It is with great sadness to announce that one of the great legends of Canadian cue sports has left us today.

Alain “Frenchy” Boutin passed away peacefully earlier today in British Columbia and it was an honor and a privilege to have met him.

The first time I spoke to Frenchy, I thought to myself, here is another delusional person with another bunch of stories, claiming he was on The Jay Leno Show and telling me about all the trick shots that he made on a pool table.

…but after hanging up, I remember feeling that he somehow seemed very genuine, and after doing a little research, sure enough, there he was on The Jay Leno Show, and there he was again doing all kinds of trick shots.

Story after story, they all seemed to be real, and the man from Québec really did have all these talents, charisma, showmanship, sense of humor.  Not only was he an impressive pool player, he was also one of the best table mechanics this country has ever seen.

More importantly, he had good old fashion values that we rarely see today, an honesty about him without any care of what you thought about him, but in a good way.

One of the greatest compliments a person can receive is to be told that he is a good soul by someone who has hours to live.  You are the good soul, my friend and now it is time to rest in peace.

As you said just before we hung up, I will see you on the other side.

Thank you Frenchy, for everything you gave us.  This world will not be the same without you.

God Bless