Action Stories

Please share them!! I was thinking the other day about Rodney and Tall Jeff and how I’d love to hear more of their/your stories. But not just them. If you are reading this and have a good action or road story that deserves to be put down somewhere before it just vanishes into the ether, please post it here. Those stories and that Pool History are so valued here.

Seriously, any stories will do. The one you haven’t told. Wins, losses, ups downs, deadbeats, marks, hustles, monsters, who cares. It’s all fantastic and the history and the times that are noteworthy.

So please... share em if you got em!!!

Here's a good story ,58 years ago I came back from Pimlico Racetrack went to the Bennies Poolroom in Baltimore looking to borrow some money since I went busted at he track. I see a guy in the back of the poolroom hitting balls around. He comes up front and looking to play some $5.00 nine ball so one of the local guys plays him some.I watch him play for about an hour and see him win about $50 .He comes up to me and ask if I want to play.I tell him I'm broke but can get him some action downtown but I want to know how good he really is he tells me he can beat anybody in Baltimore. I wanted 50% of the winnings but he was with another guy and told me 25% is all he would give up. We agreed so we go downtown he gets in action right away $30 a game nine ball. While he's playing I see Larry Sapia and ask him if he wants to play some $50 a game nineball. he says when his brother comes in he will play. His brother was a BM with money. His brother comes in and we matched up. The guy I'm with just wins $300 off the guy he's playing.I tell him we got $50 a game nineball action. When we go to play the houseman says anybody under 21 has to leave. I'm 18 years old and the guy I'm with is 17. what a bummer as we're leaving another guy says you guys can play at my house. so we all go there. We win $2800 my end is $700 I'm as happy as can be. By the way the guy I'm with is Billy Incardona.

FastEddieF. said:

Here's a good story ,58 years ago I came back from Pimlico Racetrack went to the Bennies Poolroom in Baltimore looking to borrow some money since I went busted at he track. I see a guy in the back of the poolroom hitting balls around. He comes up front and looking to play some $5.00 nine ball so one of the local guys plays him some.I watch him play for about an hour and see him win about $50 .He comes up to me and ask if I want to play.I tell him I'm broke but can get him some action downtown but I want to know how good he really is he tells me he can beat anybody in Baltimore. I wanted 50% of the winnings but he was with another guy and told me 25% is all he would give up. We agreed so we go downtown he gets in action right away $30 a game nine ball. While he's playing I see Larry Sapia and ask him if he wants to play some $50 a game nineball. he says when his brother comes in he will play. His brother was a BM with money. His brother comes in and we matched up. The guy I'm with just wins $300 off the guy he's playing.I tell him we got $50 a game nineball action. When we go to play the houseman says anybody under 21 has to leave. I'm 18 years old and the guy I'm with is 17. what a bummer as we're leaving another guy says you guys can play at my house. so we all go there. We win $2800 my end is $700 I'm as happy as can be. By the way the guy I'm with is Billy Incardona.

Click to expand...

The reason we had to leave was you had to be 21 after 11PM. Larry Sapia was one of the best players in Baltimore won many State Tournaments. I didn't see Billy again for at least40 years and now I'm 75 and Billy is 74.

Mkbtank said:

Please share them!! I was thinking the other day about Rodney and Tall Jeff and how I’d love to hear more of their/your stories. But not just them. If you are reading this and have a good action or road story that deserves to be put down somewhere before it just vanishes into the ether, please post it here. Those stories and that Pool History are so valued here.

Seriously, any stories will do. The one you haven’t told. Wins, losses, ups downs, deadbeats, marks, hustles, monsters, who cares. It’s all fantastic and the history and the times that are noteworthy.

So please... share em if you got em!!!

Click to expand...

This should be a sticky at the top of the page so it's never lost. I've had a blast digging through 14 years of old posts - but this thread has the potential to be one of the best on here. Great idea Mitch.

Mkbtank said:

Please share them!! I was thinking the other day about Rodney and Tall Jeff and how I’d love to hear more of their/your stories. But not just them. If you are reading this and have a good action or road story that deserves to be put down somewhere before it just vanishes into the ether, please post it here. Those stories and that Pool History are so valued here.

