Amateur and World Professional Pocket Billiards Championship titles. He won the Nation Junior at 15, the National Amateur in 1938 and in 1940 - The Post-Standard - 7/31/1997
Artie Bodendorfer
1946 - One Pocket Hall of Fame
The prize was a G note. Boston Shorty, 5 times world one pocket and 3 cushion champion vs Artie Bodendorfer, "Chicago's Best" - con artist - Chicago Tribune - 5/22/1974
Belinda Calhoun
1953 - HOF - WPBA HOF
During 29 years as a professional pool player, the Austin resident has won a US Open (1985), has been runner up twice, won the world's straight pool championship once, won four national grand slams - Austin American Statesman - 11/24/2006
Bennie Allen
1890 - 1953 - Bennie Allen, Kansas City, is now Pocket Billiards Champion, Alfredo Oro waited too long to make his sprint against Allen. - Brooklyn Eagle - 10/4/1913
Bill "Weenie Beenie" Staton
1928-2006 - One Pocket HOF
Staton was known for his endurance. His longest match was 56 hours, played against a high roller named Cleo Vaugn, in 1959. "We played one-pocket and after 43 hours we were even. I have to tell you that Cleo weighed about 200 pounds to my 140. I was in pretty good shape and the final 13 hours wore him down. We quit playing when he ran out of money" - Sun-News - 5/11/1998
Billy Joe "Cornbread Red" Burge
1931-2004 - One Pocket HOF - Bank HOF
Nationally, Red is probably rated in the top 10 or 15 in the hustling fraternity. He can't play 9 ball as well as Wimpy, doesn't shoot snooker so precisely as Handsome Danny, can't bank with the flair of Knoxville Bear. But he goes home with the money month after month, and that is something even the be can do sometimes - Detroit Free Press - 12/1/1968
Billy "Cardone" Incardona
1943 - One Pocket HOF
Billy "Cardone" Incardona, a lithe, sinewy, sharply dressed young dude from Pittsburgh who glides around the table like a ballet dancer, performing miracles with the cue ball - The World News - 8/28/1972
Buddy "Rifleman" Hall
1945 - HOF - One Pocket HOF
Nicknamed the "Rifleman" because he looks like Daniel Boone, toting a few extra pounds - The Palm Beach Post - 10/08/1992
Ranked 2nd in the world and winner of more than 50 major titles - The Tampa Tribune - 12/13/1997
Cecil "The LEft Duke" Tugwell
1944-2011
He was a match player. He traveled all over the country. In his most memorable match, he went to Detroit, and in a private gaming room operated by some fellas with shady backgrounds. His sponsor put up $100,000 with Tugwell getting $40,000 if he won. The match lasted 12 hours and he won - St. Louis Post-Dispatch - 10/19/1997
Charle "Missionary of Billiards" Peterson
1880-1962 - HOF
Peterson trained Willie Hoppe for many of his matches and undoubtedly taught him some billiards. Among his many medals and trophies, he proudly shows a watch that Willie gave him. He has often beaten Willie in exhibition matches. - St. Lous - Post Dispatch - 10/24/1909
Cisero Murphy
1935-1996 - HOF
Murphy the first Negro ever to win the World's Pocket Billiards Championship - The 29 years old New Yorker, was competing in his first World's Championship - The Van Nuys News - 3/7/1965
All the great players stroke the ball in one easy, grateful fluid motion. Cisero's stroke is broken down into two separate stages. The backswing is drawn back smoothly and than their is an intermediate pause followed by a smooth forward stroke - The World-News - 1/22/1973
Cliff Joyner
1961 - One Pocket HOF
The game of One Pocket drew Joyner, Rocky Mount, N.C. into the game. He recently won the U.S. Open One Pocket tournament in Kalamazoo, Michigan. "One pocket is more of a chess game. Its a lovely game when you figure it out" - The Paducah Sun - 9/5/1994
Dallas West
1941- HOF
Dallas West, currently the leading pocket billiards player in the US. This past summer he captured the most coveted championship in pocket billiards when he won the U.S. Open - Osage County Observer - 2/4/1976
Danny "Buffalo Dan" Diliberto
1935-2025 - HOF - One Pocket HOF
"It isn't our fault that we have to lay in the weeds and try to hustle someone. We're athletes and we can't get a game. We are honorable people" - Fort Lauderdale News - 6/18/1980
Danny (Dan) Medina
1951-2013
Medina has seen the violence, battled with the hustlers. Since 1976, he has been a member of the Professional Billiards Association and has only played in legitimate tournaments. "I used to play in Denver, where somebody would get shot every week" - Jackson Hole News - 8/15/1990
Danny "Handsome Danny" Jones
Handsome Danny and his traveling companion, Little Titanic, had just blown in from Canada. They explained that their tour had taken them to Montreal and Toronto and they returned with $3,000 in their pockets. - The Ottawa Citizen - 10/28/1967
Danny "Kid Delicious" Basavich
1978-2023 -
"Ha, smirked one of gentlemen who just watch the contest, "Kid Vicious" just got hustled by "Kid Delicious". He might not have come up with the moniker if it didn't look like Danny Basavich hadn't looked like he had just eaten Minnesota Fats - The Boston Globe - 1/20/2008
Darren "Dynomite" Appleton
1976- HOF
Ranked No. 1 in the world, by the World Pool-Billiards Association, most recently won the World 9-Ball Championship. He is the two-time defending US Open champ who is seeking to become the first player ever to win the title three times in arow.
