John ‘Rags’ Fitzpatrick was a very talented player and dapper gentleman whose name nearly always comes up among old-timers as the top all-around road player of his time. Yet he is largely unknown today, and missing from the record books, mainly because he died at the age of 41 in 1960. The date is significant, because if he had lived even just a couple more years, he would no doubt have been one of the biggest stars of the boom in pool that came with the Johnston City tournaments and “The Hustler” movie.
Besides the fact that he was a great player, by all accounts he had the right combination of good looks and engaging personality that would have made him a magnet for the media. Fellow Hall of Famers Eddie Taylor, ‘Squirrel’ Carpenter and ‘Weenie Beenie’ Staton all named ‘Rags’ as the greatest One Pocket player of his era.