Who is the Person that has influenced your Pool Life the most?

Steve Gumphrey "Gump" my former partner in crime. He taught me no matter how high the stakes, "it's the same shot so just put in in the hole & lets go get something to eat". He had more gamble than any 5 men I ever knew. It's all about how you perceive things.
 
Bob Barkhurst is easily the largest single influence on my game.

Though I have to give credit to YouTube for giving me access to other mentors like Nick Varner, Mike Sigel, and Keith McCready. All helped me to develop a good stroke more than anything. Believe it or not, Keiths stroke helped me the most... it's almost impossible to screw it up using a few elements from his right hand.

Lesh
 
Lets start with Bill Lawson, man he could run out well and string those racks out till ya thought that you were going cold just sitting there. he worked with me for a while, but it was Wade Crane that really picked my game up. I could run 4's and such, but after working with Mr. Crane and Eddie O'Connel , I was subject to double that and on occasions run out sessions. Road life was needed to bring all this to fruition and make it permanent, but with no road life, things are forgotten,,but not the play nor the matches.
 
Prolly my brother 1st (started me at 12).
Then my buddies JC & Joe to get me back to a table after high school.
3rd would be Mike Armentrout & Todd Lovejoy fo putting up with my crappy habits to make me better.
 
Dave Piona

Dave was the house Pro in Felts (later to be Crown Billiards) when I was just playing there by myself for a couple of hours. He encouraged me to get into competition and I have been playing in leagues and tournaments since. That was 2003.

Great guy. God Bless you, Dave-

-dj
 
Jerry Briesath
Mark Wilson
Buddy Hall
Steve Mizerak
Ralf Souquet
Shane Van Boening
The haters
 
Robert Byrne. I consider his book the bible of pool and taught myself to play by memorizing each page and shooting every shot until I could make them all. To this day many players I run into still don't understand how the balls work and it costs them.

George Fels. Similar to above, I learned how to play straight pool from him. The "WP" list is worth the book.

Nick Varner. His approach is second to none. He doesn't win because he has more firepower or does things others can't. He is simply very determined, focused, positive, and meets adversity head on with a great attitude. The match he played against Sigel where he won from down 9-2 and hooked racing to 11 inspired me through many obstacles.

Many local players none of you all probably know, but they were king of the hill when I was young and before Youtube.
 
Well it's funny the guy who inspired my pool shooting happened because I won the starting pitching job in pony league some how Pool came up cause I'd played some snooker in Canada living with my dad but I was here back in the states and had a cheap wood table at my mothers ,, he challenged me to play his parents owned a bar with 2 tables I accepted and went over to get my clocked cleaned however he said I played better than any of his friends and wanted me to come by and play more said I could make a little money on market days , that I did and made money
Circa 2016 after 42 yrs we just reconnected few weeks ago and we are going to bang them around and tell war stories ,, great stuff

1
 
Howard Barrett, my first official pool instructor
Nick Varner, a world champion who took time out of his schedule to help me with my graduate school research on how champions process the table and how they solve problems while playing.
John Amos, who lit a fire under me by telling me that I wasn't good enough to give him a challenge when we played. He flat out stopped playing with me for at least 6 months and I was so pissed I practiced till i got good enough to give him a competitive game.
 
A45Gunner here on AZB...

Rick Ballman, A45Gunner here on AZ. I met him when I was 21 and knew basically nothing about the game. His knowledge was almost encyclopedic, and his willingness to share both that knowledge and his time formed the basis of what is now nearly a three-decade friendship. I couldn't have asked for a better mentor, nor a better friend.

Kindest Regards,

Paul Davidson
 
JAM said:
Tom-Tom Wirth.
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Tom Tom was not my first inspiration but my first to show me I had lots to learn then we played tennis and the results were the same
Now some 35 yrs later it's Reggie Barksdale whom I'm taking a beating from trying to learn one pocket


1
 
answer

A guy named Galen. Best natural road hustler around at the time. Took me under his wing. We went everywhere relieving folks of their cash. Learned a great wealth of information about cues and pool history from a fella they call "The Skunk". Still learning from him today...
 
Player/Mentor = Dick Weaver

Extremely knowledgeable and great player. I wouldn't know as much or play anywheres near as well without his sharing.

Pool Cues = Joe Gold

Graciously shared his techniques and knowledge of precise cue making.

Both are very close to me....
 
Honestly I think I'd have to say Cigar Tom Vanover. So much I actually started smoking big old stogies when I was like 13 or 14 lol. Turns out I like them anyway ��
 
Bank it said:
Steve Gumphrey "Gump" my former partner in crime. He taught me no matter how high the stakes, "it's the same shot so just put in in the hole & lets go get something to eat". He had more gamble than any 5 men I ever knew. It's all about how you perceive things.
Click to expand...

As I'm sure you know, I used to play out of Randolph HIlls. This was Steve's home base and though Steve was constantly on the road, it was always a welcome sight to see him playing some friendly match with one of the locals.

I just want to relate my most memorable moment regarding Steve. It was about a week before his passing. He was thin, and unfortunately wasting away due to cancer when he walked into Champion Billiards in Rockville, MD. He wanted to say a final goodbye to his numerous friends and the room was filled to capacity in anticipation of his arrival.

To say Steve had heart is a gross understatement. That night Steve showed everyone there just how strong and valiant a personality he was. There was never a single regret from his lips or in his eyes, never a single moment in which he viewed himself a victim of circumstances. Though there is no question that he and all others who suffer the ultimate consequences of cancer are victims of this horrible disease Steve laughed and joked around. He celebrated his life and genuinely enjoyed sharing the friendships he formed over decades. That night Steve's strength of spirit lifted all of us.

My respect for Steve and the courage he displayed that night will forever help me cope better with whatever misfortune life may hand me.

Thanks Steve, may you rest in peace with all your loved ones.

Tom
 
one stroke said:
Tom Tom was not my first inspiration but my first to show me I had lots to learn then we played tennis and the results were the same
Now some 35 yrs later it's Reggie Barksdale whom I'm taking a beating from trying to learn one pocket


1
Click to expand...

Fight on One Stroke. :)

Maintaining your anonymity.
 
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