I haven't really posted anything pool related on here in a while aside from my short little escapade in Kyrgyzstan. Of course, I'm not doing too much pool playing while I'm here. But I do have a plethora of stories from the past 15 years or so of playing this game which we're all addicted to. I'm not going to go into the way back machine too far...only a few years. This is going to be going back to April 2003.
Normally, I take my yearly vacation during the summer time back home so that I can celebrate the 4th of July with family. However, I was determined to go up to the Northeast to play in the Joss Tour's season finale. It was the last year before their Turning Stone events began, and was held at an outstanding Billiard Club named the Chelmsford Country Club USA. Now, I had been in quite a few nice pool halls, but nothing this size. For those of you who have been to Atlanta...combine Mr. Q's 2 and the Marrietta Billiard Club together and you'll begin to get the idea. Huge. I rode up with my friend Eddie Boyle, and we got up there the day before to get settled in for the week. There were four tournaments which were going to take place over the period of 7 days. The first, which I was playing in, was a $7k added open 9-ball event. The second was a $1k added 1-pocket event, then a $1k added 14.1 straight pool event, then finishing off with a $15k added 9-ball tour finale. Needless to say, it was shaping up to be a great week before we knew who was going to show up.
Going into this event I was playing fairly well. If I had to put a rating on it it would be at a strong B level. I had been to a couple of $5K added events around the Northeast before I joined the military, and a few of the regional events down in the south. I had seen Stevie Moore, Tommy Kennedy, Scotty Townsend from down south, and most of the top shooters from the north. Ginky, Tony Robles, Alan Hopkins, Danny "Kid Delicious" Basavich, Mike Zuglan, "Neptune" Joe Frady, Larry "The Prince" Lisciotti, Joe Tucker, Nelson Oliviera, the Tavanier brothers, Tony "Flaco" Rodriguez, Frankie Hernandez, Rob Saez, etc...were all players which I had watched shoot at tournaments up north. Of course, it was all wide eyed, trying to soak up as much as possible. I had even seen some of the Pinoy's play. Rodolfo Luat and Mike Lebron had been at a tournament which I was at back in '97 in Branford, CT. I was expecting just about all of these shooters from the north to show up, not too many more. I was a little wrong. All of the above, minus Stevie Moore and Scotty Townsend showed up. And some. Also in attendance: Earl "the Pearl" Strickland, Johnny "the Scorpion" Archer, Kieth "the Earthquake" McCready, Ryan McCreesh, John "this was before he was Mr. 400" Schmidt, Jose Parica, Leonardo Andam, Danny Hewitt of Canada, Evgeny Stalev from Russia and a few more whose names I cannot remember.
Of course, I was just rocked that they would all show up for the tour championship of a regional tour. So I paid my entry fee the next morning and wait for the draw to take place. Ended up drawing a strong A player out of Boston. He beat me pretty convincingly, 9-1. It didn't help that I was a nervous wreck. But such are the breaks. I then went on to win four matches in a row, actually playing very well. My break was working well, I was playing smart position, and was potting balls well. At this point, I was two wins outside of the $$$. I hadn't played any real "names" yet, which in some ways was hoping for, as I always like to test myself. But in my 6th match I drew a strong player out of Boston named Dominick Sousa.
