Johnny Archer (born November 12, 1968, in Waycross, Georgia) is an American professional pool player. He is nicknamed "the Scorpion" (his zodiac sign is Scorpio. He is a two time World Nine-ball Champion & won a record 5 Sands Regency 9-Ball Open titles. In 2009, Johnny Archer was nominated to be inducted into the Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame.[1]

Johnny Archer
Johnny Archer posing with a fan, 2008
Born (1968-11-12) 12 November 1968 (age 56)
Waycross, Georgia
Sport country United States
Nickname"The Scorpion"
Professional1985
Tournament wins
Other titles100
World Champion9-ball (1992, 1997)

Early days

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Archer grew up with his two brothers and two sisters in Twin City, Georgia, and began playing pool at the age of 12.[2]

Career

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He is one of the most successful nine-ball players of the 1990s and 2000s, having won the majority of the game's major tournaments at least once, culminating in his being named Billiards Digest Player of the Decade at the end of the 1990s. Archer is a two-time WPA World Nine-ball Champion, winning in both 1992 when he defeated Bobby Hunter, and later again in 1997 after beating Lee Kun-fang of Chinese Taipei (Taiwan). He was also a runner-up the following year, losing in the final to Kunihiko Takahashi of Japan. He was the 1999 US Open champion, and has won over 100 professional tournaments throughout his career.

He has also been a regular on the US Mosconi Cup team, having joined them a record seventeen times, winning on nine of those occasions.

In 2003, one of Archer's most successful years, he won tournaments such as Sudden Death Seven-ball[3] and the first World Summit of Pool.[4]

Archer also won the 2006 International Challenge of Champions by defeating Thorsten Hohmann in the finals.[5]

In 2007, he won the Texas Hold 'Em Billiards Championship. While in the 2005 event the entire purse was awarded to the winner, in the 2007 event the purse was split.[6][7]

The Ripley's Believe It or Not! television show, on September 3, 2003,[8] pitted Archer and Jeremy Jones against each other in a challenge match in speed pool. The show had them timed against each other, to try to beat the record, which at that time stood at 1 minute 30 seconds[9] to break a full rack of balls and then pocket all fifteen balls, and then move to another table and do it again. Archer was the victor. The event was recorded in a warehouse in Los Angeles where other challenge matches were also taking place to beat records.

Archer rejoined the staff of Inside Pool Magazine, where he writes a monthly instruction column.[10]

For 2007, he was ranked #3 in Pool & Billiard Magazine's "Fans' Top 20 Favorite Players" poll.[11]

Personal life

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Archer lives in Acworth, Georgia, with his wife Melanie and two children. He's an avid golfer, and ascribes his strong pool break to playing a lot of golf, noting similarities in having the timing right and using one's whole body in the stroke.[12]

Titles and achievements

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  • 2016 Hangelar 9-Ball Open
  • 2016 Tennessee State 8-Ball Open
  • 2015 Tornado Open 9-Ball Championship
  • 2013 Music City Classic 9-Ball
  • 2012 Music City Classic 9-Ball
  • 2011 Maryland 14.1 Championship
  • 2011 Music City Classic 9-Ball
  • 2011 Challenge du St. Laurent 9-Ball
  • 2010 Turning Stone Classic
  • 2009 Steve Mizerak 10-Ball Championship
  • 2009 Turning Stone Classic
  • 2009 U.S. 10-Ball Invitational
  • 2009 Gem City Classic
  • 2009 Mosconi Cup
  • 2008 Turning Stone Classic
  • 2008 UPA Desert Shoot Out
  • 2008 Turning Stone Classic
  • 2008 Jay Swanson Memorial 9-Ball
  • 2007 Texas Hold 'Em Billiards Championship
  • 2007 Music City Classic 9-Ball Mini
  • 2007 Turning Stone Classic
  • 2007 Great Southern Billiard Tour
  • 2006 International Challenge of Champions
  • 2006 Turning Stone Classic
  • 2006 Music City Classic 9-Ball
  • 2006 Puerto Rico Shootout
  • 2006 SML Entertainment Open 9-Ball Championship
  • 2005 Mosconi Cup
  • 2005 Predator Florida Pro 9-Ball Open
  • 2005 Glass City Open 9-Ball Championship
  • 2004 Super Billiards Expo Players Championship
  • 2004 Big Apple 9-Ball Championship
  • 2004 North American Open Tour
  • 2004 Carolinas Open 9-Ball Division
  • 2004 Predator Florida Pro 9-Ball Open
  • 2004 Derby City Classic 10-Ball Ring Game
  • 2004 Mosconi Cup
  • 2004 Billiards Digest Player of the Year
  • 2004 Border Battle, Team USA VS Team Canada
  • 2003 Glass City Open 9-Ball Championship
  • 2003 Molson Cup
  • 2003 Border Battle, Team USA VS Team Canada
  • 2003 World Summit of Pool
  • 2003 Super Billiards Expo Players Championship
  • 2003 ESPN Sudden Death Seven-ball
  • 2003 Predator Florida Pro 9-Ball Open
  • 2003 Predator Atlanta 9-Ball Open
  • 2003 LG Flatiron "On Cue 2" 9-Ball Tournament
  • 2003 IBC Western Canadian Open 9-Ball
  • 2003 Mosconi Cup

References

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  1. ^ "Johnny Archer, Allison Fisher Gain BCA Hall of Fame Election" Archived October 24, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, AzBilliards.com. Retrieved July 14, 2009
  2. ^ Johnny "The Scorpion" Archer Archived March 4, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, scorpionCues.com. Retrieved June 7, 2008
  3. ^ "Archer Wins Sudden Death 7-Ball". InsidePOOL.com. October 1, 2003. Retrieved August 25, 2008.
  4. ^ "Archer wins World Summit of Pool". AzBilliards.com. October 12, 2003. Archived from the original on March 15, 2009. Retrieved August 25, 2008.
  5. ^ "Archer Wins Challenge of Champions". AzBilliards.com. Archived from the original on March 15, 2009. Retrieved August 15, 2008.
  6. ^ "2005 Texas Hold'em Billiards Shootout" Archived February 2, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, at AZBilliards
  7. ^ "Johnny Archer Wins 2007 Texas Hold Em Billiards" Archived February 18, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, at AZBilliards
  8. ^ Episode 418 Archived February 1, 2008, at the Wayback Machine, www.TV.com. Retrieved August 5, 2007
  9. ^ Previous News, JohnnyArcher.net. Retrieved August 5, 2007
  10. ^ "Johnny Archer Billiards Instruction" Archived August 17, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, InsidePoolMagazine.com.
  11. ^ "The Survey Says...: Pool & Billiard Magazine's 22nd Annual Player and Fan Poll". Pool & Billiard Magazine. Vol. 26, no. 2. Summerville, South Carolina: Sports Publications. February 2008. p. 14. ISSN 1049-2852.
  12. ^ Archer Interview Archived June 20, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, October 2, 1999, AzBilliards.com. Retrieved August 5, 2007
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