David Matlock
1954 -
"Hustling is a thing of the past. Now pool is a sport, and it gets a lot more respect than it used to" - The Kansas City Star - 12/31/1992
Who carries a reputation of being the best bar table player of the world - Tulsa World - 3/5/1996
Dennis "Robocop" Orcollo
1979 - HOF
Dennis "Denny" Searcy
1946-2006
"I heard about his honesty before he came to Charlotte. " - "They respected him when playing him, and even feared him a little bit" - "If he won their money he would lend them some" - The Charlotte Observer - 4/24/2006
Don "Cincinnati Kid" Willis
1908 - 1984
He got his name when he was in a bar making a pitch to an unattended lady friend of the bar manager. When she didn't respond the bar manager whispered in her ear "That's the Cincinnati Kid who blows $5,000 on a roll of dice without batting an eye. The girl became friendly, and the name stuck. - The Monitor - 11/8/1985
Donny "The Cincinnati Kid" Anderson
1929-2015 - Bank HOF
Donnie "The Cincinnati Kid" Anderson is a favorite with some observers and especially with Donnie Anderson, who likes to describe himself as "probably the most jam-up banks player you'll see here this week" - Springfield News Sun - 3/14/1973
Dorothy "Cool Hand" Wise
1914-1995 - HOF - WPBA HOF
She not only won the first sanction BCA US Women's Open Billiards tournament in 1967, but repeated this accomplishment in 1968, 1969, 1970 and 1971. - Republican and Herald - 10/17/1974
Earl "The PEarl" Strickland
1961 - HOF
The player of the year in 1984 and 1985 - Reno Gazette Journal - 12/4/1986
The 33-year old, Earl Strickland, has been a force to reckon with in the Pro Billiards tour for more than a decade. He turned professional when he was 20 and promptly won his first tour title in 1982. He has since won the US Open three times (84, 87 & 93). Most recently he has won the 1994 World Nine-Ball Championship and finished ranked No. 5 in PBT rankings - Sim Valley Star - 3/26/1995
Ed "Detroit Whitey" Beauchene
4 years ago Newsweek magazine identified Whitey and Minnesota Fats as two of the world's greatest hustlers - St. Louis Post Dispatch 4/28/1966
Beauchene is also recognized as a World Champion Snooker player - The Item - 8/10/`75
Eddie "Fast Eddy" Parker
1932-2001
Eddie "Fast Eddie" Parker died of an apparent heart attack at the U.S. Classic Eight-Ball showdown in Texas - The Miami Heralds - 2/5/2001
A reading of his obituary - "Professional pool player who was inspiration for Paul Newman's role in the Hustler" - The Guardian - 3/17/2001
Eddie "Fast Eddie" Pelky
1895 or 1898 - 1983
Pelky made it into "Ripley's Believe it or Not" in 1938. He sank one of the 14 red balls off of the break in a game of snooker. Then, in succession, he pocketed the rest of the balls in between successful shots to drub a Florida hustler 118-0. Eddie - "I've played the best, I've played everybody except Minnesota Fats. Heck, Fats and Mosconi were wearing diapers when I was shooting pool" - The Times Leader - 2/23/1983
Eddie "The Knoxville Bear" Taylor
1918-2005 - HOF - One Pocket HOF - Bank HOF
Before tournaments were started, he remembered when groups of players just got together, sometimes as many as 50 and played each other. It was one of those gatherings in Hot Springs, Arkansas that he was tagged with the name "Knoxville Bear", and the name has been with him since. - The Shreveport Journal - 7/16/1969
Edward Ralph
Eward Ralph, of Hightown, NJ, tonight won the National Pocket Billiards Championship (the first straight pool championship) by defeating James Mature of Denver. Ralph, who is a newcomer in national championships, played a steadier game than his opponent - Buffalo Courier Express - 4/7/1912
Edwin "Champaigne Eddy" Kelly
1938 - HOF - One Pocket HOF
The man he backs happens to be, by general consensus, one of the five best players in the country and possibly the best all-around - Champagne Eddy Kelly, a tough, short Irishman, formerly of Waterbury, CT., more recently Las Vegas and a few points in between - The Miami Herald - 3/2/1972
Edwin Rudolf
1894 - 1957 - HOF
Efren "The Magician" Reyes
1954 - HOF - One Pocket HOF
Often called the "Magician" for his amazing array of seemingly impossible results - Pacific Daily News - 6/2/2007
Emmet "Blank" Blankenship
1892 -
Emmett Blankenship who signs "Detroit" after his name when he chances to come upon a hotel registry, who last Monday night won the pocket billiards championship of the world by emerging victorious in the open tournament in Chicago, is an Oklahoma product. The Daily Oklahoman - 3/24/1916
Erwin Rudolf
1894-1957 - HOF
17 years old wonder of Cleveland, OH is an added entry into the tournament. He has met and defeated some of the very best players - The Kansas City Post - 11/7/1916
Eugene "Cincinnati Clem" Metz
