SPM Featured Player
Lucky Luke Sutliffe Interview by Andrena Browne Lucky Luke Sutliffe is a man who counts his blessings. He is a man who inspires others with his positive attitude. He is also a man who absolutely loves the game of pool. When Luke walks into a pool hall, he is in his element. “There is something inside me I can’t describe. The music, the balls breaking, the sound of the balls hitting the back of the pocket… the entire atmosphere is when I am at peace. Pool is my love and my passion. Big things will happen for me because I have the heart. My love for this game is beyond measurable. I love Pool.” Luke’s lifelong addiction to pool began when he was only 5 years old. His dad took him to the Recreation Center across the street. They had ping-pong, air hockey, shuffleboard, and a 4’ x 8’ pool table. Luke took one look and said, “I want to do that!” At first he could barely hold the cue. He lost every game. That meant going to the last chair in line and moving up one place each game until it was his turn again. He persevered.
Photo credit Lori Sutliffe Luke plays in Tony Crosby’s Poison Tour and the Simonis Tour. Two of Luke’s goals for the future are to play in the US Open and the Ultimate 10 ball challenge.
Over the years Luke got taller. He was able to hold a cue properly. He had no coach but he learned by watching the 1214 year olds play. The way he says it, he got tired of losing. His game improved through sheer determination. By the time Luke was 12, he was winning the local tournament. It was one dollar to enter with a ten dollar prize for first place. We can all relate to Luke’s memory of those times. “Winning was an awesome feeling. I was the man!”
Luke enjoys playing in the Southern Classic in Mississippi, however, recently Luke went to the Classic with a different purpose in mind. His fiancee’s mother had been diagnosed with breast cancer. Lori says, “While my family was in crisis, Luke almost immediately thought about doing a breast cancer cue auction in honor of my mom.”
Around the time Luke started winning the local kids’ tournaments, he moved to Mississippi. There, he was lucky enough to be allowed to play in the local pool hall/tavern even though he was under age. One of his first opponents was an APA player ranked 7 (top rank in APA). Amazed at Luke’s talent, he asked, “Who are you?” He thought Luke was a 12-year-old hustler from Vegas. They played together for years. It was there that Luke got his pool name, Lucky Luke, which he has used ever since. Two of the coolest moments in Luke’s pool career happened on consecutive New Year’s Eves. In a 2003 tournament on a valley bar table, Luke broke and ran 7 racks of 9 ball. He said, “I’ll never forget it.” But just in case, the following year, in another 9 ball tournament on New Year’s Eve, he did the same thing. He broke and ran 7 racks again! New Year’s Eve seems to be a lucky day for Lucky Luke. Thanks to his job as a project manager building O’Reilly auto parts stores, Luke travels a lot. He has played pool in 48 states, missing only Hawaii and Alaska. In April of 2010 Luke moved to Florida. He loves the sunshine state, especially the winters. There is some good pool to be played in the area. Currently Sneaky Pete Mafia Magazine - November - 2013
Bell Forest Products donated the wood for the cue. Chuck Thomas, of Thomas Custom Cues in El Paso, built it. Luke took it to the Southern Classic and asked the players to sign it. Bad Boys Productions pitched in by keeping the cue at the podium and encouraging players to sign when they came to the podium. SVB, Alex Pagulayan, Dennis Orcollo, Niels Feijen, Jason Shaw, Mike Deschaine, and Wang Can are some of the world class players who signed the cue. Finally, he had a clear coat added over the signatures to protect them. The cue sold for $750 which was donated to breast cancer research. Luke says his next charity cue will be an armed forces cue with proceeds going to assist veterans. “I love all branches of the service.” Lori adds, “I was amazed that he thought of such a meaningful gesture, knowing it would take dedication, hard work and lots of time from start to finish. It still blows my mind that he could step outside the madness and take action to do something that really mattered. Luke walks the walk... he’s modest, honest, loyal and kindhearted. He isn’t a bit arrogant, always has nice things to say about people he meets (especially in the pool world) and would go out of his way to help a friend, even a new friend.”
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