Secrets of a hardcore Pool Hustler

U J Puckett on CBS 60 Minutes

2008-02-27T19:00:00.000-08:00

Harry Reasoner's look into the hustler's life of Utley Puckett on CBS 60 minutes. Part 1

Rare cameo appearances of Mexican Johnny, Bananas Rodriquez and Jersey Red.

U J Puckett on CBS 60 Minutes part 2

2008-02-27T18:50:00.000-08:00

Harry Reasoner's look into the fabulous hustler's life of Utley J Puckett on CBS 60 minutes. Part 2
Rare cameo appearances of Mexican Johnny, Bananas Rodriquez, and Jersey Red.

The Beard's SPEEDO 1 Pocket Rules

2008-02-27T18:20:00.000-08:00

These rules are Trademarked

1.__ Draw a balk line from diamond one on long rail to diamond one on short rail

on both sides of the table. This will be designated Balk Area 1.

2.__ Draw another set of diagonal balk lines between the points of the back corner

pockets. This will be designated Balk Area 2.
a. ____When there are less than 8 balls on the table the balk area recedes to the

smaller space between the points of the corner pockets, designated Balk Area 2,

and we now spot only the balls that lie in that smaller space.

3. __When there are 8 balls or more on the table and they have all traveled past

the second diamond at the foot of the table, the 3 balls closest to the head

rail are to be spotted up except in cases where balls are in balk. Balls in balk

will always have precedence in the spotting order.
a. ____If a ball is pocketed in a non–scoring pocket by the outgoing player, it is

placed on the foot spot and that in itself constitutes a ball outside the balk

area and no other balls need to be spotted.
b.____ If more than 3 balls qualify to be spotted up, the order of preference is:
(1.) _____Any ball pocketed in a neutral pocket
(2.) _____All balls within Balk Area 2
(3.) _____All balls within Balk Area 1.
(4.) _____Balls closest to the back rail.
(5.) _____If balls are equally located the low numbered ball is spotted.
c. ____No more than 3 balls can be spotted altogether

The Beard's SPEEDO Bank Pool Rules

2008-02-27T06:18:00.000-08:00

SPEEDO BANK RULES

1. Fifteen balls are racked and must be broken wide open like nine ball. Safe breaks

are not allowed. If a ball is made on the break without a scratch, the ball(s) is spotted

and the shooter continues.

2. Draw lines between the points of the two side pockets. Then draw lines between

the outer points of the corners on each short rail. These are the 3 balk areas.

3. After the break, balk area spot up rules go into effect, as follows:
a. Spot all balls that lie inside the 3 balk areas.
b. Any ball touching a balk line is considered in balk.
c. Balls made on the break are spotted immediately. All other balls
are spotted after each shooter's inning.
d. After the breaker’s inning, continue to spot up balls that lie in the
balk areas, all balls pocketed illegally and any balls that jumped
the table.
e. These rules remain in effect as long as there are 8 or more balls
on the table.
f. When there are 7 balls or less in play, the game reverts to
standard BANK POOL rules, where balls are spotted normally
and the balk rules are discontinued.

4. Nine Ball Banks: All the above rules apply except that the balls required to

nullify the balk area spot up rules is reduced to 5 instead of 8.

Who were the best players for the Big Money?

2008-02-27T06:17:00.000-08:00

(Probably my all-time favorite pool pic)

I look at this question from a little different perspective. I rate not who played the best for the big money, but rather who you had better not give a gamble to. Some guys played great for big money, but they always had a good game. My respect goes out to those guys that didn't need a good game, just a good gamble. Just show them that they could win big money, and how good the game was was secondary. Artie Bodendorfer played great for big money, but he wouldn’t play with a bad game. Cornbread Red Burge, Ronnie Allen and Leonard "Bugs" Rucker, their only requirement for playing was to just give them a gamble and tititlate them with the prospect of a score. Having the worst of it did not really matter. Actually, every time I ever seen those guys playing for the big stuff they had the worst of it. The standard advice about playing one of those guys for big cheese was, "Whatever it is you think you need to have the nuts, you better still try to get one or two more balls, if you want to win. I never in my life seen any of those guys get an even-up gamble for the mega-bucks. As the bet went up, so did their competitive nature.
The key factor that those guys had for outrunning the nuts, was when they did come with a shot they got all the way out! Games that had both players in the one-hole were rare because those guys never stopped on the game ball. If I had to pick the most frightening guy to play with for giant money out of those three it would have to be Cornbread Red. As the bet went up his already long slip stroke would lengthen ever further. I will never forget a set for 30k he won in Philly playing "Cornflakes" (aka John "World" Hennigan, he now plays in the World Series of Poker) with me, Buddy Hall, and Wade Crane each betting 1800 each on Red. Cornbread was shooting at a triple-shimmed 4" pocket, and he had a long straight-back for the money. He long-stroked it in 100mph. After the set he grumbled that he didn’t have time to go home to Detroit and get more money to bet than the measly 30k. He was my hero and I miss him terribly.

