Mosconi Cup, Team USA, the real problem still exists.

[PINKLADY]

yeah, that was good. But I wrote this one for you

Take me out to the Pool Hall.
But hide your wallets from this crowd.

Buy me some chalk and fairy dust.
I don't care if I never go bust.

So it's dump, dump, dump the old shark.
If we don't win, I think I was the mark.

For it's one, two, three fouls you lose
Time to cry in your bottle of booze,
at the old pool hall.

ok, you're on my list now too, RJ!
here's what pool is missing - we might should do this for Mosconi:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yEjVCNw5nRA

.

 

[BeiberLvr]

David Eckstein was 5'7" and 160. Again, an exception to the rule. The people that get that far despite their size have a tremendous amount of heart and talent. I began pool at 30, I'm now 40. I could probably play at a decent level in another 10 years. Think I'd be able to play football or baseball in the same way? Yeah, not happening.

FTR, linemen average some of the highest pay in the NFL. They're not even expected to touch the ball.

David ecksteins dad was my high school geography teacher

 

[KRJ]

Pedroia is short, but I expect he still is near 180 lbs, and has as much heart as anyone.

There is another young hotshot second baseman that is smaller than him too, the name escapes me. RJ will know.

There are a few examples of short football players, but they are all extremely solid.

And they are all better athletes than 99% of the pro pool players out there. 99.99%, beyond Earl.

Its a ridiculous argument. And solves nothing, even if there were merit to it. Which there isn't.

Yeah, I hear ya. I think you are thinking of Altuve from Houston. 5'6", but 175 pounds. But lightning quick... he has 41 stolen bases already this year. And 29 doubles... thus, he has some pop, which means he has very, very quick hands

 

[BJTyler]

SVB weighs a buck fifty dripping wet. I wish I still did He's one of the best pool players in the country, if not the best. He's seems like a terrific kid as well. And I"m a huge fan, love to watch him play.

But just on genetics alone, he could not play pro football, basketball, hockey, baseball, etc. Even if he had the genetics, he would need the speed (running) or hand speed (hitting), or the eyes? Funny, half of pro baseball players have something in common, do you know what it is? Do you know anyone in those pro sports who weighs a buck fifty ? anyone, anyone, bueller ?

20/12 (or better) vision ? - courtesy of "The Sports Gene"

 

[Wileydog]

Seems like the simple answer to this question would be, if all professional pool players focused instead on baseball, and all professional baseball players focused on pool, which group would most successfully make the transition? Undoubtedly, there would be a far higher % of baseball players who could end up playing professional pool than vice versa. It has often been said, the most challenging feat in sports is to to be able to hit a major league curve ball.

Frankly, it is absurd to attempt to compare the two. Michael Jordan was arguably the best basketball player ever, he also played baseball at the Semi Pro level but he's lucky to break 80 playing golf despite all his best efforts.

True, it is considered the most challenging feat in sports. That's why a 30% success rate is a very successful day. The success is relative to the difficulty level. If you miss your shot 70% of the time, you're going to spend a lot of time sitting.

 

[Wileydog]

SVB weighs a buck fifty dripping wet. I wish I still did He's one of the best pool players in the country, if not the best. He's seems like a terrific kid as well. And I"m a huge fan, love to watch him play.

But just on genetics alone, he could not play pro football, basketball, hockey, baseball, etc. Even if he had the genetics, he would need the speed (running) or hand speed (hitting), or the eyes? Funny, half of pro baseball players have something in common, do you know what it is? Do you know anyone in those pro sports who weighs a buck fifty ? anyone, anyone, bueller ?

Opposite dominant eye?

 

[KRJ]

Opposite dominant eye?

good guess but no. uncorrected vision of 20/10

 

[CJ Wiley]

this is plain silly (could it be any more obvious?)

You're right, this is plain silly (could it be any more obvious?). Thanks for playing along........'The Game is the Teacher'

WOW. No offense, but that is just plain silly.

That's the problem with you, you take everything out of context to try and win an argument.

I never said "how bad pool" is.... I just said it was "dead".... do you really wanna argue on that ??

And it appears we played the same sports, I also hold a black belt and I'm pretty sure I played at a higher level of baseball than you. I just don't go around telling everyone this in every other post I make Oh, and the kicker is I'm also an advanced instructor with the ACS... lot of similarities.... (I mean other me than mentioning them every 3 seconds)

Riiiiight, the experts in sports, who ranked baseball the toughest.... even if you want to discount that maybe it's 2 or 3rd, could be a good debate between the top 3 toughest sports.

Heck, not too many guys can touch Chapman's 103 mph fastball.... I know, you probably could or did, or just didn't want the money and admiration....

