Shane Van Boening at Mosconi is pointless!

This is like an APA 7 trying to win the finals all by himself with a team full of APA 3's year after year. No other American player comes close to Shane's Fargorate or WPA ranking, he is in a league of his own and that has to be mentally exhausting and stressful.
 
justinb386 said:
I do not know, but he might not care to watch the Mosconi Cup, if he was not on the team. He might not even want to be on the team, and only doing it for the sake of his image, and maybe the $10,000 that he is guaranteed to get out of participating. I do not think he is really serious about the event. I might be wrong though.
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Yeah, you might be right. Why should he care playing in front of 2,000 people, LIVE on one of the biggest private TV channels,for his sponsors, for his country and the chance to have his name written next to some of the greatest 9-ball players who made this event as great as it is. Back to the bar tables now, where the REAL deal is.:thumbup:
 
If I had to hazard a guess as to why Shane doesn't do well in this format, I would say:

1) For a guy that hits balls non-stop and always practices, he's clearly a guy that needs to hit many balls to get warmed up and to get into the zone. I think that I heard that no players were even allowed to hit a ball on the table before the match.

2) Shane uses a very long bridge, which really isn't as easy to control as a shorter bridge and a more compact stroke. To me, this relates to him missing quite a few routine shots because he had no chance to warm up his big stroke. Many players have a separate more compact stroke that they use to sintch balls when they need to under pressure.

3) Shane shines in long gambling matches with winner break. While Shane seemed to do okay with the cut break, his typical huge breaking advantage does not come into play at all in these matches with alternate break.

4) In a recent match of Shane's before the MC where Darren was commentating, Darren pointed out that early in the match it is a known fact that Shane will out of the blue, miss a routine shot. But that Shane usually won't make that mistake again for the rest of the match. Well, in these short races, one miss of an easy shot may cost you the match.

5) I really don't think that him liking a team environment or not came into play at all for his poor play. It's still him alone at the table executing his shots. Although it is possible that the added pressure of so many others counting on his every move came into play, including the extra pressure of the screaming fans and the environment.

In conclusion, no warming up, long stroke that is harder to control, known to miss routine shots until warmed up, no breaking advantage, and extra pressure is all it takes for Shane not to shine in this format.
 
Get_A_Grip said:
If I had to hazard a guess as to why Shane doesn't do well in this format, I would say:

1) For a guy that hits balls non-stop and always practices, he's clearly a guy that needs to hit many balls to get warmed up and to get into the zone. I think that I heard that no players were even allowed to hit a ball on the table before the match.

2) Shane uses a very long bridge, which really isn't as easy to control as a shorter bridge and a more compact stroke. To me, this relates to him missing quite a few routine shots because he had no chance to warm up his big stroke. Many players have a separate more compact stroke that they use to sintch balls when they need to under pressure.

3) Shane shines in long gambling matches with winner break. While Shane seemed to do okay with the cut break, his typical huge breaking advantage does not come into play at all in these matches with alternate break.

4) In a recent match of Shane's before the MC where Darren was commentating, Darren pointed out that early in the match it is a known fact that Shane will out of the blue, miss a routine shot. But that Shane usually won't make that mistake again for the rest of the match. Well, in these short races, one miss of an easy shot may cost you the match.

5) I really don't think that him liking a team environment or not came into play at all for his poor play. It's still him alone at the table executing his shots. Although it is possible that the added pressure of so many others counting on his every move came into play, including the extra pressure of the screaming fans and the environment.

In conclusion, no warming up, long stroke that is harder to control, known to miss routine shots until warmed up, no breaking advantage, and extra pressure is all it takes for Shane not to shine in this format.
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Aaaaaaaaaaaaaand the excuses of the year award goes to......
 
Shane has played on 10 Mosconi Cup teams (2007-2016).

The Team USA record in matches for those 10 years is 65 wins and 106 losses. Ignoring the teams match each year, that's 161 matches, of which Shane participated in 50. The records are as follows:

Team USA ..... 31-59 singles (34% winning percentage), 30-41 doubles (42%)

Matches SVB was in ..... 10-15 singles (40%), 11-14 doubles (44%)

Matches SVB was not in ..... 21-44 singles (32%), 19-27 doubles (41%)


Team USA's record over the past 10 years is slightly better for the matches that involved Shane than for the matches that did not.
 
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Kris_b1104 said:
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaand the excuses of the year award goes to......
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Why is this even worth saying? What does it add to the discussion? I realize it's not a rule around here that you have to stay on topic, but this kind of gratuitous snark just lowers the level of discourse so much.

I think the reasons Get A Grip listed are all reasonably close to the mark. If Shane were to say all these things himself, by way of justifying his poor play, then by all means call him out for making excuses. But a fan trying to understand a marked discrepancy in the performance of a player, and coming up with possible explanation, is not the same as making excuses. Shane ABSOLUTELY should perform better, but he doesn't and there's nothing wrong with trying to figure out why not.
 