Pools Greatest Money Player, CornBread Red

2008-02-27T06:15:00.000-08:00

CORNBREAD RED: POOL’S GREATEST MONEY PLAYER
By Bob Henning
This book takes the reader into the life of pool’s legendary money player. It’s action-packed, entertaining, and easy to read. An inside look at the Johnston City tournaments and the world famous big-money poolroom -- the Rack, in Detroit MI. It has received rave reviews from pool publications and other reviewers. $16.95

Excerpt from my book, The GosPool According To The Beard:

"Cornbread Red liked to bet so high it put a "tremble" in his opponents stroke. Red was one of my heroes. Whenever I ran into him, I followed and hung onto him the whole time. He had me totally fascinated. Red was the master at shooting off the game ball. When confronted with a big-cheese-money-ball, Red would derisively snort, "Haw, haw," in his inimitable style, then he would increase his normally long back-stroke about another foot, and slip-stroke the shot in, with dust flying out of the back of the pocket Http://www.bankingwiththebeard.com/books.html

Beard's TV interview part 1

2008-02-27T06:14:00.000-08:00

Knockers and the Poolroom Police

2008-02-27T06:13:00.001-08:00

Cliff Joyner and Jack Cooney

How does one conduct ones self in the poolroom? It depends on whether you have a huster's mentality or a square-johns. A hustler is looking to CREATE action, ALLOW action, and WIN MONEY. If you are hanging in the poolroom with a hustler's mentality then you should learn to hate the knockers and the mother hens that run around looking to "protect" their flock, the self-appointed poolroom patrolmen. If you want to make sure that every game is exactly even (and who are you to make that determination?), and take it personal when you see someone going "off," why did you pick a poolroom to spend your time in the first place? When I was coming up, knocking was a dangerous profession. If a player came around that I knew and nobody else did, it was professional courtesy to keep my mouth shut and let grown men take care of themselves. The pluses for this type of behavior was many; you could bet on the side, you could discreetly ask the player for a piece of his action, and you could ask for a consideration bite after the player won. By keeping the player anonymous, you could take him to other spots and win more money. Lastly, If you had a treacherous nature, as some did then, after accumulating trust by keeping silent you could later steer the player into a game where he couldnt win. If the players knew they could go somewhere, get action and not get knocked, this encouraged other players, some not so good, to come around and want to play in your place. This made for an action spot where everybody had a chance to make money. In Chicago’s Bensingers, and Detroit's Rack and Cue, knockers were looked upon as pariahs and were always at risk for physical violence.

Here is a good example of how this works out well for everybody concerned (except the victims):
I brought Jack Cooney to the all-black poolrooms on the South and West Side of Chicago. There were several players in each room that knew Cooney. None said a word. However, after Jack took each joint off, they all came around with their hands out and all received fair consideration.

I always thought that you went to a poolroom to play, gamble and compete. Knocking does nothing

to further those concepts.

Interview part 2

2008-02-27T06:13:00.000-08:00

The Hillbilly Code

2008-02-27T06:12:00.000-08:00

"Tom" and "George" are two of the secret components of the "Hillbilly Hustler's Code." There are many more words and hand signals that all "made" hustlers used throughout the country in the old days. Using the word or name"Tom," in any conversation denoted something "bad." Conversely, the word or name "George," meant something or whatever, was "good." You knew you were a "made" scuff when someone taught you the hand signs and code words. It was a small tight group. You all would be surprised to find out just how many old-time, famous pool hustler/players were never made privy to that info.

Sample code words for playing cards or pool balls:

One ball or Ace .............play
Two ball or deuce...........sit or sh*t
Four ball or four...............funny
Eleven ball or Jack..........break
Fourteen ball or Kind.......come

Hustler talk:
"Laying out a spread."
A ploy used to lure a victim into a bad game or trap. It's lIke laying out a banquet spread on a buffet table, seemingly with all kinds of goodies to choose from. But when you go to bite into something it bites back. 'Frisco Jack Cooney was the acknowledged master of this manuever. I also used this move to beat Archie The Greek Karas out of 200 grand.

