Mataya started shooting pool at age 11. Within a few years was playing exhibitions with
Willie Mosconi
William Joseph Mosconi (; June 27, 1913 – September 17, 1993) was an American professional pool player from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Between the years of 1941 and 1956, he won the World Straight Pool Championship nineteen times. For mo ...
. He then won three consecutive Michigan State Championships in 1966, 1967 and 1968. At 21, he won the 1971 Los Angeles 9-Ball Championship. Mataya won multiple titles in his career and in 1989 became a member of the Greater Lansing Area Sports Hall of Fame.
In 1982, Mataya wed
Ewa Svensson, of
Sweden (who was later inducted into
Billiard Congress of America
The Billiard Congress of America (BCA) is the governing body for cue sports in the United States and Canada, and the regional member organization of the World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA).` Puerto Rico, though a US territory, and Mexico, though ...
's
Hall of Fame as Ewa Laurance in 2004), forming pool's first "power couple". Their daughter Nikki was born in 1985. Jimmy and Ewa later divorced.
Mataya enjoys other games of stake. In 1991, he was seen leaving
Las Vegas
Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
in a brand-new
Cadillac, courtesy of the
Sahara Casino.
["Billy's Briefs", ''The Snap Magazine'', page 7, September/October 1991, published by OTS Publications, a division of Billiard Enterprises of Florida] In that same year ''Snap Magazine'' published an "...in-depth interview with Mataya, who offered many tips for young players and talked about his vision for the future of the sport."
Professional career
* 1966 Lansing City 14.1 Championship
* 1966 Michigan State 14.1 Championship
* 1967 Lansing City 14.1 Championship
* 1967 Michigan State 14.1 Championship
* 1968 Lansing City 14.1 Championship
* 1968 Michigan State 14.1 Championship
* 1969 Michigan State 14.1 Championship
* 1970 Michigan State 14.1 Championship
* 1971 Los Angeles 9-Ball Championship
* 1971 Wheaton Open Straight Pool Tournament
* 1972 Dayton Open All-Around Championship
* 1972 Stardust Open 9-Ball Championship
* 1972 Stardust Open All-Around Championship
* 1973 Nevada State Championship
* 1974 Michigan Open 9-Ball Championship
* 1974 Nevada State Championship
* 1976 Albuquerque 8-Ball Championship
* 1976 Albuquerque All-Around Championship
* 1977 Dayton Open 8-Ball Championship
* 1978 Pro-Celebrity 9-Ball Tournament
* 1978 Port Angeles Open 9-Ball
* 1988
B.C. Open 9-Ball Pro-Am Doubles
* 1989 Greater Lansing Area Sports Hall of Fame
Filmography
When Mataya left the professional pool tournament trail, he was chosen to be a commentator for pool matches because of his knowledge of the game and his comedic style that entertains the audience. "To add more color to an already colorful show, Mataya was selected as a co-commentator with
Danny Diliberto at the 2004 Derby City Classic Nine-ball Ring Game in
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...
, the first ring game produced for broadcast.
Billiards Club Network, 2004 Derby City Classic Nine-ball Ring Game, Louisville, Kentucky
/ref>
*''Secrets of Pool Hustling'' (video, 1989), as himself
*''Pool the Master's Way'' (video, 1989), as himself, with Steve Mizerak and Ewa Mataya
*''The Color of Money
''The Color of Money'' is a 1986 American sports drama film directed by Martin Scorsese and released by Touchstone Pictures. The film was created from a screenplay by Richard Price, based on the 1984 novel of the same name by Walter Tevis. Th ...
'' (1986), as Julian's friend in the green room
*''The Baltimore Bullet
''The Baltimore Bullet'' is a 1979 American comedy film based on the adventures of two pool hustlers in the United States.
It was directed by Robert Ellis Miller and starred James Coburn, Omar Sharif, Bruce Boxleitner and Ronee Blakley. The ...
'' (1980), as himself
*''Vega$
''Vegas'' (stylized as ''Vega$'') is an American crime drama television series that aired on ABC from September 20, 1978, to June 3, 1981, with the pilot episode airing April 25, 1978. ''Vegas'' was produced by Aaron Spelling and created by Mic ...
'': "The Usurper" Sept. 26, 1979, as himself
References
*Mataya, Jimmy; Medina, Danny. ''The Hustle''
*King, Mason. "Three-Ring Circus", '' Billiards Digest'', March 2004
*"Ewa Mataya Laurance: BCA 2004 Hall of Fame Inductee", ''On the Break News'', 2004
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mataya, Jimmy
American pool players
Living people
1950 births