Ok, so after several private requests, here it is again:
Wesley Turnporte has been described in certain circles as one of the best money players in the country, if not the world. Now, most of you have probably heard of *someone* described in the same way, or stories about them, the names differing from pool room to pool room, region to region: "Archer put 13 racks on Bustamonte from the snap in a race to 13 and Bustamonte said 'Double the bet.' " Or, "McCready used to have a t-shirt that said 'I'll give anyone in the world the last two.' ( and he meant it )". Or, "Mike Carella once played Bob Osborne for 3 days straight at 2,000 a set and not only busted him, but snapped off the entire room to boot."
What puts Wesley Turnporte in the same conversation with all those other players is just this. He really *is* one of the best money players alive. But don't take my word for it. Ask around. Better yet, Google him. Then read the stories. I don't know about you, but when a lot of the greatest players on earth say someone is one of the best money players alive? That's good enough for me.
I caught up with Wesley in a Charlotte, N.C. suburb at the pool room where he spends most of his time, The Break Cue, when he's not out scuffling.
AZB: How old were you the first time you saw a pool table?
WT: I was, ummm... 8 or 9. It was at a bowling alley. My parents bowled every Friday night.
AZB: Do you remember anything about it in particular?
WT: Yeah... the colors. Of the balls. And the sounds... the clicking sounds when the balls hit each other. I started watching and I couldn't look away. It was like I was hypnotized. I remember at the end of the night, my mom telling me we had to go and I didn't want to. I just wanted to keep watching. I'd never seen anything like it.
AZB: So did you play that first time?
WT: Nope. Just watched... it was a little bar box, .50 a game and I didn't have any money. But even if I had money, I probably wouldn't have tried playing. I was too mesmerized. I'm not even sure I was aware I *could* have played. I just wanted to watch. After we got home, though... all I could think about was those balls flying all around the table. And the sounds. And then, thinking about everything I had seen and heard, MAN, I wanted to try it. So the next Friday, I begged my mom for a dollar. And I asked one of the kids at the table how I could play. He said to put a quarter on the rail and then keep track 'til it was my turn. So that's what I did.
AZB: And the rest, as they say, is history.
WT: Yup.
AZB: So how long did it take before you realized pool was something... special?
WT: Oh, instantly. I knew the first ball I hit. I was hooked. And for whatever reason, it didn't take me too long to catch on. I mean... after a few months I was beating all the kids at the bowling alley. One of the older ones told me I should come to the pool room downtown. I had no idea what a pool room was. But when he told me it had like... 12 tables, my eyes lit up like lightbulbs.
AZB: How many tables were at the bowling alley?
WT: Just the one. And man, did I *hate* losing. Because, when I lost, I had to wait for all those other quarters to go before it was my turn again. I think that's why I got so good so fast, for a little kid. I didn't want to wait. I wanted to *play*. And in order not to have to wait, you had to win. So I wanted to win. Bad.
AZB: Sounds like a pretty simple principle.
WT: Yup.
AZB: So you went to the pool room?
WT: Yup. My mom put my bike in the back of the station wagon and took me the first time. It was a Saturday and I had to promise I would be home by dinner. She dropped me off around noon.
AZB: And you were how old at this point?
WT: Well... this was like... 6 months after that first time? So I must've been around 10 or so.
AZB: And they just let you in? A little kid?
WT: Yup. It was a family pool room. Well-lit, fake plants in all the corners, big picture windows. No alcohol. It was a Saturday and the place was *full* of kids. I mean... there were a lot of adults there as well. But lots of kids. I was one of the younger ones, but I didn't feel out of place at all. In fact, I had never felt more at home. It was like heaven. My mom came in that first time and told the counter guy she was ok with me being there.
AZB: So you played that first day?
WT: Oh yeah... all day long. My mom gave me three dollars. So I figured, ok, I could play at *least* eight games. But when I got there, I couldn't find anywhere to put the quarters in the table. I asked the guy behind the counter where you put the quarters in. He told me it was all by the hour. I'm not sure, but I think it was .150 an hour. Maybe more. I told him I had three dollars and to let me know when my time was up.
AZB: So you played alone?
WT: At first, yeah. But then kids came up and wanted to play me. Two of them I knew from the bowling alley. One of them must've told one of the other kids I was good, because one of the kids I didn't know said "I heard you're really good. But you can't beat *me." So we played.
AZB: Did you beat him?
WT: Yup... and he was pretty pissed. I guess he was one of the best of all the kids who hung out there.
AZB: How old was he?
WT: 12 maybe? Somewhere around there.
AZB: So how long did it take for you to get really good? You know... good enough that people started telling you, "Man... you're really *good*!"
WT: Well... after a few months of me going in the pool room, the guy behind the counter sort of took an interest in me. He started showing me all kinds of things. You know, the right things. The right stance. A proper bridge. What English was and what it did. Banks... all that stuff. And I guess it worked pretty well because after a year or so, I started beating some of the adults. I started getting out a lot. I never really thought about it but I guess in the back of my mind, I knew I was getting pretty good. I do know I started attracting a lot of attention.
AZB: In what way?
WT: People started watching me. Like every time I'd play someone, there would be a crowd of people. Some time later, I found out people were betting on me. I had never bet at all at that point. I really didn't even know you *could* bet on pool. But it didn't take long for me to catch on after someone told me about people betting on me. And I was like... I can make *money* doing this? That was all it took. That gave me a reason, other than just *wanting* to be good, to be the best I could possibly be. Something to work toward.
AZB: So how old were you the first time you bet on pool?
WT: 11? Something like that.
AZB: Wow... 11. Did you win the first time?
WT: Yup. Not much... we only betting like... 2 dollars game? But, yeah. I won.
AZB: You remember who it was? An adult?
WT: Oh, yeah, I remember. Nope, not a grown-up. It was another kid. But older. I think he was 14 or so. And he thought he was a world champ.
AZB: Beat him bad?
WT: Yup. Busted him.
AZB: How much?
WT: ( laughs ) Hell, I don't remember. 30 dollars? Something like that. I know he was so mad he almost broke his cue. And it was a pretty nice one. A Meucci, I think. Nothing fancy, but I remember thinking it was beautiful. I wanted one.
AZB: You didn't have your own cue?
WT: Nope... not at that point. But I got one pretty soon after that. Actually, the counter guy, Ray, gave me one of his. He had 3 or 4 of them. It was an old Joss. I **loved** that cue. I wish I still had it. Someone stole it out of my car, many years later. I had it for 20 years or more.
