Mosconi Cup Team 2014

I was named captain of the 2014 Mosconi Cup Team USA and am very proud to come back as the captain after playing in the first two Mosconi Cups ever and pocketing the final winning 9-Ball for Team USA in the first ever match. This is one of my fondest memories and career highlights.

I have chosen to put a lot into the preparation for this match in an effort to win the Cup and promote pool here in the U.S. May 22-26 we will all meet as a team for the first time in San Diego, CA. The players who make up Team USA and will be attending are Corey Deuel, Justin Hall, Jeremy Sossei, Oscar Dominguez, Justin Bergman, John Schmidt, Shane Van Boening, and Brandon Shuff and asst. captain Don Wardell.

The previous teams that were not unified enough to compete at the level of Team Europe and we are going to address this matter straight away. We will be heading to the Naval Special Warfare Center, home to the U.S. Navy SEALs to get inspired and motivated but to also get insights into team building, work ethic, discipline, brotherhood, and winning in tough circumstances. This is an experience not available to the public and requires permission from several sources including the base commander who has still not fully approved but we are very hopeful for the experience.

We as a team will also lead some training clinics that we will use to fundraise for the Naval Special Warfare Foundation and ParaVets. We will have multiple team meetings regarding our time here and in the future. We will then spend a couple of days training at On Cue Billiards, La Mesa, CA and hold a Mosconi Cup style match.

I would like to thank everyone who has worked so hard for this all to become reality including Don Wardell and Mike Durbin along with Matchroom Sports and PartyPoker.net.

Lindenwood Lions Billiards Team Improving

The Lions currently sit at 5-0 on the year, including a complete sweep of the largest collegiate billiards tournament of the year, held at the University of Michigan. 16 schools sent teams for the three day and three separate tournament format and the Lions won all three events.

We have improved and now have some experience. We train hard, compete, and are trying to put a new face on the sport. I ask that you maintain a 3.0 g.p.a. The primary aspect of this team is to lead by example, character and moral values are paramount. I insist upon proper conduct, sportsmanship, honor, integrity, leadership, and respect, along with personal accountability.

We presently have a state of the art training facility that would make professional players jealous. The training consists of utilizing a great mental and physical approach to the game that under pressure becomes overwhelming firepower. The presentation of great attitudes and technique is unsettling for players unprepared to compete at this level and has proven to shake their confidence mid-match.

Players that are members of the team are from all over the world, Nepal, Singapore, China, Italy, Spain, and all corners of the U.S. Most of them are scholarshipped athletes that are here to get a great education, become a better person, and possess a tremendous pool game.

I am looking for my next recruit and have scholarship money for anyone interested in becoming a member of the billiards program and has the academics to enter college. Curious? Contact Mark Wilson at 618-888-2333 or send an email to stlshooter@hotmail.com .

Play Great Pool -the book is complete and available.

The book is back from the printer and represents years of effort. I insisted on the reading to be motivational, inspirational, while also being educational. I consider the book to be a textbook and not a one-time read type of thing. Explanation of the physics and bio-mechanics using sound principles and not opinion based assumption. How to acquire the skills with specific training exercises, check points to see that you are progressing, along with trouble shooting guidelines when struggles crop up.

The goal is to enable you to teach yourself using a designed system that will shorten the long way to superior proficiency. Any pool player interested in becoming a better player, no matter what their present skill set, will derive much benefit along with insights into the specifics of how to train.

The book is hardbound and full color, the cost is $70 and for this introduction free domestic shipping. You could order yours by mailing a check or money order to:

Mark Wilson
8561 Prairietown Rd.
Dorsey, Illinois
62021

I could not be more proud of this book and feel that the results are better than I dreamed, I am certain that you will feel the same. I would also like to thank all of the friends and supporters who had to endure with great patience the waiting for completion of something that represents my life goal.

Lindenwood Lions Billiards Team

The Lions have been training since September for the National Collegiate Billiards Championship. Last Saturday, February 23rd, 2013, three of my players qualified to play in the Nationals in late July. We had 23 players compete from five Universities for four positions.

Stephen Wyatt (Lindenwood) won 1st place over Ben Reynolds (University of Arkansas) qualified in second place. The Lindenwood ladies swept the two qualification spots with Federica Bertolini 1st and Kelly Zahn 2nd.

