In the world of billiards, Jeanette Lee is arguably one of the most famous players. A killer at the table, she is ‘The Black Widow’ who would dominate her opponents during the 90s. It’s quite praiseworthy that, despite battling terminal cancer, she vows to fight the disease like she would have fought at the billiards table.
Earlier, in February 2021, TMZ revealed Lee was diagnosed with stage four ovarian cancer and had a short time to live. Since then, Lee underwent multiple surgeries in an attempt to slow the cancer.
Though she is living with stage 4 ovarian cancer, the billiards champion is finding ways to live normally, participating in events for therapeutic purposes rather than competitive ones. Her cancer journey was featured in ESPN’s 30 for 30 documentary, Jeanette Lee Vs, which premiered on December 13, 2022.
In her Impact Podcast with John Shegerian in April 2024, she further opened up about her journey with ovarian cancer. The mother of three daughters, Lee, described that she would conquer her battle with cancer.
While she hasn’t been quite as active in billiards over the years, let us look at Jeanette Lee net worth, pool career, and her brief career earnings.
Teenage Delinquent To Pool Champion
Jeanette Lee’s early life was quite vexed. She was a delinquent in her teen years and didn’t use to obey her parents. Suffering from scoliosis in childhood, she believes playing pool healed her completely, as she recounts her early days with CNN.
After discovering the pool in 1989, she became instantly hooked and adopted a new motto of becoming a professional in billiards. Regardless of her traumatic childhood, she became dedicated to playing pool.
A huge salute to her dedication, the result came sooner. Lee became the #1 female pool player during the 1990s, earning the nickname ‘The Black Widow.’
Regardless of her success as a pool champion, it came with some criticisms. The 54-year-old American professional pool player recalls with CNN that she was criticized for getting opportunities in the pool because “she was pretty.”
Jeanette Lee Career Earnings
An American of Korean origin, Lee was 21 when she turned pro and was showered with tons of prize money and awards. The three-time World Nine-ball Championships runner-up won $25,000 in 1999 and 2003 in the winner-take-all tournament.
She won the Sportsperson of the Year Award in 1998 and secured the gold medal for the United States during the 2001 World Games. In the cue-sports competition held in Akita, Japan, from 22 to 26 August 2001, she came in top, defeating English billiard player Karen Corr.
According to her husband, George Breedlove, Lee made career earnings of up to $650 thousand in 2007. Speaking to billiardsdigest.com, Breedlove said he expected the two-time hall-of-fame inductee, Lee, to make almost $1 million from her market deals.
What Is Jeanette Lee’s Net Worth?
With her professional pool career, Jeanette Lee is expected to have a net worth of around $7 million, as per TheSun.
In an interview with indianapolismonthly.com, Lee says a pool player can make a good living on tournament winnings. When asked about how she made money during her teenage years, in the ‘Ask Me Anything‘ session, she said:
“The fact that I’m a woman is the hustle. I could be No. 1 in the world, and some local guy would think, “I can beat her.”
The pool champ also unveiled the price of her Jacoby Custom Cue, which is worth around $3,500.
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The author of ‘The Black Widow’s Guide to Killer Pool,’ Lee is also one of the 2013 inductees of the Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame.
In addition to her career earnings, Lee made her living through sponsorships and endorsements.
