Why all the hate for team USA?

[justadub]

While I at least partially agree with you it is much more complicated than that. How far away from each other are the farthest players in Europe? Couple that with very cheap flights within the EU (at least it was that way when I was stationed there). That is a recipe that will lend itself to be more successful than what the Americans have. Johnny lives in what Atlanta? Shane South Dakota? Earl New York? No idea where Dennis or Rodney live but it is likely not close to the others.

Mika lives in New York. Appleton lives where, Pennsylvania? They are far closer to Earl than their EU teammates.

On another note I still have a hard time understanding the format of the Mosconi. 9 on the spot? Small break box? Short races? Where else do you see those rules? The short race is fine given that it is a televised event (at least in Europe). I do not understand the break box or the 9 on the spot. Yeah I understand they do not want just break and run and break and run but if that is what they are worried about then they are playing the wrong game. Play the game made for a short format (10 ball) rather than confining an existing game to be played the way that you want.

The break box is designed to keep it from break and run fests, because the 9-ball break is too easy for the pro's. It has made virtually every rack something that has to be managed, and played out. I love how its worked. It is a TV show first. If you can't understand and accept that, then you had probably better not watch it, or concern yourself with it.

 

[SouthernDraw]

just a question in regards to this.....

consider the following

- EU had easier layouts (at least so is claimed)
- most breaks were dry breaks or no shot available after break

This means that usually when EU came to the table, it was after US-team had already been on it either breaking or playing right? Does that not then mean that EU was better managing the table and/or breaking better? If they never have to shoot a tough shot, does it not then mean that either their position play is perfect or team US messed up and left an easy shot?

What is there to gripe about then? Accept, adjust and move on.

cheers,
Kimmo

Hi Kimmo,
I know this is a forum and not spoken language and it is impossible for you to know if I'm griping, but please understand that my statement was not a gripe but an observation.

If I read your post correctly, you don't disagree that the Euros had easy layouts. And I agree with you that they managed their layouts well.

Please also note that I started by saying that the US team was over emotional at the beginning. They missed several key safeties, over ran shape, and had a couple of scratches. The Euros understand the importance of maintaining your emotions in short races.

I do appreciate your post, it reminds me of how quickly emotional and argumentative forum participants are.

Respect, Courage, and Commitment!

 

[Pathetic Shark]

Agree 100%. Please stop whining about rolls. USA had their chances and they made some crucial mistakes. There were rolls, but it's not like team Europe broke, made balls and got Mickey Mouse layouts. Instead most of the games started with push outs, safety battles etc. The previous years there was a lot of whining about the break being a huge advantage to the Europeans, the Americans got their way, and now no one can make a ball on the break. Still the Europeans win.

There is also a lot of whining about the short races. This is an entertainment program. While the result could have been different over a long race, this is not what the situation is in the Mosconi Cup. Sure there is more luck involved with short races, but the fact is that the European team has very seasoned international tournament players that are on the top of their game. These kind of players shine in the situations which occur a lot with short races, they excel in high pressure situations and are focusing on every shot.

I also believe the US team made a fatal mistake of pumping themselves up to much before the start of the first game. Then after they lost a couple of matches, they just deflated. The emotional rollercoaster may work for Strickland, but it seems to have a negative effect on everybody else. The Europeans tried to keep their emotions at bay and just focusing on the task at hand, never taking anything for granted. This, in my opinion is a better strategy for dealing with the pressure.

Agree on all that. 8-2 is about right overall but 10-0 wouldn't have been flattering. The Americans were highly fortunate to win two out of the last three matches.

As for their strategy, it was clear: get the crowd pumped up and ride the surge of adrenaline until the Euros folded. That one backfired somewhat lol.

 

[Shannon.spronk]

The break box is designed to keep it from break and run fests, because the 9-ball break is too easy for the pro's. It has made virtually every rack something that has to be managed, and played out. I love how its worked. It is a TV show first. If you can't understand and accept that, then you had probably better not watch it, or concern yourself with it.

