Though he taught himself to play, at age 14 he ran 89 balls in straight pool at a local pool room. He called each shot in advance. His parents replaced the smaller table with a full size tournament table. Over the next ten years some of the best players, including Willie Hoppe and Andrew Ponzi, came to practice with Crne. Despite consistent play throughout his teenage years, Crane did not enter any tournaments until he was 23 years old.