Obviously he must have been a great pool player in his day, I noticed he won the US Open, sometime in the 80's. At that time, Sigel was also playing his best. Was he a cream of the crop player like Sigel, or was he a middle ranked pro who happened to catch a gear and win the tournament? Also, when and why did he quit playing pool? Is he on any accustats tapes?
David Howard
- Thread starter cuetechasaurus
- Start date
I remember watching David Howard play in the 1994 World 9-Ball Tounament in Las Vegas. At the time, he was big on the circuit. I took about a 10 year leave from the billiard scene and havn't seen or heard much about him. I have an old instructional video with him it, I think it was produced by Meucci.
cuetechasaurus said:
He played very good 9-ball and had a good bar table game. His overall game was lacking. He could not play straight pool at all, almost at a beginner level and his one pocket was just average. I watched him play many times and played him quite a few times so I have a pretty good feel for his game. A good player but not even close to people like Miz, Hall or MS.
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dont believe he was one of the elite of the game back in the 80s and 90s. probably just a notch below.
granted he did win the U.S. Open one year, and he even appeared on the ESPN Ultimate 9-Ball Challenge at least once as i recall.
obviously he was/is an excellent player. just not one of the greats i suppose.
DCP
granted he did win the U.S. Open one year, and he even appeared on the ESPN Ultimate 9-Ball Challenge at least once as i recall.
obviously he was/is an excellent player. just not one of the greats i suppose.
DCP
Little David,
In 9 ball he was close to the best in tournament play in his heyday, but what separated him from the pack in 9-ball was his break shot. He perfected the break way before most other players. I also think he had significant health problems his whole life which could of made his skill spotty. Ask Grady for an opinion he'll definitely tell ya about him.
I'll never forget at Red's tournament I was sitting with Jimmy Reid and watching his match, David breaks and makes three balls and runs out. On his next break he moves the cue ball to a completely different location and breaks and makes at least two. Hippe Jimmy was rolling in laughter, because he made three and now he isn't breaking from that spot, it was fun watching him bust em up, don't know of anyone during that time that broke em better, possibly a little harder (possibly) but didn't make balls like he did.
In 9 ball he was close to the best in tournament play in his heyday, but what separated him from the pack in 9-ball was his break shot. He perfected the break way before most other players. I also think he had significant health problems his whole life which could of made his skill spotty. Ask Grady for an opinion he'll definitely tell ya about him.
I'll never forget at Red's tournament I was sitting with Jimmy Reid and watching his match, David breaks and makes three balls and runs out. On his next break he moves the cue ball to a completely different location and breaks and makes at least two. Hippe Jimmy was rolling in laughter, because he made three and now he isn't breaking from that spot, it was fun watching him bust em up, don't know of anyone during that time that broke em better, possibly a little harder (possibly) but didn't make balls like he did.
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cuetechasaurus said:
In the 80's, I believe David was ranked as high as #4 on the pro tour. He won the US Open twice, in 1982 & 1986. The last professional title he won was in 1991 in Toronto when he beat Nick Varner in the finals. He was also featured in the initial ESPN Challenge of Champions & in other numerous television matches.
I believe that most of the Accu-stats matches featuring David are long out of print. The only one that I believe is still in production is from 1995 featuring him playing Rodney Morris at a Sands tournament, with David losing 11-7.
David was a great player. He had a very powerful break & very powerful offensive game. He was pretty much a shot-maker in the 80's as I recall but in the early 90's his position play improved from my observations. In my opinion he was not a "middle-ranked" pro.
I would think the main reason David stopped playing can be attributed to burn-out. There were also rumored personal problems & there were conflicts with Meucci that ultimately cost him his sponsorship with them. He still plays a little bit in some small tournaments from what I've heard but that's about it.
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uwate said:
David is a nice guy. He used to personally deliver Meucci cues to me at a poolroom I managed in the late 80's & early 90's. And because we had one of the first Diamond Tables sold (1st in FL also) we played quite a bit.
He still plays an occasional FL Tour stop (it's not a minor tour by any means) and still owns "Little Davids" poolroom in Jaxsonville as far as I know. David Howard was a Champion and still gets a lot of well deserved respect from the players who know him.
