Straight pool
1.Mike Sigel 2.Earl Strickland 3.Clif Joyner 4.John Schmidt 5.Thorsten Hohman These are in no particular order.
1.Mike Sigel 2.Earl Strickland 3.Clif Joyner 4.John Schmidt 5.Thorsten Hohman These are in no particular order.
Greatest straight pool player alive
- Thread starter Mr441
- Start date
...441 may have a point. John is one of my favorite players and I like watching him play straight pool. Somehow it escaped my notice that he hasn't won any straight pool titles, as good as he plays.
But let's be fair - "many" guys haven't run over 400, 10 other guys have officially done it and 13 if you want to count the unofficial runs. Can't sneeze at doing such a thing in practice cuz afaik all of these high runs in are in practice (or exhibition). Really you can't knock it no matter what the circumstances. It's something amazing and it's not like it's a fluke, john rains hundreds and has many 200's too. He's hit 400 twice.
Not sure why john hasn't won some of the (few and far between) 14.1 events but I'm rooting for him to do so soon. Wonder what his reaction will be when he notices this thread? Maybe he'll come woofing after you mr.441 =) ...that'd be a cool match if you came by your nickname the same way mr. 400 came by his.
But let's be fair - "many" guys haven't run over 400, 10 other guys have officially done it and 13 if you want to count the unofficial runs. Can't sneeze at doing such a thing in practice cuz afaik all of these high runs in are in practice (or exhibition). Really you can't knock it no matter what the circumstances. It's something amazing and it's not like it's a fluke, john rains hundreds and has many 200's too. He's hit 400 twice.
Not sure why john hasn't won some of the (few and far between) 14.1 events but I'm rooting for him to do so soon. Wonder what his reaction will be when he notices this thread? Maybe he'll come woofing after you mr.441 =) ...that'd be a cool match if you came by your nickname the same way mr. 400 came by his.
hi
in fairness to me ive only played in a few 14.1 tourneys.
qualifier for worlds in 2000 1st
worlds in 2000 9th
legends of 14.1 in 03 1st
world 14.1 06 9th
world 14.1 07 5th
world 14.108 5th
derby challenge 3rd,3rd,4th,and high run prize this year.
accu stat invitational this year also had high run of event.
also as far as the alex match i won two games bad and lost the next game 298 to 300 .then he won the next game.
so we were about even on balls and games and i havent been able to get him to play since.
also have run 400 or more twice with witnesses and 46 runs over 200 with about 500 runs over 150.
anyway it aint much but for a guy whos played 14.1 only a handful of times when it counts thats the best i can do.
maybe things will fall together and ill win the one tourney a year where we play 14.1. take care
i can see why you feel that way but.
in fairness to me ive only played in a few 14.1 tourneys.
qualifier for worlds in 2000 1st
worlds in 2000 9th
legends of 14.1 in 03 1st
world 14.1 06 9th
world 14.1 07 5th
world 14.108 5th
derby challenge 3rd,3rd,4th,and high run prize this year.
accu stat invitational this year also had high run of event.
also as far as the alex match i won two games bad and lost the next game 298 to 300 .then he won the next game.
so we were about even on balls and games and i havent been able to get him to play since.
also have run 400 or more twice with witnesses and 46 runs over 200 with about 500 runs over 150.
anyway it aint much but for a guy whos played 14.1 only a handful of times when it counts thats the best i can do.
maybe things will fall together and ill win the one tourney a year where we play 14.1. take care
john i dont know much about 14.1 but who do you think is the best 5.
and is there one player who you think is the best.
like i think orculo is for 10 ball.
hi
im thinking guys like hohmann,engert,ortmann,robles,garcia,hokins,harriman,sigel,souquet,etc. their is about 10 that are great.
p.s. orcullo is great but i still think you can win with the 78.
im thinking guys like hohmann,engert,ortmann,robles,garcia,hokins,harriman,sigel,souquet,etc. their is about 10 that are great.
p.s. orcullo is great but i still think you can win with the 78.
i like that game i know i can win.
i did not play great on him i didnt play bad either.
when we played i felt like i got good and bad rolls but with him they were all bad.
not taken anything from him but yes i still like the game.
John, have you and any other top 14.1 guys ever talked about doing a big TAR match? I think a lot of people would pay to see you and Thorsten play a big money 1000 or 500 point match. I know Thorsten doesn't gamble but I'm sure he'd have no trouble finding a backer. Or maybe you vs Mika? I think it would be more exciting than 10 ball because a player could be literally a few points from victory and his opponent could still run 100+ and out for the win. I think it would be great.
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it's a little late in life for efren to start it, on the other hand this is the one game where age doesn't seem to slow you down a lot, maybe cuz a lot of your shots will be short ones. Anyway efren doesn't age like a normal player.
I was really surprised to see Earl got one of the highest runs on record, over 400. Earl seems like the kind of guy who'd spit on straight pool and wouldn't run more than 200 without getting bored. Maybe if you put a gun to his head. Obviously he has the shooting talent to play with the best, it'd be interesting to see him and some other champion 9-ballers get serious about the game.
I was really surprised to see Earl got one of the highest runs on record, over 400. Earl seems like the kind of guy who'd spit on straight pool and wouldn't run more than 200 without getting bored. Maybe if you put a gun to his head. Obviously he has the shooting talent to play with the best, it'd be interesting to see him and some other champion 9-ballers get serious about the game.
