1899–1950 · INDUCTED 1966
Ralph Greenleaf
“The Aristocrat”Fourteen-time World Pocket Billiard Champion whose title career stretched from 1919 to 1937.
BCA Hall of Fame ↗Portrait · Library of Congress · public domainHero photograph · Efren Reyes · Vinod Divakaran / Doha Stadium Plus · CC BY 2.0 · credits
People · Achievement · Legacy
Hall of Masters
A portrait gallery with a purpose: preserve not only who excelled, but what they contributed and what later players can learn from them.
02Atlas Cue Academy
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Study the method, not the myth.
Choose one master and identify what they changed, taught or preserved.
Honor the Past. Build the Future.™
The people who changed how the game is seen.
Not a celebrity wall: a curated record of mastery, teaching, innovation, sportsmanship and influence.
Master record · Willie Mosconi
Biography · Method · Influence
Mosconi was inducted into the Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame in 1968. Atlas connects the visual archive to independent institutional records rather than leaving the portrait as a dead end.
Teaching pioneers · Hall of Fame recognition
Randy “Pops” Goettlicher
Texas Billiards Hall of Fame · 2024 inductee
One of the original BCA Master Instructors, Randy helped shape professional pool education and co-founded Cue-Tech Pool School. His contributions to teaching, league development and cue-sports history exemplify the knowledge the Academy works to preserve.
Hall of Fame Billiard Academy
Dallas, Texas · Randy’s instructional academy identity, displayed separately from his Texas Billiards Hall of Fame recognition.
Teaching & influence
David G. Alciatore, PhD · “Dr. Dave”
PBIA Master Instructor and Dean of Billiard University, Dr. Dave connects pool instruction with careful explanation, demonstrations, and playing-ability assessment.
Living Masters · champions · teachers · competitors
Meet the living masters who still connect the game’s past to its future.
A living gallery of champions, teachers and influential competitors. Some are Hall of Famers; others earn their place here through achievement, instruction and continuing influence.
Living Master · United States · TexasCJ Wiley1996 ESPN World Open champion · player · instructor.Official training ↗
Living Master · Philippines · BCA HOF 2003Efren Reyes · “Bata”World 9-ball champion and celebrated all-around player known for extraordinary cue-ball creativity.BCA record ↗
Living Master · United States · BCA HOF 2024Shane Van BoeningWorld 9-ball and 8-ball champion · five-time U.S. Open 9-Ball champion.BCA record ↗
Living Master · United States · BCA HOF 2013Jeanette Lee · “The Black Widow”Former WPBA No. 1 whose competitive career and public presence helped broaden pool’s audience.BCA record ↗
Living Master · Philippines · BCA HOF 2010Francisco Bustamante · “Django”2010 WPA World 9-Ball champion · renowned for a powerful break and all-around game.BCA record ↗
Living Master · United States · BCA HOF 2006Earl Strickland · “The Pearl”Multiple world and U.S. Open 9-ball champion and one of the defining competitors of his era.BCA record ↗
Living Master · England · BCA HOF 2020Kelly Fisher · “KwikFire”World champion in snooker, 10-ball and 9-ball across an international career.BCA record ↗
Living Master · England · BCA HOF 2009Allison Fisher · “Duchess of Doom”Multi-time snooker world champion and three-time WPA World 9-Ball champion.BCA record ↗
Living Master · United States · BCA HOF 1989Mike Sigel · “Captain Hook”Dominant 1980s champion with major titles in both 14.1 and 9-ball.BCA record ↗
Living Master · United States · BCA HOF 1992Nick Varner · “Kentucky Colonel”All-around champion across 14.1, 9-ball, one-pocket and bank pool.BCA record ↗
Living Master · Philippines · BCA HOF 2025Carlo Biado · “The Black Tiger”World 9-ball champion and World Games gold medalist with major titles across the international game.BCA record ↗
Living Master · United States · BCA HOF 2026Corey Deuel · “The Prince of Pool”U.S. Open 9-Ball champion recognized for creativity, analysis and success across multiple disciplines.BCA record ↗
Living Master · Netherlands · BCA HOF 2023Niels Feijen · “The Terminator”World 9-ball and World Straight Pool champion with a long record of European and Mosconi Cup success.BCA record ↗
Living Master · Philippines · BCA HOF 2022Dennis Orcollo · “RoboCop”World 8-ball champion and elite all-around competitor with extensive international and Derby City success.BCA record ↗
Living Master · Germany · BCA HOF 2021Thorsten Hohmann · “The Hitman”World 9-ball champion whose precision also produced major straight-pool championships.BCA record ↗
Living Master · Philippines / Canada · BCA HOF 2019Alex Pagulayan · “The Lion”World 9-ball and U.S. Open champion with major titles in one-pocket, banks and 9-ball.BCA record ↗
Living Master · Germany · BCA HOF 2011Ralf Souquet · “The Kaiser”World champion in 9-ball and 8-ball and one of Europe’s defining international competitors.BCA record ↗
Living Master · Northern Ireland / United States · BCA HOF 2012Karen Corr · “The Irish Invader”Four-time world snooker champion who became a dominant American 9-ball competitor.BCA record ↗
Living Master · United States · BCA HOF 1985Jean Balukas · “Cue Queen”Seven-time BCA U.S. Open 14.1 champion and one of the most accomplished American players of her era.BCA record ↗
Living Master · United States · BCA HOF 2002Jim Rempe · “King James”International champion and ambassador whose career spanned straight pool, 9-ball and one-pocket.BCA record ↗
Legends · BCA Hall of Fame · Historical Archive
The legends who built the game we inherited.
