On this day in 1985, pool legend Efren Reyes showed up anonymously at Red’s Billiards, in Houston, Texas, to participate in the room’s 9-Ball Open. This was his first known appearance in the United States. The tournament’s 108-man field included many of the nation’s top players, including Earl Strickland. But Reyes (then traveling under the pseudonym Cesar Morales) came out on top.
Although sportswriter John Grissim came across Reyes in Manilla during the 1970s and wrote then about his prowess, and although Reyes was considered the Philippines top player by 1985, when he showed up at Reds he was completely unknown. Reyes beat Wade Crane (then playing under the alias Billy Johnson) in the tournament final.
“I didn’t even know the rules,” Reyes said months after his first U.S. victory. “I figured as long as I keep making balls, I will win.”
February 2 is the birthday of champion caroms layer Dieter Müller. Mr. Müller won his first German championship title in 1967 in Düsseldorf and in total won 32 German championship titles. In 1969, at a tournament in the Netherlands, Mülle won the first of his eight European titles. He also racked up four world championships. Dieter Müller was born on Feb, 2, 1943.
Allison Fisher, one of the winningest competitors in all of pro sports, was born on Feb. 24, 1968 in Cheshunt, England. She won her first world title at the age of 17, and so far has won over 80 national titles and 11 world titles. Ms. Fisher, known colloquially as “The Duchess of Doom,” was inducted into the Billiard Congress Hall of Fame in 2009.
William Emmett Blankenship was born in Olden, Missouri, an unincorporated area north of West Plains, on April 6th, 1892. He won the world pool title on his first attempt in 1916. Blankenship was the first person to run over a hundred balls at Straight Pool and had a personal best high run of 287 balls during an exhibition in Jackson, Michigan.
On April 11, 1996, Earl Strickland ran 11 consecutive racks to win the “Dallas Million-Dollar Challenge.” Conducted during the first Professional CueSports Association tournament in 1996, in Dallas Texas, the challenged include rules stipulating that anyone who could break and run 10 racks would win a million dollars. Because of a reported racking “glitch” Strickland needed to run 11.
However, the promotional company immediately balked at paying the prize, which, according to reports, could be accepted as a lump sum of $630,000 or as a 20-year annuity with payments of $50,000. After some legal wrangling with the insurance company, Stickland reportedly ended up with more than the $630,000 than he would’ve taken as a lump sum — even after paying $200,000 in legal fees.
Hugo Kerkau, a German carom billiards player and world champion, was founder of “Café Kerkau” (1901) and the Kerkau Palace (1910), both located in Berlin. The Kerkau Palace had 48 tables and was famous for chess playing as well as pool. Kerkau was born on December 13, 1874 and died, at age 43, on April 15, 1918.
June 8, 1961 is the birthdate of five-time U.S. Open 9-Ball champion Earl Strickland. Born in Roseboro, North Carolina, Strickland is considered one of the finest nine-ball players of all time. He has won over 100 championships, three world titles, and in 1996 the largest single cash price to date. In 2006 he was inducted into the Billiard Congress of America‘s Hall of Fame.
July 25 is the birth anniversary of multiple world champion caroms player Erich Hagenlocher. Mr. Hagenlocher was said to have received his first billiards instruction at age 15 from expert players in his home town of Stuttgart, Germany, and after just one year progressed to such an extent that he was scoring an average of between 4 and 5 on large-sized tables. At age 18 Hagenlocher settled in Berlin and there he began managing series of 100 points or more. He then went on to win the world championship on multiple occasions and, according to Minnesota Fats, helped instruct him become a formidable caroms player in his own right. Hagenlocher was born on July 25, 1895, in Stuttgart, Germany; and died on Dec. 12, 1958, also in Stuttgart.
Belgium three-cushion billiards ace Raymond Cuelemans breaks down weeping upon winning the world title in 1965, as runner up Enrique Navarra embraces him. Here’s the story of this image, as told by the Mexican Union of Billiards Champions (Umcb Gallegos Jesus) and translated approximately from Spanish:
“The XX World 3-Cushion Championship was held in Buenos Aires, Argentina from October 22 to 29, 1965. The venue, The Casal de Cataluña, had a full house with more than 3,000 spectators for the final match between the two undefeated players: Raymond Ceulemans from Belgium and Enrique Navarra from Argentina (World Champion 1953 and 1958). The score was in Navarra’s favor 30 to 27 in the 20th inning and then Ceulemans executed three consecutive series of five caroms in the 38th, 39th and 40th innings and went on to win by 60 to 40 in 45 innings. Recognizing his triumph, the Argentine public applauded and sang the name ‘Ceulemans, Ceulemans, Ceulemans’ for 15 minutes without a break. Unable to contain his emotion, Cuelemans broke down in tears, taking refuge on the shoulder of runner up Navarra.”
Dec. 12 is the death anniversary of multiple world champion caroms player Erich Hagenlocher. Mr. Hagenlocher was said to have received his first billiards instruction at age 15 from expert players in his home town of Stuttgart, Germany, and after just one year progressed to such an extent that he was scoring an average of between 4 and 5 on large-sized tables. At age 18 Hagenlocher settled in Berlin and there he began managing series of 100 points or more. He then went on to win the world championship on multiple occasions and, according to Minnesota Fats, helped instruct him become a formidable caroms player in his own right. Hagenlocher was born on July 25, 1895, in Stuttgart, Germany; and died on Dec. 12, 1958, also in Stuttgart.
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