An Orillia Secondary School student has made a name for himself in billiards.
Harrison Storey topped the under-19 category at the Ontario Billiards and Snooker Association (OBSA) Junior Provincial 9 Ball Championships last weekend in Stoney Creek. He has now qualified for the Canadian Juniors in Quebec in July.
Storey, 17, started playing pool in 2018 when he was 13 years old.
“I came across it on YouTube and became interested,” he said. “I managed to convince my dad to take me to the pool hall and I really enjoyed it right away.”
Using only YouTube and the support and knowledge of players at Rack’em Jack Billiards and Sports Lounge in Orillia, Storey learned to play pool at a high level.
“I just kept watching people play,” he said. “I just seemed to be able to pick it up from watching other people play. I don’t really know how to explain it.”
As a competitive person, Storey says pool is a challenging game that allows him to compete against himself to become better. At the same time, he enjoys sharing his love for the game with people from around the world.
“I love playing it,” he said. “This game is played in all different countries, and it can be played in different ways.”
Five months after he started playing, Storey joined junior leagues in Orillia and Barrie. His success resulted in a ticket to playing in the 2019 American Poolplayers Association (APA) Junior Championships in St. Louis, Mo. He finished ninth out of 80 players in his skill-level category.
“I was definitely surprised,” he said. “It was my first competition tournament ever.”
Storey is now a two-time OBSA Junior Provincial 9 Ball champion. He was also recently named the MVP of the adult league at Rack’em Jack Billiards and Sports Lounge in its highest skill-level category.
He is set to compete at the APA Junior Championships in St. Louis again this month. This time, he has his sights set on first place.
“I’ve gotten much better in the three-year hiatus that we’ve had due to COVID,” he said. “Thankfully, we have a pool table at home, and I’ve been able to continue playing when things were shut down.”
Storey is confident he will finish much higher in the APA Junior Championships than he did last time.
The Grade 12 graduating student will attend Lakehead University in Thunder Bay in the fall, studying civil engineering. While the campus residence is equipped with two pool tables, Storey says his competitive career will be on hold while he’s at school.
“I might have to take a hiatus because there isn’t a whole lot going on in Thunder Bay, pool-wise,” he said. “One day I’d like to tour and go to all the professional tournaments.”
