Joe Salazar stories?

ugotactionTX

ugotactionTX

I'm in dead rack!
Silver Member
Hey folks, just wondering if anyone has any stories about Joe Salazar. I know now he has a wonderful collection of cues that he sales around the country, but I'm more interested in the former monster/world beater Joe Salazar. From what I hear he was one of the best, but I'm a sucker for a good story. If half of what I've heard about him is true, he was a serious threat. Anyone got the skinny?
 
Tracy Joe is truly one of the big ball bar box legends. A guy that feared no one. No matter how many racks you put on him there was no quit to him. He was like a bulldog. Kept coming back at you til he broke you down. Saw him play many times.

I would like to post a story of his, but maybe later. It's so outragous that I need to confirm it first.
 
I ran into Joe a few times at Anns, an all night action hangout just outside of Manteca CA, and at the Jointed Cue tournaments. If memory serves me right, Joe was a very good player, but not in Keiths class. Not many were.
 
dabarbr said:
Tracy Joe is truly one of the big ball bar box legends. QUOTE]
How did Keith and Joe match up?
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Here is a reprint of a post I made about Joe Salazar and Keith:

Tracy Joe was quite the player on the bar box.

Here's a cute story about the two of them. A young Keith made an appointment to play the legendary Tracy Joe at a pool room that was off the beaten path.

Keith and a couple of his buddies drove out to the joint at the designated time. When they walked in, there was Tracy Joe waiting for him. The place was packed with curious onlookers wanting to sweat the match. Tracy Joe had his own fan club there in full force, too.

Before the first game, it was agreed that the post monies would be placed on top of the overhead light, a nickel each totalling a thousand bucks. It wasn't 10 crisp C-notes, though. Rather, it was a bunch of tens and twenties. I'm sure both players must have been playing on committee monies.

Tracy Joe and Keith wasted no time and began to battle. It was like one of those neck-and-neck horse races. When one of them got close to the finish line, the other one would catch up. They were tight races. Back and forth they went until the wee hours of the morning, and then Keith caught one of those infamous gears and put it in turbocharge, defeating Tracy Joe several races.

Keith and his entourage were the strangers in town and wanted to get out of there as quick as they could with the cheese. So after the last set, they didn't want to hang around and mingle. They immediately exited the premises.

The night sky was pitch black in the parking lot. Keith and his buddies piled in their car to begin their journey back home. Within minutes it seemed, the driver of Keith's car saw headlights behind him, coming towards their car at an extremely fast pace. The driver of Keith's car figured they were going to get robbed and started to step on it, hitting speeds of close to 100 MPH. Keith said he was frightened.

Soon the car behind them made a move on this two-lane highway and pulled up right next to their car on the left. Keith and his buddies looked in horror when they saw this car full of the bar's patrons and wondered how they were going to get out of this trap.

The driver's side window of the other car was rolled down, and there was Tracy Joe. He had a bunch of greenbacks in one hand, pointing at it with his other hand, and screamed, "Keith, you forgot the post monies on the light."

Keith's driver pulled over to the shoulder of the road. Tracy Joe walked up to Keith's car and handed him the cash. Keith's driver was relieved, as were the rest of the occupants. On the way home, they all enjoyed a good chuckle. They were so intent on leaving, thinking they could get robbed, that they forget to grab the post on top of the light, and the would-be robbers turned out to be the good guys, only wanting to do the right thing.

I see Joe from time to time today, and he always reminds me of a few cute stories from when he was hitting 'em. Today, he still hits 'em with a few buddies on the tournament trail. He likes one-pocket. I wouldn't be able to clock his speed, but I kind of think Joe likes it that way! :D

JAM
 
> I have no stories about his game,but one I'd like to share to help further educate inexperienced cue buyers. A friend that posts here had a very limited,pretty high-end Schon with 2 shafts that he was looking to deal towards something else. Joe managed to convince my friend that the Schon was close to worthless,and prodded him into trading it for 2 warped Bludworths that he barely got 500 bucks back for,and sold the Schon for close to 3k. Joe always has a large selection of cues from all over the spectrum of playability,collectability,and price. He's even known to haggle some. Just know what you have to offer him,stand firm on what you're willing to pay for something he has,and all is good. If he sees you coming,like he did my friend,he's always prepared. Tommy D.
 
