Who's the best player in Virginia

[mapman72]

I was just curious to see who people think is the best player in Virginia. I know there's some good players in NoVa, Richmond, Fredericksburg, and other places. I also heard of some strong players out by Front Royal and Virginia Beach. I know the state is big, but I'm just wondering who the top talent is, especially since the Open will be held there in a few weeks. Any thoughts?

 

[Matt_24]

I was just curious to see who people think is the best player in Virginia. I know there's some good players in NoVa, Richmond, Fredericksburg, and other places. I also heard of some strong players out by Front Royal and Virginia Beach. I know the state is big, but I'm just wondering who the top talent is, especially since the Open will be held there in a few weeks. Any thoughts?

Hmm....just off the top of my head:
Keith McCready
Bobby Hawk (in the rumor mill he is supposedly the top one pocket player right now...you know how quickly that can change but it seems to be the prevelant opinion)
Mike Davis
Jerry Slivka
Danny Green
Pooky (if he is still playing)
Ryan McCreesh (if he is still playing)
Bus Driver Ronnie
Strawberry
T-Bone
This is just from my limited knowledge. I only play once a week now and only play in Shirlington...so my info might be worthless. Those are some folks you can match up with though for sure in the DC area. Outside of the Metro/DC area of VA I can't name anyone.

 

[vapoolplayer]

chris loar

VAP

 

[Jon]

VAP

Thanks,

Jon

 

[Qstick333]

Without a dount - Matt Clatterbuck - if you can find him. Can occasionally be found in Front Royal

 

[steffi]

Jerry Slivka on his day is one of the best players I've seen in NoVa.

I was just curious to see who people think is the best player in Virginia. I know there's some good players in NoVa, Richmond, Fredericksburg, and other places. I also heard of some strong players out by Front Royal and Virginia Beach. I know the state is big, but I'm just wondering who the top talent is, especially since the Open will be held there in a few weeks. Any thoughts?

 

[unknownpro]

chris loar

VAP

Yeah, Chris is the 3rd best player at JJ's. LOL! What's up Chris? That is you isn't it? You've got locksmith on your page and you know how to spell Loar, must be you. Oh yeah, Jeremy and that other guy what's his name left town for a while, I forgot. You are the best now. LOL!

unknownpro

 

[doctorhvac]

Probably Eric Moore

 

[vapoolplayer]

Yeah, Chris is the 3rd best player at JJ's. LOL! What's up Chris? That is you isn't it? You've got locksmith on your page and you know how to spell Loar, must be you. Oh yeah, Jeremy and that other guy what's his name left town for a while, I forgot. You are the best now. LOL!

unknownpro

nope, i wouldn't be chris......but you're right, everyone does spell his last name wrong.

VAP

 

[JAM]

Hmm....just off the top of my head:
Keith McCready
Bobby Hawk (in the rumor mill he is supposedly the top one pocket player right now...you know how quickly that can change but it seems to be the prevelant opinion)
Mike Davis
Jerry Slivka
Danny Green
Pooky (if he is still playing)
Ryan McCreesh (if he is still playing)
Bus Driver Ronnie
Strawberry
T-Bone
This is just from my limited knowledge. I only play once a week now and only play in Shirlington...so my info might be worthless. Those are some folks you can match up with though for sure in the DC area. Outside of the Metro/DC area of VA I can't name anyone.

That's a great list of metro D.C. area players, Matt. The only one who lives in Virginia, though, would be Pookie. The rest of 'em are from Maryland and/or D.C. Pookie seems to have hung up his cue stick for Internet poker. He has been MIA in recent times. When, and if, his credit card gets maxed out, I hope to see Pookie back in the saddle again sometime soon.

Who is the BEST in Virginia would depend on who you ask and how old they are. One of the most famous Virginia players from days gone by has got to be Bill Staton a/k/a "Weenie Beanie."

The Boggs brothers, Scottie and Freddie, used to be hailed as top dogs in the Commonwealth State. Scottie emigrated to Florida sometime ago, and Freddie moved to Las Vegas several years ago. GREAT players who can play all games.

Veterans Billy Stephens and Jimmy McAdams used to frequent the tournament trail and were fierce competitors in any venue they played in. Occasionally, they will compete in regional events. Both of these Virginian natives are oldies, but goodies in my book, and they still got game.

