Greatest 9 Ball Player Dead/alive

[14-1StraightMan]

Best 9-Ball player

Hello to all.

I would like to hear some of your opinions on who is/was the greatest 9 ball player to walk the Earth. If you have a different opinion for the greatest money player and the greatest tournament player please express those opinions as well. I have heard many opinions however I have never seen the greatest players ever match up and play. Usually it is a local player testing his skills against one of the champions. The results are usually the same. I am really interested to hear Keith's opinion but I would like to hear any stories that any of you might have to share.

BKKPOOL

Well, I had lunch with LeRoy Kinman (81 yrs. young) the other day and I picked his brain to see what he thought about this subject. LeRoy a great straight pool player in his own, winning many tournaments. The only player who ever won the College National Championship three times. Also does comentary on the Mosconi & Caras match.
I asked "who was the best 9-ball player that you ever saw and played?
He stated without a doubt it was: Luther Lassiter
Now let me tell you that LeRoy can name, name after name of great players and tell stories on each one.
I asked: who was the best 14-1 player.
He stated: Willie Mosconi in a long match lets say to 300 or more.
In a short match (150) it was Jimmy Caras
He also stated that Lassiter not only was a great 14-1 player but was the best one pocket player along with Eddie Taylor (one pocket & banks). Lassiter was the best all around player that he knew.
He stated that there is nothing wrong with the players of today saying that Earl is the best b/c that is the player of their times and that is who they know. I totally agree with that but if we can bring those old players back. I would put my money of them any day of the week.

 

[markgw]

John, when Efren and Buddy were over there in Houston at Reds, I bet on Buddy to win. At that time, Buddy Hall was recognized as the best 9-ball player in the world, and he still hits them good today. I learned a lot of pool from Buddy and have a lot of respect for his game.

Hey Keith, long time no see! I used to play at hard times alot. I am Mark Kendall but you always called me Great White because of my band anyways good to hear you on here, Good Luck and Take Care Bro, Mark

 

[PoolBum]

Question for Gremlin. I remember watching
Balukas play & she was great, but I don't
remember her being as strong as Alison
or Karen are today. Am I wrong?

I asked Robin Dodson who she thought was the stronger player, Allison or Jean. She said Balukas, hands down.

 

[Biggz]

So everyone knows.. Efren Reyes doesn't have the greatest cue ball of all time!! I know its a shock to you but it's statistical fact. Accu-Stats did a statistical analysis of the games of the top pros for the last 30 years and the one who scored highest was Buddy Hall. He had the fewest errors with regards to cue ball position than any one over a long period of time. Number 2 was Nick Varner in case you were wondering.

As to the question at hand, it isn't right for people to say that Efren's the best 9 ball player ever because he plays other games phenomenal... we're talking purely 9 ball here. In my opinion the Best natural 9 ball player ever was Earl Strickland. His style of play is perfectly suited for 9 ball, with his shotmaking, break, and the fact that he could beat you from any scoreline is extremely impressive. Another strong Accu-stats stat was that Earl Had the most come from behind wins of some large margin than any one.

Another interesting piece of information is that Efren said that Mike Siegel was the most intelligent player he ever played, Siegel said the toughest player he ever played was Earl Strickland.

I also wanted to let people know that I think Efren doesn't have the best cue ball of all time (fact), however I think that Efren has more ability with the cueball than anyone to ever hold a cue. He has proven time and again that no position on the table is safe when he is shooting.. just ask Earl.

With regards to Buddy Hall.. He went like 4 years when he was Gambling without losing a match. That is unprecedented considering he took on all comers and usually gave out a spot. To my understanding when he played EFren he was giving him the 8 ball and beat him out of ten thousand!... so with all that being said here's my list of top 9 ballplayers

1)Earl Strickland
2)Buddy Hall
3)Efren Reyes
4)Johnny Archer
5)Mike Sigel

Hope you guys find this post interesting. I'll be glad to hear your responses. Good Luck and Good Debating!! :thumbup:

P.S.
Don't forget Earl was the best at jumping full cue... he invented it and its another powerful aspect of his game...

