On the sunny morning of Saturday, March 21, vehicles started lining the streets of Fountain and Preston. Cues in hand, pool players showed up for a chance to win what has become known as Jeff’s Three Person Pool Tournament.
With a total of 27 three person teams, nearly 90 participants, organizer Jeff Knies knew it was going to be a long day of billiards. For each three person team, they knew they’d have to bring their best play to stay in the running for a shot at money. It was a race to five victories.
Teams started breaking racks at 9 a.m. that Saturday morning with four tables set up at the Fountain Community Center and another four tables located at the Servicemen’s Club in Preston. Knies was overseeing the action in Fountain while assisting organizer Jared Rudlong helped to keep things on track at the Preston location.
With each of the 27 teams kicking in $150, there was money to be had for the elite eight-ballers. The top six teams would collectively chalk their way to $4,300 in prize winnings.
The upper echelon didn’t finish until 1:45 a.m. the next day (yes, Sunday), consolidating all remaining teams to finish out play at the Preston Servicemen’s Club.
Brothers Jacob and Jim Elit along with their friend Sam Wing, known as Team Elit, took first place, winning $1,700 that night. They came a long way and apparently they weren’t leaving without pocketing a victory. Jacob drove from Mankato, Sam came from Rochester, and Jim made the trek from St. Peter. According to Knies, brothers Jacob and Jim have been playing in tournaments like this since they were teenagers. He wasn’t surprised they played so well.
Tournament History
Jeff can’t recall exactly, but he estimates he’s been running this tournament for 30 to 35 years. He took it over from Donna Schoppers, who had been running it for just a few years prior to Knies taking it over. It was around this time that the tournament was moved from Fountain to Preston.
Back in the early days of the tournament, there were 48 teams playing at bars in Chatfield, Fountain, Wykoff, Preston, Lanesboro and Harmony. It took two full days, Saturday and Sunday, to declare winners. At that time, it was referred to as Jeff’s Three Person Traveling Pool Tournament.
Jeff recalls that when the tournament started years ago, there weren’t too many pool tournaments for players. Today, there are tournaments running nearly every month in Southeast Minnesota.
His tournament has attracted shooters from more than a 300-mile radius, including cities like Waterloo, Decorah, Rochester, Winona, Faribault, Mankato, Minneapolis, St. Paul, and Plainview. Of course, there are always a lot of locals.
Back when they had 48 teams, Knies recalls players coming from as far as Des Moines, Iowa, and Fargo, N. Dak., to play in the tourney.
In this most recent tournament, Beth Fondell, of Rochester, Minn., played on a team along with her husband. As players made their way through the day, they may have not realized they were among one of the masters of the game. Fondell has won numerous women’s championships in Las Vegas and was named to the Valley National Eightball Association (VNEA) Hall of Fame.
Fondell and her team finished third out of the 27 teams.
Jeff’s Early Days
For Knies, he loves pool and has been playing since he was a kid.
He recalls when he was around 12 or 13 years old, and he and his buddies would sneak into the pool hall in Preston to play a few games until the adults came along and kicked them out. Jeff’s father eventually bought the former pool hall building where he made plans to open Northwest Aluminum. Today, it’s home to Duane Gilbertson’s storefront for his construction business.
Knies, who graduated from Preston-Fountain High School in 1971, started playing in D & R tournaments in Rochester around 1977. Jeff, along with friends like Richard Behnke, Tom Hagan, Greg Hoff, Joe Moen, and David Milne, would carpool to Rochester to play against some of the best players in the area.
“Our league was all the same level of shooters.” Jeff says the only way to get better is to play against better players. Over the years, Jeff won high points and earned a few trophies in the Rochester league. He kept getting better because it was something he loved to do, and he was eventually recognized as a master level pool player.
One year, he finished third in the Rochester league. “Guys from Rochester played a lot of safety. They hide the ball. We didn’t play that way. We always called that dirty pool.”
“I’ve seen so many players over the years. Some of the shots those guys make are amazing shots.” As Knies says, “You can make an incredible shot, and then mess up on the eight ball with an easy shot.”
“Once you learn how to play pool, executing shots is all mental,” Jeff makes it sound easy, “It’s all mental.”
At their home in Preston, Jeff and his wife Roxie have had four different tables over the years.
It’s been a big part of his life.
Whether it’s at home or at a pool hall, he has a love for the game. His tournament continues to present a way for people to gather and enjoy the fun, competitive nature of the game with those who share that same passion.
For anyone looking forward to participating in next year’s tournament, they can reach Jeff Knies as 507-272-4365.
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