1931-2011 - One Pocket HOF
Metz convicted of conspiracy, (for transporting a 14 years old girl across state lines for prostitution - serving 2-5 years) US Attorney George Cline in summing up the government's case - Metz might have been taking her to Chicago to teach her how to play billiards. But it is the government's theory that this was not the purpose of the trip - The Kentucky Post - 10/3/1964
Ewa "The Striking Viking" Laurance
1964 - HOF - WPB HOF
Is a pioneer in the women's profession game. Ranked No. 1 in 1994, she is currently No. 6 (1998) - The Boston Globe - 4/22/1998
In 1998, Ewa Mataya Laurence gained a sponsorship from Brunswick Billiards which allowed her to focus solely on pool. In 1990, she became the top player in the WPBA, a rank she held for two years - Record Journal - 3/7/2002
Francisco "Django" Bustamante
1963 - HOF
Francisco Bustamante, superbly gifted and 1998's player of the year, became the first ever to successfully defend a title on the Camel Pro tour - Tulsa World - 11/8/1999
Frank "Bananas" Rodriguez
1918-
First operated by Frank "Bananas" Rodriguez in the '70s, Banana Billiards became a legendary playground for serious pool players. The hall eventually closed its doors in 2015" - San Antonio Current - 2/7/2018
"Pool was a pretty shady sport back in the old days" Frank Rodriguez a pool player who "Hustled" for 60 years, says of the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. - Rocky Mountain Telegram - 9/16/2001
Frank "The Snail" Taberski
1889-1941- HOF
Freddy ‘the Beard’ Bentivegna
1940-2015 Bank HOF
Gary Spaeth
1954-2000 - Bank HOF
Gary Spaeth, 46 of Higginsport, a champion pool and billiards player like his father, Joey "The Cincinnati Kid" Spaeth died Saturday - The Cincinnati Post - 12/19/2000
George Slosson
1853 -
Two weeks ago last night, George Slosson and John Bessunger, two of the youngest and finest billiardist in the country, play an American game of 2,000 points on a caron table for a stake of $500 ($13,000 in 2025$). The former won by running the game out at a point when chances were worth next to nothing - Chicago Tribune - 4/22/1873
Willie Hoppe, another old timer. But Willie, who was a billiard champion when Maurice McLaughlin was a tennis champion, is still playing championship billiards. Hoppe is now in his fifties. The oldest active player of today is George Slosson, who is still going strong at 91. - Pittsburgh Sun-Telegraph - 1/27/1944
Gerda "G Force" Hofstatter Gregerson
1971- HOF - WPB HOF
Ranked No. 6 in the Women's Professional Billiards Association charts, the 24-year old Westerleigh resident will join 15 of the world's top women players in the contest for $20,000. top prize. She began playing pool in her hometown of Treibach, Austria and won her very first Classic Billiards Tour. The following year she was ranked No. 12 in the WPBA. - Staten Island Advance - 7/6/1995
Glenn "Piggy Banks" Rogers
Banks HOF
We were at a pool hall, and the comedian - every pool hall has a comedian - started saying how ugly I was. "You look like pig meat" and the other guy said "look at how many balls he's banking" and from then on I was Piggy Bank - Southtown Star - 1/13/2005
Gottlieb "The Swede" Wahlstrom
The great 15 ball pool match for $250 ($2,550 in 2025$) side and the championship of the United States was played to-night between Cynlle Dion and Washstrom, known as "The Swede." It was decided in 35 games, of which the Swede won 21 and Dion 14. - The Tribune - 8/8/1978
Alfredo De Oro, rates Gottlieb Wahlstrom, a Swede who died in 1882, the greatest executor and pool player of all time. The reason for his anomality was his practice of winning and losing at will with large bets on, or against him - Mount Carmel Item - 2/8/1943
Grady "The Professor" Mathews
1943-2012 - One Pocket HOF
One of the premier players of professional billiards who owes his moniker to his cerebral approach to the game - The Philadelphia Inquirer - 12/16/1989
Harold Worst
1929-1966 - HOF
He wanted people to see the difference between a tournament type player and a so-called hustler. All his life Harold worked to raise the public image of billiards. He had a conservative, Puritan type upbringing and he knew many of his friends did not have a tolerance for billiards - Battle Creek Enquirer - 7/10/1966
Harry "Poochie" Sexton
1937-1995
A man like this has nicknames, "Little Harry" for his slight built, "9-Ball Harry for his game", "Bulldog" for his tenacity and ability to come back. But his friends call him "Poochie" - the name he got from his grandmother" - The Flint Journal - 1/29/1989
Haydin Lingo
1907 - 1973 - One Pocket HOF
LIngo, who is married and lives at 315 N. Yukon, plans to follow the game as a career. By profession he is a stenographer. But he hasn't had work in that line for some time and has been working at a local newspaper as press department hand. - Tulsa Times - 3/8/1936