Matt Clatterbuck and Mark Painter stay under the radar screen and will only make appearances on rare occasions, but when either of them do, they're usually embroiled in action. Matt beat Little John for an undisclosed amount at the Super Billiards Expo in Valley Forge, PA earlier this year. Mark Painter is hard to clock, but his "A" game is hard to overcome, when he brings it.

Chris Loar of Fredericksburg is definitely a strong player. His wife recently gave birth to their first child. He manages a pool room and is heralded as one of Virginia's finest. [I didn't know that's how you spelled Chris' name either, VAP! ]

I've got to throw in 15-year-old Chris Futrell's name here. He plays in Norfolk out of Q-Masters. He won this year's junior championship at the SBE. The kid's already got the basics and fundamentals down and is making strides on the tournament trail. I recently found out that at Valley Forge, Chris was challenged by Young Gun Scooter. Those who know Scooter are aware of his gift of gab to get things going. Chris barbecued Scooter for 6 dimes is the way I hear it, in front of a huge crowd of onlookers.

These are just a few of Virginia's finest that come to my mind!

JAM

 

[rackemup]

Without a dount - Matt Clatterbuck - if you can find him. Can occasionally be found in Front Royal

Have to agree with this from the few times ive seen Matt play. Beat Ryan Mcreesh pretty handily, saw him in action up at Valley Forge, and saw him beat a pretty strong one pocket player TC easily. I knew he could play 9 ball but didn't think he would have much of a chance in this one pocket game but he drilled his opponent.

 

[vagabond]

Have to agree with this from the few times ive seen Matt play. Beat Ryan Mcreesh pretty handily, saw him in action up at Valley Forge, and saw him beat a pretty strong one pocket player TC easily. I knew he could play 9 ball but didn't think he would have much of a chance in this one pocket game but he drilled his opponent.

Hi rackemup,
Welcome to AZB.This is a good forum and u will enjoy it.

 

[Matt_24]

That's a great list of metro D.C. area players, Matt. The only one who lives in Virginia, though, would be Pookie. The rest of 'em are from Maryland and/or D.C. Pookie seems to have hung up his cue stick for Internet poker. He has been MIA in recent times. When, and if, his credit card gets maxed out, I hope to see Pookie back in the saddle again sometime soon.

- Pookie is playing internet poker now? I can see him now woofing at the poker screen. He'll be back at pool in no time (no one to trash talk..LOL). I have a lot of respect for his game though and gambling ability. He plays (or played) strong for the cheddar. I've beat him in some small tournaments before (anything can happen in a tournament sometimes) and at a few gambling matches when he gave up too much (and I was playing my BEST) and I've lost in several small gambling matches against him (where he still gave up a nice spot), but I've seen him play some phenomenal pool. I will say one thing about Pookie...he didn't try to steal. He would give up pretty much what you wanted to get a game going, and then outrun the spot most of the time. I hope he plays pool again, he has a lot of talent.

 

[poolman]

Without a dount - Matt Clatterbuck - if you can find him. Can occasionally be found in Front Royal

I agree. Matt is definitely one of, if not, the best player(s) in Va.......And he has a full time job! That's impressive.

 

[Black-Balled]

I am voting for Chris Loar and Matt Clatterbuck.

 

[mapman72]

I am voting for Chris Loar and Matt Clatterbuck.

When I posted this, I was thinking Chris Loar and/or Matt Clatterbuck myself. From what I've seen, more of Chris than of Matt, I think that Chris gets up to play in the tournaments while Matt is extremely tough for the cash. JAM, I think the undisclosed amount was $5,000 with about $19,000 being bet on the side. And while I respect Painter's gambling, I hear that he's primarily a bar table specialist. At the SBE, he was quick to slice through Wilkie for $1,000, eight ahead, but then he turned around and lost to Adam Smith from Detroit for a similar amount. I have a hard time believing that he would beat Wilkie on a big table. Apparently he even jumped up against Charlie Bryant and lost. Anyway, Eric Moore is certainly capable of playing great pool. I think he just finished third in that Masters tournament and I believe he took 17th in the Open a few years back. I first met him in Hanover, PA in a weekly tournament about ten years ago. He escapes to VA Beach and then starts shooting like a champion. I hate when that happens. Give Futrell another year or so and he'll be one of the best. Right now, he's up there, but not quite good enough to be considered the best in VA, IMO. I beat him pretty easy about a year ago in a tournament down there and wasn't too impressed. Needless to say, he's come a long way in a year and if he continues at that pace, he'll be the best player in VA by the time he's 18. I was really curious to see if any names from Southern or Western Virginia would pop up. They have to have some good players out in the Roanoke area, don't they? Anyway, thanks for the comments. This has been an interesting discussion.