Bank Pool Instructional books

2008-02-27T06:10:00.000-08:00

The GosPool of Bank Pool $29.95

Http://www.bankingwiththebeard.com/books.html clik to order

The Art of Gamesmanship

2008-02-22T11:33:00.000-08:00

This will be a tips and tid-bits section dealing with gamesmanship, or put another way; how to secure yourself an advantage when playing, hustling, or gambling.

An excerpt from George Fels column, NEW CLOTH, in Billiards Digest, Dec. 1993
"...the perfection of the cloth itself. It has not yet been violated by chalk, dust, or that most sinister of stainers, talcum... Naturally, one cannot ignore the sharking possibilities inherent to these aesthetics. The late billiards player Bud Harris, who played pretty fair pool when he could be coaxed into it, had an undeniably prissy nature; he liked everything just so. Thus he stood no chance whatsoever against the Machiavellian Freddy Bentivegna, despite being a much better player back then, because Freddy would simply bring to the table mounds of powder unrivaled for size except in the jungles of Colombia and the mountains of Peru. One had to peer through perpetual fog to watch Fred flay Bud, and more often than not, what one would see was poor Harris doing a kind of forlorn vertical breast-stroke, striving for a reasonable glimpse of at least table if not balls too. The cloth itself was a wonder to behold, (the Fred/Bud encounters took place on 5'x10' tables in the classic Bensinger's, for even greater cloth carnage) Kelly green yielding glumly to ...white whorls and whirls and swirls...Michael Jordan made a point to decorate the broadcast announcers with a clap or two of talcum just before tip-off; Jordan reportedly plays decent pool, and you have to wonder if he studied talcum technique at Freddy Bentivegna's knee."

Here's an addendum to the above post: As irritating as talcum clouds might be to a fastidious type player -- and this should include almost all 3 cushion players -- something almost as effective is to turn the chalk upside down and let the granules leak onto the rail. I used to drive the suit and tie billiard players nuts with that move. In truth I was just as big a neat freak as they were, but I was compensated by how much it jerked their chain.

When hustling in a strange joint, bring your own chalk, powder, and cue ball with you. Tricks to get your own cue ball into the game:

When you are about to start a game, make sure you volunteer to bring the balls to the table, this way you can sneakily switch cue balls at the counter. If your opponent is already playing on the table, suggest playing on a different table. If he concedes, you go get the balls and switch the cue balls. If your opponent refuses to change tables, suggest a compromise and ask for a clean set of balls. He can hardly refuse. To keep him busy when he agrees, tell him you will go get the clean balls if he takes the old set off the table. Switch cue balls at the counter.

Advice on lagging for the break: Make sure your opponent goes first. This will allow you to measure his speed of stroke. It is at least a 25% advantage.

When flipping for the break, if flipping a penny, call tails. It's a 10 to 15% advantage over the normal 50/50 due to the weight disparity on one side. If you are able to make the penny spin on the table, your advantage goes up to at least 60%.

Here's how strong gamesmanship can be. I was in Milwaukee, WI playing in the National 8ball Bar Team League Championships in 82 or 84 (I forgot). There were about 200 teams and this was the final shot of the final game of the final match. My team was a strong one, Artie Bodendorfer, Johnny Abbruzzo (greatest team 8ball player ever), George Powalski (a legitimate 250 ball runner) and me, I was the anchor man. I wound up frozen on the long rail, with the 8 ball between the foot spot and the pocket, and dead straight in. It was not that hard a shot but it was worth $5000, and it was hard to keep the trembles from showing. Needless to say, I dogged it brutally and I miscued. Now I may have been shaky, but I hadn't lost my ability to think on my feet, so as the cue ball drizzled away from the rail, I caught it with the bottom of the shaft of my stick and rolled it back to be refrozen to the rail, leaving my opponent a tough cut shot on his last ball. It all occurred in one smooth motion, and in those days you could make a guy shoot again after a foul, but there was no cue ball in hand. My opponent shot, missed and left me the length of the table away from the 8. Revitalized now, and with nothing else left to lose, I had already embarassed myself, I hit the 8 as hard as I could, made it, and the cue ball flew around the table and fortunately didn't scratch. We made the front page of the Billiard News.

