Nine-ball is a discipline of the cue sport pool. The game's origins are traceable to the 1920s in the United States. It is played on a rectangular billiard table with pockets at each of the four corners and in the middle of each long side. Using a cue stick, players must strike the white cue ball to pocket nine colored billiard balls, hitting them in ascending numerical order. An individual game is won by the player pocketing the 9-ball. Matches are usually played as a race to a set number of racks, with the player who reaches the set number winning the match.
Efren Manalang Reyes, popularly known by the nicknames "Bata" and "The Magician", is a Filipino professional pool player, who is widely regarded as the greatest pool player of all time, and especially famed for his skill at the challenging one-pocket discipline. In 2003, he was inducted into the Billiard Congress of America's Hall of Fame.
Marlon Manalo, also known by the nickname "Marvelous Captain", is a former Filipino professional pool player. He currently serves as barangay chairman of Barangay Malamig, Mandaluyong. He also became the press relation officer of the League of Barangays of the Philippines and ABC president.
Corey Deuel is an American professional pool player from West Jefferson, Ohio. Nicknamed "Prince of Pool", he won the US Open Nine-ball Championship in 2001, and has won many other major titles. In January 2008, he was ranked the second highest US pool player by the United States Professional Poolplayers Association. He regularly represents the US in the Mosconi Cup. In 2010, he again was selected for the US team in the Mosconi Cup and was responsible for winning 2 of the US team's 8 points in the event. His tournament walk-on music is "Disco Inferno" by the Trammps.
Thorsten Hohmann is a German professional pool player, nicknamed "the Hitman." He is a three-time world champion, winning the WPA World Nine-ball Championship in 2003, and 2013, and winning the WPA World Straight Pool Championship in 2006.
Alex Lely is a Dutch former professional pool player. Lely won the 1999 World Pool Masters after defeating Efren Reyes 7–5, and reached the final in 2000 but lost to Ralf Souquet 7–3. He is a two-time European champion having won the nine-ball and eight-ball at the 2005 European Pool Championships.
David Alcaide Bermúdez is a Spanish professional pool player. He is a two-time winner of the World Pool Masters, winning the 2017 event, defeating Jayson Shaw 8–7 in the final, and again in 2019 defeating Alexander Kazakis 9–8. Alcaide is a three-time world championship semi-finalist having reached the stage at the WPA World 10-ball Championship, in 2009 and 2015, and the WPA World Eight-ball Championship in 2011.
Lee Vann Corteza, also spelled Lee Van Corteza, is a Filipino professional pool player. He is nicknamed "Van Van", and started playing pool in 1993.
Marcus Chamat, is a Swedish professional eight-ball and nine-ball pool player. He was nicknamed "Napoleon" due to his personality and standing at 5 ft 4 in (1.63 m) tall. He is a two time European Pool Championships winner, and one of the most successful players on the Euro Tour, winning four events, and finishing runner-up on twice. Chamat reached the semi-finals of the 2004 WPA World Nine-ball and the 2008 WPA World Eight-ball Championships, but did not reach the final of a world championship event.
Oliver Ortmann is a German professional pool player from Gelsenkirchen. Ortmann is a three-time world champion, winning the 1995 WPA World Nine-ball Championship and the 2007 and 2010 World Straight Pool Championship. Ortmann became the second player to win three WPA world championships. With fourteen wins, he the second most successful player at the European Pool Championships. Ortmann is also the second most successful player on the Euro Tour, winning fourteen events. Ortmann was the first non-American player to win the BCA U.S. Open Straight Pool Championship, in 1989.
Shane Van Boening is an American professional pool player from Rapid City, South Dakota. Van Boening is considered one of the best players of all time. Van Boening has won the WPA World Nine-ball Championship and has won the US Open Nine-ball Championship on 5 occasions, along with over 100 other professional titles.
Daryl Peach is an English professional pool player, from Lancashire, who resides in Blackpool, England. He won the 2007 WPA World Nine-ball Championship, where he defeated the Philippines' Roberto Gomez 17–15 in the final to become the first British player to win the WPA World Nine-ball Championship.
Kim Davenport is an American professional pocket billiards (pool) player, nicknamed "Kimmer".
Mark Gray is an English professional pool player and former professional snooker player.
John Schmidt is an American pool player, born in Keokuk, Iowa. Nicknamed "Mr. 600", specialising in straight pool, Schmidt held the record for the highest run made (626), until Jayson Shaw broke that record with a high run of 669 in January 2022. Schmidt won the U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships in 2006 defeating Rodolfo Luat in the final. He was also part of the American team at two Mosconi Cups in 2006 and 2014.
Joshua Filler is a German professional pool player from Bönen, Germany. In 2018 Filler defeated Carlo Biado 13–10 to win the 2018 WPA World Nine-ball Championship. In 2017 he was the youngest player to win the China Open, and in 2018 he also won the 10-ball European Pool Championships. Filler became WPA and Euro Tour world number 1 in 2019, and later he reached the final of the 2019 WPA World Ten-ball Championship before losing 10–7 to Ko Ping-chung.
Alexander Kazakis is a Greek professional pool player. Kazakis is a former European 10-ball champion, and regular 9-ball player. In 2018, he was the number one ranked player by the World Pool-Billiard Association.
Mario He is an Austrian professional pool player. He is a former winner of the European Pool Championships, and winner of both the 2017 and 2019 World Cup of Pool events alongside Albin Ouschan.
Charlie Williams is an American professional pool player. Williams represented America as a player at the Mosconi Cup 5 times and as a non-playing captain in 2011. In 2001, Williams founded the sports marketing company Dragon Promotions.
Mike Davis is an American professional pool player. Davis was a part of the 2006 Mosconi Cup team representing the USA. The event would finish as a draw, with Davis also contributing three wins and three losses.
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