STOLEN POW-MIA Cue

JoeyA

JoeyA

Efren's Mini-Tourn BACKER
Silver Member
I was entertaining one of Buffalo's infrequent customers from Houston, Texas this afternoon. The guest and I were playing 10 ball and he was giving me some pointers about breaking 10 ball and having a good time. After about two hours, I excused myself and he went his way and I went mine.

I picked up the balls and brought them to the counter, which I don't normally do, just trying to save my new practice partner the trouble of picking up the balls. I went home to eat supper and came back later tonight to put in a little time on the table and when I opened my cue case, the POW-MIA cue was not in the case. :thud::shocked2:

it was then that I realized I had left my playing cue on the adjacent table when I picked up the balls earlier that evening. I am seldom careless with my cue or case, even taking the trouble of placing the case under the table I am playing on.

One of the local players who didn't know it was my cue apparently picked up a nice cue for his collection. As luck would have it, someone saw the person with the cue and when I started whining about "losing" my cue, they mentioned to the owner that they had seen someone with a cue that looked remarkably similar to my cue. :p

After we ID'ed the person who "found" my cue, we attempted to get in touch with him but his phone was disconnected for the evening. I got an address, well it wasn't exactly an address but instructions on how to get to the person's trailer where they lived. A friend and I took off to new territory to find my cue. We didn't find the cue but we did find the house but no one was home. After numerous phone calls we found a friend of the person who found my cue and the friend was able to locate the person (who was too drunk to return it) who found my cue and delivered it to Buffalo Billiards in good condition.

At first I wasn't too pleased with having the cue "found" but managed to pull a double saw-buck out of my wallet to at least pay for the other person's gas for bringing the cue back to the pool room.

The person who found the cue, had no idea that the POW-MIA had a computer micro chip imbedded into the cue nor that it was so well known. I'm sure this wasn't a matter of "stealing" my cue and it was simply a matter of someone having "found" my cue and really, there is a big difference. Anyway, all is well tonight and I am happy to go to bed knowing that I have my Bender cue back where it belongs..

I shouldn't have trouble sleeping tonight. :smile:
 
Glad you got your cue back Joey!

I went outside for a quick break the other night, and something just inspired me to turn around and look back inside. I had left my cue on the table, in plain sight lying across the table with 2 other custom cues. To my surprise I see a kid playing with it, just about to shoot. You've never seen 3 grown men run so fast without a woman being involved! The poor kid was ashamed and said, "Wow, I thought it played REALLY nice for a house cue!"

Fortunately, no harm was done other than perhaps to his pride for touching things not his own. Our waitress actually scolded him a moment later too.
 
Boy Joey, it sounds like you really went through an ordeal. I'm glad you recovered it as quickly as you did. Sometimes things don't work out quite that well, as you know. I think you did the right thing in rewarding the guy who brought it back to you.

I can't tell you how many times over the years I've been playing pool and had to go to the restroom, leaving my cue on the table, with my opponent supposedly watching it for me. RIGHT! I come back and my cue is gone, and I look around and someone one or two tables over is playing with it. They always say they thought it was a house cue, even though it's jointed with inlays etc.

Why they came over to my table and picked up the cue (and so fast) has never fully been explained to me. I'm usually so glad to get it back that I don't even want to get into it too much with the idiot who took it. This has probably happened to me three or four times over the years.
 
seeing this thread

Made me go downstairs and check my Omen's .....geeezus Joey !!! You need to put a blue leash on that baby like I see white people do at the park here in Georgia.....Why do white people do this ??? It makes me wonder about my own ??? Well I have got some cherokee indian in me so maybe it pans out. It is however so funny to watch the hispanic and black families at the park set and laugh at the wierd white people with blue leashes on a child .:rotflmao1: Glad you got it back my friend.
 
Whew! I went through some emotional roller coaster after reading the thread title...then the relief of reading you got the cue back.

Joey, try not to scare us like that, okay? :D
 
JoeyA said:
I was entertaining one of Buffalo's infrequent customers from Houston, Texas this afternoon. The guest and I were playing 10 ball and he was giving me some pointers about breaking 10 ball and having a good time. After about two hours, I excused myself and he went his way and I went mine.

I picked up the balls and brought them to the counter, which I don't normally do, just trying to save my new practice partner the trouble of picking up the balls. I went home to eat supper and came back later tonight to put in a little time on the table and when I opened my cue case, the POW-MIA cue was not in the case. :thud::shocked2:

it was then that I realized I had left my playing cue on the adjacent table when I picked up the balls earlier that evening. I am seldom careless with my cue or case, even taking the trouble of placing the case under the table I am playing on.

