The New York herald., 1921-09-25
SAY CONT PLAYS
AN ELUSIVE GAME
Young French Cueist Will Ar
rive on the Manchuria for
1872 Title Tourney.
by THOMAS ). GALLAGHER.

Roger Cont. the French entrant in
the tournament for the worlds cham
pionship at 1872 balkline billiards. who
win arrive on the steamer Manchuria,
is delicate. refined and handsome
youth. AS boy he was billiard pre-
cocity. Recently, although in his twen-
ty-first year. he has been Partisan
sensation. And Paris, the home or
gathering place of great billiardists.
amateur and professional. Knows classi-
cal billiards and IS a critical zone in
which young exponent of the game
may obtain recognition or lanrels.
Young Cont. born Feb. s, 1901. is
20 years and months old. Eis birth
place is Pau. capital Of the Basses-
Pyrenees about Sc miles southeast of
Bayonne. on the Gave de Pau, a river
that is spanned by a bridge of seven
arches and remarkable elevations. As a
winter station in the Pyrenees, Pau
is familiar to all who have toured the
south OF France Contls father a
lard table on which he played with
visitors.
Runs 20 at Age of Z.
Naturally the boy became Keenly in
on that table and when old enough to
handle cue endeavored to make
strokes such as he had seen his father
make. At the age OF Z. without hav-
ing had any instruction. he made run
of 90 points. Therefrom Frenchmen
draw q parallel between his develop
ment and that of Hoppe.
During the next ten years he applied
himself to studies and only periodically
indulged in billiards. Nevertheless his
advancement at the game was SO ex-
traordinary that in 1913 when he left
college he went TO Paris and became at
tached to the Olympic Academy. He
at once enlisted the attention and ad-
miration ot local connoisseurs and mas
ters.
BY defeating the strongest Of the sec
ond class players Cont established him
self a popular favorite, lavishly praised
by press and public. Even before he had
compiled run Of 200 LIAuto, edited by
that great amateur Faroux, predicted
that he would become a star Of the first
magnitude.
A little more than year ago, In June,
1920. when the Olympic and other Pari-
sian academies were closed Cont began
to devote himself exclusively to balkline.
His progress was not rapid. Nor was 1t
spectacular 1t was. however, steady
and substantial. In December he scored
a run of 301. This year. in January. he
reached $50. That he supplemented in
the following month with 536. feat
which caused him to be acclaimed the
champion of France.
Summoned by the medical board for
examination for army service he was re-
jected and told to report next year. Re-
sunling practice, in one week he made
runs Of 439 and ATS. Then he played
two games of 5000 points each. In which
his grand averages were 43 and AZ.
Handicaps and Resources.
Writing from Paris. a correspondent
OF the Brunswick k-Balke-Collender Com
pany asks: "How will Cont stand in his
championship" And answers. II Is
probable he will be handicapped by his
youth, lack OF experience and the fact
that he has never met so formidable OPP
ponents. But against those conditions
he will array resources Of moral and
technical ORDER on which he rests his
full confidence.
"Calm. cool, master OF himself. helped
by will of iron, observing the strictest
hygiene, keen for contest and tenacious
and reared in wise modesty are tne
moral qualities which distinguish Cont.
Ills chief quality OF execution is his
measure of force; his gathering OF the
balls from all directions is of most won-
derful precision. His control OF the balls
Is reflected by the fact that his long
runs present the minimum Of difficulty
and the maximum of opportunity. His
game is exclusive, is peculiarly his own.
belongs entirely to him, is made up OF
smartness. simplicity and pure science.
In the tournament he should be a great
attraction