Seriously, any stories will do. The one you haven’t told. Wins, losses, ups downs, deadbeats, marks, hustles, monsters, who cares. It’s all fantastic and the history and the times that are noteworthy.

So please... share em if you got em!!!

Click to expand...

Mitch...you forgot to state whether exagggerrrrated stories are acceptable.........:heh

Action Stories

One Pocket Ghost said:

Mitch...you forgot to state whether exagggerrrrated stories are acceptable.........:heh

Click to expand...

Hahah I almost stated that ABSOLUTELY they are acceptable!! Let’s go Luke. Please tell us an old Chicago tale. Since it’s your story I don’t even need to ask for exagggerrraaation

the Beard's site

the Beard's site

some great stories on here:

http://bankingwiththebeard.com/?p=453#TitanicTales

Gary Lutman

Gary Lutman

Years ago, at the Country Cowboy in KS there was a $5000 added bar table 9 ball event, race to 9 Valley ball. Ran into CJ and Gary, they were traveling together and I got into a game with CJ and quit stuck a few hundred. Probably 1985 ish. I had enough so I played his road partner Lutman, who I coulda robbed on a 9 footer, but I was still not comfortable with the smaller table YET. He beat me outta $200....but the way he conducted his business, is/was Exactly the way I don't enjoy. Now it's late eighties, BCA Nationals are in KS and I'm playing real good. Before I played Gary, I ran into an 8 ball team I think from Puerto Rico, beat all five of em. (I didn't play in the leagues, I was just picking the low hanging fruit). Next I ran into Gary with his girlfriend in the tournament room and play had finished. I walked in and ignored em....he always makes the first move. He got my attention and we started playing for $50 a rack and it didn't take too long to be up $500....he said ''wanna jack the bet''. I thought about how NICE he treated me in KS :heh....and I did not want to give em ANY air. Now is where the story is fun, the ending. I got em stuck/busted (we posted) $750 and he and his girlfriend start going at it!!! All of sudden Lutman got up and Snapped his cue in half. Was a NICE cue, had points in the base of the shaft, was at least a 1200 dollar cues. I got the money, he lost his girl, and broke his cue. Couldn't happened to a nicer guy. Heard he works in a Vegas pool room.

That's one of my road stories, hope you enjoyed it, as much as I did hearing that cue snap.

Action Stories

That was enjoyable Bill!! Thanks!!!

I know Mitch has a story about playing someone at the DCC when playing for a hunnert a game, he hooked his opponent in the top corner putting the last ball left on the spot.

JRHendy went to Santa Cruz for some action and had a blast, winning and losing all night long. Then there was the time he played a world champion at the very old original California Billiards. First day he won, them he remembered who he was playing and the next day...........:eek

Speaking of Hendy: At the original CA Billiards in San Jose, CA, he was playing 1pocket with a good player from Sacramento area (we'll call him Ron). John was up 2-1 in a race to 3 and had 4-5 balls and total control of that (what would have been) last game.

We had an earthquake that moved the balls and knocked the lights out. As we were getting our bairings, I see John's opponent leaving the room and get in his car. I guess the set was over hahaha. I asked John when they may finish the set and in John's normal cool self, he said something like "it's OK to not finish a set during a natural disaster, the set is over".

For some reason this cracked me up as it was way too civilized for my pea-brain to comprehend. John didn't think twice about it and Ron couldn't get out of there fast enough. John for president and the old man hall of fame!!!!!

Dave

Action Stories

Scrzbill said:

I know Mitch has a story about playing someone at the DCC when playing for a hunnert a game, he hooked his opponent in the top corner putting the last ball left on the spot.

Click to expand...

