Lost another player

wincardona said:
I just heard that George San Souci ( Ginky ) died. So sad.

This is shocking news when a player as young as Ginky passes.

I just finished reading every post in this thread, and also watched and listened to the Jim Murnak interview, it was a great interview. George was just as I have always believed, a very special person/player and will sorely be missed by all.

I have always looked at George as being a talented man with an outgoing personality. He loved pool, gambling, and just having a good time, I was very envious of George because of how I perceived him, not to mention that he was 30 years younger than me.

I first met George at the Massachusetts State Championships in the year 1991. I was booking the matches at that tournament ( I know i'm a bad guy )and couldn't help but notice this young kid, small in stature that very rarely missed a ball. ( Yes I do have an eye for talent ) I quickly adjusted my line according to how I felt I could induce action against this kid ...IT WORKED... I also played George in the tournament and went to hill hill which George won. We developed a friendly relationship at that tournament that lasted forever. Any ways George won that tournament by beating Earl Strickland in the finals, just as I thought he would. No i'm not saying that George was a better player at that time, but it seemed to me that this was Georges tournament and he wasn't going to be denied. George won the tournament and I won pretty good luring betters that liked Strickland, I got lucky.

We'll never know why things like this happen, most think that It's a residue of life..maybe their right...But I can honestly say that I respected George for his honesty, his out look on life, his courage on and off the table, and his passion for the game that we all love. George was a good man, and a great player, and a solid human being.

My condolences goes out to all that knew him, especially his friends and family.

R.I.P. my friend and maybe someday we'll play some one pocket.

Billy Incardona
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This is truly sad news for me as well. 2 weeks ago I was online, I can't even remember the site, but I watched a Parica interview and then watched Ginky's interview. There was something I heard in his interview that concerned me and that was that he had 7 days sobriety. That told me that drinking was a concern for him. I work with 6 struggling alcoholics who are all doing very well. After I saw the interview I immediately went on his facebook to request him as a friend so I could offer him support. I send my AA friends a daily prayer that encourages their continued sobriety. So I guess what I am hoping is this wasn't alcohol related. I met George in LA in the early 90's and hung with him there around a couple tournaments and when I would go through NY we would hang out. He was a great guy and player that will be sorely missed!! R.I.P. George and my condolences to his friends and family.......
 
Steve Lipsky - a great tribute to your friend and definitely the post of the year on this site. Sorry for your loss and the loss to the pool world. I only met Ginky one time when he hijacked a friend of mine - and he did it with class.
 
Steve Lipsky said:
It was common knowledge around the northeast in the late ‘90s that a young kid nicknamed Ginky was playing fantastic pool out of Amsterdam Billiards in Manhattan. Together with Tony Robles, they represented a level of the game I had never seen in person, and I knew this was the place I needed to be.

I worked in the city, but my move there had much less to do with a shorter commute than it did with needing to be around a higher level of the game. I found a shoebox-sized apartment near the room. I still remember the very first night I was on my own out there; I felt like an adult as I walked into Amsterdam, ready to introduce myself to the world. There was a big crowd around table 8, the front table. George was playing Tony an exhibition match. I was in heaven. I had never seen Tony in person before. I had seen George a few times out on Long Island. But to see them playing each other… these were the days before youtube and live streaming. It was a luxury to see pool at this level. If I was an adult when I walked in the room, I now knew what I wanted to be when I grew up.

When I finally met George about a week later, the standard game with us became a hundred fifty points or a race to 9 for twenty bucks. I’d play him and I was so nervous I couldn’t even see straight. Literally – I was running 4s, 7s, jesus sometimes 0s. It didn’t matter. I wasn’t there to beat him. I did all I could to learn, but what I remember most about those first games is watching his eyes. You could see in those eyes that you were never getting to the table. I watched his patterns and positional routes, in both 9 ball and straight pool. His decisions were flawless and, matched with his effortless execution, represented the deadliest combination of skills I’d ever seen.

We started becoming friends. One day, after playing particularly poorly against him, I tried to quit in the middle of the game. He asked why. I told him, sincerely, that he had a big tournament coming up and I didn’t want to bring his game down by playing so badly with him.

I will never, ever forget what happened next. He stopped, thought for a second, and said, “Steve, from now on, you and me don’t gamble. I’m going to help you with your game.” I remember calling my parents that night and telling them what happened. They knew how much pool meant to me, and I had told them of George and how great it was to be exposed to such a talent. What George told me that day, that he was willing to take a chance on me, meant so much to me partially because it made me proud in front of my parents.