I could not be more proud of all of my team's performance as everyone played to their best. Each player carried themselves with a pride and stroke technique that indicates future success and has become the Lindenwood Billiards team calling card. Great job everyone.

The book that I always wanted to write.

I have been working along on finishing the pool playing instructional book and we are well into the final parts of editing and installing the pictures and diagrams. While there is still much to complete the conclusion is within sight. This book is going to give pool players of all skill levels a chance to get much better, now and forever. My dream was to leave a mark on the sport with this book and help others discover that same feeling which I found so long ago. When I began to attempt to get better with my playing, pool instruction was almost unheard of and the instructional books were vague and unclear. Education is the only way to grow the sport. Because pool playing at a high level is so difficult, players get lost along the way, assuming that they just cannot get it perhaps because they just do not seem to have any natural ability. That is the quick and obvious way to assess why their proficiency is much less than other players, and well beneath their own desired playing stature. This book will be a complete guide to teaching yourself to play high level pool and I am certain that I will be satisfied with the contents, derived from great research and nearly 40 years of practice, I hope that you, the reader, will be pleased with the material and presentation, including the motivational aspects that have been lacking in our sport. The blessing of seeking and training regularly with the top players in pool for such a long time has given this book an authentic look at what it really takes to become great. Everybody would not get to be so blessed as to have access to the material gathered within the book and I really wanted to share this with you, and all players in the future that sincerely wanted to get better but had little idea of where to start. Thanks for your time...mw

My Favorite Pool Joke

A guy gets off of work and stops by his favorite place to have a couple of beers and shoot some pool. While he is playing he notices a beautiful girl sitting at the bar who makes eye contact with him. When he next orders his beer he offers her one also and a conversation begins. Shortly thereafter one thing leads to another and he ends up at her apartment. Now it is getting quite late and he has fallen asleep, when he awakes and realizes that it is nearly 3 a.m. he knows that his wife is going to be furious. He quickly thanks his new friend for the great evening and asks if he can borrow some baby powder which he then sprinkles on his shirt sleeve. Upon arriving home, sure enough as he feared his wife is up, angry, and waiting. "Where have you been tonight?" she demands. He then explains the truth about meeting a girl at the pool bar, one thing led to another, and he fell asleep at her place. Seeing the baby powder on his sleeve the wife says, "don't lie to me I can see that you were playing pool again all night".

Lindenwood Lions Spring Mini-Camp

We have just completed the first Lindenwood University Billiards Team spring mini-camp. We had players come from Iowa, Kentucky, Kansas, Illinois, and Missouri. This has been a tremendous experience for everyone involved, both educational and fun. Also Mike Durbin (Durbin Custom Cues) and Dave Carr were interested enough to drive two hours to look in on what was happening. They are very supportive of the sport and were inspired to volunteer to help in the future.

The assistant coach and team doctor, Don Wardell, was very helpful, as we had 12-15 future team members each day. Everyone is so energetic, positive, and ambitious, that it creates a very exciting atmosphere and already a sense of pride. All of those that participated improved their play, understanding of pool, what the expectations will be, and once we get to the fall semester the team will be quite formidable.

Lindenwood University is an athletic driven university, and they are very proud of all of their sports teams and 47 National Championships. Several months ago I was selected as the head coach and asked to form a billiards team. The University wants a first rate program and I was tasked with producing that goal. The school is willing to provide to these student/athletes maximum support, to include scholarship awards for deserving team members. The criteria for the scholarship awards are; academics, character, and billiards. You will need to be interested in becoming a great pool player, while obtaining a great education, and possess the qualities of being a good person. The scholarships must be earned every day, and this will require a tremendous work ethic. Grades, attendance, and attitude, are only some of the criteria that will be required. Upon completion of the program, you will have leadership skills and success as your future because of the hard work and commitment.

Professional players have inquired about the results of the mini-camp and stated that they will stop by and assist. The billiard publications have lent support, along with the entire billiards community. This will be historic for the sport and begin a rebirth for the future. I am very excited to give a maximum effort to producing the finest team ever. 

Comments, questions, or concerns, please call me at 1-618-888-2333, also check out www.lindenwood.edu