Mataya on the soapbox................

Thanks for the thread.

Keith was recently invited to a challenge match with another old-schol player who shall remain unnamed, and he asked me about it. He was kind of excited to get out there and play. Keith loves to shoot pool, especially in front of a camera. That's when he's at his best.

After reading this thread, I am going to share my view about him playing pool, especially if it is live-streamed.

Some of these players devoted their life to pool and to read some of the remarks in this thread make me realize that pool is a thankless sport, and thankless game, and frankly, my dears, I don't give a damn anymore.

I disagree totally with most of the nay sayers. Jimmy knows how to play, hustle and motivate. This sport needs to go back in time when men were men and knew how to make things happen. So what if he's a loudmouth and a drunk - any of you ever have moments like that? Thought so. So back off your non-support of a knowledgeable man and back the Russian. Sounds like modern Amerika to me.

garczar said:

JAM, i'll take two old-school troopers anytime. Sure the younger cats are in their playing prime but a lot of them are like watching paint dry. Tell Keith to play and we'll sweat it. BTW, i saw Matlock in Olathe a couple weeks ago and he told me to say hey to the Ether. So, hey from Dave.

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Keith will probably play. He doesn't take my advice on some things.

I just read more online than he does, and when I read threads like this, I feel like I want to protect Keith from getting hurt. I know it would hurt mine if it were me, but I'm a girl. We are more emotional. :grin-square:

Meanwhile, Keith has always told me he doesn't give a hoot about who says what online. He's got much thicker skin than I do, but he doesn't spend as much time online as I do, either.

I will say that Keith and Jimmy are really good buddies. When we were in Vegas, Jimmy came over and sat with us for dinner. He told Keith about his experience shooting in a straight pool tournament back east. To hear him tell about his experience was hilarious. I was laughing all night long. Keith could see how much Jimmy missed pool and said if Keith made the semifinals, he would ask Jimmy to be his cornerman. They allowed cornermen at this event. Jimmy was thrilled. Unfortunately, Keith didn't make it to the semifinals.

I will show you the respect that the players have with one another, thank goodness.
Shawn Putnam walked in the restaurant where the three of us were at in Vegas, and he whispered in my ear, "Jennie, can you introduce me to Jimmy, please?" He had enough respect for Jimmy that he wanted to meet him. They were both members of the Tribal Nation of Pool, and Shawn wanted to meet him. I thought that was kind of cool.

It's sometimes the pool public or the non-playing pool peeps that enjoy raking the players through the coals on pool forums. For some, that's a sport.

Keith and Jimmy together in Vegas. There wasn't a dull moment the entire night. :rotflmao1::rotflmao1::rotflmao1:

JAM said:

Thanks for the thread.

Keith was recently invited to a challenge match with another old-schol player who shall remain unnamed, and he asked me about it. He was kind of excited to get out there and play. Keith loves to shoot pool, especially in front of a camera. That's when he's at his best.

After reading this thread, I am going to share my view about him playing pool, especially if it is live-streamed.

Some of these players devoted their life to pool and to read some of the remarks in this thread make me realize that pool is a thankless sport, and thankless game, and frankly, my dears, I don't give a damn anymore.

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I realize how deeply you care for pool, and for some sense of civility. And of course Keith ��. But surely you realize that in a world of several billion people, there is no way to hope that everyone will agree, or that in an online world such as this, that there won't be folks that say things that you don't like. It's sad, but it's how things are.

Anyone with even a shred of noteriety is going to have to face criticism. Often unfounded, too. It's human nature, I'm afraid.

I hope to see Keith playing, and putting on a show for folks again. Try not to let the world bring you down, JAM. We need you putting your perspective out here, too!

(Thanks for sharing the photos, all the time. They're great!)

HawaiianEye said:

I hope they get him and Keith to play a match.

If they do, that should be some entertainment.

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Now you're talking! That would be the woof fest for the ages.. you'd
have to have mics on both of 'em!

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On Mataya being the coach of the USA Mosconi team, she is European, how would that make sense? Seem like it would be a little embarrassing in my opinion.

MickeyMantle said:

On Mataya being the coach of the USA Mosconi team, she is European, how would that make sense? Seem like it would be a little embarrassing in my opinion.

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Pretty sure they are talking about Jimmy not Ewa.

Aint that a shame ..

