Kelly Fisher - Part 5 (Heart, Grit, and Glory)
In Part 5 of Legends of the Cue, Kelly Fisher, MBE, opens up about some of the most defining — and deeply personal — chapters of her remarkable journey through the world of professional cue sports. From the thrill of championship glory to life-altering challenges off the table, this episode reveals the resilience, humor, and heart that have shaped one of the game’s great champions.
Kelly and her longtime friend and rival, Allison Fisher, revisit the drama of Kelly’s multiple Tournament of Champions victories and her unforgettable World Championship triumphs — including the 2011 10-Ball in the Philippines and the 2012 9-Ball in China, where she didn’t even realize she’d won until moments after the final ball dropped. The laughter continues as the two recall strange venues, lucky rolls, and sisterly banter from decades of shared competition.
But the conversation turns powerfully human when Kelly recounts her battle with health issues — from a congenital heart defect that led to open-heart surgery, to later preventive surgeries after testing positive for the BRCA2 gene. Through it all, her strength and optimism shine, inspiring others facing similar trials.
With her trademark candor and wit, Kelly shares how these experiences changed her outlook, both in life and at the table, and how she found new purpose through advocacy and awareness for women’s health.
This installment captures the very essence of Kelly Fisher — world champion, survivor, and ambassador for the sport she loves. Join us for another unforgettable chapter in this six-part series celebrating a true legend of the cue.
Listen, laugh, and be inspired by a story that proves greatness isn’t just about titles — it’s about heart.
Give Allison, Mark & Mike some feedback via Text.
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Music by Lyrium.
About
"Legends of the Cue" is a pool history podcast featuring interviews with Pool Hall of Fame members, winners of major championships and other people of influence in and around pocket billiards. We also plan to highlight memorable pool brands, events and venues. Focusing on the positive aspects of the sport, we aim to create and provide an engaging and timeless repository of content that listeners can enjoy now and forever. Co-hosted by WPBA and BCA Hall of Fame member Allison Fisher, Mosconi Cup player and captain Mark Wilson, our podcast focuses on telling the life stories of pool's greatest, in their voices. Join Allison, Mark and Mike Gonzalez for “Legends of the Cue.”
Pool Professional
Kelly Fisher’s story is the rare cue-sports journey that doesn’t just cross continents and disciplines, it redefines what “world-class” can mean when talent meets toughness, curiosity, and an unrelenting standard for excellence. Born in South Elmsall in West Yorkshire, she grew up in the kind of close-knit, working-class environment that quietly forges competitors: you learn to stand your ground, you learn to show up, and you learn that results matter. Kelly’s first tables weren’t glamorous arenas under TV lights, they were the everyday proving grounds of English pub culture, where the game is part sport, part social ritual, and part apprenticeship in nerve. That early setting helped shape the trademark qualities fans recognize today: poise under pressure, a steel-threaded mindset, and an ability to lock in when everything is on the line.
Very early on, it became clear she wasn’t simply “good for her age.” She was exceptional, driven, precise, and hungry for structure. That structure arrived in the form of coaching and disciplined training, most notably through long-time mentor Lionel Payne, who has spoken publicly about meeting Kelly when she was still a young teenager and watching her potential ignite into something historic. Their relationship is a key through-line in her career: the belief that talent is only the entry ticket, and the real separation happens in the routines no one sees, repetition, fundamentals, and the willingness to be coached even after you’ve won everything. Kelly herself has repeatedly credited the consistency of that coaching bond over…Read More