True story. I have posted it before Bill but here goes.. I was at the Derby a couple years ago playing this scrappy old head for a hunnert a game. It’s late night in the action room and the place is packed with sweators. Last ball on the table is uptable in on his side sitting in that corner pocket. It’s my shot. I hit a perfect slow roll to pocket the ball and leave whitey wayyyy in that pocket, totally hooking my opponent. A bunch of guys see it and react, saying “aww that’s not even fair!!” And the like. It was a lowdown dirty move and I was as proud as a peacock. I couldn’t have been happier and was counting that Hundo. So then Bill (Sczrbill to be exact) gets down, lines up for a one rail kick just by my side pocket, and kicks the spotted ball dead center of his hole for the win! The crowd who were all watching by now went insane!!! It was the greatest out I’ve had perpetrated on me and was almost worth losing the Benjamin just to see the crowds reaction and the greatness of that shot... at that moment!! Yes that’s a good one Bill and worth the telling.

Island Drive said:

Years ago, at the Country Cowboy in KS there was a $5000 added bar table 9 ball event, race to 9 Valley ball. Ran into CJ and Gary, they were traveling together and I got into a game with CJ and quit stuck a few hundred. Probably 1985 ish. I had enough so I played his road partner Lutman, who I coulda robbed on a 9 footer, but I was still not comfortable with the smaller table YET. He beat me outta $200....but the way he conducted his business, is/was Exactly the way I don't enjoy. Now it's late eighties, BCA Nationals are in KS and I'm playing real good. Before I played Gary, I ran into an 8 ball team I think from Puerto Rico, beat all five of em. (I didn't play in the leagues, I was just picking the low hanging fruit). Next I ran into Gary with his girlfriend in the tournament room and play had finished. I walked in and ignored em....he always makes the first move. He got my attention and we started playing for $50 a rack and it didn't take too long to be up $500....he said ''wanna jack the bet''. I thought about how NICE he treated me in KS :heh....and I did not want to give em ANY air. Now is where the story is fun, the ending. I got em stuck/busted (we posted) $750 and he and his girlfriend start going at it!!! All of sudden Lutman got up and Snapped his cue in half. Was a NICE cue, had points in the base of the shaft, was at least a 1200 dollar cues. I got the money, he lost his girl, and broke his cue. Couldn't happened to a nicer guy. Heard he works in a Vegas pool room.

That's one of my road stories, hope you enjoyed it, as much as I did hearing that cue snap.

Click to expand...

Last time I was in Vegas Gary was Griff’ manager. I woofed at Gary for two days and he wouldn’t play me. Back in the day I played at Gary’s place in St. Louis often.

jtompilot said:

Last time I was in Vegas Gary was Griff’ manager. I woofed at Gary for two days and he wouldn’t play me. Back in the day I played at Gary’s place in St. Louis often.

Click to expand...

Wooford and Whitey Walker, boy they kept my pocket full many times.

When you get to my age, you have lots of stories, some funny, some tragic and some memorable. So here goes. I am 18 years old and I am broke. I am at an all night poolroom in Norwalk California. A friend, Farmer Brown, says he wants to put me in action against a local. I say great for how much. He says a set of nine ball for a hundred. I say fine and start to play. Back then we played ahead matches not races. On the next table Grady Matthews is playing Kenny Anderson an LA player who is no slouch. They are playing One Pocket for $50 a piece in a three ahead match. As the matches are in progress, Farmer Brown keeps telling me to shoot faster. All my life I have been a thoughtful (some call slow) player. I don't understand why Farmer is telling me to speed it up until I figure out he staked me with the stakes he's holding for the Grady/Kenny match. I win the match just as Grady is winning his. Now the best part. Grady asks me to play and we match up 8/6 - 9/7 for a hundred a set and I needed all of that spot back then. I busted him for $300. Years later I was talking to Grady and recounted the story and he remembered Farmer telling me to shoot faster and we both had a great belly laugh.

The Other Mizerak

The Other Mizerak

While I generally stayed close to home, San Gabriel Bowl and the Golden Cue, I would occasionally make trips to other rooms to check out the action. This day I happened to go to The House of Billiards at 6th and Western in Los Angeles.

As I walk in the pool room I see the other Steve Mizerak, a notorious pool sucker who often went of for huge scores whenever he might show up at any pool room. Mizerak is playing Grady Mathews $300 a game one pocket getting 12/3, and on the next table Don Lee is playing Surfer Jack, Mizerak’s current road partner, some $500 sets of nine ball, and on the snooker table Hawaiian Brian is playing $100 a game golf with a local player originally from Peru. Mizerak is staking Don and Brian.