One of the local players who didn't know it was my cue apparently picked up a nice cue for his collection. As luck would have it, someone saw the person with the cue and when I started whining about "losing" my cue, they mentioned to the owner that they had seen someone with a cue that looked remarkably similar to my cue. :p

After we ID'ed the person who "found" my cue, we attempted to get in touch with him but his phone was disconnected for the evening. I got an address, well it wasn't exactly an address but instructions on how to get to the person's trailer where they lived. A friend and I took off to new territory to find my cue. We didn't find the cue but we did find the house but no one was home. After numerous phone calls we found a friend of the person who found my cue and the friend was able to locate the person (who was too drunk to return it) who found my cue and delivered it to Buffalo Billiards in good condition.

At first I wasn't too pleased with having the cue "found" but managed to pull a double saw-buck out of my wallet to at least pay for the other person's gas for bringing the cue back to the pool room.

The person who found the cue, had no idea that the POW-MIA had a computer micro chip imbedded into the cue nor that it was so well known. I'm sure this wasn't a matter of "stealing" my cue and it was simply a matter of someone having "found" my cue and really, there is a big difference. Anyway, all is well tonight and I am happy to go to bed knowing that I have my Bender cue back where it belongs..

I shouldn't have trouble sleeping tonight. :smile:
Click to expand...


Well, first off, let me say, Joey, that I am really really happy you got your cue back. Even better that you got it back before the nincompoop decided it needed a little sanding, or some other work done to it. (Personally, about once or twice a year, I wake up in a cold sweat after a nightmare in which someone steals my cue at the pool hall, or at a tournament.)

BUT, I must ask: how could you go home and not feel that your cue case was lighter? I mean, I can immediately tell the difference if a shaft is missing out of my case...

Lou Figueroa
 
JoeyA said:
I was entertaining one of Buffalo's infrequent customers from Houston, Texas this afternoon. The guest and I were playing 10 ball and he was giving me some pointers about breaking 10 ball and having a good time. After about two hours, I excused myself and he went his way and I went mine.

I picked up the balls and brought them to the counter, which I don't normally do, just trying to save my new practice partner the trouble of picking up the balls. I went home to eat supper and came back later tonight to put in a little time on the table and when I opened my cue case, the POW-MIA cue was not in the case. :thud::shocked2:

it was then that I realized I had left my playing cue on the adjacent table when I picked up the balls earlier that evening. I am seldom careless with my cue or case, even taking the trouble of placing the case under the table I am playing on.

One of the local players who didn't know it was my cue apparently picked up a nice cue for his collection. As luck would have it, someone saw the person with the cue and when I started whining about "losing" my cue, they mentioned to the owner that they had seen someone with a cue that looked remarkably similar to my cue. :p

After we ID'ed the person who "found" my cue, we attempted to get in touch with him but his phone was disconnected for the evening. I got an address, well it wasn't exactly an address but instructions on how to get to the person's trailer where they lived. A friend and I took off to new territory to find my cue. We didn't find the cue but we did find the house but no one was home. After numerous phone calls we found a friend of the person who found my cue and the friend was able to locate the person (who was too drunk to return it) who found my cue and delivered it to Buffalo Billiards in good condition.

At first I wasn't too pleased with having the cue "found" but managed to pull a double saw-buck out of my wallet to at least pay for the other person's gas for bringing the cue back to the pool room.

The person who found the cue, had no idea that the POW-MIA had a computer micro chip imbedded into the cue nor that it was so well known. I'm sure this wasn't a matter of "stealing" my cue and it was simply a matter of someone having "found" my cue and really, there is a big difference. Anyway, all is well tonight and I am happy to go to bed knowing that I have my Bender cue back where it belongs..

I shouldn't have trouble sleeping tonight. :smile:
Click to expand...

Joey,
Man, I'm glad this turned out as it did. When I first saw the title of the thread, I was concerned that it was indeed stolen. Glad you got it back!
Special place in my heart for those guys. My first job in my career was actually in the Army. I was a college graduate with a degree in Psychology when I was drafted in '72. Part of my duties was completing psychological evaluations on returning POW's - Warrant Officers that had been downed and captured. Special breed of gentleman.
Take care,
Ed
 
Joey, you are so lucky to get your cue back.

We have a nice pool hall here but some of the people that work there would flip any cue they found left behind rather than try to return it.

Had one of my fancy acrylic cues taken from a bar but it was returned after a gang member friend "advised" the person who had it, who it belonged to and what might happen to him.

Lost cues dont often find their way home and like I said ... you were lucky to get yours back.

Willee
 
Whew! Glad ya got it back!

I was reminded of a scene in a movie, "Sideways" when you were talking about driving over to that dudes house/trailer to get your cue back. :D
 
I was also really worried when I started reading your post but am really happy for you that you got your beautiful cue back.

