Don Willis: The Greatest Pool Player Ever, As Told By Garten Bierbower
- Thread starter maxeberle
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Thanks Max!
Hilarious!!!!!
and for the record I dont believe a word of it
he may as well be telling us a a Flying Saucer landed in his backyard
and said "take me to your leader"
Stories become exagerrated with time, but one thing is gospel for over 20 years the welcome mat was out in Canton Ohio to bet whatever you wanted playing nineball. Wimpy stated theat "In Canton Ohio Don is unbeatable because in Canton everyone knows how well he plays" and btw I still have fond memrios of Garten playing at the velvetrail in Dover very underratted player in his own right
If you played with Garten at the rail, then you've seen him make stuff nobody else can make. When he caught a gear, I was left in awe. And the safeties...brutal.
I love the stories like that! I'm sure some stories turn into "fish" stories and get better with time, BUT.....there is a seed of truth to all of them, and that is even amazing.
I was BS'n with some friends last weekend between matches, and some stories were told about Allen Hopkins by a friend of his. Here's one.....
Allen was playing 14.1 race to 150 with "Shadow" his road partner at the time, and a real good player himself. First game Shadow breaks and Allen goes 150. Second game Allen breaks perfect, Shadow plays a good safety.....Allen finds a dead one....150. Third game, same as the first....another 150. That's 450 balls without a miss!
So, as you could expect, Shadow is not having fun so he suggests a race of 9ball to 9 games for dinner.....BTW, the 14.1 games were for bottles of wine AT dinner......Allen gets the break, and ran the set out!!!
How strong is that!
I have heard a ton of stories like these about Allen......I wonder if Allen and Don have ever played?
G.
I was BS'n with some friends last weekend between matches, and some stories were told about Allen Hopkins by a friend of his. Here's one.....
Allen was playing 14.1 race to 150 with "Shadow" his road partner at the time, and a real good player himself. First game Shadow breaks and Allen goes 150. Second game Allen breaks perfect, Shadow plays a good safety.....Allen finds a dead one....150. Third game, same as the first....another 150. That's 450 balls without a miss!
So, as you could expect, Shadow is not having fun so he suggests a race of 9ball to 9 games for dinner.....BTW, the 14.1 games were for bottles of wine AT dinner......Allen gets the break, and ran the set out!!!
How strong is that!
I have heard a ton of stories like these about Allen......I wonder if Allen and Don have ever played?
G.
This guy is a character. He was wrong about insisting Nick went to "monroe". Nick went to Purdue University only and graduated. He moved up to that area in the 70s to work for Bullock Garages and sold garages for Randy Bullock who was a pool enthusiast.
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Believe me I would go there every morning for free to sweep the floors if he would keep the stories coming. Yes I'm retired. :grin:
You're most welcome! Garten is a great story teller.
I used to rack for Garten all night long...if he was on the pro tour today with that game, you all can better believe his name would be on a bunch of these international pro trophies. Smooth as silk and sharp as a tack, I still consider him the best player I've ever seen, my own Don Willis.
As a kid growing up and learning pool, I was super lucky to play, watch, and learn from him. He would partner up in scotch doubles with my grandpa and they would beat all comers LOL. My grandpa in his day would run 100s all the time and full racks of 15 ball rotation ad infinitum... so yeah I was a lucky kid
I used to rack for Garten all night long...if he was on the pro tour today with that game, you all can better believe his name would be on a bunch of these international pro trophies. Smooth as silk and sharp as a tack, I still consider him the best player I've ever seen, my own Don Willis.
As a kid growing up and learning pool, I was super lucky to play, watch, and learn from him. He would partner up in scotch doubles with my grandpa and they would beat all comers LOL. My grandpa in his day would run 100s all the time and full racks of 15 ball rotation ad infinitum... so yeah I was a lucky kid
That's awesome!!! Growing up in Ohio, I got to hear all kinds of folklore about pool players & epic gambling heists. A few of the old guys are still around & they love telling the stories to anybody who'll listen. I remember being amazed at the shots & position these guys pulled to get the cash. It seemed like every pool room, corner pub, bowling alley, elks lodge, etc had a continuous ring game. And old men love telling the stories about the greats & the roadies. The game has changed in my short lifetime. I wonder if the next generation will be mesmerized by stories about our champions. Thanks for the link. That was a pleasant reminder of how I got started playing.