Did you say Buddy gave Efren the 8??? I find that hard to believe.
From what I read, the last person to give Efren weight was probably Boy Bicol the first true hustler back in Manila. To my understanding, Efren was still a teenager when he used to get a spot from him. Efren was still climbing up the ladder in the Filipino pool scene back then.
So after Boy Bicol, NOBODY ever gave Efren a spot. Even today, Orcollo would never spot Efren at 54 yrs old!

P.S.
If someone spots Efren the 7&9 playing 10ball don't hesitate to PM me and I will gladly have a bet with you.

 

[soccerfiend]

luther lassiter

 

[Snapshot9]

9 ball

Mike Sigel won more 8 ball titles than he did 9 ball titles.

 

[rayshooter22]

Yup...its sick

Did you say Buddy gave Efren the 8??? I find that hard to believe.
From what I read, the last person to give Efren weight was probably Boy Bicol the first true hustler back in Manila. To my understanding, Efren was still a teenager when he used to get a spot from him. Efren was still climbing up the ladder in the Filipino pool scene back then.
So after Boy Bicol, NOBODY ever gave Efren a spot. Even today, Orcollo would never spot Efren at 54 yrs old!

P.S.
If someone spots Efren the 7&9 playing 10ball don't hesitate to PM me and I will gladly have a bet with you.

Hard to believe isn't it.. But I have word from multiple people who witnessed the match. Buddy beat efren Giving him the 8 in that pool room.They said buddy never missed a ball and tortured Efren. There's quite a few people that will vouch for the fact that buddy played the most picture perfect pool you'll ever see when he was at top form.. Im just relaying what the old timers tell me!! :thumbup:
If I find someone to give efren the 7&9, I'll mortgage my house and we can go together!!!

 

[Johnnyt]

There are just too many great 9-ball players from the past to the present to pick just one. Buddy, Earl, Mike S., Lasiter, Johnny A., McCready, and on and on. Johnnyt

 

[LAlouie]

I'm not going to answer that question specifically, but I will say I enjoy watching Efren the most, from his casual grace at the table to his defining stroke to what he can do to the cueball.

Compared to Efren, everyone else gives me a headache.

 

[Majic]

luther lassiter

I see Lassiter's name come up in this thread many times. I have never seen him play and I hear his 9 ball break was something to see. Does anyone have any footage of him during his prime?

 

[steveinflorida]

The Greatest 9 Ball Player Dead/Alive

LUTHER.

imho

 

[Mr441]

Buddy hall in the mid 70's until the mid 80's played the best 9 ball I've ever seen by far. While I didn't actually see him give Efren the 8, I don't doubt it happened. Buddy played absolutely flawlessly so often it was a joke. I doubt Buddy ever lost a long ahead set of 9 ball, he just made so few mistakes (if any) over long period of time. He was definitely a better gambler than a tournament player. As far as tournaments, I have to go with Earl, 5 U.S. Opens is amazing, and even though he seems out of it now I wouldn't be at all surprised if he came back to win one more.

 

[ipoppa33]

There are Lassiter video's on utube, don't know if there are any of 9-ball. I can't imagine how good some of the old players would have been if they had concentrated on 9 ball from an early age? How good would have Mosconi or Crane or ... been?

Don't know who the best ever is, but my favorite to watch is Buddy Hall.

 

[eze]

BKKPOOL, there haven't been too many Accustats perfect 1000 scores, but Wade Crane did it.

As far as being the best 9-ball player today, it would probably have to be Efren. I've played him in tournaments and I've gambled with him, and he's probably one of the hardest to beat.

When I was at my peak, I could play on all tables, big ball or little ball, and when Efren came to the states as Cesar Moralis, he had no chance to beat me on a bar table, especially with the big cue ball. There wasn't a person breathing who could beat me on a bar box or a 4-by-8 with a big cue ball at that time. But as Efren learned how to play on more tables and more games, he improved and that's how you get to be a world champion. His knowledge of the game is far advanced, and somebody has to get up there and take it from him and make things happen in order to beat him.

Did you and Dave Mattlock ever battle on the bar table with the
big ball?

 

[Rusty C]

Did you and Dave Mattlock ever battle on the bar table with the
big ball?

Yes they played one time in Fort Worth Texas and Matlock robbed him.I asked Buddy Hall once who he thought the best 9 ball player was he said Matlock on the bar table and Nick Varner on the 9 footer.