Helena Thornfeldt
1967 - 2019 - WPB HOF
Thronfeldt a native of Atlanta, is a five time European nine-ball and straight pool champion, and was Europe's No. 1 ranked female player in 1994. Since joining the tour she has won four events, and currently is ranked sixth in the world among women billiard professionals - The Charlotte Observer - 10/8/1998
Hubert L. "Daddy Warbucks" Cokes
1897-1978-
A man with a mysterious past and a yen for carrying large sums of money, shooting pool and playing golf for high stakes - The Indianapolis News - 7/31/1964
Writer Tom Fox gave Warbucks his name - "My God, I said to Minnesota Fats, he looks like Daddy Warbucks" - "Yeah and he's got as much money, too" said Fats - "I found him a soft and gentle man with a lot of poise and dignity" - "But he had a violent side, he killed 2 men in his lifetime" - The Philadelphia Inquirer - 9/6/1978
Irving "The Deacon" Crane
1913-2001 - HOF
Irving Crane's nickname stems from the reverence from his fellow billiard players. Six times he has been world champion. He would like as much at home behind a pulpit as a pool cue. He looks like a man of distinction-tall and thin, with steel grey eyes, white hair parted down the middle, and an outspoken manner. - Star Gazette - 2/18/1973
Many of the group at the tournament depend on the sport for their livelihood, Crane operates his own pool hall - The Ledger Star - 3/27/1954
Jack Breit
1934-1997 - One Pocket HOF
Jack Breit of Houston chalked up another victory in the $19,500 ($190,000 in 2025$) World's Pocket Billiards Tournament. That gives Breit a 9-0 record - The Los Angelese Times - 2/21/1965
Jake Schaefer, Jr.
1894-1975 - HOF
In Chicago a few weeks ago, Schaefer staged the most spectacular event of his career when he ran his string of 400 in one inning and did not give his opponent a shot - Pittsburgh Post Gazette - 3/22/1925
Jake "The Wizard" Schaefer, Sr.
1855-1910 - HOF
Nearly every youth who can hold a cue without poking someone's eye out and has the discernment of being able to distinguish the cue ball from the object ball thinks he is a miniature Jake Schaefer, and some even go to the extreme of impersonating the famous billiards player. - The St. Louis Republic - 1/25/1904
The first Jacob Shaefer, the father of the present player and greatest billardist of his time. Pittsburgh Post Gazette - 3/22/1925
James Evans
1894-1972
Evans was the best all-around Negro player in those days. In fact, Evans is the greatest Negro pool player to ever live, and the only reason why he never won a lot of those world tournaments, was because they wouldn't let him play on account of his color - Philadelphia Daily News - 3/10/1967
Javanley "Youngblood" Washington
1926-2008 - Banks HOF
Jean "Cue Queen" Balukas
1959 - HOF - WPBA HOF
They say when Jean Balukas went to her first US Open Championship, the doorman wouldn't let her in. He said that she was too young to watch. She said that she hadn't come to watch, she had come to play. She was 9 years old. She won her first US Open Championship at 13 in 1972 - The Philadelphia Inquirer - 7/9/1979
Jeanette "The Black Widow" Lee
1971 - HOF - WPB HOF
Jeanette "Black Widow" Lee, is only 30, she has undergone eight surgeries for a variety of ailments from scoliosis to poor eyesight to bursitis - The Tennessean - 2/9/2002
At the height of her fame, Lee was an icon who could nab sponsorships that had nothing to do with billiards, chalk or cues - including a 7 year contract with Bass Pro Shops. She appeared on numerous national TV shows, including Good Morning America, Crook & Chase and Hard Copy. She had a part in the Walt Disney movie, The Older Sister. - The Indianapolis Star - 3/13/2022
Jeremy "Double J" Jones
1971 - One Pocket HOF
Ranked #5 in the world - Daily Press - 8/2/2002
Jerry Briesath
1937 - HOF
Jerry is out of the road games and hustles that were part of an earlier, rougher and more colorful era. He began playing at the Abbot-Crest hotel billiards room on the Marquet campus in Milwaukee, and he rose to a top 20 national ranking in the late 1960s. But Jerry got tired of the road earlier than some and found his true gift, teaching the game - The Capital Times - 7/27/2004
Jim "King James" Rempe
1947- HOF
World 8 Ball Champion, World 9 Ball Champion and One Pocket Champion. Jim has won more major tournaments than any player on earth! 35 first place finishes - The Dispatch - 11/26/1978
Jimmy "Boy Wonder" Caras
1910 - 2002 - HOF
Jimmy Caras, world and national billiards champion, tonight announced that he would not defend his title next month in Chicago. Caras, 37, said that he wanted to retire undefeated. - The Philadelphia Inquirer - 1/28/1950
