Brittany Bryant has never forgotten the advice her father gave her.
First, have fun. Because if you enjoy what you’re doing, it will allow you to be the best you can be.
Second, make the most of your time.
“He always said, ‘If you’re going to the pool hall. That’s what you’re there to do. You have to make the most of your time because time isn’t promised.’”
That lesson struck home in a harsh way when her dad died suddenly last October.
Jack Bryant introduced his 13-year-old daughter to pool by taking her along to score his men’s league’s games. Soon after, she joined a junior program at the local pool hall. She showed early promise and her father was always there to support her. If there was a tournament 12 hours away, he would drive her there.
So when Bryant went to the Canadian Billiards and Snooker Association women’s championships in Calgary earlier this month, she felt there was something missing.
“We grew together in the sport. I got involved because of him so it’s been a bit of emotional roller coaster since he passed. The emotions definitely came into effect,” she said. “The entire event I could feel my dad’s presence. I wasn’t perfect by any means, but there was a calming presence.”
The Georgetown resident may not have been perfect, but she was all but unbeatable. Bryant swept the three titles up for grabs – 8-ball, 9-ball and 10-ball – to become the first player to do so since 10-ball was added in 2011.
Bryant started by defeating Veronique Menard 7-1 in the 8-ball final. The two would meet again in the 10-ball final with Bryant claiming another 7-1 victory.
Though it was a shorter route to the 9-ball championship, needing just four victories instead of five to reach the final, it proved to be the most challenging. Bryant came through with an 8-5 win over Janet Ritcey to complete the sweep.
Bryant had won 16 pervious Canadian titles, but her hat trick in Calgary will always hold a special place in her heart.
“It was my first Canadian championship without my father,” she said, “so it was very rewarding to do it in honour of him.”
It didn’t take long for Bryant to find success in the sport after joining Katherine Deveau’s junior program at Tony’s Billiards in Guelph, where she lived until moving to Georgetown. Bryant won her first women’s open tournament at 14, earning $1,100.
“I thought, ‘I’ll do this forever,’” she said.
Though pool hasn’t been the road to riches the then teenager thought it would be, she said she would not trade her experiences traveling the world to play the sport she loves. She won the world junior championship in 2008 and 2010 and in between captured her first of 19 Canadian titles in 2009.
She is currently sixth in the Women’s Professional Billiards Association rankings and has reached as high as number two.
And her love of the game remains just as strong today.
“I think it’s that you can’t perfect this game. That’s the biggest thing that gets you addicted, or drives you crazy,” she said. “Every game is different. Every shot is different. Knowing you can’t be perfect; you’re just striving to be your best.”
Now Bryant wants to help give others the opportunities she had. In July, she organized the Jack Bryant Memorial Tournament at Tony’s Billiards, where she got her start. The event raised $10,000, which will help three Canadian junior players attend Junior World Championships in Austria.