That would be cool to see.
How long did those 400 ball matches between John and Danny H take?
In the old days with Mosconi and Caras and them guys, weren't some of the games races to 1000 in blocks of 400 or 500 or something like that? Perhaps they could do one match to 1000 over 2 or 3 days.
As a youth, I was lucky enough to watch a couple of these 1,000 point matches. One of the ones I witnessed worked as follows:
Day 1, afternoon: Play until one of the players reaches 250, leave the position intact during the break of a few hours
Day 1, evening: Play continues until one of the players has reached 500, leave the position intact overnight
Day 2, afternoon: Play continues until one of the players has reached 750, leave the position intact during the break of a few hours
Day 2, evening: Play continues until one of the players reaches 1,000 points.
Alternatively, the match could take place over a four day period, with one session a day. Typically, total playing time would be about 20 hours.
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Best player alive? I'd go with Ray Martin. Best player at the moment, Schmidt, Ortmann, Feijen, Hohmann, etc take your pick.
Creedo, Earl plays staright pool really well. He had the high run at the 1999 National 14.1 Championships in NYC, it was 130 I believe, I've never seen balls run so effortlessly in my life. I'm not saying his patterns were as perfect as Mizerak's or Sigel's but he just made it look easy with his phenomenal shooting skills.
Oliver Ortmann
If I could pick just ONE player in a calcutta in a major 14.1 tournament, I would take Oliver Ortmann.
He's won 10 German 14.1 Championships, 5 European 14.1 Champions, 2 U.S. Open 14.1 Championships as well as the World 14.1 Championship.
John Schmidt would be my 2nd choice.
My dear friend SJM and I have had some discussion over Ortmann's pattern play and where SJM ranks him all time, but one thing for certain...him and John Schmidt are two of the very best shotmakers in 14.1. Guys like Ortmann, Schmidt and Reyes may not play "classic" patterns like some of the great elites of the past, but they sure can come with the toughest shots while under the gun.
As far as greatest "living player", not active, Mike Sigel (half-active I guess), Dallas West, Ray Martin, Nick Varner and Ed Kelly come to mind.
Jim Rempe, Frank McGown, Danny DiLiberto, and Grady sure could play as well!
Great thread!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-W-hcQYC70&feature=PlayList&p=9438DCB4EB740812&index=0
If I could pick just ONE player in a calcutta in a major 14.1 tournament, I would take Oliver Ortmann.
He's won 10 German 14.1 Championships, 5 European 14.1 Champions, 2 U.S. Open 14.1 Championships as well as the World 14.1 Championship.
John Schmidt would be my 2nd choice.
My dear friend SJM and I have had some discussion over Ortmann's pattern play and where SJM ranks him all time, but one thing for certain...him and John Schmidt are two of the very best shotmakers in 14.1. Guys like Ortmann, Schmidt and Reyes may not play "classic" patterns like some of the great elites of the past, but they sure can come with the toughest shots while under the gun.
As far as greatest "living player", not active, Mike Sigel (half-active I guess), Dallas West, Ray Martin, Nick Varner and Ed Kelly come to mind.
Jim Rempe, Frank McGown, Danny DiLiberto, and Grady sure could play as well!
Great thread!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-W-hcQYC70&feature=PlayList&p=9438DCB4EB740812&index=0
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It sounds like a treat to watch, earl's quick two-stroking would make straight pool appealing for even the most casual ESPN fan. I have exactly one video of him playing at the maine event and nothing else. I can't see any more listed on accu-stats either. Could it be earl last competed at a big straight pool tournament 14 years ago?!
I once read somewhere where someone quoted on watching Earl and Efren play straight pool (not against each other).
They said Earl's was a lot of firepower with great shot-making.
They said Efren's was absolute finesse.
I think both styles would be awesome to watch.
It's Niels, the World Champion 14.1 and 4 times European 14.1 winner in the last 7 years. Their is no one (active top player) with this record. Hohmann and Schmidt are next.
This is of the active top players in the field. The Pinoy's are close but don't play the game enough. Souquet and Ortmann are also dangerous in the game.
Just my 2 cents
This is of the active top players in the field. The Pinoy's are close but don't play the game enough. Souquet and Ortmann are also dangerous in the game.
Just my 2 cents
NYC cue dude
Banned
This post isn't entirely accurate. In the last 3 world championships, Hohmann and ortman have each won it once, but Thorsten has finished MUCH higher in the events he didn't win. I beleive he has won the European championships 2x as well, with significantly higher averages. More importantly, Thorsten has NEVER LOST TO ORTMANN IN COMPETITION.
My top 4 in order,
Hohmann
Ortmann
Engert
Mika
Rg
Where would you put Schmidt, Harriman, Souquet and Feijen?
I'd guess that Schmidt has more 100 ball runs than Hohmann. What do you think?
Probably right, Dennis. John is very prolific in running centuries. The player from history who, like John, mass-produced big runs in practice was Art "Babe" Cranfield, believed to have run over 700 twice. Irving Crane, in my presence, guessed that Cranfield had more 300 ball runs in practice than anyone in the game's history.
Personally, I think John plays better 14.1 than Harriman, Souquet, and Feijen, and I would expect him to prevail in a long race against any of them. I think that, of the three, Feijen would prove the toughest test.