Special thanks to John Schmidt and Earl Strickland for coming to Des Moines and doing their exhibition. Mark Cantrill is a funny guy and very personable. They make a really good team. I liked how Earl and John were mingling with the locals and actually trying to pump people up. Each of them left a great impression on me.
I was talking to Earl and in case you didn’t know 9-Ball should be played on a 5x10 or with much tighter pockets. Also he’s all skill, I know he’s all skill because he said it, too many times but each time in a different more hilarious way. He said he will be back in the winner’s circle and I really hope so. He was doing his stroke shots and just whipping the cue ball around the table. John comes up and nails the same shot 3 or 4 times in a row, except John has to jump into the shots and use all he has to get the ball there, Earl just shoots them regular. Amazing to see a ball struck the way Earl hits them.
John mixed it up with a local player playing some even one hole. Very good match and I can see how John was able to win the Derby. A lot of critics say he doesn’t move well in that game, I can tell you now the man moves like a ghost. All that straight pool also just adds to his game. He had runs in the 40s, 50s, and 60s during the exhibition on a table that wasn’t really fast enough and had a slate seam issue and did not flat out dog a single ball. He’s also super funny and full of great stories. Definitely a person to meet and learn a thing or two about the game from.
Mark was absolutely hilarious.I believe he is around pool too much because this is a story he told me a whole story in only pool terms that had absolutely nothing to do with pool. I do think he needs to work on his break and not blame my cue.
I was talking to Earl and in case you didn’t know 9-Ball should be played on a 5x10 or with much tighter pockets. Also he’s all skill, I know he’s all skill because he said it, too many times but each time in a different more hilarious way. He said he will be back in the winner’s circle and I really hope so. He was doing his stroke shots and just whipping the cue ball around the table. John comes up and nails the same shot 3 or 4 times in a row, except John has to jump into the shots and use all he has to get the ball there, Earl just shoots them regular. Amazing to see a ball struck the way Earl hits them.
John mixed it up with a local player playing some even one hole. Very good match and I can see how John was able to win the Derby. A lot of critics say he doesn’t move well in that game, I can tell you now the man moves like a ghost. All that straight pool also just adds to his game. He had runs in the 40s, 50s, and 60s during the exhibition on a table that wasn’t really fast enough and had a slate seam issue and did not flat out dog a single ball. He’s also super funny and full of great stories. Definitely a person to meet and learn a thing or two about the game from.
Mark was absolutely hilarious.I believe he is around pool too much because this is a story he told me a whole story in only pool terms that had absolutely nothing to do with pool. I do think he needs to work on his break and not blame my cue.