 

[SK Custom Cues]

It is next to impossible

to agree on who the best player is because there are so many different players from all over who played all over witnessed by people from all over. Don't forget about the multiple decades that span over such an extended period of time with standards that have gone up in some ways and down in others. So many variables to consider by people who have different opinions based on how they grew up, what they learned, and how they play the game, even the games they prefer. It's all so biased and based on favoritism. That's what we should really be asking, who's my favorite?

Unless the same players played at the same place all the time witnessed by the same people all the time, the title of this thread or any other thread like it can never really be satisfied. It will always be in limbo . . . it will always be wondered . . . even if you are Buddy himself. Buddy thinks he was the best from his time, (know this because I knew Buddy personally for a little while) and he has his opinions, but he's just simple pool player with no substantial ambitions left in life. He ain't the end all say all, and he definitely ain't all he is cracked up to be. He is simply a legendary pool player. There are certainly much more ambitious goals of integrity a person can aspire to be in life which could benefit a much wider range of people in a more positive way. If you asked Efren, Earl, Parica, Archer, Varner, Sigel, Mizerak, Mosconi, Lassiter ......... the same thing, they'd probably say the same thing. In order to be that good, you've got to believe, I mean truly believe with every fiber of your being that you're the best, and no one can touch you, even if you're not. You have got to mentally convince yourself that you are, and after enough time passes, that manifests into a reality, and some players simply reign for longer than others based on so many factors.

It sure is a fun topic to bring up though isn't it? I wonder who made the best hitting cue in the world? HMmmm.. now, lemmme see...

 

[catpool9]

Best 9 ballers of all time

From all the post that I've read on this thread and there has been some good post, from the modern era, say 1970 on till today the best 9-Ball players were Buddy,Earl,Siegel,Efren,McCready,Louie Roberts, Mizerack,Archer,Cole Dixion,Denny Searcy, Wade Crane and "The Bar Table King" David Matlock were the best........with Buddy being the best ever on any table IMO,Earl,McCready,Siegel and Efren being the top tier.


What about the old timer "U.J. Puckett", back in his day he played all the greats, he told me and beat them all, he told me he didn't play tournaments hardlly at all but did show up and just play the action, mainly the winner of the tournament if they had the balls to play. He told me he has beaten Greenleaf ,Worst,Carras,Mosconi,Willis,Fats, Jimmy Moore and many more at 9-ball on the big tables, and the only, "The Only One" he feared at all was Luther Lassiter.

Whats your guys take about U.J.Pucketts 9-Ball game?......I wanna know!


David Harcrow

 

[cuetechasaurus]

Its Earl without a doubt.

 

[huckster]

What about the old timer "U.J. Puckett", back in his day he played all the greats, he told me and beat them all, he told me he didn't play tournaments hardlly at all but did show up and just play the action, mainly the winner of the tournament if they had the balls to play. He told me he has beaten Greenleaf ,Worst,Carras,Mosconi,Willis,Fats, Jimmy Moore and many more at 9-ball on the big tables, and the only, "The Only One" he feared at all was Luther Lassiter.

Whats your guys take about U.J.Pucketts 9-Ball game?......I wanna know!


David Harcrow

While I thought the world of UJ he was a great player, but any of the above mentioned playing nineball with the exception of the fatman (I am a huge fan of Fatty not a hater) UJ would have been kept broke. I may have more knowledge on the above list then anyone except a few like the esteemed researcher Terry A. I know Jimmy Moore, Wimpy, and grandpa would have drove day and night to play UJ some 9ball. Not that that is a negative against his game. He was cut from a rare cloth and any game that UJ was "all in" was a game I wanted to bet the same side

 

[catpool9]

While I thought the world of UJ he was a great player, but any of the above mentioned playing nineball with the exception of the fatman (I am a huge fan of Fatty not a hater) UJ would have been kept broke. I may have more knowledge on the above list then anyone except a few like the esteemed researcher Terry A. I know Jimmy Moore, Wimpy, and grandpa would have drove day and night to play UJ some 9ball. Not that that is a negative against his game. He was cut from a rare cloth and any game that UJ was "all in" was a game I wanted to bet the same side

No disrespect to you or your grandpa but I don't think anyone in their right mind would have driven night and day to play pool with a locksmith!


David Harcrow