I will concern myself with whatever I please and yes I understand that it is a TV show. I acknowledged that fact. I said they should play a game better suited for TV rather than take a game that is very commonly played a different way and change it to suit their needs.

As far as the break box goes I enjoy watching the run-outs. So when I voice my misunderstanding with the break box then that is me choosing to concern myself with it. It is not like that break box is a long standing tradition for how the break is done at the Mosconi Cup.

As far as the location of European players goes even the ones that live in the US are far closer to each other than any of the American players that I listed.

 

[justadub]

I will concern myself with whatever I please and yes I understand that it is a TV show. I acknowledged that fact. I said they should play a game better suited for TV rather than take a game that is very commonly played a different way and change it to suit their needs.

As far as the break box goes I enjoy watching the run-outs. So when I voice my misunderstanding with the break box then that is me choosing to concern myself with it. It is not like that break box is a long standing tradition for how the break is done at the Mosconi Cup.

As far as the location of European players goes even the ones that live in the US are far closer to each other than any of the American players that I listed.

I know I should resist, however...

Exactly what existing pool game is better suited for TV? There isn't one. Thats why Matchroom has developed this the way they have. 10-ball isn't better for TV, its going to be slower, because of call-shot/no slop. The way Matchroom has their game set up, it moves quickly, and is as exciting as pool can be. Purists might not like it, but as far as a TV production, its very, very good.

Without spending a ton of time googling, I still think having two of team EU on this side of the pond makes them further away than the team US guys. Which is a moot point anyway, since the US guys aren't gonna hang together if they were across the street from each other.

 

[Straightpool_99]

Why are Euros better at MC? Top to bottom they're team has superior tournament players. We have no system of developing young tournament players. In the past, gambling developed our young players and then some transitioned into tourney players. Others were simply not well fitted for tournament's short races. Takes too much time to acclimate to table, get in stroke, get in the zone, etc. Even Shane is much better suited to long races, although he is still really good at tournaments.

BTW, 20 to Life broke our gambling pipeline of talent. 20-2-Life put many drug lords in jail when their Lt's become rats (they weren't willing to do that much time). Today there is less untaxed money floating around. And Drugs and prostitution funded gambling in the past.

This may sound harsh, but I have to comment on this. While I do not like the prison state thinking of locking up small time, non-violent drug offenders for decades that is in vogue in the US at the moment, I must seriously question your line of reasoning here. I do not think drug money is the solution to the problems that US pool are facing today.
The fact is that US pool is fragmented, does not have a unified tour, does not take pool seriously as a sport. When you read the forum it is blatantly obvious that many americans view pool mostly as a gambling vehicle. This has many negative repercussions on the development of young players. Coaching is viewed negatively by many, winning tournaments have little prestige and kids are kept out of pool halls by their parents. Most of the places I have been in Europe playing pool I would not be afraid to bring a youngster with me. There is little chance of being hassled into gambling or being robbed in the parking lot most places. While money games can be found, you must actively look for them and the proprietors of pool halls do not encourage them. I know that to many americans this must sound awful, yet Europe is doing great on the international pool scene.

Europe has certainly got a functioning tour, the Eurotour, but you'd be wrong in thinking that there is a lot of money in pool in Europe. Instead the success (relative to the US) that European pool is currently having is, in my opinion, viewing pool as a sport. Europeans train hard, they get coaching, they practice for tournaments even if there is not a lot of money available, and they at least try to encourage kids to play. Representing your country is viewed as an honor that people strive to live up to, not some easy score.

 

[dougster26]

The one thing that I hate to hear when someone has just lost their match, is any form of an excuse. Yes, you can have a really bad day and not play up to your potential. However, when you get beat, it is usually by a better player. Notice I said usually. If it goes hill/hill and someone gets a lucky roll, then the luck factor comes into play I'm talking about an old fashion a** whooping. If you get beat by Darren Appleton, it's not because you played badly. You got beat by one of the world's best. This guy is a monster. So. let's not make excuses and rant and rave, and swear. It does not look good, just own up to your loss and accept it, move on. There's a reason why the Yankees and Celtics were unbeatable for many years. They put the best team on the field. Europe is proving that they have the better team.