Hi Max -
Thanks for the video. Richie Florence told me Don Willis was considered the best road player. And I love those old hustler stories.
Thanks for the video. Richie Florence told me Don Willis was considered the best road player. And I love those old hustler stories.
Willis was in CA with Dean Chance, the Angels pitcher who had just won the Cy Young award in 65/66. I was going to college at East LA nights and went down to 4th & Main poolroom after class. Dean talked me into playing this old guy who was woofing at everyone. I thought I was hustling him and told them I was a college student studying the three cushion diamond system.
Dean told me he was a rich old guy from Ohio out here to see the Dodgers in the World Series. He beat me 10 games for $10 a game and NEVER ran more than a few balls. Now I could play a little 9 ball then and he did give me the fisheye when I ran a couple racks, but he missed balls & got safe and made lots of combo's on the 9.
I heard them say they were going to Hollywood Billiards next and followed them over there. He barked at whoever was there and no one stepped up. After they left I asked one of the old sweaters who he was. He told me "That guy is the best player the other side of the Mississippi. The only reason he's not the best on this side is he never comes out here. That's Don Willis".
Garten's stories
It was also great to here Mr. Bierbower talk of a few other players that I grew up around including Fred "Luch" Martin and Jerry Woolf. There was a lot of great pool players in the Canton/Akron to New Philly/Dover area. Amongsnt them were Dave Myers, Jerry Woolf, Chick, Harry Florence, Ed Becker, Garten Bierbower, Glen Knowles, and later on Troy Frank, Chris Szuter, Mario Cilleti and others. Not to mention at times guys like Max Eberle,Coey Duel, Nick Varner, Jack Hynes and others who hung there hat in the area or grew up there.
It was also great to here Mr. Bierbower talk of a few other players that I grew up around including Fred "Luch" Martin and Jerry Woolf. There was a lot of great pool players in the Canton/Akron to New Philly/Dover area. Amongsnt them were Dave Myers, Jerry Woolf, Chick, Harry Florence, Ed Becker, Garten Bierbower, Glen Knowles, and later on Troy Frank, Chris Szuter, Mario Cilleti and others. Not to mention at times guys like Max Eberle,Coey Duel, Nick Varner, Jack Hynes and others who hung there hat in the area or grew up there.
Don Willis Remembered
This is from the Greater Canton Amateur Billiard Association.
I was lucky enough to play some 14.1 against the founder, Dick Moecia, in the 90s.
This group of players from northeastern Ohio have had this association going for some time. A brotherhood of pool players paying homage to the great players they knew and respected.
Please enjoy this Don Willis tribute.
http://www.gcaba.com/willis.htm
This is from the Greater Canton Amateur Billiard Association.
I was lucky enough to play some 14.1 against the founder, Dick Moecia, in the 90s.
This group of players from northeastern Ohio have had this association going for some time. A brotherhood of pool players paying homage to the great players they knew and respected.
Please enjoy this Don Willis tribute.
http://www.gcaba.com/willis.htm
This turned out to be a fine thread.
I laughed, I cried, I loved it.
I laughed, I cried, I loved it.
Don Willis
I walked in a small poolroom in Pickerington Ohio one afternoon in the late 60's and a couple of older guys yelled at me to get out of the doorway, I jumped to the side and Don Willis went past me at a dead run with a Gold Crown 1 strapped to his back, he took out the door casings going through flapped his arms a couple of times and flew off into the sunset.
I walked in a small poolroom in Pickerington Ohio one afternoon in the late 60's and a couple of older guys yelled at me to get out of the doorway, I jumped to the side and Don Willis went past me at a dead run with a Gold Crown 1 strapped to his back, he took out the door casings going through flapped his arms a couple of times and flew off into the sunset.