Dom was your typical city boy Italian. Slicked back black hair, strong bostonian accent, about 5' 8", pretty stocky build and olive complexion. Before this match, I had always thought he was pretty full of himself. However, he most deffinitely changed my mind this match. He was probably one of the most courteous opponents I’ve played in my 15 years of playing, even now. The table that we had been scheduled on was the only tight box in the entire place. He noticed it, and went to see if we could go get a match on the next available table. No Joy. So we both take a few racks to warm up and get used to how the table plays. The first few racks were struggles for both of us, not really shooting well at all, and getting into a lot of safety battles. I was keeping it close however. Dom had just pulled ahead 5-3 when he broke scratched. I calmly ran the table out, as he had made two or three on the break. Then I broke, made three, and ran out again. Broke ran again. Now it was 6-5 my advantage. I broke the balls again, made one and had another wide open spread with a shot on the one. I began to methodically pick away at the table. I was on the 5 ball with natural drift position to the seven. It was a simple side pocket shot that needed to be hit with not much speed, but only needed to be stunned at contact so that it would float 6" or so down for the seven in the corner. I took the shot for granted of course, and shot it right into the nipple. I was in shock of course. Dom ran that table out, then proceeded to put me in the electric chair for three more racks to win 9-6. He came up to me after the match and expressed how he thought he was done after I broke that last rack and was running out. It caused him to zone in extra hard when he got back to the table. That match taught me a very valuable lesson. Don't ever take a shot for granted, no matter how easy it may be. So I was out. I was a bit perturbed at the loss, so went and got a beer, and some food. Afterwards, I went and watched Dom’s next match against Earl Strickland. It was a great match, and came down to hill-hill. Earl had left Dom frozen to the 8-ball in the middle of the breaking end table, with only a one rail kick to pocket the 7-ball in the side available. Dom took a minute or two to evaluate everything, got down and fired the kick at breakneck speed, contacting the 7 full, and splitting the side pocket. The cue ball rolled downtable, took a small bounce off the end rail, and left Dom with a long shot on the 8. The crowd, which was hooting and hollering and cheering him on, quieted as he got down on the 8. He smoothly pocketed the 8 and then the 9 to win the match. Earl, shook Dom’s hand, and then of course started ranting at the crowd for cheering for Dom. Don’t blame them as he was the hometown player…
There was plenty more for me to watch that week though as that was only the first weekend. Tournament action, cash action, gaff bets, card games...you name it, it was there, and it was going on at all hours, all week. There are two stories which come immediately to mind, both having to do with Larry Lisciotti, and Keith McCready. Fortunately, I had the good fortune to see Larry play numerous times before his passing in February, 2004. Now on top of being a phenomenal player, even in his later years, he had one of the most charismatic personas I have ever been around. It was borderline obnoxious when he was a few too many into the bottles, but if it wasn’t directed towards you, it was still pretty funny. The first story happened on Wednesday that week. There was league play going on, and a bunch of the league players were gathered in the bar area. (Country Club USA had a large main playing area with about 40 tables, then the bar area with 6 more tables. The downstairs restaurant area had more tables to fill out the 60 tables in the club) Larry, of course, was by the bar indulging in some good ol’ American brew. (Coors Light I believe). He was speaking with Keith McCready, when he made a prop bet with him, (for a beer), that he would win $$ of someone standing at the bar off of a prop bet, without it being pool or card related. So Larry scans the area, and picks his target. He was a 20 something, there to have a good time with league. He looked like he was a little cocky and had some money, which is why I think Larry chose him. Either way, Larry walks up to him and starts talking him up. He eventually springs the prop bet on him, that he can make his beer bottle stick to the wall, without any help or tape. The guy, of course, tells him he’s full of it. They go back and forth, and Larry says that if he’s able to do it, the guy owes him $50. The guy blows him off, and Larry of course challenges his manhood. The guy turns around and tells Larry that the bet’s $100. I glance over at Keith, and he’s just got a grin on his face. Larry finishes off his beer, walks over to the wall, and after a few “arcane” gestures, rubs the bottle twice up and down the wall, and walks away, the bottle firmly attached, unsupported by anything. The guy can’t believe it, and walks over to the bottle to see where the gaff is. After looking at it, he hands the $$ over to Larry, who proceeds to show him how it’s done. (not going to give the secret away, sorry). Keith has Larry’s drink ready for him when he gets back, and they give a toast, and laugh about it.