Around this time, George was one of the people who recommended me to Greg Hunt, the owner of Amsterdam, to be placed on the comp list. This changed everything. I could now practice as much as I wanted. I knew George at this point only a couple months I would say, and he was already sticking his neck out for me. I never forgot that either.

The next several years were a whirlwind of the heydays of Amsterdam East and NYC pool in general. There was never a poolroom or a time like it. If you weren’t a part of NYC pool from about 1998 to 2004 or so, you missed an unbelievably joyous time in the game. The level of play was skyrocketing by the day… everyone was getting better. And we were all led by George.

Anyone who saw him practice during that period knows how hard he worked. He’d throw out all the balls and play straight or rotation until he missed. And once he missed… that’s when the work started. He’d take out all fifteen balls and shoot the shot over. Then he’d take the fifteen balls again and shoot it with left English. Another fifteen, right English. Top… bottom. Hard… soft. The guy was a machine. Here was a 200-ball runner who’d shoot a hanger 60 times if he missed it even once.

He was a terror on the regional tours. He wouldn’t make grown men cry… he’d make them fall apart. He’d take other northeast champions and just dismantle them. 9-2. 9-1. 9-3. If you got to five against George in those days you probably played perfectly. (For the record, Tony was the only one I saw consistently stand up to him in those days. I don’t know who got the best of who, but it was damned close and I can truthfully not say that about anyone else in the region during that period.)

I remember all the 9-ball we played. Set after set after set, back in those glorious east side days. I learned so much. That thunderous break where he’d swing his hip at the last second. The way he’d play safe. He’d lock you up and cut off your rails. This was all new in the late 90s. He became an expert at making you fight with your last ounce of strength for every single opportunity you got. Unforced errors? Forget about it. You’d have more luck praying for a rain delay.

As his game took off, we became better and better friends. We went to Atlantic City a lot in those days, Gina and me, George and his then-girlfriend Casey. It was like a double-date for degenerates. He would drive us all down, and Gina and I would say silent prayers in the backseat that cops would shoot the tires out so he’d have to stop. It was that scary driving with him, lol. I remember hitting over 100mph when there were lots of other cars on the highway. I’d get out of the car finally and want to kiss the ground, but I didn’t want to show weakness in front of my hero.

You’d see him do things from time to time which were puzzling. Here was a guy who could be cut-your-throat-ruthless on the table. Then, sometimes, he’d take the hundred bucks or whatever that he scuffled up in the room, and just give it to a homeless guy. There was a guy in the poolroom who used to argue with George all the time. He wasn’t even a pool player. He played Megatouch, of all things, and sometimes he and George would match up at some royal flash. He had lost his job a while back and was living with his parents. He wore the same clothes, over and over, until they kind of stunk. I found out one day that George brought in a bag full of clothes to give to the guy. They weren’t new, but they were nice. And he didn’t do it in a way that would embarrass the guy; he did it privately. He was so kind to the unfortunate. I always wondered where that sensitivity came from, that unbelievable sense of empathy, and I never felt right asking him. I wish I had.

He was one of only two players who I would ever let scold me, if I did something wrong or thought a wrong way about something. He was only a few years older than I but in some ways he was like a parent to me about the game. I remember in Valley Forge, the year I came in 2nd in the huge amateur tournament, I spoke with him before the finals. He asked me how I felt. I knew that he wanted me to be confident, so I said “I feel like I’m going to win.” He stopped me and sternly said “Steve, I don’t wanna ever hear you tell me you’re going to win. I want to hear that you’re going to play well. That is all you can control. If you play well, the rest will come.” He was right. In pool, he was always right.

I will never forget all our talks about my game. He did all he could to convince me I could play, and I kept trying to convince him I couldn’t. It’d be funny if it weren’t sad. I honestly think I had him pulling his hair out. The perseverance he showed, in never giving up on me, will stay with me forever.

I remember around that time I came home from being out one night, and there on our answering machine was a call from George. “Hey Lip Rogers, Miss Kim… I finally did it. I snapped it off! I won the tournament!” He was talking about his first ever pro victory, in Olathe Kansas I believe. He didn’t even try to hide his giddiness. That’s what I loved about him. He drank in all of life’s joys. He was so proud of what he had accomplished.