 

[Shannon.spronk]

I know I should resist, however...

Exactly what existing pool game is better suited for TV? There isn't one. Thats why Matchroom has developed this the way they have. 10-ball isn't better for TV, its going to be slower, because of call-shot/no slop. The way Matchroom has their game set up, it moves quickly, and is as exciting as pool can be. Purists might not like it, but as far as a TV production, its very, very good.

Without spending a ton of time googling, I still think having two of team EU on this side of the pond makes them further away than the team US guys. Which is a moot point anyway, since the US guys aren't gonna hang together if they were across the street from each other.

So after typing up a long paragraph where I was continuing to be argumentative and pretty much an a$$ I said to myself "Stop being that guy" So here is this instead

What I am saying about the EU players locations is not getting across so I may as well just drop that. Plus as you said it is really a moot point anyway since most likely the American players would not be spending time together.

I do not totally understand you arguing for the Matchroom current format since it really has only been in use for two days now and for me two days does not make a proven format. Maybe given more time I will come around. I do like that Matchroom makes changes like they did this year to try and improve the game for the better. The current break box style is far better than when someone would hammer on a break and end up having an illegal break simply because a ball got kicked and did not cross the head string.

Mostly I guess my biggest argument with the format is that it is not the same style that is used for nearly every tournament that exists and I do not enjoy that part of it. Maybe they should play Bonus Ball?

 

[justadub]

So after typing up a long paragraph where I was continuing to be argumentative and pretty much an a$$ I said to myself "Stop being that guy" So here is this instead

What I am saying about the EU players locations is not getting across so I may as well just drop that. Plus as you said it is really a moot point anyway since most likely the American players would not be spending time together.

I do not totally understand you arguing for the Matchroom current format since it really has only been in use for two days now and for me two days does not make a proven format. Maybe given more time I will come around. I do like that Matchroom makes changes like they did this year to try and improve the game for the better. The current break box style is far better than when someone would hammer on a break and end up having an illegal break simply because a ball got kicked and did not cross the head string.

Mostly I guess my biggest argument with the format is that it is not the same style that is used for nearly every tournament that exists and I do not enjoy that part of it. Maybe they should play Bonus Ball?

I, too, backed up some on my last response, before hitting send.

While I haven't been able to watch the previous years matches as much as I would like, as I understand it from reading here and other places, the current format isn't terribly different today. They tweak it a little here and there, most notably the reduced break box/balls-past-the-pocket requirements. But the shot clocks, extensions, races and game formats are pretty much similar to the recent past.

I think.

I'll stop now. I'm just really enjoying the production and the show, if not the results. I think its great how they present the game, which is far more accessible to the casual fan than what most of todays tournaments would look like, were they on TV. I would watch it regardless, were it available, but it wouldn't be nearly as successful a production as this.

Have a cool day.

 

[SCCues]

Please also note that I started by saying that the US team was over emotional at the beginning. They missed several key safeties, over ran shape, and had a couple of scratches. The Euros understand the importance of maintaining your emotions in short races.

In my experience if you want to play top level pool then you better concentrate on what you are doing. The Europeans were almost stone faced during their matches and it showed in their play. Anyone who watched the matches knows who I'm talking about especially the first day. Show your emotions after the match is over not during the match.

 

[Shannon.spronk]

I, too, backed up some on my last response, before hitting send.

While I haven't been able to watch the previous years matches as much as I would like, as I understand it from reading here and other places, the current format isn't terribly different today. They tweak it a little here and there, most notably the reduced break box/balls-past-the-pocket requirements. But the shot clocks, extensions, races and game formats are pretty much similar to the recent past.

I think.

