Joseph Barone of Bellmore, N.Y., has a passion for pool that resonates not only with his teammates, but his competitors as well. He’s been playing in the APA for about 17 years. Currently, Joseph is the Team Captain of two teams and Co-Captain of one team in the APA Nassau County operated by Ed & Laura Stein.
Joseph’s teammates describe him as very organized and always encouraging. He always informs his teams where to play at what time, who they’re playing and how they rank in the standings. He’s always on time and usually the last one to leave on League night.
“Joseph is so encouraging and patient with his time-outs,” teammate Krista Nielsen said. “He always takes the time to compliment and recognize a player in group texts if they had a big night or if they had a bad night, he’ll say something really encouraging.”
He’s a skill level 7 in 8-Ball and a skill level 8 in 9-Ball. Knowing his teammates strengths and weaknesses assists him in providing the best time-outs. He always supports and encourages his team whether they’re having a great night or not so good one. Joseph is always super accommodating with all the teammates’ schedules and acknowledges that they all balance work, family and other commitments with pool. And, according to his League Operator, Ed, he’s got an amazing collection of APA trophies and patches displayed in his pool room at home!
“His passion for pool is what made me want to be a part of his teams,” Krista said. “He is such a nice, caring person in general. It makes me so happy to be a part of his teams. We all look forward to pool every week because of the environment he created.”