9/11 affected him deeply. He was at the US Open, and it was the first year I didn’t go in a while. I was in constant contact with Nicky, who he was rooming with, and he told me that George watched all the coverage silently in his hotel room. They had tried to tear his city apart, this city he loved so much, and he wanted to help in any way he could. So he started a donation fund right there at the convention center. I believe he collected about $6,000 in cash and as soon as he got back to NYC he just walked into the local firehouse and quietly gave them the money. He didn’t want any fanfare for it, or even thanks. In his mind, he was saying thanks.

A few years later, I remember being somewhere with George, in a room with a piano and someone playing it. George sidled right up to the guy and just watched. He watched a master, as only another master could. He had such a deep understanding of what it took to be an expert at something, that even though he didn't know how to play the piano, he now knew what it took to play the piano. How many of us can truly understand something so foreign, like he did that day? He was so gifted, so talented.

In the end, I realize only now how much more I could have done for him. Not just towards the end but throughout our time together. He gave me so much, he gave us all so much back in those celebrated care-free days of NYC pool.

This last Monday night, he was in the room and it was mobbed. I was playing my straight pool league match on one of the front tables, and he grabbed one of the chairs and just watched. I loved when he watched me play. Earlier in the game, I had run exactly 100 and he found out and told me nice shooting. And he just sat and watched the rest. When it was over, I packed up and went to the restroom. When i came out, I had two choices - I could fight my way through the mob and say goodbye to him, or I could slink out the other way. I went the other way. I thought there would be other days, other hellos, other goodbyes. In this case, there wasn't, and I hate myself for that selfish choice I made that night. He gave me so much, he deserved a goodbye.

I pray he knows how much he affected me, and all of us in NYC, and all those players in the world he touched. There is a part of him in every ball I’ll ever make.

- Steve
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I to lost a friend mon night, it wasn't Ginky. Than might 2 good men passed on an left alot of good memories behind.

I am sitting here crying as I type after reading this post, all I can think about is how I feel and how all who knew Ginky must feel.

REMEMBER PEOPLE YOU NEVER KNOW WHEN YOUR LAST DAY IS, MAKE SURE EVERYONE YOU CARE ABOUT KNOWS HOW MUCH YOU LOVE THEM

My thoughts and prayers go out to all that have lost a special person.
 
That is really sad...Only new him from pool dvds, but he always came accross as a neat guy...My condolence to his family and friends...
 
I had just a passing introduction to him while he was talking to a buddy of mine, but he had a sincere confident quality in him that shone through. My heartfelt condolences to the NY folks and family/friend on his passing. It's apparent with this thread that he had a huge impact on everyone around him.
 
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jsp said:
Truly sad. I remember reading posts here a few years back about Ginky and has wife struggling to have children. Those posts were heartbreaking as well.

My condolences and prayers go out to the San Souci family.
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Thank You for your condolences, it has been hard for everyone.
 
measureman said:
George "Ginky" SanSouci is one of the finest young players in the world today. His all around ability and his professional character make him one of the best attractions in the billiard industry today. From 1994, thru 1997, Ginky won an unprecedented 18 out of 22 tournaments on the Tri-State Tour...Wow! With his first "major" victory at the Camel Pro Billiard Series Charlotte 10-Ball Open in 1998 utilizing a Ted Harris break/jump cue. Ginky followed that up with back to back victories in New York City at the National Straight Pool Championships and the BCA Invitational 9-ball Championships in Las Vegas in 1999...
George SanSouci has proven that he is going to be a major force in professional pool for years to come. Ginky currently resides in his hometown of New York City.


Awards & Titles
Massachusetts State Champion...1991
Rhode Island State Champion...1994-1995
Billiards Digest Rookie Of the Year...1996
Maine State Champion...1996
Year End Rankings...One-Pocket Division...9th...National 9-Ball Tour...1996
Year End Rankings...11th place...Professional Cuesports Association...1996
Delaware State Champion...1997
Year End Rankings...14th place...Professional Cuesports Association...1997
Year End Ranking...12th...Camel Pro Billiard Series...1997
High Run...14.1 Continuous...212 balls...Amsterdam Billiard Club...New York, NY...January 15, 1998
BCA National Straight Pool Champion...1999
High Run...14.1 Continuous...343 balls...Slate Billiards...New York, NY...July 2009