Prince H said:
I think leaving Shane out of next year's Mosconi would be good as a sort of "investment." His problem is clearly mental, so forcing him to watch Mosconi from the sidelines might be enough to bring his hunger back. I think knowing that Mosconi is one of the only hills he couldn't climb would be enough for him to say "eff this" and bring out the beast mode he so often talks about.
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As I put on another thread
IMO it shows what a bad place pool is in for the 'Challenge Match' to be so important in the pool calendar.
You have the Europeans travelling to events they don't want to go to just to earn the mosconi points.....having to make the last 4 to break even, due to the lack of prize money. etc
The Mosconi is an important payday for Pro players.
It is also a good shop window for them also.
It also doesn't hurt then they are trying to get invited to the other two Matchroom events that also pay well.

Shane is a world class player, he has never been 'picked' for the team. He has always earned the right to be on the team.
Pool is his job. If he 'earns' the right to be there, no one should be able to say to him "sorry Shane you miss out on a guaranteed $10K, we're gonna try someone else that you have out performed all year"

If Shane doesn't want to play, that is different.
I don't know what the answer is, but surely it is some form of help and working with him, never discarding him
IMO
 
Wow, OP makes a harsh statement... I think next year if SVB still earns his place and still desires to be part of Mosconi Cup, he may want to work with a sports psychologist/coach now.
 
klone said:
Wow, OP makes a harsh statement... I think next year if SVB still earns his place and still desires to be part of Mosconi Cup, he may want to work with a sports psychologist/coach now.
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What statement is harsh? And why?
 
The pressure in team events is different than in singles events. Individual sports vs. team sports have important psychological differences.

Tiger Woods is a great example of a player who, even in his prime, was never very good in the Ryder Cup, where he had to play on a team.

But I agree, given his Mosconi record, I wouldn't pick him, but he will probably always be on top of the points list, so what can you do.
 
Kris_b1104 said:
This is like an APA 7 trying to win the finals all by himself with a team full of APA 3's year after year. No other American player comes close to Shane's Fargorate or WPA ranking, he is in a league of his own and that has to be mentally exhausting and stressful.
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Dechaine and Bergman both rank top 15 fargo. That's world class level.
 
jasonlaus said:
Still doesnt explain why he loses his singles matches. I just dont believe all the BS about being a "team" just get up there and win YOUR match.

If Shane wins half his matches we are at 9 - 5 right now with Shane in the next 2 matches, so at half we would be 10 -6 and still alive.
Jason

4 games won instead of lost is 7 - 7. Think about that
Jason
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True
That "team" thing is what you preach to newbie rookie not to a vet like Shane whose played 10 times. Rookie Jayson played ooorly first few days but delivered on final day final match . Sophomore rookie Albin won MVP in his 2nd year.
The simplest answer is he is a fish out of water in this format and it is not his thing and he should give up his slot to someone more suited to this format
He should voluntarily a break from playing in MC for 1-2 years and maybe make comeback after that
:)
 
If everybody thinks SVB is the "key" to America winning, why not just let him pick his own team?

Shouldn't he know who plays closest to his level and who he plays best with?

There has to be some sort of strategy to picking the team. Whatever they are doing now obviously doesn't work.
 
Taking away Shane's break in conjunction with the level of competition a 50% winning % in singles matches is about his ceiling, that winning % has been less in doubles matches because he doesn't have a peer on team USA.

The last few EURO teams have had 3 or 4 guys that can stand toe to toe with Shane in this format, in all candor he may be no better than the 3rd or 4th best player on this years Euro team... IN THIS FORMAT

I think he's trying too hard to outrun the nut
 
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spartan said:
The simplest answer is he is a fish out of water in this format and it is not his thing and he should give up his slot to someone more suited to this format
He should voluntarily a break from playing in MC for 1-2 years and maybe make comeback after that
:)
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Yes, I think it's inevitable to try this solution. Even if it sounds crazy because SVB is by far the best player in the USA. Failing to produce the goods for so many times cannot be just a coincidence. It is quite obvious that is affecting the whole team. There's no scandal to admit that he isn't the easiest partner to deal with for many different reasons too, making impossible to break the wall that Shane creates when he gets isolated by his own decision during a match that doesn't go his way.
 
Holy excuses Batman! Complete nonsense, all of it.

He would have to have a 200' di@& to get a single hand on it with all you you guys jerkin and cuppin it.:yikes:
Jason
 
I honestly think to someone as accomplished as SVB that "give a damn" is the one and only issue...hey, free trip, nice check, but does the match really matter to his bottom line???? Meh...after watching Shane destroy everyone from ball boys to legends for the last decade, I can say these matches do not concern me about his ability to win...and I doubt they bother him very much either. Format may need to change to include more "hungry" players...that may help
 
AtLarge said:
See post #25 above.
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Good point his 40% 44% is better than others in team but there are others on team who have better % or others not selected that can have %
You would have to also look at recent maybe past 2 years performance and rank % of players who have played. Based on this year's performance alone , Shane and MD should not be on team.
Heck, maybe if Mark had freehand to pick all 5 , he may come up with better team. His hands are tied with first 3 picks but made great decision picking wildcards Rodney and Justin
Obviously for USA to win they need players that can do more than 50% .
Either (a) there are no 5 US players who can deliver such % or (b) those players have not been found yet
I am an optimist and would like to think it is (b) :)
 
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