Melinda Bailey
Melinda Bailey INTERVIEW For a change of pace this month, we are going to turn Melinda Bailey’s interviewing magnifying glass back on her and find out what drives the one and only “AKA Trigger”. Q: Let’s start at the beginning. When did you first start playing and what brought you to the game of pool? A: Gosh, that’s a LONG time ago! When I was in high school in San Antonio, Texas, I frequented an arcade that happened to have pool tables. I became so good at the video games, one quarter lasted hours (on Galaga and Defender for example). Eventually I got bored and moved to the pool tables to fill my time.
A: Oh, I only had fun for too many years. When I went to college (Texas A&M) I was surprised but happy they had a billiards club. So, I joined and played in a couple of tournaments – yet I had no idea what I was doing or how to play. After I graduated, I moved back to San Antonio and joined a league. That naturally led to weekly, state, and then national tournaments. However, I was still only having fun, and my shot-making was the only thing to improve in that span of about ten years.
Q: Did you get serious about the game right away, or was it just something that you did for fun?
Q: How long did you play before you started expanding into the other side of the game (running tours,
10 | Billiards Buzz • February 2019
etc)? How did that expansion first happen? A: Within about 10 years. In 1998 I moved to Jacksonville, FL for a promotion. I was dating a pro and created him a website WAY before the internet was even popular. I loved working with graphics and also taught myself to build websites. Making him a website led me to YOU (Mike Howerton) and I started to work with AzBilliards (AzB). Q: For those readers who aren’t familiar with your resume, can you list all of the things that you have been involved with in the game?