Gained the title of "Boy Wonder" of the billiard world by defeating world's champion Ralph Greenleaf in 1927. At the time Jimmy was only 17 years old. - Petaluma-Argus Courier - 1/24/1968
Jimmy "South Phiily Flash" Fusco
1948-2017 - One Pocket HOF
Jimmy Fusco a top veteran who hates his nickname "South Phily Flash" and whose portrait has been painted by one of the Birkbeck brothers - The Philadelphia Inquirer - 12/19/1986
Jimmy "Cowboy" Moore
1910-1999 - HOF
The son of a Georgia blacksmith, sheriff and streetcar conductor, Moore as a boy would help his family by picking pounds of cotton for 35 cents, manage a fruit stand, deliver newspapers and even run poker games - he got his nickname when he showed up at the Commodore Hotel championship in New York City during the 1990s, wearing cowboy boots and a white cowboy hat - The Albuquerque Tribune - 2/16/1998
Moore won the National Invitational Professional Pocket Billiards Championship in New York in 1969. 19 years later, when he was 74, his game was still strong enough to win the Legends of Pocket Billiards competition on ESPN. He picked up billiards in Detroit and won his first of 4 Michigan state titles in 1929 at the age of 18. - New-Press - 11/19/1999
Jimmy "Flyboy" Spears
1943 - One Pocket HOF
A husband and father of two daughters, quit about five years ago, moved his family to Jackson from Houston and settled down with a small business. The traveling was too much - The Jackson Sun - 1/25/1981
Joe "The Meatman" Balsis
1921-1995 - HOF
The reluctant "Meat Man"? Because Joe does not particularly like his nickname. "I used to be in the meat business" was his only comment. Hustling pool is no longer a profitable pastime, according to Joe - The Sydney Morning Herald - 7/31/1976
John Brumback
1963 - Banks HOF
Last year's Master of the Table, John Brumback, took home a check for $10,000 for his win in banks. - The Corydon Democrat - 2/10/2010
John "Cannonball" Chapman
Banks HOF
John "Rags" Fitzpatrick
1918-1960 - One Pocket HOF
John Fitzpatrick, of Los Angeles, Pacific Coast title holder, qualified for the hero's row when he topped Allen Hall of Chicago, at the World three-cushions billiards tournament - The Knoxville News Sentinel - 2/4/1941
John Morra
1989 -
John Morra is one of Canada's hottest young pool sharks. A top finisher nationally, he'll travel to Taiwan this summer to represent Canada at a prestigious international tournament in the World Junior 9-Ball Championship category. Playing since age 5, John has developed a mental toughness and shots for the game. - The Toronto Star - 4/17/2003
Johnny "The Scorpion" Archer
1968 - HOF
Archer who won three world championships and was the player of the year in 1992, '93 and '96. He won $177,000 ($900,000 in 2025$) in 1996.
Johnny "The Diamond King" Layton
1887-1956 - HOF
Bennie Allen may regain the pocket billiards championship within two months. Being confident that he can defeat the new champion, Johnny Layton - Kansas City Journal - 5/9/1916
Johnny Layton, 51, Sedalia, MO, former three cushion billiards champion, was in a hospital today under treatment for internal injuries suffered when he was struck by a streetcar - The Oakland Post Enquirer - 12/17/1940
During the heyday of his career, he has traveled throughout the United States and Europe. He has been in every state at least 17 times. His career ended in 1939 on a wind-swept Chicago street, where he lay after being hit by a streetcar. - St. Louis Globe-Democrat - 1/24/1951
A 77-year-old man carrying a 40-year-old cue stick came to town today. He is Charley Peterson, world famous billiards champion who exhibited his prowess with his 21-ounce maple cue today at the University of Buffalo -The Buffalo News - 3/2/1955
Jose "Amang" Parica
1949 - HOF - One Pocket HOF
Now living in the Philippines, he owns a taxi service and jewelry store. 43 years old, says he lost all his money from casino gambling. "I came he to start over again" - He played with lousy equipment in the Philippines. He came to the United States with these fast first class felts and "I was invincible". Now, though, top players are beating him, he says. - The Palm Beach Post - 10/8/1992
Karen "The Irish Invader" Corr
1969 - HOF
Corr won her first pro tournament, followed by seven others in 1998. In 1999, she was named Billiard Digest's rookie of the year. By the end of 2000, she was ranked second in the world. In June, she dethroned Fisher. - The Boston Globe - 8/22/2001
Keith "Earthquake" McCready
1957-
"The Color of Money" line - "It's like your worst nightmare, isn't it." - The San Francisco Examiner - 11/2/1986
Kelley "Little Red" Hatmaker
1965-