And you played a lot of both sports, yet, you did NOT make it in baseball and become filthy rich ???

Go get any pool player and get them to play minor league ball speed, hell, get one that has not played baseball to play Division 3 college speed and I'll give you $100K for your efforts. Bet I can turn a few baseball players into pool shortstops, or even better right quick.

If baseball was easier, and pool players had any athletic skils, why in the hell would they not play an easier sport, that pays 100,000 times more ????

For the record, pool was ranked behind cheerleading and bowling. Heck, badmitton was not ranked all that high, but I still like that game too

If you fail 70% of the time in baseball, you are almost a lock to be in the HOF

 

[bdorman]

,, however you could take a much bigger percentage of football players and teach them to be pool players at a upper level than you could take pool players and get them to play at the upper level of football ...

1

Just for a moment, forget about "upper level." Every upper level player in every sport is an exception...an oddity. To make comparisons at that level is useless.

Let's compare "mid levels" like college football/baseball to top league players (A level, SL 9, APA ? -- I'm not a league player so I don't know the ranking numbers). In other words, the players in the top 5,000 in the country...not the top 10.

In my opinion, it is far more likely for a college football/baseball player to achieve top level pool league status than the other way around. Enough of them have the attributes of hand-eye coordination, vision, body control, competitive spirit, etc. to excel at pool.

Bottom line is that to reach mid-level in a physical sport like football/baseball requires athletic ability that less than 1% of people posess. Even at the mid-level, the physical ability required isn't something you can "train" into a person.

 

[CJ Wiley]

That's very interesting MR BOND (James Bond)

That's very interesting MR BOND (James Bond), I knew there must be some connection between baseball and pool.

Baseball was the game I excelled at growing up and I was "groomed" to be a pitcher.....the trouble was I discovered tennis and baseball paled in comparison (that's just me, not because tennis is any better than baseball) in my mind.

I spent the next few years traveling with a tennis coach, teaching tennis and playing in tournaments......then money became an issue and I switched to pool and started making 6 figures right away and had a fantasy life of parties, girls, gambling, and all from playing a game that I loved which created quite an adventure.......and it will take a book to describe what happened in the following years. 'The Road was my Teacher'

Ironically, people were singing billiard songs long before they were singing take me out to the ball game lol. Baseball is actually America's second pastime.

Nonetheless, baseball is a good sport to crossover from into billiards because baseball is not harsh on the body like say football or basketball.

In the past there has been many successful baseball players who also played top notch pool as well. Adrian Anson, Johnny Kling, Ora Morningstar, and of course Tom Foley; who was the first, second and third IL state billiard champion, who had his hands on every major billiard event in Chicago, and later went on to found the Chicago White Sox and the Cubs.

 

[Mr. Bond]

I believe earl was also a serious tennis player.

Me, I prefer ping pong Forrest Gump style.

 

[CJ Wiley]

this "guy" (Tiger Woods) paid Hank to train him instead.

Earl and I have played a lot of tennis, he's also close to a "scratch golfer" when he's playing all the time (his best round is 66 if I'm not mistaken)....Johnny Archer is also an accomplished golfer and we've actually gambled pretty high playing tennis (Johnny and Tony Ellin played me two/one and they got the doubles court).....it didn't turn out so well for them. We had a lot of fun in those days gambling with each other at every pro tournament.....Johnny will also shoot "free throws" with anyone that plays pool.

Dennis Hatch and Rodney Morris are also outstanding athletes......John S. is the best golfer/pool player these days.....I hear Corey is catching on quick too. Hank Haney took a special interest in training me until this "guy" (Tiger Woods) paid Hank to train him instead.......I still question his decision to switch players. 'The Game is the Teacher'

I believe earl was also a serious tennis player.

Me, I prefer ping pong Forrest Gump style.

 

[one stroke]

That's very interesting MR BOND (James Bond), I knew there must be some connection between baseball and pool.

Baseball was the game I excelled at growing up and I was "groomed" to be a pitcher.....the trouble was I discovered tennis and baseball paled in comparison (that's just me, not because tennis is any better than baseball) in my mind.

I spent the next few years traveling with a tennis coach, teaching tennis and playing in tournaments......then money became an issue and I switched to pool and started making 6 figures right away and had a fantasy life of parties, girls, gambling, and all from playing a game that I loved which created quite an adventure.......and it will take a book to describe what happened in the following years. 'The Road was my Teacher'

Well there you have it ,, case and point ,



1

 

[KRJ]

Baseball was the game I excelled at growing up and I was "groomed" to be a pitcher.....the trouble was I discovered tennis and baseball paled in comparison (that's just me, not because tennis is any better than baseball) in my mind.

