As I mentioned in the other thread, a few days later, perhaps when they were playing with the same set, John changed out the relatively worn cue ball for a brand new one.
14.1 Stats -- John Schmidt's Run of 434 on Video, December 2018
- Thread starter AtLarge
- Start date
Soon there will be questions about whether the curved path of the CB was caused by a grassy knoll ...
Got to disagree with you on almost all of this- those balls made in the first rack are sure misses on the pro tour today. Those side pockets in the video look NOTHING like a pro cut Diamond table on video. We are fine to disagree- no problem- but we definitely are on opposite sides of the argument on how ridiculously easy this table looks to me! You did however fortify my most important point- you say that "we don't know" the exact pocket specs on Mosconi's table - so why does JS choose an attempt at the record on obvisously to me anyhow, the most generous table on earth - why doesn't he use a pro cut Diamond- he is a "modern" era player and that is the new standard- I think we all know the reason why he chooses a weak table- don't we???
Are you serious? As you say, the best 14.1 player that is breathing on this earth posted a video online of him running 434 balls for you to watch...FOR FREE, and what you want to post in a public forum is a criticism of this run because the pockets are big?
I would like to Thank John Schmidt for sharing this video. Running 434 balls is a great lifetime accomplishment. He has achieved a level of human mastery in 14.1 that most people rarely achieve in any discipline. I am thankful that I have the opportunity to watch him play 14.1.
kollegedave
We can fly there this weekend and you can make $20,000 if you can run 300.
Put up or shut up!
Jason
What does me running 300 or not have to do with this discussion? Nothing at all. I am NOT degrading the ability of JS. I AM questioning the use of a table that seems to be designed to allow for EXTREME generosity. So, to me, that is a questionable tactic. What do you mean by put up or shut up? I am not entitled to a simple opinion; but you are entitled to throw out this garbage at me? I think I am wasting my time on this site if it is populated with this mentality. What exactly is YOUR motivation with such an attack on me?? Would like to know.
Give it up dude. You don't need to post the same argument 100 times on every thread tangentially related to this topic.
Apparently, from some responses, I do!
You keep attacking John, trying to discredit his attempts.
If you are the absolute authority on 14.1 (like you act) then you ought to be able to play some.
John is trying to use a table similar to Willie, but that has already been explained many many times, and yet, you go on and on.
Can you even run 50?
Jason
Well, first, there is no standard. Witness, for example, that what many consider to be today’s strongest 14.1 event (American 14.1, put on by Peter Burrows) was played at Carom Cafe last October on Gold Crowns, not Diamonds. One of our forum regulars commented that the many strong runs in the event were due to the use of tables with 5 inch pockets: “This tournament is what happens when you put the best 14.1 players in the world on 5-inch pockets with new Simonis - it’s a joke for a field of this caliber.” While the pockets were not tight, I was there and Burrows told me that the corner pocket size was 4 5/8, and that he knew this because the room owner had been made to shim all the tables to that size using a template provided by Burrows.
The point is that appearances are not always spot on, shall we say.
Second, I’m a bit surprised by this advocacy by this author for using tight Diamonds for 14.1 play, given his many past posts about how 14.1 was and is meant to be played on a table with pockets that allow for pocket cheating, creativity and run extension.
Third, may I suggest that it would be great if Bob Jewett could go to the room, take measurements, calculate a table difficulty factor (using Dr. Dave’s formula) and share the results? We may never know the specs and TDF of the table on which Mosconi made his run, but it would be a shame if we failed to document the table on which the currently highest video run was made.
I agree it is awesome for JS to have posted this video for all of us to enjoy and learn from. I've yet to watch the entire tape, but I'm looking forward to doing so and learning how I can possibly apply some things he does to improve my 14.1 game. I'm of the opinion, as are a few others here, that for a player of his remarkable ability to be playing on a table with these generous specs in relation to the tables pro level players normally play on these days, strikes me as being a little strange.
Obviously he's doing it with absolutely one goal in mind - to beat Mosconi's elusive 526. With JS's 14.1 skills, if he wants it bad enough to keep logging in these marathon attempts/sessions on this particular table or one like it, it won't surprise me if he eventually achieves it. Bottom line is that even if he is successful, for most of us, it won't ever surpass Mosconi's historic exhibition 14.1 record high run. 526 will always be that magical number that all 14.1 players recognize.
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Mosconi played on whatever Brunswick table was available -- they didn't tailor tables for him.
In fact, at the room I saw him do three exhibitions where 1pocket was the main game, he always shot on the front "money table." IOWs, the toughest table in the house. And the regulars would all sit on the rail and marvel at how easy he made the table look, though it was not. I saw him run over 100 each of the three times there.
Lou Figueroa
I guess I would like to thank JS for something too: demonstrating -- even with ideal conditions and repeated attempts -- just how hard it is to run 500+ balls.
To that point and to put things into sharper perspective, the one stat that Large did not post is how many runs were started, over how many days, in this series of attempts. I also think that while JS is a tremendous player, whomever cited him as the best on the planet would be incorrect. Exhibition high runs don't make you the best player. Competitive play and championships have always been the standard for judging greatness. (Where's SJM when you need him?)
I would also say, in regards to posting the video: he had to. It is his affidavit. And if we're even a little bit honest about this, the whole reason for doing this in the first place is for the glory, a record, and maybe some cash. And if you don't post up the video in it's entirety, you don't get the glory and can't claim the record.
Other than that, it is an amazing feat to run so many balls. But I do wonder whether you were to put that specific table in a location accessible to all the top players, how long any record would last. I think that eventually the champions would just take turns running 400, 500, 600, maybe 700 balls.
Lou Figueroa
To that point and to put things into sharper perspective, the one stat that Large did not post is how many runs were started, over how many days, in this series of attempts. I also think that while JS is a tremendous player, whomever cited him as the best on the planet would be incorrect. Exhibition high runs don't make you the best player. Competitive play and championships have always been the standard for judging greatness. (Where's SJM when you need him?)
I would also say, in regards to posting the video: he had to. It is his affidavit. And if we're even a little bit honest about this, the whole reason for doing this in the first place is for the glory, a record, and maybe some cash. And if you don't post up the video in it's entirety, you don't get the glory and can't claim the record.
Other than that, it is an amazing feat to run so many balls. But I do wonder whether you were to put that specific table in a location accessible to all the top players, how long any record would last. I think that eventually the champions would just take turns running 400, 500, 600, maybe 700 balls.
Lou Figueroa
I'm pretty sure that there is another poster that is the self-dubbed "absolute authority on 14.1". This guy might be a close 2nd though.
So do you think we can assume if/when he were to break Mosconi's record, we'd see it posted up on youtube? The classy thing for JS to do, if he makes it to 525, (which will be in the middle of a rack assuming he starts the run with a full rack) would be for him to lay his cue down and quit!