Best bar box player
- Thread starter robleyf7
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This question will never be answered, it's probably SVB though right now. There are too many guys who can win even if they play even. After what I saw SVB do to Scott first hand in Des Moines though he gets the nod from me. That was ridiculous to see while he was in gear. It was like 3-5 games it would cost Scott every miss or dry break for a looooong period of time.
Oh I was thinking gambling, but if you're talking tournament since I been in the Midwest Jamie Barracks and Chip Compton might not have missed on the bar box in a year.
If you take and put any of the top players on the bar box. It would depend upon what day it is who is going to win. But I have to agree with Mike that Shane put on a clear exhibition against Scott!!
Well stated...his record @ the bar box championships speaks for itself.
Until somebody knocks him off, he's #1 in my book.
today most likely he's got a debatable claim...now if you mean all time?
today right now? Probably so, but you cant not include SVB and Barrakas its can swing eithr way any day but I'm sure Glenn Atwell aint tryin to get in the box even up for the cash with any of them, i want to say if memory serves correct he and matlock matched up raced to 10 quite a couple years ago and matlock won. If dave is in playing shape then I say David Matlock, if not then I don't know who else is qualified enough to say jessie isn't the man to beat. We can argue from dusk till dawn all time list, but your three picks are going to be keith mccready, buddy hall, and david matlock and throw in vernon elloit too that is from bf all thier generation. With the big rock on the box word is no one ever played matlocks speed.
Keith and David are also friends....they put the fear of god in every man holding a cue no questions asked.
Of everyone matlock has had the longest most successful career, hell he almost won the all around at the Derby city classic just a few years ago (2005?)
jay helfert put it well
I've resisted this thread for days. Nothing will be proved by anybody or anything on here. Keith was a great player, no doubt. And so were Matlock, Hall and Wade Crane. And there were four or five other GREAT bar table players back then as well. Matlock has probably had the longest, most successful career, as he still plays great today. Buddy was the king for a long long time himself.
How these guys compare with today's top players is hard for me to ascertain. I would call it a draw. Playing 9-Ball on a bar table, there are quite a few players who will run out all day. Move it up to Ten Ball and you begin to narrow the field. Make it Eight Ball and you might find out who the best player is. You will never see an "average" player win the BCA Masters division or the U.S. Bar Table Eight Ball or Ten Ball.
What set Keith apart was two things IMO, his fearlessness and the seeming ease in which he ran out. Keith never met a bet he didn't like, or one that bothered him in any way. He was one of those guys (like Alex) that seemed to play better the higher the bet. And Keith could make the hardest shot appear easy. He ran out rack after rack effortlessly, while his opponent worked hard to get out. That will take a toll on your psyche.
Keith's attitude could have a devastating effect on his opponent also. Keith ALWAYS felt like he was going to win and made it clear to all assembled why he felt that way. He never shied away from a hard shot and laughed in the face of difficult situations. He would often announce before shooting what kind of miracle shot he was going to pull off, and then do it. This was hard for other "normal" players to fade.
The above is why many players did not want to tangle with Keith. He had a little too much firepower for them, and they knew it. Keith could come with a bigger shot in a pressure situation than anyone else. And it looked like he never felt the pressure, in fact he thrived on it. Pressure to Keith was like taking another swig of his ever present beer. It was that easy to handle. No one else that I saw play could handle pressure like Keith. Except maybe Ronnie playing One Pocket.
Suffice to say that Keith was an extraordinary pool player, a once in a lifetime player. How good he could have been remains to be argued. Keith's lack of discipline worked against him throughout his career. All I know is that when he entered a tournament and actually showed up to play his match, he faced a very unhappy opponent. They always hoped he wouldn't show, and often he didn't. Keith could, and did, annihilate many a famous player in tournament matches.
