Going Rackless: Chicago's Amateur Pool Players and the Quest for Glory in the Biggest Tournament in the World

Playing every angle for a shot at the big time Chicagoans venture to area pool halls to perfect their games and navigate league play for a shot at the APA World Pool Championships in Las Vegas. Dylan Taylor-Lehman joins a lively cast of characters under the lights and inside a subculture as old as Chicago itself. Whether running the table or waiting their turn, everyone has a story to tell and opinions to share on position play, billiards's unwritten code, and life itself. Taylor-Lehman follows four promising teams on a mission to reach Vegas before unwinding an electric account of what it takes to win the world’s premier amateur tournament—and what you take away when the balls aren’t sunk. Entertaining and immersive, Going Rackless puts readers tableside to watch a game everyone has played but few truly understand.

• | Author: Dylan Taylor-Lehman
• | Publisher: University of Illinois Press
• | Publication Date: Oct 07, 2025
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• | Binding: Paperback / softback
• | ISBN-13: 9780252088896
• | ISBN-10: 0252088891