Mike Shamos: The History of Combos

The diagram at left is brought to us by Mike Shamos (at right), curator of the Billiard Archive. Writing in the September 2009 edition of Billiards Digest, Mike tells us about the history of combination shots -- running all the way back to 1807. One of the shots illustrated here shows a "combination kiss-bank scratch," which would have been worth 8 points in an early cue game known as "English Billiards." The game rewarded players for caroms, pocketing balls and scratches. It required three balls and a table with six pockets. The shot pictured here was taken from a diagram in E. White's A Practical Treatise on the Game of Billiards, from 1807. As Shamos points out, the shot is "a tall order at a time when cues didn't have tips and most players still used a mace."

Untold Stories in Billiards Digest: Greenleaf questioned in murder before winning first title

Shortly before winning his first national title, pool legend Ralph Greenleaf was picked up by police as part of their investigation into a grisly murder. The young victim had been abducted, possibly tortured, and then ... beheaded. You can read more about the infamous murder and the celebrated champion in my Untold Stories column in this month's Billiards Digest. An earlier column described the end of Greenleaf's career. This latest column is about its beginning -- and Greenleaf's startling detention.

Jersey Red vs. The Ice Man.

"Now watch this, Mr. Nagy. I'm gonna bank the eight off the end rail and it's gonna kiss off the deuce and the one ball's gonna tear up the stack and I'M GOIN' OUT! This is the RAIDER! Whoo! Eight off the deuce and racky-dacky! Ha, look at that!"

-- An excerpt from a match-up between Jack "Jersey Red" Breit and Gene "Ice Man" Nagy, as recorded word-for-word in John Grissim's 1979 book, Billiards. Chapter nine includes the complete transcript of the session. It reads like a Hollywood script. Very cool.

America's greatest ever? You Decide!

Who is America's best ever pool player? The poll on the top right of this page lists some all-time favorites, including recent Hall of Fame inductee Johnny Archer. I've left Willie Hoppe off the list because he was known as one of the best-ever billiards players, as opposed to one of the best-ever pool players. Neither have I included one of my personal favorites, Efren "Bata" Reyes. As he's from the Philippines, I figured I'd save him for a future poll of the greatest international players. I've also tried to get a good mix of players from different eras. (Van Boening vs. Greenleaf?!) Vote early. Vote often. I'll leave the poll up for awhile. Also, if you have a write-in candidate, feel free to comment at the bottom of this post. I'll tally up the write-ins later, along with those listed on the ballot.

The 1960s Hustlers' Jamboree and George Jansco's Minor League Baseball Stats

The internet is amazing. Here's a site that references George Jansco's minor league baseball stats back in the 1930s. Notice that the site references George's nickname as "Wimpy" -- which was the same handle used by Luther Lassiter. Odd. Also looks like George had a career batting average of .291. Not too shabby.

For those who don't know, George Jansco was the promoter (along with his brother Paulie) behind the Johnston City hustler jamborees during the 1960s. Lassiter dominated the colorful events, which also featured Jersey Red, Boston Shorty, Ronnie Allen, Harold Worst, Handsome Dan and of course Minnesota Fats. I've attached a YouTube video at the top of this post that features an interview with Fats at one of the southern Illinois tournaments. That's a picture of George Jansco at the upper right. You can find more historic pool videos here. (Freddy "The Beard' Bentivegna also has amassed a cool collection of online videos.) You can read more about George Jansco and his jamborees in Hustler Days.

Videos of Pool Champ Harold Worst in 1965

Check out the cool videos of Harold Worst playing in Johnston City, circa 1965, which was about a year before Worst died of cancer. You can find the video on a blog maintained by Freddy "The Beard" Bentivegna. Just click here. Worst is playing Larry "Boston" Shorty in the footage. The Beard also has posted a Jim McKay interview with Worst.

A bit of quick biographical information: Worst was born on Sept. 29, 1929, in Grand Rapids, Michigan. In 1949, according to The Grand Rapids Press, "Worst had followed in Hoppe's steps as a 'boy wonder,' having set a record for youth when at the age of 21 he became the youngest player in history to qualify for world championship play." He placed second in that year's national tournament and then fourth in the world meet. In 1954 he won the world three-cushion title during a tournament in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He then went on to amass a great winning record through the first half of the 1960s and might have surpassed Luther Lassiter as that decade's dominant player had Worst not died of cancer in 1966 at the age of 37. Worst was at the top of this game when he got sick. He remained unconquered as the world's three-cushion champion.