He still plays an occasional FL Tour stop (it's not a minor tour by any means) and still owns "Little Davids" poolroom in Jaxsonville as far as I know. David Howard was a Champion and still gets a lot of well deserved respect from the players who know him.
about 6 months ago David stopped in a bar, Fridays in Daytona beach I think, where a friend of mine was bar tending. They got to talking because my friend saw a gold chain David was wearing with some type of pool related thing on it, and my bud got him to autograph his biz card for me. It was from a pool room / supply company, so I guess He's still in the biz so to speak. He told me they were having "a real good time" 
. My friends from Canada, and he called me right after saying.....some ex-snooker pro was just in here and I got his card for you...LOL I said "snooker?"....and he told me to shut up.....pool I meant!....Canadians, sheesh!
Gerry
. My friends from Canada, and he called me right after saying.....some ex-snooker pro was just in here and I got his card for you...LOL I said "snooker?"....and he told me to shut up.....pool I meant!....Canadians, sheesh! Gerry
I have some Accu-stats tapes of him including Howard v. Jewett from the 1988 Reno Sands tournament. I think he had the highest measured break speed in one of the several speed tests that were done at trade shows about that time -- maybe 30MPH. I would say that he was not consistently at the Sigel, Hall and Roberts level, but just below.cuetechasaurus said:
David won USOpen two times and was Runner Up 2 times.That means he was in the USOpen finals 4 times!!!!!Except Earl who else was in the finals that many times?
Answer: Efren Reyes on 4 consecutive years.
Answer: Efren Reyes on 4 consecutive years.
David Howard won the US Open in 1982 and 1986. Those accomplishments alone speak volumes for David's abilities. I remember in 1988 he won 3 PBA titles in a row. He won the Georgia Open, The Southern California Open, and then went on and won the Joey Speath Memorial. This was done in the era of Hall, Sigel, Strickland, Varner, etc. Pretty strong IMO. David was top shelf as a player for many years and he is also one of the nicest people you'll ever meet.
Do you have more info about David Howard?
Do you know the years David was runner-up at the Open?
I'm compiling that information but I'm missing the names of the runner-ups from the first tournament until the 14th. (1976-1989).
vagabond said:
Do you know the years David was runner-up at the Open?
I'm compiling that information but I'm missing the names of the runner-ups from the first tournament until the 14th. (1976-1989).
All About David
Some very good responses here. David was definitely a top tier pro in his day. He and Jim Rempe were the main reps for Meucci for years. He had one of the strongest breaks ever in 9-Ball and didn't miss too many balls either. "Little" David was known on tour as the Giant Killer, because of all the top players he beat as a youngster in Florida.
Of course, this nickname became somewhat of a joke on tour, because David was one of the Giants in 9-Ball. He was capable of beating anyone out there and was a consistent top ten player thruout his career. He finally retired from the road and opened a billiard supply called Little David's in Jacksonville, FL. After a few years he added a pool room next door.
David was one of the friendliest, most well liked guys out there. As far as the drinking problem alluded to here, I NEVER saw him show up for a match drunk, or even tipsy. He was always on time and ready to play. If he drank, it must have been at home between tournaments. The man was a pro, and actually made a living at professional pool for around 20 years. How many players can say that?
David Howard was one of my favorite players, and yes I consider him a GOOD friend.
Some very good responses here. David was definitely a top tier pro in his day. He and Jim Rempe were the main reps for Meucci for years. He had one of the strongest breaks ever in 9-Ball and didn't miss too many balls either. "Little" David was known on tour as the Giant Killer, because of all the top players he beat as a youngster in Florida.
Of course, this nickname became somewhat of a joke on tour, because David was one of the Giants in 9-Ball. He was capable of beating anyone out there and was a consistent top ten player thruout his career. He finally retired from the road and opened a billiard supply called Little David's in Jacksonville, FL. After a few years he added a pool room next door.
David was one of the friendliest, most well liked guys out there. As far as the drinking problem alluded to here, I NEVER saw him show up for a match drunk, or even tipsy. He was always on time and ready to play. If he drank, it must have been at home between tournaments. The man was a pro, and actually made a living at professional pool for around 20 years. How many players can say that?
David Howard was one of my favorite players, and yes I consider him a GOOD friend.
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