John Roberts, Jr. was a dominant professional player of English billiards

English billiards

English billiards, called simply billiards in many former British colonies and in Great Britain where it originated, is a hybrid form of carom and pocket billiards played on a billiard table. Billiards is less well known as "the English game", "the all-in game" and "the common game".The game is for...

. He was also a notable manufacturer of billiards cues

Cue stick

A cue stick , is an item of sporting equipment essential to the games of pool, snooker and carom billiards. It is used to strike a ball, usually the...

 and tables

Billiards table

A billiard table or billiards table is a bounded table on which billiards-type games are played. In the modern era, all billiards tables provide a flat surface usually made of quarried slate, that is covered with cloth and surrounded by vulcanized rubber cushions, with the whole elevated above...

, and promoter of the sport.

Early years

Roberts, Jr. lived in the shadow of his father, John Roberts, Sr. for many years, but came into the public eye after his father's retirement, beating Willam Cook 1,200–722. However, Cook would eventually gain superiority over John Roberts, Jr.

In 1875, Cook was defeated by Roberts, Jr. again and it sparked his dominance of the sport. In 1880, he left for Calcutta, where he set up a billiard table factory. Roberts however was able to concede starts to all opposition, but would not play in Championship matches. This damaged the sport's perception, as everybody perceived him to be champion.

As two variants of the sport, "spot-barred" and "all-in" developed, Roberts came back to the fore, competing in only the "spot-barred" version. In 1884, he broke the spot-barred record break from 309 by Cook, to 360. He developed the top-of-the-table technique, that required alternating cannons and pot reds that would become the "modern" way of playing the game.

In 1885, Roberts sat at the meeting that formed the Billiards Association, and helped to code a new set of rules for the game of English billiards. Roberts challenged Cook for the title, which he won by default, but then he successfully defended the rematch from Cook to win the title.

Championship rift

William Peall beat Roberts in a match where he was restricted to 100 spots in a break. Peall was the leading "all-in" player in the era. Roberts maintained his spot-barred supremacy, and did not challenge either Peall or Billy Mitchell for the championship. He cited that the public would not enjoy the repetition of the game, a foreshadowing of the eventual decline of the game.

Peall and Roberts both claimed to be champions of the sport, and a match to test their claims proved unnegotiable. After a four-year hiatus, the championship returned when the Billiards Association decided to create two championships, one for all-in, and another for spot-barred. By this stage, Roberts was a successful billiards merchandise producer, and offered the association a venue, table and trophy for the new championship, but refused to play in it.

Roberts went on a tour of North America

North America

North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

 in 1894, playing the American champion, Frank Ives in Chicago

Chicago

Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

. Ives had mastered the technique of jamming the balls in the pockets, and ended up winning the match 6,000-3,821, after a of 2,539. A return match held in New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

 saw Ives again as champion.

Later that year, Roberts set his highest ever break in an exhibition at the Egyptian Hall

Egyptian Hall

For the Glasgow building see The Egyptian Halls.The Egyptian Hall in Piccadilly, London, was an Exhibition hall built in the ancient Egyptian style in 1812, to the designs of Peter Frederick Robinson.-History:...

 in Piccadilly

Piccadilly

Piccadilly is a major street in central London, running from Hyde Park Corner in the west to Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is completely within the city of Westminster. The street is part of the A4 road, London's second most important western artery. St...

. His 867 included many . He pioneered pneumatic (air-filled) rubber cushions in 1895 on his tables, in a bid to make them the best on the market, but this did not succeed. (vulcanized

Vulcanization

Vulcanization or vulcanisation is a chemical process for converting rubber or related polymers into more durable materials via the addition of sulfur or other equivalent "curatives." These additives modify the polymer by forming crosslinks between individual polymer chains. Vulcanized material is...

 rubber cushioned had been in use since the 1850s, and remain among the most common today, along with cushions made of synthetic compounds.)

After a controversy regarding rules with the Billiards Association, Roberts won against Charles Dawson by 1,814 points, in a match lasting over two weeks. He again did not play in the championship in 1899.

Playing for royalty

Roberts had now involved himself in royal circles. He played Lily Langtry, a music personality of the day, and the Prince of Wales

Prince of Wales

Prince of Wales is a title traditionally granted to the heir apparent to the reigning monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the 15 other independent Commonwealth realms...

 called Roberts shot against her in a 50-up match. Roberts was still able to win the game.

He toured India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

 and knowing that the Maharajah of Jaipur

Jaipur

Jaipur , also popularly known as the Pink City, is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Rajasthan. Founded on 18 November 1727 by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II, the ruler of Amber, the city today has a population of more than 3.1 million....

 was a fan, he travelled to meet him. He ended up with an annual salary of UK£

Pound sterling

The pound sterling , commonly called the pound, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence...

500, and expenses paid for any future visits to India. Despite potential transportation difficulties, the Maharajah organised a tournament. The players all went to India, and in the opening match, Roberts was potting the red repeatedly when the Maharajah ended the game declaring the winner to be Roberts. His opponent, S. W. Stanley, had played only one shot, an unsuccessful .

Roberts's determination to play the game also endeared him to many fans. He played Mitchell in Manchester

Manchester

Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...

, and despite having malarial fever and ague

Ague

Ague may refer to:* Fever* MalariaSee also:* Kan Ague, a residential area of Patikul, Sulu, Philippines...

, he still made a 600 unfinished break to win the match.

End of the Roberts era

Having beaten Dawson, Roberts retired from the championship, and billiards, for good. He had not only helped create the game's rules but also provided the new apparatus with which to play it.