Exhibitions
Defeated Tony Annigoni...11-2...Amsterdam Billiard Club...New York, NY...1994
Defeated Vivian Villareal...11-3...Amsterdam Billiard Club...New York, NY...August 1998
Defeated Roger Griffis...14.1 Continuous...150-83...Amsterdam Billiard Club...New York, NY...April 1999
Defeated & Lost to Karen Corr...spotted the break & 5 games to 11...11-10,11-10...Amsterdam Billiard Club...New York, NY...1999
High Run...14.1 Continuous...212 balls...Amsterdam Billiard Club...New York, NY...January 15, 1998
Defeated Tony Robles...14.1 Continuous...150-28...Ran 145...Amsterdam Billiard Club...New York, NY...April 1999

Media Coverage
All About Pool Magazine..."Snooker's Ocean State Champion"...March 1995
Pool & Billiard Magazine..."Cue Sport News"...July 1996
All About Pool Magazine..."SanSouci: 3 in a row, 2nd time"...January 1997
Billiards Digest...Cover Story..."Title Time, By George!" ...September 1998
Billiards Digest..."Ginky Emerges in Charlotte"...September 1998
Pool & Billiard Magazine...Cover Story..."New Kid On The Block"...October 1998
Billiards Digest..."Hiatus for Ginky?"...November 1998.
Billiards Digest..."Wing Shots"...November 1998
Village Voice..."Native Son"...The Score Section...1998
The Law Journal..."Two Lawyers Back Rising Pool Player"...April 1999
The New York Post..."Pool Shark in Rising"...April 1999
Men's Journal...April 1999
Billiards Digest..."Practice secrets of the pro's; George SanSouci"...May 1999
Billiards Digest..."Tournaments; Strong Finish For Ginky"...May 1999
Pool & Billiard..."Ginky Plays Straight"...June 1999

All About Pool Tour
Snooker's Billiards & Cafe...Fifth Annual Ocean State Championships...Champion...February 1994
Snooker's Billiards & Cafe...Sixth Annual Ocean State Championships...Champion...February 1995
Snooker's Billiards & Cafe...Seventh Annual Ocean State Championships...Runner Up...February 1995
Northeast 9-Ball Open...Champion...Pro Billiard Lounge...Rotterdam, NY...1997

Joss Northeast 9-ball Tour
Accu-Billiards...Champion...New Bedford, CT...March 1998

Texas Express National 9-ball Tour
Pocket's Billiards...Champion...Frederick, MD
Amsterdam Billiard Club...Runner-Up...New York, NY
Fast Eddie's Billiard Cafe...Champion...9-ball...Alexandria, VA
Fast Eddie's Billiard Cafe...Champion...One-pocket...Alexandria, VA
Eastern States Regional...The Playing Field...Champion...Richmond, VA
Eastern States Regional...The Playing Field...Champion...One-pocket...Richmond, VA
Eastern States Regional...Champion...Fast Eddie's...Alexandria, VA...May 1996
Eastern States Regional...3rd place....One Pocket Division...Fast Eddie's...Alexandria, VA...May 1996
Brass Rack...Champion...Macon, GA...May 1997
Whitestone Billiards...Champion...Whitestone, NY...April 1998
Action Billiards...Champion...Salisbury, MD...March 1999
National Straight Pool Championships...Champion...Amsterdam Billiard Club...NY, NY...April 15-18, 1999

Tri-State Tour
Juliet's...Champion...Poughkeepsie, NY...April 1996
Pocket's...Champion...Brooklyn, NY...May 1996
Clifton Billiards...Champion...Clifton, NJ...June 1996
Castle Billiards...Champion...E. Rutherford, NJ...September 1996
Executive Billiards...Champion...White Plains, NY...October 1996
Crown Billiards...Champion...Pompton Lakes, NJ...November 1996
Tri-State Regional...Champion...Leisure Time Billiards...Levittown, NY...May 1999

Billiard Congress of America
BCA Invitational 9-ball Championships...Champion...Las Vegas, NV...May 1999

Camel Pro Billiard Series
Shooter's 9-Ball Open...13th place...Olathe, KS...April 1998
South Jersey 10-BAll Open...9th place...Pennsauken, NJ...June 1998
Charlotte 10-Ball Open...Champion...Charlotte, NC...July 1998
Riviera Hotel Pro 8-ball Open...49th place...Las Vegas, NV...August 1998
US Open 9-ball Championships...33rd place...Chesapeake, VA...September 1998
Denver 10-Ball Open...9th place...Denver, CO...October 1998
Columbus 10-ball Open...25th place...Columbus, OH...November 1998