You can read more about Worst in a column I wrote earlier for Billiards Digest. The coding is a bit messed up, but it's still available online here. On the top of this post I've inserted an image of the front page of the Grand Rapids Press that features coverage of Worst. Forgive the dark stains. I think I spilled some wine on my hard copy. You can find the home page of the great Freddy the Beard here.

The Jersey Red Shot

The famous Jersey Red shot -- Eddie Robin describes it in his excellent book, Winning One-Pocket. Red first shot this cool kick back in 1957, in a one-pocket match against James Evans. It was at the famous 7-11 pool room in New York City. Robin said it brought the house down. Red shot it for the last time on Nov. 3, 1997 -- 40 years later --- during a benefit event for Red shortly before his death. You can see it more clearly by clicking here. I've added a clip I found on youtube showing someone making the shot. It's ingenious -- the way it makes use of the kiss to knock the ball back into your pocket.

Get Your Tickets to the 2009 Hall of Fame

For the first time ever, the annual BCA Hall of Fame Banquet will be held in conjunction with the game’s longest-running pro tournament, the U.S. Open 9-Ball Championship. This year's inductees are Allison Fischer, winner of 53 WPBA Classic Tour Titles, and Johnny Archer, a four-time World 9-Ball Champion. You can be a part of history and attend the official induction ceremony and banquet, held Oct. 22 at the Marriott Chesapeake Hotel, in Chesapeake, VA. To buy tickets or for more information, click here. I'll be there for sure.

Here's a copy of the full USMBA press release:

Advance tickets are now on sale online for the 2009 Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame Banquet, the United States Billiard Media Association (USBMA) announced today. The dinner banquet, at which pool greats Johnny Archer and Allison Fisher will be formally inducted into the BCA Hall of Fame, will take place Thursday, Oct. 22, at the Marriott Chesapeake Hotel, Chesapeake, Va., in conjunction with the 2009 U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships.

The banquet, honoring Archer and Fisher as the 54th and 55th inductees into the sport’s hallowed shrine, will also be attended by previous inductees and will feature testimonials celebrating the pair’s illustrious careers. Cocktails (cash bar) will be served from 5:00 pm – 6:00 pm, with dinner and the formal induction ceremony running from 6:00pm – 7:45 pm.

“I’m very excited about having the BCA Hall of Fame Banquet at the U.S. Open,” said U.S. Open founder and promoter Barry Behrman. “This promises to be one of the best banquets ever.

“I’m suspending play during the banquet to give Johnny and Allison the respect they deserve,” Berhman continued. “Matches will resume at 8:00 pm that evening.”

Advance tickets are $55 per person (or $500 for a table of 10) at http://www.usbma.com/HallofFame2009/. Advance ticket sales will end Oct. 18. Tickets purchased at the U.S. Open will be $60 per person. Seating is limited.

The 2009 BCA Hall of Fame Banquet is being produced by the USBMA, in cooperation with the Billiard Congress of America and the U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships.

Jersey Red in 1969: "Even Houdini Couldn't Get Out From Here!"

I LOVE this sequence of shots. It was executed by Jersey Red back in 1969 during a match-up with Ronnie Allen in Houston's Le Cue pool hall. Grady "The Professor" Mathews was an eyewitness, and he describes it gloriously in Eddie Robin's excellent book, Winning One-Pocket. You can see the shots more clearly by clicking here.

Red was at the table and needed all four balls. The Red Raider looked The Professor straight in the eye, remarked "even Houdini couldn't get out from here" and then began his spectacular run. First Red shot the combination seen in the top diagram. That is, he pockets a ball in the upper right-hand corner while simultaneously sinking another back into his pocket on the lower left side. Notice he goes rail first to to make this combination-bank shot. In the next diagram Red pockets the ball into his wicket while simultaneously pocketing the hanger in the side pocket. He then pockets the final two balls after they were spotted back up. Notice here the two-rail bank.

This match-up would have occurred within months of Red's second place finish in that year's U.S. Open. Luther Lassiter won it. You can read more about Red and the U.S. Open in Hustler Days. And please go buy Robin's Winning One-Pocket. It's a great book.

The Child Prodigy Jean Balukas

If there was any female player in history considered the possible equal to Allison Fisher, that player would be Jean Balukas. The Brooklyn-native was a child prodigy, as can be seen in this amazing footage of her pocketing balls. (You have to wait a few minutes to see it.) Balukas competed in her first U.S. Open at age 9, and at age 12 she won her first BCA title. She abruptly left competitive pool in 1988 at the height of her career. Balukas was the second woman ever to be inducted into the BCA Hall of Fame. Fisher, the sixth, was inducted this year.