When you are not blessed with natural talent, you have to develop other skills. For example, I was playing in Monroe Brock's big tournament in Richmond, KY at the Maverick Club. Keith McCready was my opponent, and we were playing 6 out of 11, short rack 9 ball banks. The score was, Keith 5 games to my zero, when I broke the balls and didn't make anything. Keith banked 4, missed a tough shot for the session ball, and left me hanging in the corner pocket at the foot of the table with no shot. Responding criminally to a hopeless situation, I took a ball out of the ball return box and put it on the spot, giving myself a cross-side. Keith, thinking HE must have broke the balls and made one, didn't bat an eye. I banked 3 from there, played safe, and wound up winning that game and the next 5 to take the session! There were sweators in the bleachers that knew what had happened, and they were writhing in their seats trying to mentally tip Keith off. Later in that first game, Keith counted the balls that were left, and realized that the score didn't add up right. He knew something was wrong, but couldn't put his finger on it. I cooled him out by allowing that no matter what, he still only needed 1 ball, and that was the one thing we were both in agreement about. He also agreed that I banked 3, so what was it we were arguing about? Gamesmanship was my compensation for the discrepancy between Keith and my shot-making skills. Did I feel guilty about it? Nah.

True Road Adventures

2008-02-22T10:14:00.000-08:00

I'm gonna post some true adventure road stories for them's that's interested in such.

I was in New Orleans about 10 years ago. On Bourbon St they used to have an off-track betting parlor. It was in a bad section of Bourbon St, it's not there anymore. Desperate to bet horses, I went there anyway. Once inside I realized that it was a real low class operation. Homeless types, bag ladies and various brokes filled the joint. It was the only place I have ever been in whereby you could bet as little as $1 to win. As luck would have it, I got off tremendous winner. By the 4th race I was $4k ahead. I started to get nervous because I suddenly realized just how much 4k would have to mean to people who had less than 5$ in their pockets. I didn't dare go outside alone because the street was dark and dead empty. I called my partner, Wayne Hopkins to come and get me, and bring help. In the meantime a security guard appeared magically after the phone call and confronted me. I figured the guard was gonna say like, "Don't worry sir, We know you got all that money. We protect high-rollers here. I got the gun and I will walk you out."Instead he tells me this, "Listen sir, you are going to have to pull your pants up or leave, we have received complaints from the ladies here." Huh? While I am somewhat famous for originating low-riding jeans and often baring a little crack, the fact that I was singled out for humiliation in this dump, and by a hideous collection of hags was unbelievable. I looked around all over the place and could not find any women who I thought could possibly be offended by anything. Wayne finally showed, and I zoomed, red-faced out of the joint -- never to return.

Article by Pat Putnam in Sports Illustrated, Nov 10 1975, Regarding the Burlington, IA tournament. Quote the great Mike Sigel, "...Without a strong tournament tour, we'll simply never be accepted as anything but pool hustlers."... Fair enough. In fact, just about the only dissenting view, and a mild one at that, came from Freddy the Beard. Early in the week he had stepped into the lobby from the Hotel Burlington elevator, his custom pool cue broken down and fitted snugly into its black leather case. An old railroad type, in engineer's cap and bib overalls, spotted him. The aged gent eyed the case and said, "How's the pheasant hunting going?' Freddy the Beard laughed, "Pops," he said, "this isn't for shooting pheasant. This is for shooting pigeons."

Anonymous said:
Did you ever play Earl Heisler?
The Beard said:
Earl Heisler was one of the few humans I never got down with. I wasnt too anxious to play him anyway. The wet, humid conditions he thrived on in New Orleans was a deterrent to my game. I liked dry tables.

Worst Tables I Ever Played On:(from my interview with Steve Booth of Onepocket.org).

...Yeah, and the equipment was hideous. There was no pocket at a couple of the corners, there was just a hole. They had those high floor model ashtrays, and they'd put them under the pocket and the ball would go plunk and roll around in there. The cloth was patched up with two-inch wide tape; it was an adventure to play on it. That's where I beat my first guy from Bensingers. I used to have to sneak in there (Bensingers) because I was underage. They had this real high counter by the door. So I used to duck by the old guy who worked the counter -- who was about a hundred years old, and sneak off into the back. When I was in the back, about fifty feet away, I'd say 'Turn the lights on,' he didn't know who the hell it was. The balls were already there, and he'd turn the light on and I got in action.When I first started going up there I never won; I'd just try to last. I would try a new guy each time, and each guy would beat me. I kept thinking, man, they've got to run out of guys that can beat me pretty soon, but they never did. So finally I got a couple of them to take a ride out to my joint, Nap's poolroom on 26th street in Chicago. I said, "I'll play you over there." Fortunately, I had such an advantage there it was ridiculous. I played Mexican Johnny Vasquez first. There were tracks for the banks; you just shoot the ball into that track and it would go right down the tape into the pocket. I beat him and he quit. We were only playing for three or four dollars a game. So Johnny quit. Then I played this other hustler, Gus the Greek, and I broke him. He stayed for the whole show. He had taken the bus down and wanted me to give him a quarter to take the bus back to Bensingers, but I let him walk, the son-of-a-b*tch -- that's what they did to me. I'd have to walk from downtown because I didn't have sense enough to ask for bus fare; I was too proud. They'd break me and I'd lose every quarter; I'd make sure I had nothing when I left.

