Charlie“The Hillbilly”Bryant By Heather Bryant
The portrait of a professional
What is the definition of a professional pool player? According to some, it is a competitor who attends sanctioned events and maintains a point standing. According to the dictionary, and anyone who runs “amateur only” tournaments, a professional pool player is anyone who successfully earns a living with their skill. There is no better example of that definition than Charlie “The Hillbilly” Bryant.
few and far between. Living with friends and never knowing where his next stop would be, Charlie’s world was rooted in chaos and disorder. I took it upon myself to give him a stable life where he could come home and be loved by his family. I placed myself in the position of ‘manager’ and started turning down offers that were non-beneficial to his goals. I took over his website and re-vamped it to give him an identity. I helped him heal mentally and get focused again. A whole new ‘Hillbilly’ came to the surface. While playing in a tournament in Louisiana, Charlie met a gentleman that would go on to sponsor his touring for the next few years. Times were good and the stress was off. After the economy fell into crisis, that generous sponsor was forced to back out. Trying to cover those expenses ourselves, we ended up in considerable debt and were unable to pay the bills. We began to consider the fact that “The Hillbilly” may have to retire from pool. Instead, we sat down and developed a method of booking lessons and clinics in advance and coordinating them with events in those areas.
Don’t let his nickname, his southern drawl or the tell-tale overalls and straw hat fool you. This ‘Hillbilly’ is all business. As his wife, travel companion and business manager, I am witness to the 3am ideas that turn into a flurry of notes and diagrams in our game room. Ever evolving, ever learning, ever developing, Charlie is the epitome of pool business. He plays, practices, learns, teaches, films, writes, markets… lives and breathes pool. It didn’t start out that way through. This professional was forged by adversity and learned through trial and error over a span of 4 decades. Several magazines and websites over the years have covered the rise of Charlie’s career but I have only been witness to his transformation over the last six years, so I will begin where I came in. When I first met Charlie Bryant, he was an established top 12 American on the Pro Tour. Still suffering from the loss of his mother a few years before, he couldn’t seem to focus his mind on the business side of his sport. He managed to get himself into several deals that were not properly handled and fell short of his expectations. The Pro Tour was less than inviting and sponsorships were
Refusing to be beaten, Charlie attended what pro events he could but focused more on state and local open events and booking clinics. As with all new ventures, there was a slow start but it looked promising. It seemed as if his prayers had been answered when a promoter called and asked
Charlie to be part of a group of professional players that were going to tour around the United States appearing for exhibitions and instructional clinics.
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Sneaky Pete Mafia Magazine - September 2014