My experience in dealing with Joe and cues has been a good one! :)

In fact, more than once, he has given Keith McCready a jump cue during a tournament to use, and said Keith could pay him back later.

Also, Joe has traded cues with Keith before. Joe always has a wide assortment of cues with a range of prices. He knows what Keith likes in a cue, the hit, the forward balance, et cetera, and he pulls out one that he thinks Keith may like.

Keith barters with him sometimes, and if Keith doesn't like the price, he will try to get Joe to come down a little. Joe gives us a fair price and does discount it for Keith sometimes.

Without Joe, Keith would have had no jump cue at several tournaments. I think it is pretty nice of Joe to extend credit to Keith, only to be paid back a tournament or two later. I guess that is what friends do for each other.

At any rate, my experience in dealing with Joe has been nothing but GOOD!

JAM
 
Seattle Joe

When he played in Chicago he was known as Seattle Joe, and yes, he was a bar-box monster. He beat every human all around the country. It was only when he ran into Keith that he became a mere mortal again. Here is a great story that you can ask Joe himself to verify: We had a gaffed-up tight pocket bar table in one of my old joints, The 4-B's Club. I was playing Joe 9ball on it one night and he was giving me the 7 and 9 wild. I was dogging it miserably and he was killing me. I got so exasperated with my futility that I told Joe, "Screw the 7. We'll play even from now on!" Of course he accepted, and I wouldnt be telling this story if the ending didnt work out well, unbelievably I got even playing even, and not being completely insane, I quit. He remembers the incident well, and whenever I run into him we get a good laugh out of it.

the Beard

Cliff's 1pkt DVD available on my site at a discount. Cardone's is on there too.
 
freddy the beard said:
When he played in Chicago he was known as Seattle Joe, and yes, he was a bar-box monster. He beat every human all around the country. It was only when he ran into Keith that he became a mere mortal again. Here is a great story that you can ask Joe himself to verify: We had a gaffed-up tight pocket bar table in one of my old joints, The 4-B's Club. I was playing Joe 9ball on it one night and he was giving me the 7 and 9 wild. I was dogging it miserably and he was killing me. I got so exasperated with my futility that I told Joe, "Screw the 7. We'll play even from now on!" Of course he accepted, and I wouldnt be telling this story if the ending didnt work out well, unbelievably I got even playing even, and not being completely insane, I quit. He remembers the incident well, and whenever I run into him we get a good laugh out of it.

the Beard

Cliff's 1pkt DVD available on my site at a discount. Cardone's is on there too.
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Congrats on post # 1000 Freddy. I bet you didn't even notice it.

I have dealt with Joe a few times but not so much lately. It seems he is getting a little more proud of the cues he has. It is a tough business he is in and I hope he has continued success.

I have only seen Joe gamble one time and that was a few years ago playing one pocket getting a spot. He still played OK.
 
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rackem said:
How did Keith and Joe match up?
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Joe use to tell me he learned from the best in the Bay Area; he was from Tracy, CA. He beat nearly all the well-known champions from the 70's, on the bar-box. This included Larry Hubbert and Mike Sigel. His strategy was to keep his opponent in his seat, denying him any chance to shoot.

When he moved to Southern California he had many players to pick on, like Richie Florence, Ronnie Allen, Little Al Romero and others but there was this up and coming young fella named Keith McCready. From what I understand, over several matchups, Joe was up $25,000 on Keith before Keith started to come back on him. In one monumental showdown between these two, Keith beat Joe so badly that Joe went into retirement and wasn't seen for about 8 years!!! (someone else will needs to confirm the details but this is what I've heard from reliable sources. Although I knew Joe, I was hesistant to ask him about this for obvious reasons. I knew Keith too but I don't remember asking him about this either)

Joe did come back and play competitively for a while but was working two jobs and being a good husband when I knew him. If you get the chance, ask him about his time on the road. It seems he did it all while traveling, including finding his future wife.
 
