The Washington herald., 1922-12-28
Observation-Disclosures TOPLAYHERE
WILLIE HOPPE
MEETS YAMADA
In EXHIBITION
Match to Take Place at Sher-
man January 8 and 9, Says
Benjamin.
By LEONARD w. COLLINS.

+UTILLIE HOPPE, world cham
" pion at 1872 balkline, and
" Koji Yamada, the greatest
wielder of cue Japan has ever
produced, are to be the first bill
liardists with international repu-
tations who will show their wares
to local followers of the green
cloth game during the course of
the next two months. Hoppe and
'amada are to give exhibitions,
both matinee and evening, at
Sherman's on January and 9.
Following this pair at almost
regular intervals will come young
Jake Schaefer, the only man to
temporarily wrest the crown from
Hoppe within the past twelve
years; Emil Hagenlacher who
holds the German title; Edouard
Horemans, the Belgian artist: Ralph
Greenleaf. the present pocket bill
lard champion, and last. but not
least. Alfred De Orc, the Cuban
master. who plans a return to ac-
tive competition.
In the Hoppe-Yamada exhibitions
play will be at $50 points, both
players shooting from scratch. After
their turn at the table at 1872 balk-
line. both will give an exhibition of
fancy shots and also demonstrate
the manner in which they accom-
plish the more intricate shots aris-
ing during match play.
RECLAIMED CONFIDENCE.
Those who have watched Hoppe
in action since he regained his
crown from Schaefer say that the
1872 champion is playing TIL very
best game of his career. that he
seems to have regained that con-
fidence which characterized his
match play prior to losing the
championship at ChiCaCo year
ago.
r. r. Benjamin. the genial man.
aCer of Hoppe. was visitor i'll
Washington yesterday morning. for
:he ostensible purpose of CON-
nleting' arrangements with George
Lewis. manager of Shermans. for
Hopes and Yamada's appearance
here on the dates mentioned above.
Benjamin was just as loquacious as
ever. if not more so.
Speaking of Hoppe. the chubby
htdItdSei' uHiOhutu himself, as IOl-
lows: When S"haefar wrrsted
The title from Willie there were
many who began tolling the bell on
Hopes billiard career. I felt just
as confident then as do right
now that Schaefer's victory was
nothing other than break of the
game.
Don't misconstrue the meaning
on / ,aI hn bro L. in,
the game. that Schaefer was lucky.
Far from it. Jake shot great bill
liards. In fact he shot a game that
no man could have beaten. Willie
was just up against the inevitable.
II had to come sooner or later and
| am glad that it was a rising young
star like Jake Schaefer who turned
the trick
"Schaefer is a wonderful kid. He
possesses many traits which made
his daddy the greatest of them all
when he was living. and sincerely
trust that when the time comes for
Hoppe to lay aside the cue it will be
daddy the greatest of them all when
young Jake who takes his place at
the top Of the billiard world.
Those two set-backs handed Will
lie was the best thing that could
possibly have happened to Hoppe.
Willie had almost reached the point
where he believed he was unbeat-
able. Not that he was getting a
swelled head. Anyone who knows
Hoppe knows that no matter to what
heights he might rise he would never
get puffed up over it.
But those two defeats have made
an entirely different player out Of
the champion. No more will you see
him executing a simple shot with
that "I-don't-care" attitude. A shot
can not he too simple for him to
take the greatest pains with. 1t has
helped his game and Washington.
ians will see an entirely different
Hoppe from what they have been
accustomed to seeing