More Worst Tables I Ever Played On:
In the 60s there was an open-air poolroom on South Beach in Miami. It was called, Moe's. It was once an old garage, and it was the only open-air poolroom I ever encountered. To open the joint in the morning, Moe would lift the garage door and leave it wide open. He had about 4 tables and it was right on the street facing the beach. The tables and balls were beyond horrible. The tables were taped and slashed and the balls had big chunks missing from them. Open air and on the ocean, you can imagine the humidity factor. Since I was a broke beach bum at the time, I hung out and hustled there daily. A big game was 25 cents. Here's the kicker, the house man was a champion pool player who could run 100s on these atrocities. His name was "Kokomo" Joe Ross, but he was actually from New York. He broke every human that tried to come through there and play him, including the great Cincinnati Clem Metz. It took me a couple of months to find a backer to move me to Miami proper, and stake me to play in the big action room, Kramer's Cue and Cushion on 79th and Biscayne where Minnesota Fats hung out. (Whereupon I made a big score playing Fayetteville Charley 8 to 7 bank pool) Beach life wasn't all that bad either. I ended up dating Murph the Surf's ex-girlfriend just before he went off the jail.

"Kilroy's" Rules of the Road

2008-02-22T07:09:00.000-08:00

Secrets from "Kilroy's" Old-Time Hustler's Handbook & Rules of the Road.
Items from my personal Hustler's Handbook. These are lessons that the "Square Johns" that hung in the poolroom were never made privy to -- until now. The Handbook was first put together by Roy "Kilroy" Kasmanski, the great "lemon hustler" from Detroit. They were known as his Rules of the Road.

Kilroy's rule #1
Always keep a warm blanket in the trunk to use for sleeping in the car, and in case the car breaks down in winter.
Rule #2
Learn to sleep comfortably in the back seat of a car.
Rule #2a
Kilroy says to take a can opener and a spoon with you on the road, " 'cause it's easier to eat the canned beans if ya' got the right tools."
Rule #3
When you are going to "scoot the check" (leave without paying) in a restaurant. Make sure you have a large bill folded over the check just in case you get stopped outside. This way you can convincingly demonstrate that paying the check just slipped your mind and you can show the attached money as proof.
Rule #4
(This old-time hustler’s road advice no longer applies, it comes from the days when there were no credit cards and you had to put up your luggage as collateral in a hotel. You couldn’t get past the front desk with your luggage without paying your bill.)
Never go on the road without taking a long rope with you. Reason: When you are getting ready to leave the hotel and duck paying the bill, use the rope to lower your luggage out of the window down to your associate, who recovers it, throws it in the car, and down the road you go.
Rule #5
On the road, where do you keep your bankroll? Never keep it in your wallet. Keep it in many different pockets. This way if you get jack-rolled or heisted, it's unlikely they will get all the money.
Freddy the Beard's Rule #6
If you are gambling in a bad joint and you become forced to defend yourself outside, and you happen to wear glasses; to insure that at the very least, the glasses don't get broken, throw them under a parked car before the melee. I say this from personal experience, I once had to fight my way out of a hillbilly bar. I returned later, and recovered my untouched specs from under the vehicle. As an aside, I did get away with all the money also.
Rule #7
Always keep a 2 foot rubber hose in the trunk for when you’re broke and out of gas, so you can sereptitiously siphon enough fuel out of someone else’s tank to get you going. (This old-time hustler’s road advice no longer applies with the new gas tanks)
Rule #8
A Pool Hustler’s gourmet menu:
Lunch:Filet ala Oscar, and a pine float.(Boloney sandwich, and a toothpick in a glass of water.)Evening dinner:Entree of Grilled Tube steak. Finish with Chateau Le Thunder Bird.( A hot dog and a fifth of T-Bird wine. 1960 price, 60 cents a bottle.)