I'll stop now. I'm just really enjoying the production and the show, if not the results. I think its great how they present the game, which is far more accessible to the casual fan than what most of todays tournaments would look like, were they on TV. I would watch it regardless, were it available, but it wouldn't be nearly as successful a production as this.

Have a cool day.

I guess I was also going to say that they do a very good job of presenting the game. I am glad that there is a tournament like this available. I just wish the formatting was a little bit different. The races have always been short there but they could break from anywhere but 3 balls had to pass the headstring or make 3 balls or some combination of those two. If that didn't happen it was an illegal break and you lost your turn.

Anyways sorry for being a a bit of a dick.

Hope you have a very good day.

 

[Kimmo]

Hi Kimmo,
I know this is a forum and not spoken language and it is impossible for you to know if I'm griping, but please understand that my statement was not a gripe but an observation.

If I read your post correctly, you don't disagree that the Euros had easy layouts. And I agree with you that they managed their layouts well.

Please also note that I started by saying that the US team was over emotional at the beginning. They missed several key safeties, over ran shape, and had a couple of scratches. The Euros understand the importance of maintaining your emotions in short races.

I do appreciate your post, it reminds me of how quickly emotional and argumentative forum participants are.

Respect, Courage, and Commitment!

oh no worries....my comments about gripes were most towards Mr Strickland as I heard him in many cases stating about "easy table" or "easy shots". All this while it was in many cases also them that let the team EU have it by either dogging it at some point or another or lacking the form to take advantage of it themselves.

 

[Pathetic Shark]

oh no worries....my comments about gripes were most towards Mr Strickland as I heard him in many cases stating about "easy table" or "easy shots". All this while it was in many cases also them that let the team EU have it by either dogging it at some point or another or lacking the form to take advantage of it themselves.

After virtually the first 9 ball potted, he was complaining that the player (Mika?) had missed it. He wasn't moaning after his match-winning complete horror show somehow crept in.

 

[Neil]

Why the hate for Team USA? It's because that's what forum culture dictates. Everybody band together and hate the American pros. Kevin Trueau is in jail, so you can't rag on him anymore. Bonus Ball is a dead fish in the water, so can't smell that anymore. Let's go back to what the forum relishes, and that is hate the profesional player, especially Americans. The American pool culture is cruel to its own.

First it was the jobless bums with no jobs and now it's the professional player pariah.

Well, how about the BCA organization? They are the ones who dropped the ball, literally, on professional pool. Why not hate them? While they get fat, greasing each other's palms, they have divorced themselves from what the very name of the organization dictates. It's a joke!

I have to totally disagree with you here Jam. The "hate", or rather, disgust, I felt, and my wife felt,(and she was really rooting for our team, and doesn't watch pool except for a few tournaments a year) was because the U.S. team, with the exception of Earl and Shane, looked like amateurs out there. Not just missing balls, getting out of line, getting on the wrong side of the next shot, but not even making the correct obvious choice for the shot! Just look at the diagram in this post asking how Johnny didn't get out....he didn't get out because he shot it like an amateur. Trying to do something that was very, very, low percentage, instead of the obvious easier way to do it.

Sad to say, but they didn't shoot any better than a low shortstop would for the most part, and they are supposed to be the top pros on stage putting on a show for all of the country. Their total lack of professionalism is the root cause of all the disdain associated with their play. Nothing else.

 

[Island Drive]

I don't get why a lot of people are hating on team USA especially a lot of Americans...

I like to win and see my team win as much as the next guy/gal but I'm not going to go dumping on them just because they are getting their ass kicked...Pool is a streaky game and if we did a rematch with the same teams next week things could be totally different! All of the players on Team USA are GREAT pool players and all of the haters would be singing a different tune if we were sitting on the winning side of things.

Its just the general attitude of those who have not much in the tank when it comes to life. It's much easier to be negative, I feel sorry for those youngsters who are literally showing after effects of their parents LACK OF UPBRINGING and common sense.