I've also for some reason had people pick up my clearly CUSTOM made cue a few times when leaving the table for a bathroom break in a tournament even with a Ref at the table or during a league night when you would hope your teammates would be watching. If it was a Sneaky Pete it might have been understandable. So since the last time this happened where I basically had to search other players cases to find my cue and nearly ended up pressing charges, now every time I leave the table for pretty much anything I breakdown my cues, put them in my case and bring it with me. I get looked at a little funny sometimes but so far my cues have stayed in my possession and it's been 10 years since the last incident. I have even broke the cue down to use the bathroom in league tournaments where breaking your cue down can constitute a loss and have had to deal with the consequences the first few times due to players taking advantage of a no sharking rule. I didn't know my opponents well enough to feel comfortable trusting them with being honest about fouls let alone my somewhat expensive equipment. I think that's a stupid rule to be upheld especially if you need to use the bathroom during your turn at the table as I would like to keep my cues and so far the league people have understood that I'm not doing it for sharking purposes.

It's just sad that this is a very common experience for so many custom cue owners. People know what a house cue looks like as all they have to do is look at the ones up on the racks to tell the difference quickly. The only exception I've seen is if you're playing in a Dave and Buster where the house cues look like inexpensive customs.
 
Joey, glad you got your cue back! Many, many years ago, I left the pool room to go to work and left my Southwest lying on the table. A friend who knew I had just left for work picked it up and put it in his locker. I didn't even realize I had done it until the next day when I went to get my cue from my locker. I did it twice and the same guy picked it up both times, thank the Gods! Hasn't happened again, though I have seen people pick up cues {not mine} whose owner went to the bathroom and take them and begin to play with them. Happened to a guys Balabushka once. We thought he was going to have a stroke! He said he wasn't so concerned that they were playing with it, only that they rolled it to see if it was straight!
 
I recall when you posted photos of the POW Cue and Case, and when I read the title my Heart Skipped a BEAT. Glade you got it back.

Joey I wish you would post the story of why you had the POW Cue, and Case made.
 
Glad to hear you got it back. Are the pictures of it still posted somewhere ? I'd like to see it.
 
Glad to hear of your cue's safe return.

As Lou said, didn't you notice your case felt a bit light? Probably not since you went home.

They say "all's well that ends well" but I have to say, I don't feel warm & fuzzy over the SOB who carried your obviously custom cue out the door.

A couple of sawbucks was well worth getting her back.

Best,
Brian kc
 
Hey Joey, I never heard of micro-chipping a cue. Can you tell us more about it? You know, stuff like:


- does it throw off your balance point?
- can it cut any ball under 100 degrees?
- does it compensate for collision induced throw?
- is it a better chick magnet than a fuzzy dwarf chihuahua?
- will it eventually make the divining rod obsolete?

Who knows, but I think if properly marketed, a gun ho chipping venture could make Billy Gates look poor. But, I've been wrong before.
 
Glad to hear things worked out good and you got THAT cue back. Man, if I lost THAT cue and didn't get it back; there's no telling what I might do to somebody LOL. I pretty much had the same thing happen a few years ago with an old Schon Black Widow cue only I didn't get it back. I was pretty steamed for several days.
 
All's well that ends well.

lfigueroa said:
Well, first off, let me say, Joey, that I am really really happy you got your cue back. Even better that you got it back before the nincompoop decided it needed a little sanding, or some other work done to it. (Personally, about once or twice a year, I wake up in a cold sweat after a nightmare in which someone steals my cue at the pool hall, or at a tournament.)

BUT, I must ask: how could you go home and not feel that your cue case was lighter? I mean, I can immediately tell the difference if a shaft is missing out of my case...

Lou Figueroa
Click to expand...

:o Yeah well, my weak excuse is I was in a hurry to get home yesterday evening and the other part of the poor excuse is that it is one of the old Jack Justis cases (pre-ProLite) which is a little heavier. I carry a Break Cue, an extra playing shaft, a Jump Cue and dozens of other items inside of the pouch.

When I looked in side the case I felt a weight loss almost immediately as the contents of my stomach floated upward. :smile:

The truth is I play a lot of pool and I am very careful with my cue, almost always standing it upright, next to my cue case. I even stack my break cue and jump cue next to the case or I put them inside of the case.

I think I will discontinue laying the cue on an adjoining table. It can lay down next to one of the rails and you can't see it easily unless you are standing next to the table.

It could have been a lot worse. The person could have let someone else borrow the cue, sold the cue and that person could have disappeared off the face of the earth...along with my cue.

We had one bad theft here in New Orleans about a year ago (a DOZEN Carolina cues) and the cues showed up about 6 months later with super dings all over the cues where they were substantially abused and I mean SUBSTANTIALLY abused and could barely be restored to a semblance of their original beauty. The thugs who stole the cues from the guys car didn't know that each cue was worth approximately a thousand dollars each with one of them close to two thousand.

The funny thing is after you get over being being pissed at yourself for having a lapse of judgement, you start thinking all kinds of silly things and how you are going to get the cue back with or without a pound of flesh. :o Bad thoughts, silly thoughts.

All is well in JoeyA's world.:smile:
 
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