Tag Archives: pool hustling

Play Away!

An unusual shot where you play away from the ball that you hit into the pocket. The idea is to play into the cushion and pot the ball on the rebound, because the balls are touching it gets a bit complicated.
 
Video 1 – The Performance
 
Video 2 – The Explanation
 
Click here to download instructions (PDF)
 
 
 

Tight Double

This is very much like the shot that Paul Newman plays at the beginning of "The Hustler". The red ball is frozen to the rail with the cue ball almost touching. It looks impossible for the red to get past the cue ball and into the opposite corner pocket, but it can be done. Watch and learn!
 
Video 1 – The Performance
 
 
Video 2 – The Explanation
 
Click here to download instructions (PDF)
 
 
 

 

Top 10 Ways to spot a pool hustler

It's a dangerous world out there. If you walk into the wrong place, you could get eaten by a shark!  Maybe not eaten, but you could lose a huge amount of cash if you don't have your wits about you and you fall victim to a professional hustler.  To help keep you out of trouble, I present this simple list of things to look out for when invited by a stranger to shoot a few frames.

Look out for people playing in hats

The Top 10 Ways to spot a Pool Hustler

  1. They are not drinking as much as you, but appear more drunk.
  2. They moan very loudly about their bad luck when they miss a shot
  3. They are from ‘out of town’
  4. They offer you one more game – a chance to get all your money back
  5. They seem to know a lot about giving head-starts for someone who just started playing yesterday.
  6. They set the balls up very quickly.  A hustler doesn’t want you thinking too much between frames.
  7. They tell you they have just won the lottery and decided to take up pool for ‘fun’
  8. ‘Fun’ turns out to be playing for £20 a frame
  9. They are wearing a trilby hat
  10. They tell you that their name is ‘Jeff’, but the barman calls them ‘Sharky’

House of Commons Pool Exhibition Photos

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Some more pictures from the recent trickshot show at the House of Commons

Pool Exhibition at the Houses of Parliament

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Doing something tricky for Her Majesty’s Government


Me with Michaela

I had some fun at the House of Commons last night, performing at the annual Annie’s Bar Pool Tournament.   The competition is open to MPs, the winner getting £1,500 to donate to a charity of their choice.

It’s an interesting night, with some surreal moments, when I first picked up a pool stick I never imagined that I would be playing comedy trickshots at the heart of British Government in the most historic venue a pool tournament has ever been played in!

Add to that, there were a few famous faces – Barry Hearn made an appearance,  and Michaela Tabb was there to see fair play.   The event, staged by Rileys, was won by Gregg McClymont, member of parliament for Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East.

My show went down well, I did a 30 minute spot between the semi-finals and final – I chose shots with lots of audience participation, the former Minster for Sport held my basket for the ‘Rapid Fire’ trickshot.

Other MPs involved:  The event was sponsored in the Commons by Jim Fitzpatrick (Poplar and Limehouse) and hosted by my good friend Steve Pound (Ealing North). My thanks go to Stephen Hepburn (Jarrow) who let me read his mind for the purposes of entertainment.  SAM Leisure supplied the very stylish ‘Le Lambert’ table for the event.

 

Fantastic Four

Video 1 – The Performance
 
 
 
Video 2 – The Explanation
 
Click here to download instructions (PDF)