Roberts was born in
Liverpool on 12 June 1823 to a
Welsh family. Before taking up
English billiards, he worked as a
carpenter. He managed the Union Club billiards room in
Manchester from 1845 to 1852 after spending some time in
Oldham as a billiard marker, a role that involved keeping the score of billiards matches. He then became
landlord of a hotel, The Griffin. In 1847, his son
John Roberts Jr was born.
Edwin Kentfield, known as Jonathan Kentfield, was the self-declared
champion of billiards when Roberts challenged him for the title in 1849. Kentfield declined to play, and so Roberts styled himself as champion, a title he held unchallenged until 1870, when he lost to
William Cook. Roberts embarked on a playing tour of
Australia and
New Zealand in 1864–65. Roberts died on 27 March 1893 at
Stratford, London. == References ==