By Elliott West
Introduction
Leo McMackin was a talented pool and snooker player. Nicknamed ‘Leo the Hat’, due to his instantly recognisable trilby hat, McMackin was a pool ace who literally lived up to the definition of being a hustler, sniffing out his opponents across pubs and clubs in the south of England for over three decades.
Leo’s Lifestyle
Leo spent a spell in Birmingham before moving to London to work as a labourer. A charismatic Irishman who came into contact with asbestos but wouldn’t find out until years later the devastating consequences of this close contact with this former poisonous building substance. In the meantime, McMackin would move to Swindon in the early 1960s and eventually settled in Park North with his wife Margaret.
It was here that Leo first got the bug for playing pool, becoming his main pastime aside from football and snooker. The Irishman described his talent saying:
“My strength was as a close potter and then I discovered pool which suited my game because all the pots were close.”
This hidden skill caused his career to really take off in 1981, winning seven tournaments in a row and it was then that it dawned on him that he had something. Leo entered a big national tournament with over 5,000 players and won the South of England section. This win allowed him to travel to America for the finals and he subsequently won the tournament. A victory that opened his eyes and caused McMackin to make the decision to become a professional pool player.
Leo’s success in the USA led him to earn a place with the English Pool Association and went on to join the breakaway Professional Pool Players Organisation. He rose up the rankings and had a high of reaching fifth in the pool rankings. In later life, he came runner-up in the National Trickshot Championship. A player who used to hustle with punters for a four-ball start. A glorious episode in his life that he later recalled, saying:
“I always won more than I lost and came away with a profit at the end of the night doing something that I love doing.”
Sadly Leo’s encounter with asbestos, caused him to become terminally ill with asbestosis, an illness caused by coming in contact working in the factories of London 40 years beforehand and caused him to need a lifesaving lung operation. A selfless man, who ended up bed-bound with tubes continued to a breathing machine. A diagnosis that left the Irishman knowing that it was only a matter of time before he passed away.
Despite this terrible news, McMackin always remained positive and charming to the end. In his last days, Leo organised a campaign to raise £5 million pounds for children’s cancer charities, a cause that was close to his heart and one that he was determined to make a monetary impact with, making it his last single act in life, setting an initial target of £20,000. Leo was a charismatic figure who often played Jimmy White and can be summed up by a tribute from a well-wisher of the time :
“Leo you keep battling mate because it’s not just pool that needs gents like you it’s life generally and how much better would the world be if it was full of Leos?’ It’s a much-loved reputation that Leo has built up since arriving from his native County Donegal at the age of 17”.
