Matt "Quick Draw" Sherman has had a cue stick in his hand since he played on his grandfather's pool table at age 5.
Sherman, 39, said some of his fondest memories playing on a green table were made when he became a UF student in 1988.
The billiards expert will host an interactive exhibition at 7 p.m. tonight in the Reitz Union Game Room to promote his new book, "Picture Yourself Shooting Pool," which will be released today.
At the free demonstration, Sherman will show off some of his trick shots, and prizes will be given away.
Sherman said "The Color of Money," a movie directed by Martin Scorsese about playing billiards for money, was popular during his days at UF and inspired many of his peers to pick up the game.
"When I played at the Reitz Game Room, there were pool fanatics there who played for 10 or 12 hours a day," he said.
Sherman said he earned his moniker, "Quick Draw," because he can teach a person how to do a complicated shot in under a minute.
He calls his quick lessons "edu-trick" shots because his instruction involves education and humor.
"They are the old tricks that hustlers use, so I'm showing them 'Here's how not to get hustled,'" he said.
Sherman said people are sometimes intimidated when they see him do trick shots, but once he shows them how, they walk away with knowledge about pool and physics.
He said he has taught hundreds of students, some of who have gone on to become national champions, fundamental and advanced tricks of pool.
The desire to help people's game drives him, he said.
"If someone has a problem, they have the pool doctor to help," he said.
Sherman directs the UF Pool League and has also worked on charity benefits and taught leisure billiard courses in the Game Room.
Charlotte Dare, manager of the Game Room, has known Sherman since the days he played in college, and she is amazed by his skills as a teacher, she said.
"He's very precise and thoughtful," Dare said. "He's going to talk to the crowd and help them improve their pool skills."
She said the exhibition is a great way to kick off the billiards course Sherman will be teaching during fall semester.
With the release of his first book, Sherman said he wanted the Gainesville community to be the first to see the finished product. Gainesville residents will also be the first to get autographs.
The book is written in textbook style and will be used in Sherman's fall leisure course, he said.
The book, which comes with a demonstration DVD, will be available at tonight's event and at the UF Bookstore for $29.99, said Brent Fisher, the bookstore's trade book manager.
Sherman said he decided to write the book after realizing that a few small adjustments made all the difference in the performance of some of his students.
"I see 99 percent of people do things that are harmful to their game that can improve within moments just by changing the way they stand or hold the cue stick," Sherman said.
