Fats agrees to continue after Bert labels Eddie a 'loser'. Eddie gets ahead $11,000 and Charlie tries to convince him to quit, but Eddie insists the game will end only when Fats says it is over. He sends out a runner, Preacher, to Johnny's Bar, ostensibly for whiskey, but really to get professional gambler Bert Gordon to the hall. After initially falling behind, Eddie surges back to being $1,000 ahead and suggests raising the bet to $1,000 a game Fats agrees. Fats arrives and he and Eddie agree to play straight pool for $200 a game.

Arriving at Fats' home pool hall, Eddie declares he will win $10,000 that night. Small-time pool hustler Fast Eddie Felson travels cross-country with his partner Charlie to challenge the legendary player Minnesota Fats. In 1997, the Library of Congress selected The Hustler for preservation in the United States National Film Registry as being 'culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.' The Academy Film Archive preserved The Hustler in 2003. Its exploration of winning, losing, and character garnered a number of major awards it is also credited with helping to spark a resurgence in the popularity of pool. The Hustler was a major critical and popular success, gaining a reputation as a modern classic. It was followed by The Color of Money in 1986, with Newman reprising his role. The film was shot on location in New York City and stars Paul Newman as Eddie Jackie Gleason as Minnesota Fats Piper Laurie as Sarah and George C.

He throws his raw talent and ambition up against the best player in the country, seeking to best the legendary pool player ' Minnesota Fats'. It tells the story of small-time pool hustler 'Fast Eddie' Felson and his desire to break into the 'major league' of professional hustling and high-stakes wagering that follows it. The Hustler is a 1961 American sports romantic drama film directed by Robert Rossen from Walter Tevis's 1959 novel of the same name, adapted by Rossen and Sidney Carroll.

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