Rodney posted this on Facebook so I thought I would share these with you all here for those who do not go on there or might have missed this.
R.I.P. Cole Dickson. My condolences. You'll be missed brother.....can't help but remember a story or two with Cole.
First time I met Cole, it was at the L.A. open in 1987 I think. My stepdad, Fred Brewster(Kenpo Karate Grandmaster and legend) came to watch me play pool. He was excited because this was gonna be his first time watching me play since I told him I was gonna be the best in the world.
I was only 17, so I had been playing for a year, and naturally I already knew I was the best haha.....well, as soon as I walk in with Fred, Keith McCready comes up to Hawaiian Brian and says hi, and Brian introduces me to Keith and Cole. Then they both look at Fred and say hi and shake his hand and start talking to him without taking their eyes off him. They ask him what he was doing there and he said he came to watch his son, Rodney, who's gonna be world champ real soon. They both look at me an ether eyes get wide in shock.
Naturally, I thought it was regarding me. Turns out it wasn't
the next day Keith tells me, "your dad is Fred Brewster?, he's the baddest dude I ever seen!!!!!" then he proceeds to tell me how Orange County was the toughest area back in the 70s and my dad ran it. He said one time he and Cole were hustling pool at a biker bar, and my dad and one of his friends came in to collect money from the owner.
And Keith said the bikers tried to jump my dad them and about five minutes later, while Keith was watching from under the pool table, only my dad and his friend were standing and all of the guys were on the ground. Like ten of them. And he hears Fred say, "now make sure you have my money the next time I come by". So that's when I realized Keith and Cole knew who Fred was and THAT'S why their eyes got big when they found out he was my stepdad lol......
Fast forward to 1993. I'm dead broke and I call Tang Hoa in LA and ask if he knows where we can go and make money playing pool. He says let's go up north to the bay area. Buck Tooth opened a pool room in Manteca, so we can stop there on the way. Nobody knows who I am there except Tony Annigoni, so we can hide from him and come in after he leaves work and hustle..........so we go there, and sure enough, nobody knows me.
I pretend my name is Juan, and I'm a dart champion. So we end up playing some weak guys, pretending I can't hold the cue. I beat the construction company owner for a couple grand, get the seven ball from Boy George and beat him a couple sets. Everything is perfect until one day Tony leaves for work on schedule, as usual, and we come strolling in, exactly as he's walking out the back door, like we always did. Well, this time, he comes back in and starts pretending he's wiping ashtrays and emptying trash, all the while making his way closer to our side of the pool room.
Well, he gets a look at me and then leaves. About ten minutes later, Boy George, who was giving me the seven, comes up and says, "you're not Juan, you're Rodney Morris. I know you. I'll only play you with the five out wild and the breaks!!!!!!!" well, thanks Tony for that knock lol.......so now I went from absolutely heisting the joint, to giving the nuts out. But we're on the road, and up about 5k now, so I tell Boy George you got that for 1k a set, race to 11. I just wanted to try it, since I haven't shown my speed in a week. Well, I end up winning two sets. 11-10 both times.
Now I'm pumped up cuz I'm playing great and now I know I can win this game. I wanna play for more, but don't know how to say it. In walks Cole Dickson. Nobody knows he knows me, but they all know him. So they're asking him advice and trying to figure out how to beat me. Well Cole asks Boy George, "what were u playing for?" he tells him and Cole says "that's where you went wrong. You can't play these no heart young flamethrowers for a thousand a set.....you gotta play him for a thousand a game!!!!!!!!! Then you'll see him crumble." so Boy George says, "ya, you're right. Ten ahead for 10k."
So I put up the 10k and beat him. Then we play another for 20k and I beat him. Then he wanted to out up his truck and all his jewelry, so I told him go get more cash and come back. Then I end up parlaying that money by beating Edgar Acaba then Rafael Martinez for 20k. Tang made some money too. We end up going with a borrowed 2k to coming back with 30k each in a month.
Next time I saw Cole , I gave him 1k for helping get the bet raised lol.......we never said two words to each other, from 1987 to 1993, yet there was just an understanding. I knew Cole was on my side cuz he knew I was Hawaiian Brian's student, and they were good friends. That's just the way things were back then.
There's so many stories over the years from my gambling days. Lotta funny ones too. Those days are gone now. And a legend has passed. Cole will be missed for sure. I know he was loved. It's sad but we all have to go someday. For me, my legacy, or the way I'd like to be remembered, is that I always gambled and gave 100% every time and I never, ever dumped a living soul.
Hawaiian Brian told me that the very first time he talked to me. He said, "if you're gonna do this for a living, and use my name, then you better know how to fricken count. Don't cheat anybody out of money and never dump a backer. Because the one time you do, that's what you'll be labeled as for life." and that's what I'm most proud of. I learned how to fricken count..............lol
R.I.P. Cole Dickson. My condolences. You'll be missed brother.....can't help but remember a story or two with Cole.