I love the picture of your Old Merc motor, your ski boat looks like its' top speed would be approximately 56mph, yahoo, fun ride, I"ll help split gas, lets go water skiing.:thumbup:

 

[elvicash]

After virtually the first 9 ball potted, he was complaining that the player (Mika?) had missed it. He wasn't moaning after his match-winning complete horror show somehow crept in.

First of all, I do not care if I ever the term "Golden Break" again. Glad to get that off my chest.

Nrxt I am glad we have Earl on the team he brings a lot of firepower. That being said what was the plan to communicate with Earl. To manage Earl. Toget and keep him focused. Perhaps someone on team should be selected to talk to Earl so he has someone to communicate with when he is going on a tirade. If someone was actually listening and responding he could only talk half as much and perhaps he could be re-purposedand re-focused into the now and the next oppurtunity. But if allowed to run on a wide open tirade and even almost ignored as if by Shane with his hearing aid off it does not look good and is easily a distraction or even fuel for Europe.

Earl missed a 9 that actually went in himself to win a match and you did not see him griping about it. Earlier he griped directly to a Euro player about a 9 that wnet but Earl told him post match you missed that ball. Everybody misses balls that go, it is called pocket speed, pro's use that to make the pockets play bigger.

I think we have good players on the team but they are not really in true team mode. You don't see them working together as you see the Euro's who are doing more positive talk in the scotch matches pointing where the want the cue ball etc. It would appear to me the Euro's have worked more together, I do not know that but it looks that way. They seem to communicate they seem to be more of a team.

Our team has perhaps has taken a few more flyers and perhaps had a bad roll or two here and there, tough layouts, sure I guess, but we have not always finished up when games are easily winnable and a mistake has stopped us and given momentum back to Europe.We have left more than a few easy layouts on the table after a US mistake. We cannot complain about tough layouts if we leave the table with Kosmo layout after taking a flyer or dogging a ball.We need to keep the pressure on so Europe feels some pressure. No use pointing out specifics it has happened a fair bit the last couple days.

My questions are the following
Did team USA practice and work together as a team prior to the event if so where and how long?

We knew the new break format prior. Has the USA team worked on the break on a fresh tight Diamond with new cloth racking for each other trying to figure out the 9 on the spot small box to have a plan. We have Joe Tucker the current break expert and analyst, the 9 on the spot is not in the breaking secrets but I would reckon with some work the team could of used his approach and perhaps even worked with Joe to develop a break for this event. We seem to be breaking them hard and hoping as a team or perhaps try to do whatever is working now for the Euro's. Wow I thought the new break format would help the US the old format the US got a ton of illegal breaks now this format is not good either.

What is the statistic for winning the lag, there have been 10 lags so far, how many has the US won. I have no idea but I keep hearing the Euro's will be breaking if it goes hill hill. We do not see to even get most lags to the last diamond much less to the head rail. Euro's get the nod for best laggers. Does it matter, I think so they won at least one match on the hill with 9 on the snap.

We could learn something of team leadership by emulating the captain of the Euro's they have had success and he has probably more than a small role in that though he has not hit a single ball. I am not sure that Buddy Hall is more than a figurehead and that is not that helpful. I know he has a lot of knowledge but he appear to be more of an audience member than a part of the team. Johnny has tried to wear the capains hat, it just has not worked so far.

Now I am Monday morning quarterbacking the fire out of it and it sure is easy from where I am sitting. So I will close with these thoughts.
*The leaders should lead.
*The entire team should watch and support all matches.
*We should play hard each match starting with a serious effort to win the lag.
*If it is tough worse than 70-30 play safe, we can go to the pool hall and watch bangers take flyers we do not need to see that from our Mosconi cup team.
*If you are out get out.
*If you dog it and leave an easy layout you don't need to gripe incessantly about how many tough shots you have made.
*Pool is not a game of tough shots it is a game of decisions and executions.
*Play hard, show some heart win this thing one shot at a time.

Come on Team USA lets do this thing right NOW.

 

[Neil]

First of all, I do not care if I ever the term "Golden Break" again. Glad to get that off my chest.