I'll never forget his run through the field at the 1984 B.C. Open. He beat one champion after another, none of them getting within three or four games of him. He "stole" that $25,000 from all the best pool players in the world. I know, because I staked him. He made the rest of the field look like they were playing for second. And they were that week. Every time I staked him in a tournament, I knew he had a chance to win. His problem was that most of them were in casinos, and Keith had casino fever all his life. It was a little hard to play a match after he had stayed up all night. If he went to his room to sleep, he was even money to be a no show, or rush down to play his match totally unprepared.
How often he could have won tourneys with proper discipline, no one knows. Sometimes he went years without playing a major tournament. He had talent he could turn off and on in an instant. The rest of the players had to practice long and hard to play good pool. Keith was unique, I will say that. When he was in a playing mode (and not drinking) no one really wanted to mess with him. Very few players ever played him even. Keith did give weight to the world, quite willingly. He was a good horse, a thoroughbred who could carry the weight and win. The best players of his era left him alone for the most part. Only a Buddy, a Matlock or a Wade Crane might play him even. And why would they want to mess with Keith? He was bad action for them, and they knew it.
On the other hand, Keith went looking for good players to gamble with. If he heard about a guy who was playing good and betting high, he wanted to go find him and bust him. And if he found him, that was the usual outcome. Of course, half the time the so called "world beater" would end up getting weight from Keith.
today right now? Probably so, but you cant not include SVB and Barrakas its can swing eithr way any day but I'm sure Glenn Atwell aint tryin to get in the box even up for the cash with any of them, i want to say if memory serves correct he and matlock matched up raced to 10 quite a couple years ago and matlock won. If dave is in playing shape then I say David Matlock, if not then I don't know who else is qualified enough to say jessie isn't the man to beat. We can argue from dusk till dawn all time list, but your three picks are going to be keith mccready, buddy hall, and david matlock and throw in vernon elloit too that is from bf all thier generation. With the big rock on the box word is no one ever played matlocks speed.
Keith and David are also friends....they put the fear of god in every man holding a cue no questions asked.
Of everyone matlock has had the longest most successful career, hell he almost won the all around at the Derby city classic just a few years ago (2005?)
jay helfert put it well
I've resisted this thread for days. Nothing will be proved by anybody or anything on here. Keith was a great player, no doubt. And so were Matlock, Hall and Wade Crane. And there were four or five other GREAT bar table players back then as well. Matlock has probably had the longest, most successful career, as he still plays great today. Buddy was the king for a long long time himself.
How these guys compare with today's top players is hard for me to ascertain. I would call it a draw. Playing 9-Ball on a bar table, there are quite a few players who will run out all day. Move it up to Ten Ball and you begin to narrow the field. Make it Eight Ball and you might find out who the best player is. You will never see an "average" player win the BCA Masters division or the U.S. Bar Table Eight Ball or Ten Ball.
What set Keith apart was two things IMO, his fearlessness and the seeming ease in which he ran out. Keith never met a bet he didn't like, or one that bothered him in any way. He was one of those guys (like Alex) that seemed to play better the higher the bet. And Keith could make the hardest shot appear easy. He ran out rack after rack effortlessly, while his opponent worked hard to get out. That will take a toll on your psyche.
Keith's attitude could have a devastating effect on his opponent also. Keith ALWAYS felt like he was going to win and made it clear to all assembled why he felt that way. He never shied away from a hard shot and laughed in the face of difficult situations. He would often announce before shooting what kind of miracle shot he was going to pull off, and then do it. This was hard for other "normal" players to fade.
The above is why many players did not want to tangle with Keith. He had a little too much firepower for them, and they knew it. Keith could come with a bigger shot in a pressure situation than anyone else. And it looked like he never felt the pressure, in fact he thrived on it. Pressure to Keith was like taking another swig of his ever present beer. It was that easy to handle. No one else that I saw play could handle pressure like Keith. Except maybe Ronnie playing One Pocket.
Suffice to say that Keith was an extraordinary pool player, a once in a lifetime player. How good he could have been remains to be argued. Keith's lack of discipline worked against him throughout his career. All I know is that when he entered a tournament and actually showed up to play his match, he faced a very unhappy opponent. They always hoped he wouldn't show, and often he didn't. Keith could, and did, annihilate many a famous player in tournament matches.
