Pool Shirts and Hustlers

When I was moving from San Marcos, Texas to Jacksonville, Florida for a promotion with my job back in 1998, I did like most people and I went through a lot of my clothes to see what I didn't need anymore.

I came across a lot of pool-related t-shirts that I had collected over the past 8 or so years.  Some were from pool tournaments/venues and some were from pool rooms that I had visited.

It ran the gamut from Texas State events to New York Straight pool tourney to Vegas events to shirts from pool halls all over Texas and parts of Louisiana.

I figured out (not quick enough) that I hardly wore those t-shirts.  And yet I had a dozen or 2 dozen sitting lonely in my closet that I did NOT want to traipse across the country to Florida with me.

I asked one of my close friends if her son would want the shirts.  He played/gambled a lot of pool (in town and out) and he was my size.  I thought she would jump at the chance at so many free shirts for him, and figured he would love wearing shirts from different pool rooms because he played a lot more pool than I did.

When I told her about them, she laughed so loudly through the phone at me!

I was startled, "What?!  Why is this so funny?"

She explains, "Melinda, he hustles at pool.  The very last thing he would want to wear as he walked into an unknown poolroom is a BILLIARD shirt!  He wants to walk in like he's never played pool before.  If he wears a shirt from any pool room, it gives up part of the plan."

Shit, I didn't know.  I was too new to the concept of hustling and gambling.

Sounded so obvious after she said that, though, lol.