Anonymous said:
"Freddy, you are making the road sound pretty brutal. When do the tips come for the good times on the road. Like the day after a big score when you get to get the big suite and relax by the pool with the hookers?"
Freddy the Beard said:
"Ah yes, Anonymous, but these tips are the things that help you to survive and eventually have an opportunity to make a score and party with the hooker's. Those stories will be related in other posts."
Rule #9
To protect against getting ripped off in a strange pool room, put your coat and cue case under the table you are playing on. This advice applies double in cold weather.
Rule #9a
If you see two guys shaking hands in a poolroom, one of them is a sucker.
Rule #9b
If you are in a poolroom or a card game and you can't figure out who the sucker is, then it's probably you.
Rule #10
If you have to drink coffee, make sure to leave the cover on the cup. That will discourage, the "Jar hustlers" (Unscrupulous rogues that put scopolomine in your drink) from just passing over the cup and dropping the "jar"in. That makes it much harder for them to ply their evil trade.
Rule #11
Put up the money before every session -- and have somebody you know hold the stakes. Get paid after every game, and don't sleep any scratches. Never mark games up on the wire unless you're the guy with the short money.
Freddy the Beard's Rule #12
When leaving a tough spot where you just won the money and sense there will be trouble from the losers, send whoever didn't do the playing out first. They won't follow him as long as you are still in the joint with the money.Your associate's instructions are simple: Get the car, pull it right in front of the place with the motor running, the passenger door open, and the car pointed towards home.I once had a partner who left the last part out. He did everything perfect except pull the car out of the parking space. I went outside, jumped in the car, and while he was maneuvering out of the parking space, the bad guys descended, pulled their guns and got in the car. I eventually escaped, with all the cheese, and my life and limb, but that's another story.The reasoning behind my instructions are sound, the tush-hogs will seldom pull a shot in the joint. They would rather wait and do their mischief outside, where nobody can see anything to call the police about.
Rule #13
A good place to hide your bankroll in a motel room is inside the shower-curtain rod. It's hollow and can be easily removed and replaced.You may have to remove 1 or 2 screws, so pack a combo, Phillips/Square-head screwdriver for such occasions.Don't quote me on this, but a curtain rod also makes a good stash for illicit chemicals.

Kilroy's advice regarding gambling with a very hard-nosed player: "Don't bet against him. He tries so hard he puts fingerprints in the slate."

A Kilroy story about the realities of pool hustling:A guy goes into a doctor's office. "Doc, I think I'm constipated, I ain't sh*t in a week." The doctor prescribes a strong laxative. Guy returns the next day. "Doc, I still ain't sh*t." Doctor prescribes a super powerful laxative, guaranteed to work. Next day the guy is back again. "Still nothing, Doc." The doctor is perplexed, and decides to dig into the man's routine. "By the way sir, what do you do for a living?" "I'm a pool hustler, Doc." the man replies. The doctor lights up in realization. "Why didn't you say so in the first place. Here's a couple of dollars, go get yourself something to eat!"

Most $ I Ever Played For (100k with Archie Karas)

2008-02-22T06:07:00.000-08:00

Verily, I will explain the circumstances behind the most money I ever played for. It was against the highest roller of all time, Archie Karas. Archie, at one time had the Horseshoe Casino in Vegas stuck for over 30 million dollars playing dice. I'll explain how I had Archie fooled into thinking I was an eccentric billionaire.
This is one of my secret road stories. It started with these guys that put a "spread" down for me to play and trap Archie Karas.

(Here is a link to the large, featured cover story spread in Cigar Aficionada magazine about Archie Karas.)

http://www.cigaraficionado.com/Cigar/CA_Profiles/People_Profile/0,2540,67,00.html

