The Doctor Is In (Town)

I just had the privilege of witnessing one of the greats in the world of artistic billiards do what he does best. Tonight, for one night only, the internationally-known Tom "Dr. Cue" Rossman was in town. Now, being an enthusiast of the game, if not, strictly speaking, possessing any actual skill or playing ability, I decided that I needed to see this. I must say that both show and man turned out to be dramatically different than anything I'd expected. For those of you with little knowledge of the sport, it might be helpful to note that, at least in my admittedly limited experience, the average billiards professional is every bit as charismatic and engaging as a toaster oven: grim, silent, and studious almost to distraction, arranging shots to demonstrate their technical prowess and "artistic" flair, signing a few autographs, and that's it. But Dr. Cue was not only the diametric opposite of all of this, he was totally beyond classification. A winner of more championships than I could reasonably hope to remember, Mr. Rossman was boisterous and exuberant to a fault, bounding about the table as if he were having more fun than his audience. The whole evening, he maintained an endless stream of jovial banter with everyone present, even going so far as to say that the talking helped his shooting. His sense of humour is one of a kind. That's all I can call it. Sharp wit, perfect timing, and not a small amount of good old-fashioned prop comedy all combined well with his rambunctious manner--he spent a great deal of the time in shouting and laughing giddily and leaping about the room. None of this outshone his true skill though. Suffice it to say that many of the techniques and shots that he made look easy utterly baffled myself and many players of significantly greater experience. It was a fast-paced show, only about three hours altogether. But he devoted some time at the end to demonstrating bits of his various techniques (which are available in full in either book or VHS format). His sheer talent makes for a spectacular exhibition for fans and players of the game, and his extraordinary showmanship and side-splitting humour should leave even novices and non-players wanting more. I would heartily recommend taking in a show if ever you have the chance.
Dr. Cue performs all over the United States, Europe, and other selected venues throughout the year. For a full tour schedule, as well as information on artistic billiards, training techniques/systems, and much more, please visit Dr. Cue Promotions.