Living Masters occupy the active gallery above. Here, Atlas preserves Hall of Fame legends as historical records—career context, source trails and portraits only when reuse rights are clear.
1913–1993 · INDUCTED 1968
Willie Mosconi
“Mr. Pocket Billiards”Won the world pocket-billiards title 15 times from 1940 through 1957 and became synonymous with straight pool.
BCA Hall of Fame ↗Vintage photograph · U.S. public domain14.1
1913–2001 · INDUCTED 1978
Irving Crane
“The Deacon”Nearly two dozen major championships; his 1966 U.S. Open victory included a 150-and-out.
BCA Hall of Fame ↗1936
1910–2002 · INDUCTED 1977
Jimmy Caras
“Boy Wonder”World champion in 1936, 1938, 1939 and 1949; later won the 1967 U.S. Open.
BCA Hall of Fame ↗14.1
1944–2006 · INDUCTED 1980
Steve Mizerak
“The Miz”Four-time U.S. Open champion from 1970–73 and a defining straight-pool player of the 1970s.
BCA Hall of Fame ↗9
1919–1988 · INDUCTED 1983
Luther Lassiter
“Wimpy”Johnston City all-around champion and one of the most celebrated 9-ball competitors of his generation.
BCA Hall of Fame ↗9
1945–2025 · INDUCTED 2000
Buddy Hall
“The Rifleman”Winner of more than 50 professional titles, including U.S. Open 9-Ball championships in 1991 and 1998.
BCA Hall of Fame ↗8
1913–1996 · INDUCTED 1984
Rudolph Wanderone
“Minnesota Fats”Meritorious Service inductee whose outsized public persona helped bring pool to a mass audience.
BCA Hall of Fame ↗No unverified portrait used.3C
1887–1959 · INDUCTED 1966
Willie Hoppe
“Can’t Top Me”Long-career champion across balkline, cushion carom and three-cushion, including 11 three-cushion world titles from 1936–52.
BCA Hall of Fame ↗3C
1862–1948 · INDUCTED 1967
Alfredo de Oro
Pool + Carom ChampionHistoric Cuban champion whose career crossed pocket billiards and three-cushion at the turn of the 20th century.
BCA Hall of Fame ↗W
1914–1995 · INDUCTED 1981
Dorothy Wise
“Cool Hand”Winner of the first five BCA U.S. Open women’s championships beginning with the inaugural 1967 event.
BCA Hall of Fame ↗W
1910–1974 · INDUCTED 1997
Ruth McGinnis
World Women’s ChampionAcclaimed women’s champion of the 1930s who toured extensively and later appeared alongside Willie Mosconi.
BCA Hall of Fame ↗14.1
1935–1996 · INDUCTED 1995
Cisero Murphy
World 14.1 ChampionWon the 1965 Burbank World Invitational 14.1 title after years in which racial exclusion limited access to world-title events.
BCA Hall of Fame ↗14.1
1937–2015 · INDUCTED 1986
Lou Butera
“Machine Gun Lou”Fast-playing straight-pool specialist and major champion remembered for an unusually rapid competitive rhythm.
BCA Hall of Fame ↗ALL
1935–2025 · INDUCTED 2011
Danny DiLiberto
All-Around ChampionChampion across straight pool, 8-ball, one-pocket and 9-ball whose later commentary preserved generations of competitive knowledge.
BCA Hall of Fame ↗