It is Mizerak’s break and before he breaks, he pulls out a handful of pills, declares ‘Here it is, beat Grady’ and swallows the pill. He breaks, makes a ball and runs three, winning the game. Now he does a few sommersaults across the floor before the next game.

He ended up losing in his own match and the other two. While this was going on, he decides he wants to bet a horse running at Hollywood Park. They get a bookie down there to keep him in action. He gets the bet down, his horse wins at a nice price and he gets most or all of the money back he lost in the pool games.

This was the only time I ran into this guy and hopefully there are others out there with more stories about him. Quite a character.

jrhendy said:

While I generally stayed close to home, San Gabriel Bowl and the Golden Cue, I would occasionally make trips to other rooms to check out the action. This day I happened to go to The House of Billiards at 6th and Western in Los Angeles.

As I walk in the pool room I see the other Steve Mizerak, a notorious pool sucker who often went of for huge scores whenever he might show up at any pool room. Mizerak is playing Grady Mathews $300 a game one pocket getting 12/3, and on the next table Don Lee is playing Surfer Jack, Mizerak’s current road partner, some $500 sets of nine ball, and on the snooker table Hawaiian Brian is playing $100 a game golf with a local player originally from Peru. Mizerak is staking Don and Brian.

It is Mizerak’s break and before he breaks, he pulls out a handful of pills, declares ‘Here it is, beat Grady’ and swallows the pill. He breaks, makes a ball and runs three, winning the game. Now he does a few sommersaults across the floor before the next game.

He ended up losing in his own match and the other two. While this was going on, he decides he wants to bet a horse running at Hollywood Park. They get a bookie down there to keep him in action. He gets the bet down, his horse wins at a nice price and he gets most or all of the money back he lost in the pool games.

This was the only time I ran into this guy and hopefully there are others out there with more stories about him. Quite a character.

Click to expand...

I heard about em when I was there 76-81. He had a Great business. He put together those $20 coupon books that High School kids would peddle. And they WERE a good deal for business and new customers. Miz made money, the schools made money, and the kids peddling the booklets also made a commission. Win win for everyone at that time in life. Smart man/kinda, but boy did he have a gambling/pool addiction problem.

he heard i was a good pool sucker and would bet high. so he chased me around all the time. i wouldnt play him pool i just kept stringing him around telling him i would play another day, so i could take him off in card games. so he was stuck playing me cards and i knew i could get him in pool if i ever wanted but cards was faster and for much more. so in the end i never saw him play and never got close to playing him but knew him well. actually he was a great guy..

i did win like a 500 dollar bet one time on him. someone was talking about pool and so i said i knew alot about pool and that guy over there was steve mizerack. well it took all of five seconds for the guy to bet me that was not steve mizerack the pool player.
so the bet i made was we picked a stranger to go over and ask the person what was his name and did he shoot pool real well.

Sportsman John

Sportsman John

There was a bar in Pasadena CA called The Sportsman and we called the owner Sportsman John. He was not a big go off, but would usually lose enough to make the trip worthwhile if you could get him down on the table in his bar. He would also show up at some of the other action joints so everyone in the area pretty much knew him or had heard of him.

There was still some action once and a while in El Monte at Five Points Bowl and I took a trip one day to see if anything was going on. It was dead but they told me a guy named Don Murray had opened a new room a few blocks away on the main drag. I go down there and there are only two people in the place, a scuffler I knew named Larry Bliss and a stranger I figure is Don Murray.

I see them talking and figure Don is asking Larry who I am. Then he asks me to play some $10 nine ball. Larry is giving me the whack up sign behind Don’s back (Hand over heart), so I agree to play. Larry was a pretty quick thinker and once he knew Don did not know me, told him I was Sportsman John, who Don had heard was a sucker.

Don trusted Larry about as much as I did and pulled up after losing $30 and told Larry ‘That ain’t Sportsman John’. We had a good laugh about it and Don and I became good friends over the years.