I'll never forget his run through the field at the 1984 B.C. Open. He beat one champion after another, none of them getting within three or four games of him. He "stole" that $25,000 from all the best pool players in the world. I know, because I staked him. He made the rest of the field look like they were playing for second. And they were that week. Every time I staked him in a tournament, I knew he had a chance to win. His problem was that most of them were in casinos, and Keith had casino fever all his life. It was a little hard to play a match after he had stayed up all night. If he went to his room to sleep, he was even money to be a no show, or rush down to play his match totally unprepared.
How often he could have won tourneys with proper discipline, no one knows. Sometimes he went years without playing a major tournament. He had talent he could turn off and on in an instant. The rest of the players had to practice long and hard to play good pool. Keith was unique, I will say that. When he was in a playing mode (and not drinking) no one really wanted to mess with him. Very few players ever played him even. Keith did give weight to the world, quite willingly. He was a good horse, a thoroughbred who could carry the weight and win. The best players of his era left him alone for the most part. Only a Buddy, a Matlock or a Wade Crane might play him even. And why would they want to mess with Keith? He was bad action for them, and they knew it.
On the other hand, Keith went looking for good players to gamble with. If he heard about a guy who was playing good and betting high, he wanted to go find him and bust him. And if he found him, that was the usual outcome. Of course, half the time the so called "world beater" would end up getting weight from Keith.
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Svb
I don't think theres any doubt that right now SVB is the best all around bartable player...I believe he has open invitations to play anyone in the world barbox 8 ,9 or 10 ball....
I don't think theres any doubt that right now SVB is the best all around bartable player...I believe he has open invitations to play anyone in the world barbox 8 ,9 or 10 ball....
ditto
I bet most top 9 footer players could play with him, but he probably gets the most weekly practice on bar tables than most any top pro that I know of personally.
We could debate this person and that person as the best bar box player but right now....NO ONE, not SVB, nor anyone has attained this feat since the inception of the US Bar Box Championships in Las Vegas....Glenn Atwell this year was in ALL THREE finals, nine ball, ten ball and eight ball and won one of the three. He won the ALL Around for this event. I repeat NO ONE has ever done that before. Not SVB, not Keith, not Matlock.
Didn't Cliff Joyner win every division at the bar table championship? Maybe it was just eight and nine ball when he won.
Eddie Taylor was a little before the U.S. Bar Table Championship. You are thinking of Johnston City.
When I lived in Omaha NE, I played who I personally believe is/was the best bar box player, Dave Matlock.
I also played Scott Frost when he was about 20 years old, and he was incredible. Had absolutely no fear!!
Haven't had the pleasure of seeing SVB, Glenn, or any other pro players play on a bar box.
I also played Scott Frost when he was about 20 years old, and he was incredible. Had absolutely no fear!!
Haven't had the pleasure of seeing SVB, Glenn, or any other pro players play on a bar box.
gpeezy
for sale!
I don't knw how you can pick one. Everyone runs out. It goes on to the best racker, breaker, mover(on and off the playing surface). I'm tellin you, when it comes to any champion getting in gear on one of those damn things you are waiting on a skid or a table roll. Till then its all run out pool.
Match Shane VanBoening up with Bowman or Atwell or anyone else you can think of in a race to 100 on a bar box and let me know how much you want to bet. Shane is clearly the best bar box player in the world and is willing to play anyone out there in 8, 9, or 10 ball to prove it.
Jesse Bowman doesn't come to the Bar Box Championships in Reno or go anywhere else. Glenn had an awesome week in Reno last February, but it takes more than a good week to be called the best bar box player in the world.
I don't think either of these guys would put their money up against SVB in a race to 100 on the bar box.
Jesse Bowman doesn't come to the Bar Box Championships in Reno or go anywhere else. Glenn had an awesome week in Reno last February, but it takes more than a good week to be called the best bar box player in the world.
I don't think either of these guys would put their money up against SVB in a race to 100 on the bar box.