First time I met Cole, it was at the L.A. open in 1987 I think. My stepdad, Fred Brewster(Kenpo Karate Grandmaster and legend) came to watch me play pool. He was excited because this was gonna be his first time watching me play since I told him I was gonna be the best in the world.
I was only 17, so I had been playing for a year, and naturally I already knew I was the best haha.....well, as soon as I walk in with Fred, Keith McCready comes up to Hawaiian Brian and says hi, and Brian introduces me to Keith and Cole. Then they both look at Fred and say hi and shake his hand and start talking to him without taking their eyes off him. They ask him what he was doing there and he said he came to watch his son, Rodney, who's gonna be world champ real soon. They both look at me an ether eyes get wide in shock.
Naturally, I thought it was regarding me. Turns out it wasn't
the next day Keith tells me, "your dad is Fred Brewster?, he's the baddest dude I ever seen!!!!!" then he proceeds to tell me how Orange County was the toughest area back in the 70s and my dad ran it. He said one time he and Cole were hustling pool at a biker bar, and my dad and one of his friends came in to collect money from the owner.And Keith said the bikers tried to jump my dad them and about five minutes later, while Keith was watching from under the pool table, only my dad and his friend were standing and all of the guys were on the ground. Like ten of them. And he hears Fred say, "now make sure you have my money the next time I come by". So that's when I realized Keith and Cole knew who Fred was and THAT'S why their eyes got big when they found out he was my stepdad lol......
Fast forward to 1993. I'm dead broke and I call Tang Hoa in LA and ask if he knows where we can go and make money playing pool. He says let's go up north to the bay area. Buck Tooth opened a pool room in Manteca, so we can stop there on the way. Nobody knows who I am there except Tony Annigoni, so we can hide from him and come in after he leaves work and hustle..........so we go there, and sure enough, nobody knows me.
I pretend my name is Juan, and I'm a dart champion. So we end up playing some weak guys, pretending I can't hold the cue. I beat the construction company owner for a couple grand, get the seven ball from Boy George and beat him a couple sets. Everything is perfect until one day Tony leaves for work on schedule, as usual, and we come strolling in, exactly as he's walking out the back door, like we always did. Well, this time, he comes back in and starts pretending he's wiping ashtrays and emptying trash, all the while making his way closer to our side of the pool room.
Well, he gets a look at me and then leaves. About ten minutes later, Boy George, who was giving me the seven, comes up and says, "you're not Juan, you're Rodney Morris. I know you. I'll only play you with the five out wild and the breaks!!!!!!!" well, thanks Tony for that knock lol.......so now I went from absolutely heisting the joint, to giving the nuts out. But we're on the road, and up about 5k now, so I tell Boy George you got that for 1k a set, race to 11. I just wanted to try it, since I haven't shown my speed in a week. Well, I end up winning two sets. 11-10 both times.
Now I'm pumped up cuz I'm playing great and now I know I can win this game. I wanna play for more, but don't know how to say it. In walks Cole Dickson. Nobody knows he knows me, but they all know him. So they're asking him advice and trying to figure out how to beat me. Well Cole asks Boy George, "what were u playing for?" he tells him and Cole says "that's where you went wrong. You can't play these no heart young flamethrowers for a thousand a set.....you gotta play him for a thousand a game!!!!!!!!! Then you'll see him crumble." so Boy George says, "ya, you're right. Ten ahead for 10k."
So I put up the 10k and beat him. Then we play another for 20k and I beat him. Then he wanted to out up his truck and all his jewelry, so I told him go get more cash and come back. Then I end up parlaying that money by beating Edgar Acaba then Rafael Martinez for 20k. Tang made some money too. We end up going with a borrowed 2k to coming back with 30k each in a month.
Next time I saw Cole , I gave him 1k for helping get the bet raised lol.......we never said two words to each other, from 1987 to 1993, yet there was just an understanding. I knew Cole was on my side cuz he knew I was Hawaiian Brian's student, and they were good friends. That's just the way things were back then.
There's so many stories over the years from my gambling days. Lotta funny ones too. Those days are gone now. And a legend has passed. Cole will be missed for sure. I know he was loved. It's sad but we all have to go someday. For me, my legacy, or the way I'd like to be remembered, is that I always gambled and gave 100% every time and I never, ever dumped a living soul.
Hawaiian Brian told me that the very first time he talked to me. He said, "if you're gonna do this for a living, and use my name, then you better know how to fricken count. Don't cheat anybody out of money and never dump a backer. Because the one time you do, that's what you'll be labeled as for life." and that's what I'm most proud of. I learned how to fricken count..............lol
oh well! My condolences sir!!!