 

[Black-Balled]

Hmm....just off the top of my head:
...T-Bone...This is just from my limited knowledge. I only play once a week now and only play in Shirlington...so my info might be worthless...

Matt,

You keep putting T-Bone on your 'impressed' list. I have know him for a long time and we are definitely tight, but I really don't think he is anywhere near the caliber of Slivka/ McCready/ Pookie/ BDRonnie. I guess you think he plays better than Kingpin?

I believe I saw mention that T-Bone is no longer playing for $ (he sure used to accept my donations when I was younger!) and I think you have to know that what we do in the gym isn't really an indicator of 'how good' we play. Anybody can fire a bank and bust the stack, but you don't usually see good players doing that 'coz it usually isn't a very good shot choice.

Not sure what my point is, but I demand that you remove the Bone from your list. Naw, just kidding. He can stay if you want!

 

[JAM]

Black-Balled, whatever happened to Roanoke Red? He used to be heralded as one of Virginia's finest when I used to frequent the on-the-road scene.

Then there was a guy from Richmond named "Shake and Bake." He was a really good one-pocket player.

I don't know if you could consider Seattle Sam from Virginia, but when he was living in Virginia, there was action jackson 24/7!

JAM

 

[Black-Balled]

Black-Balled, whatever happened to Roanoke Red? He used to be heralded as one of Virginia's finest when I used to frequent the on-the-road scene.

Then there was a guy from Richmond named "Shake and Bake." He was a really good one-pocket player.

I don't know if you could consider Seattle Sam from Virginia, but when he was living in Virginia, there was action jackson 24/7!

JAM

I dont know the first 2, but your recollection of "Seattle" Sam Trivett is 100% accurate, isn't it!? He got the $ changing hands, didn't he?

 

[poolman]

Roanoke Red (Red Terry), aka the Trotter (probably plays as fast as that guy from Canada - Luke Salvas?), was dying of cancer of cancer the last time I heard. This was about a year ago. As Mike Ives a reporter used to say, he looked like a drum major gone beserk, flying around the table 100 mph waving his stick and slamming balls in the pocket. Tucker from Jack & Jills used told me that Red was the laughing stock of Arlington. Tucker made the trip to Roanoke to hustle Red and got the shit kicked out of him.

Thomas Elkins, also from Roanoke, was a better player than Red, unless Red caught fire. Thomas must be around 60 by now - never has any money to gamble with and is pretty much unseen.

My wife saw a 90 year old player in Guys and Dolls in Roanoke whose stroke was 'as smooth as silk'. His friend said that he used to be the best money player in Roanoke. This must have been 'Sweathead'. He looked like Robert Culp in the 'I Spy' TV series and always wore a Sam Snead hat, even inside. You see, he used to sweat so much he needed the hat to stop the flow on his forehead.

From Charlottesville, VA. there is a guy named Bobby Anderson. Believe me, in his day, he could put the hurting on anybody, pros included. 35 years ago, before Efren even made his way over here, Bobby stroked the cue EXACTLY LIKE EFREN. His tip used to touch the cloth inched in front of the cueball before he shot.

But BY FAR the very best player I have seen in VA in Dennis Brison. He is just freakin awesome. I can't believe no one has even mentioned him. One pocket is his game. At Valley Forge I saw him run 6 racks in a row in 8 ball on the little tables. Simply nothing could stop him. He is unreal with the jump cue and banks like Piggy Banks. He could give Keith a serious run for his money. Dennis told me he could turn pro, but he just likes to teach pool and enjoy his life with his family. Dennis looks like Tank Abbott and lives on 95 just south of the big city.

Clatterbuck offered him the 7 ball and wouldn't take it. No offense, but Dennis is not even close to these guys. He has no shot against Keith.....however he is a very nice guy.