Philadelphia Billiards Club brings home a world championship

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Is Philadelphia a new city of champions?

If you ask Team LepLife, who just won the American Poolplayers Association 9-ball championship in Las Vegas this summer, the answer is a resounding yes.

The billiards club, headquartered out of the Crazy Leprechaun Restaurant and Bar in the Port Richmond section of Philadelphia, beat out 560 other billiards clubs from around the world to win the championship.

Michael Quinn is the owner of the Crazy Leprechaun and still can't believe they won.

"It's still surreal. Sometimes I think, 'did we really do that?' We spent two weeks out in Las Vegas playing pool for 17 hours each day," said Quinn.

The American Poolplayers Association is the country's largest amateur pool players league and holds its championship tournament in Las Vegas every year.

Starchelle Goris credits the team's bonding and closeness as the key to their success.

"It takes heart. Can't have an ego in this sport. That's what it takes to win. Other teams were cussing and throwing a fit when they'd miss a shot. Not us. I want everyone to recognize the love we have for each other. That's how you win," said Goris.

Quinn says owning and operating a bar during the pandemic was tough enough.

"For two years straight, I wasn't allowed to have a customer in here, but our team practiced when we could. We put the hours in when we could. We bonded. And we got hot, when it counted, that's how we won."

To learn more about the American Poolplayers Association, you can visit https://poolplayers.com