Who was/is best all around pool player, still alive today?
- Thread starter JoeyA
- Start date
Vince, a natural character, unbelievable flake
He won a 14.1 title in 1995 in Maine over CJ Wiley with a high run of 123 and the 2000 US Open over Dallas West with a run of 141.
He can play 14.1. True, he did not play a lot of it as Siegel did, but had an outstanding record when he did play.
Yes, Reyes won the Maine Event in 1995, and it may have been the first time he played a 14.1 tournament!
At the 2000 US Open he did win a match against West (and another against Sigel), but he finished 3rd behind Min-Wai Chin (2nd) and Souquet (1st).
It depends. Does the Church of Scientology allow that?
Correct. Sigel said that if Efren played straight pool regularly he might be the best ever, and Reyes said Sigel was the toughest player he ever faced, so we know what those two think.
ranrefael
Registered
Efren is a great rotation and 8ball player, maybe one of the most creative and fun to watch players in the world, but I think Mike Sigel was a better all around player, he had more wins over Efren, and more championships than almost any player in history at 9ball 8ball and 14.1. Efren and Shane are my favorites, so I'll place them in the top 3
harleydon1950
Registered
I say Efren, yes he did not play a lot of straight pool, but he was a very accomplished baulkline billiard player. I don't believe Sigel was. Nobody ever played one pocket like Efren did, although I never got to see Ronnie Allen play.
The person who made this list is a fool! Efren is nr. 29:killingme:?
Frank Taberski is nr. 7? I mean no disrespect, but seriously, wtf is that? Lots of old-time players on this list, and they're all rated higher than modern players. I find this really fishy. I don't want to underestimate the players of the past, but this list seems to be made by an historian reading books, and not a player.
Not only that but Efren and Sang Lee are the only foreigners.
At least they didn't forget Earl Strickland. I mean, winning 5 US Opens against killer fields and 2 World Championships back to back and another one, best winning record in the Mosconi Cup and tons of other titles gets you 17th place?! Who's got a better record than this? Oh, yeah, old timers playing "challenge matches" for the world title. OK they were REALLY good, running high numbers on tight 5 by 10's but I don't think you can really compare playing in OPEN fields from players from all over the world!
I mean, Oliver Ortman isn't even on the list, even worse: NO Blomdahl, NO Ceulemans! ! What a travesty.
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Me. I am finally coming off the lemon and admitting it.
Oh, I just saw that the title says "Still alive today" never mind.
Oh, I just saw that the title says "Still alive today" never mind.
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PoolFoolKBH
New member
'Bakersfield Bobby' Hernandez
'Bakersfield Bobby' Hernandez who will be 82 years young on April 13, 2018. Though he has never held a world title per say, (for he felt the tournament route wasn't in his best interest and preferred playing for straight cash.) He had sought out and been sought out by some of the greats who now are hall-of-famers. Some of the players he has beaten in his day were Jimmy Moore, Joe Balsis, Mike Massey, Ronnie Allen, Cannonball, 'Baltimore Buddy' Denny, Dallas West, Nick Oliver, Ritchie Ambrose, Richard 'Bucktooth' Cook, Norman Howard, Okie Sam, San Jose Dick, and 'Glendale Johnny, Rags, Al 'New York Blackie' Bonife among many others.
Being his nephew, I often got to watch him practice and always walked away in awe of his playing. It was nothing short of amazing.
about 10 years ago, Bobby was given a note from Efren Reyes via Garland 'Judd' Fuller that mentioned that he had heard much about him through the years and wished that Bobby and he could have met and played at their bests.
'Bakersfield Bobby' Hernandez now resides in Eloy Arizona.
'Bakersfield Bobby' Hernandez who will be 82 years young on April 13, 2018. Though he has never held a world title per say, (for he felt the tournament route wasn't in his best interest and preferred playing for straight cash.) He had sought out and been sought out by some of the greats who now are hall-of-famers. Some of the players he has beaten in his day were Jimmy Moore, Joe Balsis, Mike Massey, Ronnie Allen, Cannonball, 'Baltimore Buddy' Denny, Dallas West, Nick Oliver, Ritchie Ambrose, Richard 'Bucktooth' Cook, Norman Howard, Okie Sam, San Jose Dick, and 'Glendale Johnny, Rags, Al 'New York Blackie' Bonife among many others.
Being his nephew, I often got to watch him practice and always walked away in awe of his playing. It was nothing short of amazing.
about 10 years ago, Bobby was given a note from Efren Reyes via Garland 'Judd' Fuller that mentioned that he had heard much about him through the years and wished that Bobby and he could have met and played at their bests.
'Bakersfield Bobby' Hernandez now resides in Eloy Arizona.
PoolFoolKBH
New member
'Bakersfield Bobby' Hernandez
Bakersfield Bobby' Hernandez who will be 82 years young on April 13, 2018. Though he has never held a world title per say, (for he felt the tournament route wasn't in his best interest and preferred playing for straight cash.) He had sought out and been sought out by some of the greats who now are hall-of-famers. Some of the players he has beaten in his day were Jimmy Moore, Joe Balsis, Mike Massey, Ronnie Allen, Cannonball, 'Baltimore Buddy' Denny, Dallas West, Nick Oliver, Ritchie Ambrose, Richard 'Bucktooth' Cook, Norman Howard, Okie Sam, San Jose Dick, and 'Glendale Johnny, Rags, Al 'New York Blackie' Bonife among many others.
Being his nephew, I often got to watch him practice and always walked away in awe of his playing. It was nothing short of amazing.
about 10 years ago, Bobby was given a note from Efren Reyes via Garland 'Judd' Fuller that mentioned that he had heard much about him through the years and wished that Bobby and he could have met and played at their bests.
Bakersfield Bobby' Hernandez who will be 82 years young on April 13, 2018. Though he has never held a world title per say, (for he felt the tournament route wasn't in his best interest and preferred playing for straight cash.) He had sought out and been sought out by some of the greats who now are hall-of-famers. Some of the players he has beaten in his day were Jimmy Moore, Joe Balsis, Mike Massey, Ronnie Allen, Cannonball, 'Baltimore Buddy' Denny, Dallas West, Nick Oliver, Ritchie Ambrose, Richard 'Bucktooth' Cook, Norman Howard, Okie Sam, San Jose Dick, and 'Glendale Johnny, Rags, Al 'New York Blackie' Bonife among many others.
Being his nephew, I often got to watch him practice and always walked away in awe of his playing. It was nothing short of amazing.
about 10 years ago, Bobby was given a note from Efren Reyes via Garland 'Judd' Fuller that mentioned that he had heard much about him through the years and wished that Bobby and he could have met and played at their bests.
Sounds like you missed a few things about the compilation of the list. It was published by Billiards Digest in 1999 as a list of the 50 greatest players of the 20th century, as determined by some historians and writers. Only players who "defined their careers in the United States" were eligible. See post #95 above for the selection criteria and how they rated players from different eras.
Please tell Bobby I say hi. He used to come in and visit me at my poolroom in Bakersfield in the 1970's. I learned all about him and Len Wesson aka "Peter Gunn" who used to tangle as kids. They both became bar table world beaters and could play pretty sporty on the big table as well. Bobby was strong as a horse back then from all those years working in the fields and wouldn't back down from anybody, even though he was only about 5'8" and 160 pounds. You might as well fight a mountain lion as mess with Bobby.
Last time I saw Bobby was at the Hollywood Park tournament 20 years ago. Please give him my best regards, Jay
