{"product_id":"hustler-the-champ-willie-mosconi-minnesota-fats-and-the-rivalry-that-defined-pool","title":"Hustler \u0026 The Champ: Willie Mosconi, Minnesota Fats, And The Rivalry That Defined Pool","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn the tradition of Pulitzer Prize nominated, Positively Fifth Street , here is a riveting account of a high stakes shoot-out between pool’s two most famous personalities.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIt was Valentine’s Day, 1978, and Howard Cosell was hosting the long-awaited show-down between the best-ever tournament player, Willie Mosconi, and the game’s most famous hustler, Minnesota Fats. This was The Great Pool Shoot-Out, one of the most highly rated televised sporting events of the year, exceeding even World Series games and basketball championships. R.A. Dyer, author of the best-selling Hustler Days , which recounts the rise of pool during the 1960s, writes of the acrid, but mutually beneficial rivalry between Fats and Mosconi, and how the televised shoot-outs came to embody that rivalry, which was nothing less than a bitter rift within the soul of American pocket billiards. Fats and Mosconi were born the same year, but were vastly different characters: one stood for artistry, the other for show business; one brought dignity to pool, the other made it fun. They are without a doubt the two most important players ever to hold a cue. This is the ultimate tale of American sportsmanship.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eR.A. Dyer is a columnist for Billiards Digest, and lives in Austin, Texas.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"ANT-BOOK","offers":[{"title":"Ebook","offer_id":53957950570864,"sku":"978-1592288830","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1009\/8543\/8576\/files\/61exk-pfrxL._SY522.jpg?v=1782788276","url":"https:\/\/antbook.store\/de\/products\/hustler-the-champ-willie-mosconi-minnesota-fats-and-the-rivalry-that-defined-pool","provider":"ANTBOOK","version":"1.0","type":"link"}