The wife of the most notorious Detroit pool hustler, "Cornbread Red" Billy Burge, gave hatmaker his nickname of "Little Red" because of his fire engine red hair. "it took me all over the country, I went out on the road hustling, and got taught by some of the best hustlers in Detroit"- The Daily Sentinel - 8/23/2009
Kelly "Kwik Fire" Fisher
1978 - HOF
After being in the top 10 women for the past two years and winning the San Diego Classic for three years running (2004-2007), she achieved the No. 1 ranking in the World Women's Professional Pool and won the US Open Championship - The Stateman Journal - 10/02/2008
Kim "California Kim" Davenport
1965 - HOF
Davenport turned pro in 1985, was the Men's Professional Billiards Association runner-up in player of the year in 1989. He won 5 major championships in 1990 and was the MPBA"s player of the year. - Daily Press - 5/17/1991
Larry "Boston Shorty" Johnson
1929-2000 - One Pocket HOF
The houseman looked up and snorted "Aw, that short guy from Boston" - "The Boston" was evident every time he spoke, and "Shorty" was just as evident: Johnson was 5'1" tall. But the combination "Boston Shorty" soon became known in every pool hall in the country as one of the best players of the century. - The Boston Globe - 2/2/2001
Larry "The Prince of Pool" Lisciotti
1946-2004
Pool hustler Larry Lisciotti is looking to take on all comers for $250,000. All I want is proof of financial responsibility. They have to match our $250,000. The contract will be signed in Las Vegas where the match will be held - The Times Record - 11/29/1978
Larry Price
1952 - 2012 - Banks HOF
Leonard "Bugs" Rucker
1938-2007 - One Pocket HOF - Bank HOF
One angry player, "Bugs" challenged another player after he was eliminated. "Let's play for real money - $500 a game" he shouted across the table. A referee called off the challenge. - Florence Morning News - 2/17/1991
LoreeJon "Queen of the Hill" Brown
1965- HOF - WPB HOF
Won her first World Championship at age 15, putting her in the Guiness Book of World Records as the youngest champion in pocket billiards, male or female. - The Gazette - 1/13/2023
Lou "Machine Gun Lou" Butera
1937-2015 - HOF
Butera got his nickname for his rapid fire style of play. He holds the world record in tournament play for picketing 150 balls in an amazing 21 minutes - Sunday Dispatch - 9/3/1989
Luther "Wimpy" Lassiter
1919-1988 - HOF
"Wimpy" who claims he got his nickname because of his ability to eat a lot of hamburgers in his younger days - Souther Illinoisian - 10/20/1969
Marshall "Squirrel" Carpenter
1928 - One Pocket HOF
Marvin "Night Owl" Henderson
1934 - One Pocket HOF
Of Los Angeles, a former two time East Coast champion - Evening Vanguard - 3/3/1967
Mary Kenniston
WPB HOF
Pool is a game of precision. The top players are more like surgeons than anything else. - The Buffalo News - 12/13/1985
Masako "Katsy" Katsura
1913-1995 - WPBA - HOF
The first woman to ever compete in a world's three cushion tournament. Willie Mosconi - "I believe that with two more years of top flight competition she'll be able to defeat any of the men players. I know that right now she can make safety shots better than any of us" - The Oregon Daily Journal - 4/27/1952.
Maurice "Tugboat" Whaley
1897 -
For 10 years he was a merchant seaman and worked the port towns. He always wore an old mackinaw and sailor's hat. He could pass for a simple tugboat captain looking for a friendly game. Hence, the nickname. - The San Bernadino Sun - 7/16/1971
Melvin "Strawberry" Brooks
1933-2006 - One Pocket Hall of Famer
"Guys like Strawberry went after the very best high stakes players they could find - fellow hustlers that were good enough themselves that it was not sure that Strawberry would win, but of course most often than not he would" - "Until the late 1960's, black players were widely prohibited from professional tournaments, even when the color barrier was broken many avoided the switch to tournaments because they could make more money under cover" - Pittsburgh Post Gazette - 1/1/2007
Mika "The Iceman" Immonen
1972 - HOF
Turning Stone 9-Ball Tournament - The lineup is expected to include current Player of the Year, Mike Immonen - Daily Sentinel - 8/19/2010
Mike "Tennessee Tarzan" Massey
1947 - HOF
He picked up his nickname, Tennessee Tarzan, because of his strong resemblance to Johnny Weissmuller - the Olympic swimmer who became Hollywood's premier vine-swinger - Calgary Herald - 9/20/1997
Mike "Captain Hook" Sigel
1953 - HOF
Steve Mizerak - "Mike Sigel is the best player breathing on earth. He can lose a tournament, don't get me wrong, because there are a lot of great players out there. But he is the best" - Quad City Times - 5/6/1987
Nick Varner
1948- One Pocket HOF - Banks HOF
He actually reached the top when he captured the world championship in 1980 in straight pool in New York City. But he didn't attract the attention like Mosconi or endorsements like Mizerak, whom he beat twice in 1981 world championship because the competition was not televised - Evansville Press - 4/11/1982
