Friday night, one of the biggest names in billiards, Florian “Venom” Kohler, put on a show of breathtaking proportions when he came to Oops Alley for the American Poolplayers Association (APA) of Santa RosaCounty. The 27 year old French trick shot artist performed double masse, multi-rail, and long jump shots many times with audience members used as obstacles to avoid.
Kohler’s girlfriend, Iana Henson, said he earned the nickname “Venom” for how he attacks the ball. “He’s like poison to the table. The masse shots, he goes vertical.” To give the cue ball the curve it travels in a masse shot, Venom strikes almost straight down on it, usually sitting on the edge of the table. Masse shots send the ball in a curved path.
Kohler’s celebrity comes mostly through social media. His YouTube channel, Venom Trickshots, has 140,658 subscribers and his Facebook page of the same name has over 25,000 likes. He’s also made appearances on the Youtube channel Dude Perfect demonstrating trick shots. However, he said it’s a different sort of popularity than other sports where he’s generally noticed when he goes into a pool hall, but not many other places.
Even as good as he is, Kohler said it’s not easy making a living in pool. He said his aim is to bring a younger crowd into pool and move past the image of hustling often coming with the game. “I want to give it a new edge,” he said, a break from the old school.
While his skill is phenomenal, don’t ask him how he does it. Kohler said he’s often asked how he pulls off his amazing shots, but his answer may be unsatisfying. “They always want to know how it’s done, but it’s hard. It’s more instinct,” he said.
After leaving Santa RosaCounty, Kohler said he was on his way back to Vegas where he lives for four shows, then it was on to Atlanta, Malta, Canada, Missouri, Mississippi, Alabama, and Arkansas.
While the audience enjoyed a spectacular show, Troy Seay and his family also received some community help. The APA raffled off a cue stick for Seay’s medical expenses as he works through steps post lung transplant surgery. Rick Eisenzimmer spent $100 in tickets according to APA SRC league owner Matt Miley. The family received $400. Brian Scott, Seay’s stepfather said the APA did a great job on short notice to help the family. Scott said Seay is doing well now in Pittsburgh after the operation and is looking forward to visiting in September if all goes well.
As for Venom, Miley said as the owner now of the Escambia APA league as well as SRC he’d like to bring the trick shot master back to northwest Florida for a show during Gallery Night in downtown Pensacola.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Venom strikes at Oops Alley