Nrxt I am glad we have Earl on the team he brings a lot of firepower. That being said what was the plan to communicate with Earl. To manage Earl. Toget and keep him focused. Perhaps someone on team should be selected to talk to Earl so he has someone to communicate with when he is going on a tirade. If someone was actually listening and responding he could only talk half as much and perhaps he could be re-purposedand re-focused into the now and the next oppurtunity. But if allowed to run on a wide open tirade and even almost ignored as if by Shane with his hearing aid off it does not look good and is easily a distraction or even fuel for Europe.

Earl missed a 9 that actually went in himself to win a match and you did not see him griping about it. Earlier he griped directly to a Euro player about a 9 that wnet but Earl told him post match you missed that ball. Everybody misses balls that go, it is called pocket speed, pro's use that to make the pockets play bigger.

I think we have good players on the team but they are not really in true team mode. You don't see them working together as you see the Euro's who are doing more positive talk in the scotch matches pointing where the want the cue ball etc. It would appear to me the Euro's have worked more together, I do not know that but it looks that way. They seem to communicate they seem to be more of a team.

Our team has perhaps has taken a few more flyers and perhaps had a bad roll or two here and there, tough layouts, sure I guess, but we have not always finished up when games are easily winnable and a mistake has stopped us and given momentum back to Europe.We have left more than a few easy layouts on the table after a US mistake. We cannot complain about tough layouts if we leave the table with Kosmo layout after taking a flyer or dogging a ball.We need to keep the pressure on so Europe feels some pressure. No use pointing out specifics it has happened a fair bit the last couple days.

My questions are the following
Did team USA practice and work together as a team prior to the event if so where and how long?

We knew the new break format prior. Has the USA team worked on the break on a fresh tight Diamond with new cloth racking for each other trying to figure out the 9 on the spot small box to have a plan. We have Joe Tucker the current break expert and analyst, the 9 on the spot is not in the breaking secrets but I would reckon with some work the team could of used his approach and perhaps even worked with Joe to develop a break for this event. We seem to be breaking them hard and hoping as a team or perhaps try to do whatever is working now for the Euro's. Wow I thought the new break format would help the US the old format the US got a ton of illegal breaks now this format is not good either.

What is the statistic for winning the lag, there have been 10 lags so far, how many has the US won. I have no idea but I keep hearing the Euro's will be breaking if it goes hill hill. We do not see to even get most lags to the last diamond much less to the head rail. Euro's get the nod for best laggers. Does it matter, I think so they won at least one match on the hill with 9 on the snap.

We could learn something of team leadership by emulating the captain of the Euro's they have had success and he has probably more than a small role in that though he has not hit a single ball. I am not sure that Buddy Hall is more than a figurehead and that is not that helpful. I know he has a lot of knowledge but he appear to be more of an audience member than a part of the team. Johnny has tried to wear the capains hat, it just has not worked so far.

Now I am Monday morning quarterbacking the fire out of it and it sure is easy from where I am sitting. So I will close with these thoughts.
*The leaders should lead.
*The entire team should watch and support all matches.
*We should play hard each match starting with a serious effort to win the lag.
*If it is tough worse than 70-30 play safe, we can go to the pool hall and watch bangers take flyers we do not need to see that from our Mosconi cup team.
*If you are out get out.
*If you dog it and leave an easy layout you don't need to gripe incessantly about how many tough shots you have made.
*Pool is not a game of tough shots it is a game of decisions and executions.
*Play hard, show some heart win this thing one shot at a time.

Come on Team USA lets do this thing right NOW.

I agree with most of what you said. Except the part about Earl with his bobbling 9 ball that did eventually drop. When it comes up on you tube, watch that part again. He wasn't happy about it at all. No fist pumping on that one. Rather, he looked at it in disgust and seemed ashamed that he won by (in his eyes) missing the ball. He does hold himself to the same standards he holds others to, with the exception of his bi-polar rants. And, while Buddy did just sit in the stands for the most part, he is the one that talked to Earl when Earl started losing it, and got Earl back on track. Buddy is one guy that Earl really listens to.

