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369 voters

The Best Pool Players Of All Time

Updated December 4, 2019 1.8k votes 369 voters 3.8k views58 items

List RulesVote up the top billiards players ever to hit the pool hall.

The best pool players of all-time may not have names you recognize, but they are part of a long tradition of billiards (and snooker and carrom) that has been passed down for generations in pool halls and bars across the land. Some of them are hustlers and trick-shot masters, while others made their bones in the professional billiards circuit, but all of them are legends.

The name Rudolph Wanderone Jr. probably doesn't ring a bell, but you may know him better by his nickname: "Minnesota Fats." Likewise, Ronnie Allen isn't a household name, but as "Fast Eddie," he became the basis for one of Paul Newman's most celebrated characters in The Hustler and The Color of Money, Fast Eddie Felson. These people have gone down in history as the top pool players of all-time, and new legacies are being created right now by modern stars like Mike Massey and Allison Fisher.

So who is the best pool player in the world? Which of these billiards legends deserves to rank at the top of the list? Make your picks below and check back to see how other pool fans are weighing in.

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1
406
18
Efren Reyes
Inducted into Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame: 2003

Discipline: Straight pool, Nine-ball, Three-cushion billiards, One-cushion billiards
2
87
31
Francisco Bustamante
Inducted into Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame: 2010

Discipline: Straight pool, Nine-ball
3
62
31
Willie Mosconi
Inducted into Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame: 1968

Discipline: Straight pool, Nine-ball
4
58
40
Earl Strickland
Inducted into Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame: 2006

Discipline: Nine-ball
5
38
18
Michael Sigel
Inducted into Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame: 1989

Discipline: Straight pool, Nine-ball
6
35
19
Johnny Archer
Inducted into Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame: 2009

Discipline: Straight pool, Nine-ball
7
29
15
Luther Lassiter
Inducted into Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame: 1983

Discipline: Nine-ball

8
29
18
Steve Mizerak
Inducted into Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame: 1980

Discipline: Straight pool, Nine-ball, Snooker
9
22
11
Ralph Greenleaf
Inducted into Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame: 1966

Discipline: Straight pool, Three-cushion billiards
10
24
14
Nick Varner
Inducted into Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame: 1992

Discipline: Nine-ball
11
18
10
Mike Massey
Inducted into Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame: 2005

Discipline: Straight pool, Nine-ball, Trick shots
12
22
18
Allison Fisher
Inducted into Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame: 2009

Discipline: Straight pool, Nine-ball, Snooker
13
17
11
Ronnie Allen
Discipline: One pocket
14
12
8
Erwin Rudolph
Inducted into Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame: 1987

Discipline: Straight pool
15
14
11
Cecil P. Hall
Inducted into Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame: 2000

Discipline: Straight pool, Nine-ball
16
14
12
Irving Crane
Inducted into Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame: 1978

Discipline: Straight pool
17
19
21
Willie Hoppe
Inducted into Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame: 1966

Discipline: Balkine, Three-cushion billiards
18
11
9
Harold Worst
Discipline: Three-cushion billiards
19
7
4
Jimmy Caras
Inducted into Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame: 1977

Discipline: Straight pool, Trick shots
20
10
8
Joe Balsis
Inducted into Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame: 1982

Discipline: Straight pool
21
8
7
Eddie Taylor
Inducted into Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame: 1993

Discipline: Nine-ball
22
12
12
Jean Balukas
Inducted into Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame: 1985

Discipline: Straight pool, Nine-ball
23
8
7
Alfredo de Oro
Inducted into Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame: 1967

Discipline: Straight pool, Three-cushion billiards
24
11
11
James Rempe
Inducted into Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame: 2002

Discipline: Straight pool, Nine-ball
25
11
11
Johnny Layton
Inducted into Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame: 1974

Discipline: Three-cushion billiards