The next story is actually on the pool table. There hadn’t been too many big cash games throughout the week, but as Thursday night rolled around, Larry and Keith were looking to change that. Their target of choice was the Russian, Evgeny Stalev. They started haggling, and eventually agreed to play to have Larry play Stalev full rack banks, $1K a rack, with Larry getting 9-7. This match up finished within 3 racks, with Stalev winning all three pretty comfortably. More haggling, with Keith and Larry trying to get Stalev to give Keith the same game. What was agreed was a $2K a rack game, with Keith getting 9-8. Time to start the show. As soon as the balls were racked, Keith was in fine form. The talking was non-stop. References to The Color of Money, (which many of you know Keith McCready played Grady Seasons in), Russia’s communist history, Stalev’s overbite, and anything else that came to mind were the topics of choice. The crowd was feeding McCready too…egging him on. He won the first rack, fairly closely. The second rack started and it came down to both needing 2 balls to win, and they’re in a safety battle. Stalev called a ball frozen on the long rail. Keith comes up and checks it out and tells him he’s a dirty communist liar, that ball is way off the rail. Now the show goes into high gear. Keith is calling everyone up to look at the ball. No one is saying it’s frozen. This goes on for about 10 minutes…with Keith forgetting about the game and going full on into showmanship mode. Larry is feeding material to him, while poor Stalev just sits back and has a glazed look in his eyes…like “WTF is going on here?!?”. It came down that Stalev conceded that the ball was not frozen, and they finished out the game, with Keith winning. It was my introduction to the show that is "Keither with the Ether". I’ll never forget it and hope that someday I’ll get the chance to see it again.
Ok, last blog I gave everyone a Bolognese red wine sauce to try out. The problem with the red sauce is that it takes a long time to cook. This week, I'll give you a different dish, which thankfully, only takes in total a little over one hour to cook, start to finish. This is going to be a White Wine Clam (and seafood) sauce over Farfalle (bowtie pasta). This is some of my friends favorite dishes that I cook, as well as one of mine.
Name: White Wine Clam Sauce (or Seafood) over bowtie pasta
What is it: It’s a creamy white sauce with clam, or a mix of seafood over bowtie pasta
Cook Time: 30 minutes preparation time; 1 hour cooking time
What goes with it: A good garlic bread, some salad, and a white wine is choice for this one.
Ingredients (this is the seafood version)
2 Cans chopped clams
2 Cans whole clams
2 Cans baby shrimp
2 Cans medium shrimp
12 oz. large or baby scallops
1 can anchovies
1 bottle (750ml) white wine (any white will work)
4 cans (or 2 cartons if you went that route) of chicken broth
1 small container of whipping or heavy cream
1 onion
3 tbsp minced garlic (out of the bottle is fine, though fresh garlic is always better)
1/2 cup olive oil (extra virgin if you're watching your waist...but then again, if you're going to eat this, why skimp?)
2 boxes of Farfalle (bowtie pasta). (I've found that Barilla is the best off the shelf brand of pasta, though if you want to make your own, much the better)
Spices
2 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dill weed
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp black pepper
½ tsp salt
Preparation
Open all of your canned goods. Strain the juices out of the seafood into a separate container. You will use it in the construction of your sauce. Chop up the onion finely.
Cooking
Begin by using a large pot, (10 gallon preferred, or the equivilant), and put your garlic, onion and olive oil in. On a medium or high heat, carmelize the onions. When they are clear, but before the garlic starts to brown, pour your chicken broth in. Bring this to a boil for 5 minutes.
Pour your wine in at this time. Do the same, bring to a boil for 5 minutes.
Next comes the seafood juice. Pour it in and bring the liquid to a boil. Once it is boiling, put your anchovies in. Stir them in until they dissolve. (should take about 5 minutes of stirring)
Once the anchovies have dissolved, put your seafood into the mix. Again, bring to a boil. Let this boil for about 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, pour your cream in slowly. Stir the sauce as you do so.
Once your cream is in, turn your heat to medium high and begin to cook the sauce down, stirring. If you are cooking garlic bread, this is the time to prep that. It will get put into the oven when the pasta is about 5 minutes from being done.
Now, it is time to spice your sauce. Put your spices in and mix them in well.
I do something a little different with how I cook the pasta. I cook it directly in the sauce. It allows the pasta to soak up the sauce, and makes it a much thicker sauce as well.
Pour your pasta directly into the pot, stirring it as you do so. Cook until the pasta is done to the consistency you like. (I prefer al dente) You may need to add some water to the mix so the pasta cooks consistently, but you should only need a cup or so.
Garnish with some fresh basil and parsley, and when you’re finished, the final product may look something like this:
Hope you enjoy cooking this dish as much as I like eating it. I have to give some credit for these recipe’s, as my friend Lloyd gave them to me from his experiences out in Italy. Since then, I’ve adapted them a bit to what I enjoy. You should certainly do the same.
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