I still don't understand where the rest of the team went to when they weren't at the table. They sure weren't to be seen.??

 

[Roger Long]

Why the hate for Team USA? It's because that's what forum culture dictates. Everybody band together and hate the American pros. Kevin Trueau is in jail, so you can't rag on him anymore. Bonus Ball is a dead fish in the water, so can't smell that anymore. Let's go back to what the forum relishes, and that is hate the profesional player, especially Americans. The American pool culture is cruel to its own.

First it was the jobless bums with no jobs and now it's the professional player pariah.

Well, how about the BCA organization? They are the ones who dropped the ball, literally, on professional pool. Why not hate them? While they get fat, greasing each other's palms, they have divorced themselves from what the very name of the organization dictates. It's a joke!

I agree with JAM.

Roger

 

[JAM]

I have to totally disagree with you here Jam. The "hate", or rather, disgust, I felt, and my wife felt,(and she was really rooting for our team, and doesn't watch pool except for a few tournaments a year) was because the U.S. team, with the exception of Earl and Shane, looked like amateurs out there. Not just missing balls, getting out of line, getting on the wrong side of the next shot, but not even making the correct obvious choice for the shot! Just look at the diagram in this post asking how Johnny didn't get out....he didn't get out because he shot it like an amateur. Trying to do something that was very, very, low percentage, instead of the obvious easier way to do it.

Sad to say, but they didn't shoot any better than a low shortstop would for the most part, and they are supposed to be the top pros on stage putting on a show for all of the country. Their total lack of professionalism is the root cause of all the disdain associated with their play. Nothing else.

Neil, you and I are friends, but we're going to have to disagree on this topic. We agree on most everything else pool-related, however.

I'm going to give you an example of what I'm talking about. At the 2003 U.S. Open 9-Ball Championship, they had to play the Saturday night rounds until 4 a.m. because there was a power outage that week due to Tropical Storm Isabela. Matches were played late.

Meanwhile, Keith and I had a fridge in our hotel room. To save money, earlier in the week, we went out and bought luncheon meats, mayo, fruit, and other food items. It helps us save money if we don't eat in a restaurant for all our meals. :wink:

Well, due to the power outage, all our food went bad. The last day of hte tournament, Keith made it to the semifinals. He was hitting 'em so strong that Billy Incardona said that if Keith shot like this on Sunday, he'd win the Open. Keith was hitting 'em really good.

We returned to our hotel room about 4:30 Sunday morning from the matches of Saturday. Keith said he couldn't stop hitting balls inside his head, and he just couldn't seem to fall asleep. 10 o'clock came around within a few hours, and we had to get ready, shower, get dressed, et cetera, to be at the Chesapeake Conference Center by noon for the first match of the semifinals. I told Keith that I would go downstairs and get him something to eat at the restaurant, never thinking he'd go in the fridge and eat the spoiled food.

When I returned, he had already consumed a sandwich with mayo. His stomach became upset, and he stayed in the bathroom for a long period of time. The pains in his stomach were severe and lasted most of the day. Keith had food poisoning from that mayo and luncheon meat that had gone bad due to no power for a couple days.

We mosey on over to the semifinals, and Keith just couldn't gain any steam to play his game. He was really sick, but he had to play pool. He lost first to Jeremy Jones for the hotseat and then to Jose Parica, the same player he beat the night before, and Keith was out of the tournament in third place.

Well, the keyboard cowboys wrote that Keith didn't play well because he was a drunken bum. And that was the nicest criticism I read. The rest of the comments were hurtful. The truth of the matter was, Keith was sick. I mean REALLY SICK on Sunday.

So I share this with you because it's easy for us to watch the Mosconi Cup and critique the players for missing balls, but we don't know what's going on there at the venue.

 

[Pathetic Shark]

I still don't understand where the rest of the team went to when they weren't at the table. They sure weren't to be seen.??

The practice table, presumably?