Archie the Greek, from Las Vegas. He was the highest rolling man of all time. You've all heard of Nick the Greek Dandalos? Well, Nick the Greek was like a nit next to Archie. Nobody in the history of the world has ever gambled like Archie Karas. There's an article about his incredible exploits in Cigar Magazine. He was, like, $30,000,000 winner at the Horseshoe Casino. He got his start by playing Bobby Baldwin the manager of the Mirage Casino, pool on his nerve, ended up winning about a million, and then beat him for more playing poker. He even broke all the champion no limit poker players. They couldn't beat Archie because money seemed to have no value to him, it was only chips. From there he went on to win about $30,000,000 playing dice. He had all the $5,000 chips in the Horseshoe. They even had to print a new chip for him, a $25,000 chip. Nobody gambled like this guy. He started dead broke and he got up to $30,000,000. But what goes up must also come down, and now he's on the way down, he's lost most of the money back shooting craps, he's got a few million left, three, four, five million, so these certain guys laid a trap for him. They told him there's a billionaire in Pennsylvania, an industrialist that likes to play pool and gambles real high -- which there is such a guy. He was a billionaire gambling degenerate who was known to have lost zillions. Weiss was his name. Archie had been hearing about this guy for years. The hustlers told him they could get him a game with Weiss, the only kind of guy who could gamble his fee. So they got him to go to Pennsylvania, to this little town -- and planted in that town is me. I'm Weiss, the billionaire. All Archie knows about this guy is that he is an eccentric, he doesn't dress fancy, doesn't wear jewelry, and that he's a degenerate gambler. We meet, they introduce me and pass me off as Weiss, and so on. Then we go to the poolroom; we're going to play some Eight Ball. I say, 'Whatta you wanna play for Archie?' He wants to kick it off at $40,000 a game! Archie has in his pocket $200,000 in $5,000 and $25,000 chips from the Horseshoe. The $25,000 chips were like travelers checks, you couldn't steal them from him because nobody could cash them. He'd have to okay it to cash them in because he was the only guy authorized to have $25,000 chips. That's what he had in his pocket instead of money. ...So the first game of Eight Ball was for $40,000. He broke, didn't make nothing, and I ran out. It was an easy layout. He reaches in his pocket and gives me eight $5,000 chips. I break, I don't make nothing, he runs out. Another easy layout, I give him back the $40,000. Now I got a little shaky. I could beat him, I was a top pool player, but we're playing for 40k a game and I don't have a quarter! None of us had that kind of money. There ain't no paying him off. What are we going to pay him with? We see-sawed for awhile and we ended up playing One-Pocket for 100k a game, and now I'm stalling. I have to stall to make it look good. I ended up beating him out of an even $100,000 the first night. He pays me off with four $25,000 chips.
It was a tough balancing act, stalling enough to be credible, but I couldn't afford to lose. However, I was a good "lemon" man in those days, so it was just another hard days work. ...Now it's over, and we go up to the counter to pay the time. We were playing in a little bowling alley, a cheap joint, and the time is only $21. For the finale, I short-armed him on the time! I'm $100,000 winner, but I'm also an eccentric billionaire, I have to play the part all the way through. So I started patting my pockets and looking bewildered. I'm patting like I can't find $21, I'm slow-drawing out on him. He finally says, "Don't worry about it, I've got the time." I've got him so f**king hooked, he paid the time! I said, "Oh, thank you Archie."...Anyway, it was a hell of a deal because then we had to stall around before playing again because we wanted to get those chips cashed first. We've got to cash those chips and get our money in case he manages to find out who I am. We sent a guy back to Vegas to cash the chips. Archie had to call The Horseshoe Casino to okay it. Next, I told him that I had to fly to Japan. We had to let time elapse, that's why I said I had to go to a big business meeting -- that would supposedly get me out of the country and give me an excuse to not play. I didn't want to play more until we got our cheese
...But we got the okay, and we got the money cashed and then we played again, and he lost another $100,000. But the guys that set the operation up weren't too smart; they weren't experienced scufflers, real lemon hustlers. They'd set it up nicely but they didn't really know how to take it off. He ended up paying off $200,000, but he still owed $800k, which we never got because they didn't know how to collect. When Archie went back to Vegas these guys screwed it up. They acted too guilty about it. You have to act like a legitimate thing occurred. I'm supposed to be Weiss, and I had Archie convinced that I was Weiss. To Weiss 800k wasn't such a big deal. I won $200,000, so what? I'm supposed to have lost millions. But they dogged it real bad when it came to collecting what Archie owed, they were too timid about asking for the money. They were supposed to be standing good for it, so the normal reaction to his not paying should have been outrage. ...So then he eventually got suspicious and started asking around about this guy that plays One-Pocket, wears glasses, and limps. Pretty soon, someone says, "I know that guy, that sounds like The Beard from Chicago." So our scam got busted and we didn't get the rest of the money. But it was one of the great cons; he was really hooked. I laid a great stall down. At one point in the game, they were trying to get him to quit because they didn't want him to owe too much money. But he said, "No, no, his leg is going to give out on him any minute." He thought my bad leg was going to give out on me cause it looked like I was really suffering. I was in pain, my leg was screwed up. I was in a lot of pain, but so what? I could play for days like that. You see, I got turned out by some good lemon men. I hung around with Bunny "Pots and Pans" Rogoff, and a guy named Hollywood Jack, and some other real good lemon men. The great Jack Cooney was another. They were great lemon men. It's called the lemon, because an apparently favorable situation eventually sours for the sucker. So that's how that story ended. I never ran into, or talked to Archie again until last Jan (2007) when Harry Platis put me on the phone with him. He accused me of being a publicity seeker for releasing the story. I told him that I did wait about 15 years before I told anybody.

Jack Cooney

2008-02-22T06:00:00.000-08:00

Anonymous said:
Who’s Jack Cooney?

