We Are The Champions!

In the city championships this past weekend,
our team "Dead Weight" took home top honors
to win some cash, and an all expense paid trip to Las Vegas
to compete in the National Championships
of the American Poolplayers Association (APA).

It was only 6 months ago that I decided to get out of
my hermit's cave and test my skill.
I was lucky enough to learn of an opening on this newly formed team,
and somehow they accepted me sight-unseen
(and they never saw me shoot pool either!).

I had never shot pool in competition before,
and some of my matches were really stressful,
but they stuck with me and got me my required 10 matches
that would allow me to compete at the city/national level.
(and again, luckily, I got more than my share of wins)

So when I woke up this morning,
and my trophy was still there on the pool table,
I realized that it wasn't just a cruel joke of a dream...
I really will be shooting pool in the
American Poolplayers Association
National Championships in Las Vegas!

"Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained"
Ain't Life just amazing?

Fast Mikie finishes In The Money!

In a 9-ball tournament today,
at Family Billiards in Oceanside,
attended by only the most die-hard no-life cueists,
(who else would be shooting pool on a sunny Memorial Day weekend afternoon?),
our hero, Fast Mikie himself, outlasted all but two others
in a dazzling display of mediocrity.
No one was more surprised than me.
It was the first money I ever won,
in a legitimate pool tournament.

It is my intention that there will be many more in-the-money finishes,
but I will not bore you with reporting them all here.
Instead, I will only report those wins in which the prize money
is increased with at least one more zero over the previously reported win,
or if there is some other extraordinary factor involved
(for example, see story "Fast Mikie Retires His Willie")

All pool winnings donated to charitable causes.

Loree Jon Jones, world 9 ball champion

Loree came to town for the WPBA tournament at Viejas casino. Olhausen, table manufacturer, is headquartered nearby, so they arranged for Loree to do an exhibition at the local Olhausen store, where I bought my table. And that's how I got to meet Loree Jon Jones, and beat her two out of 3 games of 9 ball before a room full of witnesses. It was good fun! For more details on this event, read the story "Fast Mikie Retires His Willie".

A Pool Table For Mikie's Fun House

I have been enduring at least 6 months of dealing with contractors to remodel this place in preparation for this moment. The pool table is finally installed. It's the finishing touch to Mikie's Fun House, Version 4.0

And also the return of "Fast Mikie" as a student of the game.
Let the adventures begin...

In a time long ago...

Notice the date on this first post. It says 1990, but that's the earliest date you are allowed to enter. The year is really 1961. That's when I was shooting pool pretty well. I was in college and didn't have much else to do. Studying didn't interest me as much as shooting some straight pool, or 9 ball. I liked testing my skill against Johnny Green. He was about the best in school. 

1961 was also the year that the great movie "The Hustler" with Paul Newman was released, and when I was given the nickname "FastMikie" (Paul Newman's name in the movie was "Fast Eddie").

This post just sets the stage. What followed my college pool-shooting days were The Dark Ages of No Pool, 40 years when I rarely played, and then just as a social event. Nothing serious at all. Needless to say, I got out of stroke.

Over those 40 years, I had a pool table in a couple of different homes, but it was seldom used because I was focused on bringing home the bacon as a computer genius, and that takes a lot of time. Most of the pool I shot was late at night after coming home from a very long day. It helped me unwind. Never any competition. For 40 long years my skills were not tested, but my love for the game stayed strong, and I knew someday I would return to the game with enthusiasm.

And so, it has begun again...