The Hustled

Sixteen-year-old Cavalier “Cav” McTavish grows up in a broken home in Lawrence, Kansas, where his life collapses after his father is shot during a botched bank robbery and Cav is soon thrown out onto the streets.

He finds refuge in Jasper's, a legendary action pool hall where the owner, former pro player Jasper, takes him in and teaches him not just pool but the deeper mechanics of gambling—geometry, psychology, deception, and control.

Determined to stay clean despite the world around him, Cav develops into a formidable player, eventually traveling with Jasper and scoring major wins, including a big payday at Mosconi's in Philadelphia, before heading to Los Angeles. There he partners with Jimmy, a street-smart hustler who finds the action while Cav handles the table, and together they build a winning streak until a call from Brazilian gambler Fredrico offers a $200,000 freeze-out nine-ball match in Rio. The opportunity seems like easy money, but the stakehorse is Marco, a mysterious billionaire tied to Brazil's emerald trade, and the match must be played in Rio with no exceptions.

With no passports and little understanding of international travel, Cav and Jimmy struggle through the visa process until Marco intervenes with powerful connections to clear their path, and what Cav believes is his biggest score yet becomes something far larger as he and Jimmy prepare to leave America for the first time—bound for Rio.