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ugotactionTX said:
Hey folks, just wondering if anyone has any stories about Joe Salazar. I know now he has a wonderful collection of cues that he sales around the country, but I'm more interested in the former monster/world beater Joe Salazar. From what I hear he was one of the best, but I'm a sucker for a good story. If half of what I've heard about him is true, he was a serious threat. Anyone got the skinny?
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John, I have a great story about Joe Salazar that when i tell it almost sounds made up but you can ask Joe about it. The story takes so long to tell its almost like a short story. Everyone should here this when i have time i will get it all down for everyone. I love this story because i was their.
 
8ballEinstein said:
Joe use to tell me he learned from the best in the Bay Area; he was from Tracy, CA. He beat nearly all the well-known champions from the 70's, on the bar-box. This included Larry Hubbert and Mike Sigel. His strategy was to keep his opponent in his seat, denying him any chance to shoot.

When he moved to Southern California he had many players to pick on, like Richie Florence, Ronnie Allen and others but there was this up and coming young fella named Keith McCready. From what I understand, over several matchups, Joe was up $25,000 on Keith before Keith started to come back on him. In one monumental match between these two, Keith beat Joe so badly that Joe went into retirement and wasn't seen for about 8 years!!! (someone else will needs to confirm the details but this is what I've heard from reliable sources. Although I knew Joe, I was hesistant to ask him about this for obvious reasons. I knew Keith too but I don't remember asking him about this either)

Joe did come back and play competitively for a while but was working two jobs and being a good husband when I knew him. If you get the chance, ask him about his time on the road. It seems he did it all while traveling, including finding his future wife.
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Joe and Bill -- Bill is the guy who used to stake him -- did get me stuck there for a while, but I ended up coming back on Joe, spotting him the 8 and 9 on the bar table. I could give it to him on a 4-by-8 a little easier than I could on the bar table, though.

Me and Joe used to string rack after rack. I used to run 5's, 6's, and 7's on him, and he's come right back and hit me with a 5- or 6-pack himself. Those were the good old days. I wish we could take pool back to that domain. There would be a lot of action, no robots, and none of these nit complainers, the way they do nowadays. There wasn't no nitting around back then. Everybody muscled up and played. Lots of times, there were no spots involved. People would just get up there and bet their money. That's the way I like it.

I think that's sort of a problem with pool. If they took it back to the Fast Eddie days, pool would come back to life a little bit. If you can remember Minnesota Fats, Boston Shorty, Larry Lisciotti, Bucktooth, Eddie Burton, Cole Dixon, Cornbread Red, Billy Incardona, Jimmy Reid, Richie Florence, and Buddy Hall, that is when pool was alive and well. Just my opinion. :)
 
Tracy Joe

I was just a kid growing up in Upland CA when I saw Tracy Joe playing at Shooters. He and Frank Almanza were probably the best players in the joint. Joe Salazar had perhaps the prettiest stroke I have ever seen. Had these chubby fingers, small stature yet he was always smooth - like poetry in motion. Rarely missed and a class act on and off the table. At the time I didnt know he was a world beater on the bar box - found that out later in life. But he was a true grinder. The Beard once described Tracy outlook on pool - taking his lunch pale into work - just another day on the job. Never gave up on a game.

I also remember spending hours talking to Joe - he was a very religeous man as well.
 
Both Freddie and Keith mention getting or giving the 9. What does this mean? I'm assuming this was 9ball and not 10ball.
 
Ktown D said:
Congrats on post # 1000 Freddy. I bet you didn't even notice it.

I have dealt with Joe a few times but not so much lately. It seems he is getting a little more proud of the cues he has. It is a tough business he is in and I hope he has continued success.

I have only seen Joe gamble one time and that was a few years ago playing one pocket getting a spot. He still played OK.
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The 1st time I met Joe was in the early 70's in Denver. That was a great bar table town in those days and many road players came through to play at the ring game on Wednesday nights at Jays in the older part of lower downtown.

Joe, as Freddy pointed out was Seattle Joe and he could dab it on those bar boxes.

This was the days of the long hair, polyester shirts, designer jeans, and those zip up boots everyone wore. As I think back, I can only laugh.

On one particular Wednesday the ring game was on and it was a tough one on one of those old, tough Fisher tables, with the big ball.