Thats The Name Of A OLD Song Which is LIKE A Lot Of The Players From Back In The Day..OLD..IM Old And Know The Names Being Dropped..ALL Vets From Wars Need to Be Given Passes If Behavior Is Sometimes Wrong,Depending On Who Is Doing The Judging..Talking Wars As In Pool Wars...The Things That Your Old School Players ,Hall Of Fame Players,GambleHolic Players Experienced, Playing For Three Days Straight, Drinking ,Drugging for Some, Take Their Tolls.Behavior Can Be Just Like Gambling?? THE NEXT BEST THING TO WINNING IS LOSING

The soapbox starts here:
https://youtu.be/1ZueKpC1jJU?t=15625

He was awesome!
"I opened up my wallet and there was no money. Just a dead spider!"
:rotflmao::rotflmao:

I just watched SVB vs Warren. I hope I never hear Jimmy's voice again, dang!

Bueller,Bueller

Ben Stiein would be a perfect choice for the Mosconi Cup coach, not some
loud mouth like Jimmy. After all these years of hard work to shed the
horrible image that it had. It was so bad in the 60's through the 90's that
even though there were pool rooms everywhere you still had to wait on a table.
None of that now boy. I can go in now and have my choice of tables and
feel comfortable bringing the whole family.
Jimmy Mataya kills the action PLEASE
Like Jam said, he is funny, a great story teller and gets the place going.
He was in Dallas playing in one of C.J.'s tournaments talking loud, telling
stories, bragging and keeping everyone laughing. I played him in like the
3rd or 4th round. He broke and ran the first 4, but I came back and beat
him 11 to 7. I expected that " you can play me some and bet as high as
you want" routine, but he walked over and said 'congratulations you played
very well'. So all that crap about no class is just that, crap.
jack

At times I laughed so hard I had tears. I would love to hear more of Jimmy doing commentary. Great entertainment.

Jimmy is one of a kind. To know him is to love him. He's full of pool stories and is a joy to be around. I would think he'd complement any commentator in the booth. He knows the game -- all games -- and he's funny.

There may be a match up ahead with some old school-type players. For those who have a disdain for the seasoned veterans, Hall of Famers, and super stars of days gone by, I advise you to watch and learn. Instead of being so critical, open your mind and enjoy the show.

Pool should be fun. Some of the best memories of my life was when I was shooting pool on the leagues. I loved it. We laughed and had so many good times. When I met Keith, we went on the professional tournament trail, and each event, we'd run into the same crew, the same players, and the railbirds. We were family. I might not see some of these folks for 10 years, but when I do, we'll pick up where we left off and start having a good time. That's what pool is for me.

I love seeing excellence on the field of tournament blue, as is the color now of the cloth, but when it was a field of green, man, that was pool's golden years. America had many thoroughbred players, seasoned and newbies, unlike today with only a handful of American Young Guns. The seasoned players can't afford to keep up with a tournament trail that's gone global, so they start their own regional tours and play locally in many instances.

Here's a scene from the Glass City Open in Toledo, OH where we ran into Jimmy. When he saw Keith, the two of them started cutting up and laughing. I just sat back and enjoyed the "The Jimmy and Keith Show." What a great time we had!

arcstats said:

I could see it now with Jimmy the coach. Him spewing all his BS prior to the event, then the US team again gets hammered by the Europeans. Does anyone really think an american team could be assembled to withstand the firepower possessed by the current European pool of talent?



As Mike Tyson once said "Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face". Think about that Jimmy, and how far your nonsense would actually travel.

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Are you European?

JAM said:

Thanks for the thread.

Keith was recently invited to a challenge match with another old-schol player who shall remain unnamed, and he asked me about it. He was kind of excited to get out there and play. Keith loves to shoot pool, especially in front of a camera. That's when he's at his best.

After reading this thread, I am going to share my view about him playing pool, especially if it is live-streamed.

Some of these players devoted their life to pool and to read some of the remarks in this thread make me realize that pool is a thankless sport, and thankless game, and frankly, my dears, I don't give a damn anymore.

Click to expand...

Jen,

I'm guessing you didn't watch the matches in question. I've played in the Andy Mercer and I've played Jimmy. His commentary may have been funny to some people. Found it to be insulting to the players and coach involved. Joined the chat and said so during the stream. Johann was brought in to help guide the players. He had significant success with the European Mosconi teams in the past. Who is Jimmy to say Johann is an unqualified Russian idiot. As we know, he's Dutch. Perhaps Jimmy thought it was all just fun but it did have consequences. This thread for one. Look at your angry response.

Both Mosconi teams use the same table, balls and rules set. This is today, not 1970. Hate jump cues but even Earl has one and uses it. Mine looks great in my case! Shane uses a glove. So did Warren and many others. I've just tried one and like it. The professional game has become used to racking the nine on the spot. Even with the magic style rack. The game has changed and Jimmy is stuck in the past. He might elicit some smiles during the Mosconi but the Europeans have passed us by and the future is even dimmer. JMHO.

Good luck to Keith in his upcoming adventure. I'll be watching for sure. Miss seeing your smiling face. Hope to see you at SBE.

Lyn