Here's an interview/discussion from that channel with five of the greats.

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Why does it look like the joint ring is a decal. Can you feel that missing part and see if you can pick at with you fingers.

penguin said:

The business model is to get the stakehorses and rail bettors involved.

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I don't think that's the business model for this match, but I am reminded of:

I wasn't there, but I heard the story from reliable sources. Back when there were some big tournaments in South Lake Tahoe (1980s?), there was a strange one pocket matchup between Ronnie Allen and Bucktooth Cook. The spot was 2-1 with a full rack. Two balls to one ball. The witnesses did not report which of the players came out on top, but the rail lost $30,000.

Bavafongoul said:

For the past couple Xmas holidays, I have given a couple of dear friends Delta Elite racks and included leather inserts since they have pool tables. When I play on their tables, I enjoy racking pool balls that I’ve done all my life before plastic templates came along, even the sound.

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The room I called home during my misspent youth is long gone. But I still have that solid oak wooden rack with the room's name engraved on one side from Table 9, the only 9 footer in the room. Sure it would get a little sticky from time to time from hand oils and humidity. But that's nothing a little wipe down couldn't fix. Thanks for taking me back.

I do still prefer a well built rack. There was something about the balls not always being perfectly racked that made the game a little more interesting and unpredictable. Having said that, I get the need for templates, particularly in the professional realm. If for no other reason, some people got a little too good at racking perfectly imperfect. Of course, there are still moves with a template rack. But it's not quite as easy as it was with a standard rack.