Niels "The Terminator" Feijen
1977 - HOF
World 9-Ball Champion (2014), World Pool Masters Champion (2014) and European 9-Ball Champion (2013-2014) - Port Charlotte Sun - 9/23/2015
Oliver "The Machine" Ortmann
1967 - HOF
1995 Mosconi Cup - Oliver Ortman (Germany) - The most consistent player in Europe and one of the best in the world - Billericay and Wickford Gazette - 11/9/1995
Paul "Detroit Slim" Graham
1904-
"Became a man in 1919." He was 15, a green runaway from Winston-Salem. "Could get no job and had to make the best I could" - The way was with a pool stick, working the halls and dives, hustling for a buck to feed a hollow stomach. - Winston-Salem Journal - 10/22/1973
Ralf "The Giantkiller" Souquet
1968 - HOF
Ralf the Giantkiller is living proof that sometimes fairy tales come true. 5'6" Ralf Souquet emerged from obscurity to win pool's two most prestigious tournaments last year. The World Championship and the International Challenge of Champions. - USA Today - 7/24/1997
Ralph "The Aristocrat" Greenleaf
1899-1950 - HOF
When he finally got into championship form, however, Greenleaf won nine games in a row and took the National Championship title with ease. From that time to this, there hasn't been a year during which he failed to hold the championship, for a time at least. From 1919 to May 1926, he held the championship continuously, although there was many a time when he had to defend against a line of powerful players. - Evansville Press - 2/16/1930
Ray Kilgore
1913 -
Ray Kilgore, former three-cushion billiard champion, was reported seriously ill in Culver City hospital with a liver ailment. Kilgore, 46, won the championship in 1953 and held through 1956 - The Los Angeles Times - 1/23/1959
Ray "Cool Cat" Martin
1936- HOF
Got his name at the World's Pocket Billiards Tournament in LA - "Where's everyone going" - "They're leaving - another tremor from yesterday's earthquake. Didn't you see the lights shaking?" - "No, I didn't notice it" - "Man, you're a cool cat" - The Miami News - 6/8/1971
Raymond "Mister 100" Ceulemans
1937 - HOF
The person who is the world champion right not, Raymond Ceulemans of Belgium - in the last 20 years he's been the world champion all those years but one. What he is able to do is the same thing, over and over again, without a flaw - Lasing State Journal - 4/6/1986
Richard "San JOse Dick" McMorran
1934-2018 - One Pocket HOF
Robin "Bankroll" Bell Dobson
1956 - HOF - WPB HOF
At 16 she won the California State Championship, and today at 28, she is ranked in the top 5 on the Women's Professional Billiards tour. She led the tour in earnings last year (1984) with nearly $20,000 - The Los Angeles Times - 7/22/1985
Rodney "The Rocket" MOrris
1970- HOF
Is ranked 5th in the nation. Morris is called "The Rocket" because of how quickly he can finish a game. In 2006, Morris raked in $214,950 in winnings, including two 1st place finishes. He finished 2nd in the World Cup of Pool - Tampa Bay Times - 9/25/2007
Roger Conti
1910 - 1995
Roger Conti, of France, won the world's professional seventy-one centimeter balkline championship by defeating Edmond Derbier, also of France. Cue experts from United States, Belgium, Spain, Japan and Switzerland were contestants. - The Morning Call - 2/17/1933
Roger Conti, of France, won the world's three cushion billiards championship today, defeating Welker Cochran, San Francisco's American Champion - Press of Atlantic City - 3/27/1938
Ronnie "Fast Eddy" Allen
1938-2013 - One Pocket HOF
Ronnie Allen thinks he is "Fast Eddy" (of the movie Color of Money). In fact, he swears he is, that the character was modeled on him, stolen from his personality. He is not the only player in the country who says that he is really "Fast Eddy", but he swears he is the one - The Los Angeles Times - 12/20/1970
Rudolf "Minnesota Fats" Wanderone
1913-1996 -HOF - One Pocket HOF
4 years ago Newsweek magazine identified Whitey and Minnesota Fats as two of the world's greatest hustlers - St. Louis Post Dispatch 4/28/1966
Originally named "New York Fats" Rudolf Wanerone, Jr., exercised his acute commercial sense and renamed himself "Minnestoa Fats" after the character portrayed by Jackie Gleason in the 1961 film "The Hustler" - Hartford Courant - 2/1/1996
Ruth McGinnis
1910-1974 - HOF - WPBA HOF
Miss McGinnis has the distinction of being the only champion in the history of any sport that has to go over into the opposite field to find competition. No woman dares challenge her to her right to the title. During the past four years she has been traveling the country meeting all comers and has a record of winning 1,548 matches and losing 35. She has a daring and colorful style and experts agree that she has the most perfect stroke of any player in "The Gentleman's Game" - Brooklyn Eagle - 12/2/1936