Denny Searcy, Little Ronnie, Craig Stevens, Danny Medina, Joey Torman, and Rich Marquez were in the game. I think for like $30.00 per man. That was a good game in those days.

Joe couldn't get a shot if he used a gun, but just sat there patiently and bided his time.

Finally he was hooked again, but kicked a ball in, got out and put like an 8 or 9 pack on the game. It was an awsome sight and for a young aspiring player like myself, it left a lasting impression.

We still talk about that night and many others from that time.

Kieth must be mistaken though as I have talked with Joe for hundreds of hours and he has never, ever been beaten. You can bet I'll bring this one up to him and will post his version. If you know what I mean.
 
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Joe Salazar

I have a picture of Joe and I taken at the 2000 U.S.Open
in Chesapeake hanging on the wall in my shop. We had booths next to each other on vendors row. That's how I got to know him. We made a few side bets on the matches, but, mostly just talked. He's a good man. Believes in family, is religous and has a heart of a lion. I haven't seen Joe in a few years and hope he is doing well. A few more people like him in pool, would not be a bad thing.
 
Years and years after Joe moved out of Tracy, I stopped into "Ducks" Billiards in Tracy, California. I walked right up to the only person in the place and asked, "who's the best player in here"? Joe Salazar was the quick retort. I answered that Joe has not been here for several years. The gentleman countered and said: "it doesn't make any difference, Joe is the best player where ever he's at"!!!!!!!!....SPF=randy (a Joe Salazar fan)
 
ugotactionTX said:
Hey folks, just wondering if anyone has any stories about Joe Salazar. I know now he has a wonderful collection of cues that he sales around the country, but I'm more interested in the former monster/world beater Joe Salazar. From what I hear he was one of the best, but I'm a sucker for a good story. If half of what I've heard about him is true, he was a serious threat. Anyone got the skinny?
Click to expand...

It was a tournament that Grady puts on: The Legends Of One Pocket. I believe it was 1996. I had practiced like 5-8 hours a day for 30 days by myself and was knocking in balls from everywhere. I went to the tournament. It was one of my first biggee one pocket touranments that I had attended and drew Shannon Daulton for my first match and got lucky beating him 4-2 (should have beat him 4-1). I was riding on a cloud as the locals pummeled me with handshake after handshake. All I got from Shannon's girlfriend was a glare. She gave everyone else an earful about how Shannon was a champion and would come back from the loss, even though the tournament was chock full of MANY CHAMPIONS.

My next match was Joe Salazar and he saw I was in dead runout mode and put me in the freezer in my next match but not before I won the first game. He played so slow, he made Kid Delicious looked like a runaway train. At that time I didn't know much about slow play and what it could do to a faster player and eventually Joe pulled me out of my runout mode. We played for 4 hours and I never took more than 30 seconds to shoot any shot but he was taking 1-5 minutes. Since I was a newbie and didn't know to call the tournament director over and report this behavior, I sat there letting him get me out of stroke, little by little. After 4 hours we had played only 3 games with me leading 2-1 but now completely out of stroke with Joe having a substantial lead in the fourth game.

Grady (the tournament director) who I didn't know real well at the time, came over and screamed at us for taking so long to play our match. I was just ignorant, Joe knew what he was doing. Grady watched that game and saw that Joe had won it and said, " the next game will decide the winner". Joe whacked me 3-2. I lose my next match to Good Time Charlie and am out the tournament but then I got a chance to watch Shannon play some of the best one pocket in the world, beating every champion that stepped up to the plate. Shannon won the tournament besting MANY great players. It seemed like there was close to a hundred players in the tournament. Shannon's girlfriend was grinning ear to ear. :D

Joe Salazar very smart cookie. Still play good, although he hasn't played since 1996. :rolleyes:

JoeyA (doesn't let anyone slow play him anymore) (I learned how not to take any s**t from anyone, from Buddy. :)
 
Every year Joe will have booth at BCA tournament in May.Usually his booth will be third on the left when you enter the First tournament room by the first entrance.I shall mention to him about the post by JAM that reflected Joe`s honesty & Integrity and his ability to drive a car that fast.
 
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