i just want to say thanks bob for putting on the 14.1 challenge at the derby.first off you put up 10,000 of your own money and you sat there all week and let us play.the players ive talked to them and believe me ,they love the event.its almost like playing golf ,its just you against the course to see what score you can post and if someone gets a better score they win. there is no argument on the rack,no hooking your opponent if you miss etc etc.what was really nice is you could polish the balls without any arguments.furthermore mika,charlie,johnny,mike davis and a few others specifically asked me if they could use the set of polished aramiths i brought with me .i said sure and at the end of the tourney all those guys told me thanks and they loved the way the balls played ,especially the cueball.i mentioned all that about the balls because there seems to be a differing opinion on weather you should polish the balls and cueball before a match. i and most of the top players agree its the only way to go.thats why i clean the cueball off before every rack because you wont get skids as often.also you can do way more with the cueball,like kill shots,finess draw,and the rails wont play boingy.anyway again bob thanks for everything youve done for pool, i and the rest of the guys want to say thanks bigtime.