Ruth McGinnis, "Lady Cue Wizard", shoots left-handed. She has held the women's title for the past 25 years, winning it at the age of 5. - Sunday News - 1/4/1948
Ruth McGinnis, women's pocket billiards champion, died Wednesday at the age of 64. She had been hospitalized for cancer - Independent - 5/16/1971
Sang "The MJ of 3 Cushions" Chun Lee
1954-2004 - HOF
Scott "Freezer" Frost
1975 - One Pocket HOF
Frost says he once played 40 hours to win $5,000. Another time he played 48 hours to win $60,000 - The Arizona Republic - 8/28/2002
Shane "The South Dakota Kid" Van Boening
1983 - HOF
Shane won an unprecedented third straight U.S. Open 9 Ball Championship in October, and the 31 year old is showing no signs of slowing down. He has won four overall U. S. Open titles, and he is ranked No. 1 in the world of 9-Ball billiards. - Argus-Leader 12/28/2004
Shannon "The Cannon" Daulton
1972 - One Pocket HOF - Banks HOF
He played his first tournament at 12 and by 16 he claimed the Kentucky state championship. And while his cue ($13,000) might be worth more than a car, it's the closest that Daulton comes to anything resembling the "Color of Money" or the "The Hustler" - The Knoxville News Sentinel - 8/14/2005
Steve "Cookie Monster" Cook
1946-2003 - One Pocket HOF
At 19, Cook moved to Florida to pursue a pocket billiards career. In that career he won the 1970 World Champion Star Dust open in Las Vegas and was a four time champion in 9-ball and one-pocket billiards. He played and beat some of the best in the world, including Buddy Hall and Alan Hopkins - The Lima News - 10/24/2003
Steve "The Miz" Mizerak
1944-2006 - HOF
Steve Mizerak is a showman, his oppressive frame flopping around the room and his slightly scratchy voice piercing the room with kid-like enthusiasm. He is neither shy hurling retorts back at good natured hecklers, nor is he afraid to bare his very human vulnerability. - St. Joseph Gazette - 4/14/1983
Thomas Hueston
Thomas Hueston of St. Louis retains the World's Continuous Pool Championship as the results of last night's play with Jerome Keough of Buffalo - Carbondale Daily News - 3/25/1907
Thorsten "The Hitman" Hohmann
1979 - HOF
Germany's Thorsten Hohmann beat Alex Pagulayan of Toronto in the World Championship yesterday. Hohmann beat the favorite Pagulayan 17-10. - The Toronto Star - 7/21/2003
Tony "Fargo" Ferguson
Banks HOF
Truman Hogue
1946- Banks HOF
When I was growing up, there was a law against playing 9-Ball because people thought it was a gambling game. So, I started playing bank pool instead. The Courier Journal - 1/9/2006
Utley Puckett
1911-1992 -
"All I ever did was win the world nine-ball championship one time, in 1960, in life I just wanted one thing - If I could live good and not have a job and not violate the law, then I was a success." - Tampa Bay Times - 6/25/1992
Vernon Elliott
1938-2009 - Banks HOF
Vivian "The Texas TOrnado" Villarreal
1965 - WPB HOF
In women's billiards, recognition leads to big bucks. The leading winner last year was Vivian Villerreal, aka "The Texas Tornado". Currently ranked fourth. Villerreal earned $120,000 mere pocket money compared to what's available through endorsements. - Daily News - 8/6/1997
Welker Cochrane
1896-1959 - HOF
All records in 18.1 Balkline billiards was broken yesterday in the World Championship games, by Welker Cochrane of San Francisco, when he ran out in five innings and in the fourth made a high run on 384 in his match with George Sutton of Chicago. - Fall River Daily Evening News - 11/19/1921
Willie "Can't Top Me" Hoppe
1887 - 1959 - HOF
"The greatest event of my career was my victory over Maurice Vignaux in Paris in 1906. Vignaux was a hero and was called the "The French Lion". Vignaux was the world's 18.1 balkline champion and all he required was a side bet of $500 ($15,000 in 2025) to make the match. My father went to all his friends and borrowed money, my mom mended every shirt I had, and I got the cheapest steamship fare I could. - Evansville Courier Press - 2/8/1959
Willie "Mr. Pocket Billiards" Mosconi
1913-1993 - HOF
"Greenleaf won 13 world championships, I won 15. In Detroit I won 14 consecutive games to defend my title. They told me how great a money play Luther Lassiter was, I went down to N.C. and cornered him. I beat him for the money every time. - The World-News - 12/5/1975
Despite his pre-eminence as a master cue artist - he was 15 times world pocket billiards champion from 1941 until the competition was discontinued in 1957 - Mosconi didn't start making money in large batches, however, until he made his first television appearance - Spokane Chronical - 3/26/1980