Andrew Ponzi (January 20, 1903 – April 11, 1950) was an American pool player and world champion.

Biography

Andrew Ponzi was born Andrew D'Allesandro in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

. As a boy, he injured his right hand as a result of a trolley mishap. He went on to improve it by practicing pool. At 16, D'Allesandro was already a skilled player who won numerous money matches. By that time, the infamous swindler,

Charles Ponzi Charles Ponzi (; ; born Carlo Pietro Giovanni Guglielmo Tebaldo Ponzi; March 3, 1882 – January 18, 1949) was an Italians, Italian charlatan and Scam, con artist who operated in the United States and Canada. His Pseudonym, aliases included ''C ...

, was in the press. Thus friends gave him the nickname Ponzi. In 1934, Ponzi won his first world pool title by defeating

Erwin Rudolph Erwin Rudolph (December 30, 1893 – May 19, 1957) was an American pocket billiards player from Cleveland, Ohio and a five-time world champion. One of his great feats was running 125 points in 32 minutes (now eclipsed). Biography Rudolph was born ...

. Ponzi won the world title again in 1940 by besting

Jimmy Caras James Caras (17 December 1908 – 3 December 2002) was an American professional pool player, most well known for winning five World Straight Pool Championship titles between 1935 and 1949. After a 12-year hiatus, Caras would return to cue sports ...

. In 1943, Ponzi won his third world championship, subduing

Willie Mosconi William Joseph Mosconi (; June 27, 1913 – September 17, 1993) was an American professional pool player from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Mosconi is widely considered one of the greatest pool players of all time. Between the years of 1941 a ...

. He won the world title for the fourth and final time by defeating Irving Crane that same year. He suffered a heart attack while participating in a tournament in 1950. He died two weeks later at age 47. Ponzi was inducted in the

Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame This is the list of people inducted into the Billiard Congress of America's hall of fame to honor outstanding people who, through their competitive skills and dedication, have enriched the sport and industry. Two categories have been established in ...

in 1988.

References

1903 births 1950 deaths Sportspeople from Philadelphia American people of Italian descent Trick shot artists World champions in pool American pool players Straight pool world champions {{Cue-sports-stub