Jeanette Lee is the first woman to be inducted into the BCA Hall of Fame. She’s also one of only six female players ever to have competed in a professional men’s pool tournament, and she continues to play competitively today at age 50.
Jeanette has been called “Black Widow,” and we’ll explore her life, career, and accomplishments so far!
Jeanette Lee, Who is She?
She’s one of the few women to have ever played professionally, and we’ll explore her life, career, and accomplishments so far!
Early Life
Jeanette was born on October 19th, 1937, in Stockton, California, to parents who immigrated from China right before World War II. Jeanette never had any sisters, but she always talked about having to be twice as good as the boys because if she weren’t, they would never believe that girls could play pool well.
Her father was against her starting to play pool until he saw how much fun she was having and how good she got at the game.
However, before he gave his blessing, her father told her that she had to get a 99 average in school or he wouldn’t allow it!
So she found a new tutor whose primary focus was helping students get into college, and she got straight A’s from then on out.
Lee started traveling around to different pool halls when she was in her teens and fell in love with the game.
She wanted to compete against the best players that were out there, so she went all over California to find any competition that she could.
At the age of 18, Jeanette traveled across the country for the first time by herself to go to the World Straight Pool Championships.
She went straight from her last day of high school with no sleep or food on the plane and made it to the event.
Unfortunately, Jeanette got knocked out in the first round, but she vowed never to make that mistake again!
Career Highlights
Lee started traveling around to different pool halls when she was in her teens and fell in love with the game.
She wanted to be able to compete against the best players that were out there, so she went all over California to find any competition that she could.
At the age of 18, Jeanette traveled across the country for the first time by herself to go to the World Straight Pool Championships.
She went straight from her last day of high school with no sleep or food on the plane and made it to the event.
Unfortunately, Jeanette got knocked out in the first round, but she vowed never to make that mistake again!
Jeanette also played in a COED league for a while, which caused a bit of controversy at the time.
She didn’t think there was much of a difference between the men and women in the pool, but she conceded that some male players were more substantial than her.
It wasn’t long before Jeanette became one of the top players in that league and even got to play on her favorite team, The Hustlers.
She played under an assumed name so people wouldn’t know she was a woman. Jeanette wanted to be judged on her own skill level, not just her gender.
Her big break-out moment in the pool happened when she played in the men’s U.S Open One Pocket Championships at age 20 against top male players like Willie Mosconi and Jimmy Moore.
She won $500 for coming in third place, which qualified her to play in the World Championship.
So naturally, she jumped at this chance since it was what she had been training for all these years!
One of the big things that happened in Lee’s career was when she opened up a pool parlor called The Gold Rail. Customers loved it since they had a great selection of games and snacks! Jeanette was also able to play pool against people of all different skill levels.
Lee also started the first-ever women’s only pool league, WPBA (Women’s Professional Billiard Association), so more women would have opportunities to play professionally. Before that, it was scarce for female players to get sponsored at all!
Lee has worked hard over the years and has won many awards like induction into the Billiard Congress of America’s Hall of Fame, Women’s Professional Billiard Association Player of the Year 7 times, and so many more.
She continued to play professionally to this day and was just inducted into The Women’s International Sports Hall of Fame back in 2016!
Jeanette Lee is one of the few females who has successfully made it into the pool halls and is still playing today. She was the first female ever to be inducted into The Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame back in 1997. Lee has won many awards for her outstanding pool playing skills over the years and continues to play today!
Learn more about this remarkable woman by reading her biography!
Conclusion
Jeanette Lee is a pool player who started playing back in the 1950s. She’s one of the few women to have ever played professionally, and she’s still going strong today.
Her life, career, and accomplishments are worth exploring because they inspire anyone looking to pursue their passion as long as possible! Read on for more about this incredible woman.