Jack Cooney was probably the greatest pool hustler ever. He traveled with his wife Barbara. He was a great "lemon" man; that is a player who can disguise his true pool talent in order to lure an opponent into big action. He avoided tournaments because he didn't want his face or speed to be circulated around. He was very personable and easy to like. Even after they lost big money to Jack, his opponents still spoke well of him.

the Beard

ROAD PLAYER the Danny DiLiberto Story

2008-02-22T05:57:00.000-08:00

ROAD PLAYER: The Danny DiLiberto Story
By Jerry Forsyth
A lifetime of stories from the vibrant memory of Danny DiLiberto, one of Accu-Stats Video’s most popular commentators. DiLiberto was one of the fabled road players, beginning with the Johnston City Hustler’s Tournaments. He excelled in four sports: baseball, bowling, boxing, and pool. Boxing was his first love, but his own hands could not stand the power of his blows. He was forced to quit because he punched so hard that he kept breaking the bones in his hands. Pool gave him the greatest fame and that’s what this book is about. From Las Vegas to Hollywood to the smallest towns on the most distant highways, this is the life of the roadman. A gambler’s tale in his own words. $19.95 Http://www.bankingwiththebeard.com/books.html

Excerpt from my book, The GosPool According To The Beard:
"Most Talented Pool Player"
Probably Danny Diliberto from Buffalo, NY. Danny could run over 200 balls and was undefeated in 14 pro fights (12-0-2). Diliberto was an AA minor-league baseball player and a 200 average bowler who once bowled a perfect 300 game. Danny had a phenomenal throwing arm. He could throw a golf ball farther than anybody in the world. Danny could make a field goal on a football field with a golf ball by throwing it 100 yards through the goal-post uprights. He won the money doing that at Johnston City, IL. in the '60s. Later, he trapped the late Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle at a Fort Lauderdale bar during Yankee spring training. Danny bet Maris he could throw a golf ball farther than Roger could.
Diliberto won the bet from an amazed Maris by throwing the ball all the way across the waters of the Fort Lauderdale Causeway on Highway A1A. If I remember right, Roger didn't even take his turn and tried to renege and call off the bet. Danny, who had a punch that could down an elephant, stood his ground and finally got paid."
Http://www.bankingwiththebeard.com/books.html

Brooklyn Jimmy Cassas

2008-02-22T05:55:00.000-08:00

I'm going to NY to see an old pal, Brooklyn Jimmy Cassas. For those who don't know the man, he is an original alumnus from the old legendary7-11 poolroom in NY. His contemporaries included, Boston Shorty, Jersey Red, Richie from the Bronx, NY Blackie, Johnny Ervolino, etc. As slick as that crew was, Jimmy was the 8 ball smarter than anybody else. I intend to have a great time cutting up all the old jackpots from yesteryear. See ya in a coupla days.

...Fri. 8/24 2007. It was great in NY, spent time with Brooklyn Jimmy Cassas, a member of the original 7-11 poolroom crowd. Jimmy was a top player who could run a hundred balls, but was content with tricking weaker players into thinking he was a pool retard with a bankroll. Even though he was blessed with extraordinary pool skills, his real passion was betting on the horses. He only played pool to finance his race track "jones." Eventually discarding his pool career, he went on to become probably the finest, and most successful handicapper in the country, winning millions.

This is one of many wonderful stories about my pal, the great Brooklyn Jimmy. I was in Miami Beach in 1963 watching Jimmy "lemon hustle" a stone sucker in a local joint. The guy was totally helpless, and naturally didn't know Jimmy or Jimmy's real speed. Jimmy was about 20 games ahead at $3 a pop, when he suddenly quit. "What's wrong?" The sucker queried. "You think I don't know what you're doing." Jimmy replied. "You sluff a few games off to me for cheap money, and then you get me to raise it to like $15 or $20 a game, and then take me off. I'm from NY, we know about guys like you. I ain't going for it." With the guy now denying it all, and begging Jimmy to keep playing, Jimmy finishes him off with, "Ok, I'll give in and do what [B]YOU[/B] want. I'll let you win a few back at $15 a game, but then I'm gonna quit. I'll let you get close, but you ain't gonna get all the way even." The bet is now $15 a game, and naturally Jimmy goes ahead and busts the guy. The guy couldn't make a ball in the ocean to begin with. Jimmy could've spotted him the five through the nine.

Anonymous said:
This may be a controversial comment, but why be proud of taking candy from a baby?

Freddy the Beard said:
The nature and substance of my blog is a bird's-eye view into the life, times, psychology, and ethics of a turned-out, old-time pool hustler. Choir-boy's I didn't hang with. Times were a little tougher then, and those who chose that life had to make hard choices, and do things that they probably wished they hadn't had to. Now for the final rationalization, "If you're gonna be a bear, be a Grizzly."