I spent the next few years traveling with a tennis coach, teaching tennis and playing in tournaments......then money became an issue and I switched to pool and started making 6 figures right away and had a fantasy life of parties, girls, gambling, and all from playing a game that I loved which created quite an adventure.......and it will take a book to describe what happened in the following years. 'The Road was my Teacher'

Groomed to be a pitcher, sounds like you were not in fact a pitcher. The ball is the teacher

Thus, after failing at baseball, not making any money with tennis, you jumped into pool and quickly made money..... I love it when folks make their points for me. Irony is the teacher

Looks like your talent ran out pretty quickly in the high level sports....

 

[KRJ]

20/12 (or better) vision ? - courtesy of "The Sports Gene"

YEP 20/10 to be exact...

 

[Blue Hog ridr]

You're right, this is plain silly (could it be any more obvious?). Thanks for playing along

CJ could get a job performing in a Circus riding bicycles backwards.

Hes great at Back Peddling.

Notice when he came up against a Worthy Knowing person such as RJ, he took the Fifth.

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!

 

[lost]

Earl and I have played a lot of tennis, he's also close to a "scratch golfer" when he's playing all the time (his best round is 66 if I'm not mistaken)....Johnny Archer is also an accomplished golfer and we've actually gambled pretty high playing tennis (Johnny and Tony Ellin played me two/one and they got the doubles court).....it didn't turn out so well for them. We had a lot of fun in those days gambling with each other at every pro tournament.....Johnny will also shoot "free throws" with anyone that plays pool.

Dennis Hatch and Rodney Morris are also outstanding athletes......John S. is the best golfer/pool player these days.....I hear Corey is catching on quick too. Hank Haney took a special interest in training me until this "guy" (Tiger Woods) paid Hank to train him instead.......I still question his decision to switch players. 'The Game is the Teacher'

Close to scratch means very little. The touring golfers are "plus handicap" meaning better than scratch often by quite a bit, and on difficult courses. You know how far they move the tees back for the pros? I be willing to bet Earl couldn't break 100 at Augusta even at his best under Masters conditions. Anyway this nonsense is silly. If you CAN play a sport that pays literally millions even to the guys who finish 100th on the money list...you do. Heck some of the caddies are literally millionaires.
My buddys cousin was a 1st round draft pick of the Yankees as a pitcher 20 or so years ago and they paid him a million dollar bonus at least and sent him right to the minors. He did make it to the big leagues and the last contract he had (with the Reds) was something like 3 years 26 million total. He can buy one heck of a lot of Diamond tables....although he blew his arm and back out.
Oh...his cousin was not really athletic at all...kinda of chubby and like to bowl and play pool and is pretty good. Very nice guy though I still look him up when I return to the area.
I also knew the best horseshoe pitcher in PA. He was amazing to watch. Never heard him belly ache that he couldn't earn a living. Apparently he had the sense to know that he was the one who picked the sport, and Nike wasn't going to come-a-calling with endorsement offers.

P.S. playing a round of golf with Earl would have to be a nightmare...I've played with complainers...they also tend to keep score a little "funny"

 

[Blue Hog ridr]

Tennis. Thats the sport they do if yer a skinny runt and can't make a baseball team or any other manly game.

What is there to it other than holding a racket and hitting a ball back to your opponent.

Even girls play it.

Maybe you should have tried being a Catcher CJ. They don't do much other than holding their glove so the Pitcher can see it.

 

[nobcitypool]

What does being groomed to be a pitcher really mean? Did you get a special haircut? Or did that really mean you got to throw a few pitches in Little League?

lost is perfectly correct. There are more "scratch" golfers out there than you can shake a stick out. Take them out and play the tips at a course set up to play a PGA Tournament and the vast majority would struggle to break 100. At one time I was a 3 handicap and I have a good friend who is a +4 and played the Hooters Tour for a few years winning one event. It sounded like we were 7 stroke apart. That's correct, we were 7 strokes or more apart about every 4 to 6 holes on a really tough course playing from the tips. It was humbling, it wasn't clear to me we were both even playing the same game. To coin the phrase used, by Bobby Jones I think describing Jack Nicklaus, he was playing a game I wasn't familiar with.

 

[The Renfro]

YEP 20/10 to be exact...

Why uncorrected I wonder? I was 20/10 until I passed 28 then computers took their toll.... I am 20/20 now uncorrected but I feel like I can't see shazbat anymore.... Would contacts not get me back there?

I always took it for granted... Was all district in baseball and basketball until I started playing pool... I always figured it was hand/eye and not just eye... You are gonna cost me money if I have to go see the eye doc......