Professional Cuesports Association
ESPN World 9-Ball Championships...5th place...Santa Rosa, CA...1996
ESPN World 9-Ball Championships...Scotch Doubles...Runner Up...Santa Rosa, CA...1996
Hollywood Park Million Dollar Challenge...5th place...Hollywood Park, CA...May 1996
Dallas Open...3-4th place...CJ'S Billiard Palace...Dallas, TX...July 1996
Sands Regency XXV...Runner Up...Reno, NV...June 1997
ESPN World 9-ball Championships...5th place...Orlando, FL...January 1999

_________________________________________________

RIP so sad.
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I found out about this sad news on Gabe's FB page.
I had just started reading this thread. I stopped at this post, and chose to post here, since it has a long list of many memories he left behind just in the pool world.

We are truly saddened, and our deepest sympathy goes out to his family and friends during this time of profound loss.
 
great story Steve

Only more proof "ginky" was a true gentleman.........thanks again Steve.....................mike peabody
 
Someone Who Made A Mark on So Many

Hi,

My name is Joseph Chaplow. I played pool from about the age of 14 to 18 years old. I quit playing, and went to college. I now have a B/S in Accounting, and a Master's Degree in Taxation--- waiting for my CPA license (I already sat for all four exams). I tell you this information to let you know a little about me, and to give a little credit to my post.

I remember the first time I watched Ginky play, like it was yesterday. He was playing in a McDermott tournament at Cue and Cushion Billiards in Newark Delaware. If I remember correctly, it was 1992 and I was 16 years old. I was totally amazed. The thing I remember most--- he had a stroke, a stroke that just was unreal. In my opinion, the only other person that has a comparable stroke is Cory Duel.

After watching him play, I got enough nerve to talk to him. I asked him how long he'd been playing for. So, he told me for about three years. I thought to myself, "What an arrogant jerk. I simply asked an innocent question, and he comes back with such a belittling answer. No one in this world could learn to play pool at the age of 18 and be that good. The great players all started at the age of 10. Furthermore, no one could play pool for 3 years--- and play like that.". Well, I learned later that day after asking everyone in the pool room (lol), that indeed he only played for about 3 years. I been playing for about 2 years, and I remember thinking "Damn, I should quit now". He was that good.

Throughout the weekend, I spoke to him a few times. I was so surprised--- He spoke to me like he was the average player who was just trying to learn the game like the next guy. If he passed by me, he'd be the first to say hello. He never realized what an impression he made on me (and many others).

The tournament was stacked with talent. Everyone was there--- Robles, Hernandez, Delaware Dogs, Lou Johnson, Fusco, Geese--- just to name a few. Ginky took the tournament on day two on table 18. I think it was him and Robles in the finals.

I never talked, nor seen Ginky again since that Sunday. Even though I quit playing, I never lost a passion for the game. Ginky made such an impression, I started following him online several years back to see where he was in the "pool world". I learned of his early retirement. That alone was a let down. I also heard of his comeback--- which was great news. Probably every six months, I googled him to see how he was playing.

Last night, was one of those google nights. I literally could not believe what I was reading. So strange--- a guy who I talked with for maybe six conversations over a two day period--- I truly felt sad. I felt like a friend of mine died. My point of this is just to show you how far his presence went. He will never know many people he "reached". One of a kind.

In closing, if after only a weekend of chatting with a person I have such a sad feeling inside reading of this tragedy, I can only imagine the pain people close to him are going through. That weekend, I also met Tony Robles. Incredible--- such a talented player and so respectful/professional. Out of all the pool players I have met, Robles and Ginky will always be the "Head of the Rack".

That weekend was 18 years ago now. I think it says a lot about a person-- if he is able to put a mark on someone's life after only a few chats. Charisma and Character.

Wherever people go after you leave this "game", I hope the place Ginky goes has 15 rocks and a piece of slate. He'll figure the rest out.

With much respect to my friend I never got to know,

Joseph Chaplow
 
I'm not entirely sure how I stumbled upon this thread again, can't believe it's been almost 4 years now. Thought it deserved a bump.

Does anyone happen to have a new link for the Jim Murnak interview with George? Would love to watch it again.
 
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