I will share below why I feel this is the best 10 ball match I've seen in years. It is currently 33-31 Oscar Dominguez over Omar AlShaheen (who just took 2nd at the world championship. First though I would like to link the pay-per-view. $19.99 to watch days 2 and 3. I will be on the commentary.
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What makes a great match to me is the balance of player skill versus the amount of on the table adversity. How many clusters? How many difficult transitions? How many tight cue ball maneuvers? Etc. If the skill of the players is disproportionate to the adversity on the table the game gets rather boring, like watching a computer play tic tac toe.
When I watch the very best 10 ball players (I'm talking SVB, Filler, Fedor, Chang, and a couple of others) playing with a magic rack it can become rather boring. I've seen streaks of 5-10 racks at a time with no serious problems. They are making 2-3 balls on the break and the other balls are all floated apart with no clusters or problems. Meanwhile they play so well they rarely miss an open shot. So it is just routine run after routine run. The only suspense is whether a ball hooks them on the break.
With Oscar vs Omar this hasn't been the case for two reasons. First off the breaks haven't been reasonable but not overwhelming. There have been a number of dry breaks and even their wet breaks have often resulted in 9 balls remaining with some work left to be done. They aren't always coming up with a shot and when they do there is still a hill to climb. Secondly while they are both tremendous players, they are just that slight step down from the top that means they lose focus or blunder slightly more often. They have to work just a little harder to run out the open racks.
As a result of this it plays much more the way pool ought to look in my opinion. They both dig deep at times, work their way through tough racks, and sometimes put a few together. But they can also fall short either due to the occasional lapse of focus or some nerves, or just due to the difficulty left on the table. This is very suspenseful and it feels much more closely related to how I feel when I play pool matches. It is relatable.
The last couple of years I haven't watched as much pool. Now I know why. I have been crazing this. The balance of skill vs. adversity with Oscar and Omar makes this match compelling and super enjoyable to watch.
Additionally the players each have a contrast in styles and strengths. Omar has a clear striking and stroke edge that comes out on long and firm shots, he has a juggernaut gear, and he can overpower the table. At times though he has displayed some nerves and he has made some surprising mistakes when Oscar is keeping him off his game. Meanwhile Oscar is a fierce competitor with a ton of heart that moves really well and has done well managing the flow of the match to keep Omar under control. I keep waiting for Omar to just break through and run away with this. It looks like that could happen. At the same time we've seen many examples of where a great manager can contain a great shooter. Chip Compton beating Roberto Gomez playing one pocket earlier this year comes to mind.
Will Oscar be able to keep the heat on Omar and deny him the opportunities he needs to overpower him (like Chip vs Roberto)? Or will Omar find his monster gear and break through in a big way on day two (like SVB vs Sky)? I can't wait to find out. I hope you all will join me tonight at 8PM Central (6PM PST)!!!
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What makes a great match to me is the balance of player skill versus the amount of on the table adversity. How many clusters? How many difficult transitions? How many tight cue ball maneuvers? Etc. If the skill of the players is disproportionate to the adversity on the table the game gets rather boring, like watching a computer play tic tac toe.
When I watch the very best 10 ball players (I'm talking SVB, Filler, Fedor, Chang, and a couple of others) playing with a magic rack it can become rather boring. I've seen streaks of 5-10 racks at a time with no serious problems. They are making 2-3 balls on the break and the other balls are all floated apart with no clusters or problems. Meanwhile they play so well they rarely miss an open shot. So it is just routine run after routine run. The only suspense is whether a ball hooks them on the break.
With Oscar vs Omar this hasn't been the case for two reasons. First off the breaks haven't been reasonable but not overwhelming. There have been a number of dry breaks and even their wet breaks have often resulted in 9 balls remaining with some work left to be done. They aren't always coming up with a shot and when they do there is still a hill to climb. Secondly while they are both tremendous players, they are just that slight step down from the top that means they lose focus or blunder slightly more often. They have to work just a little harder to run out the open racks.
As a result of this it plays much more the way pool ought to look in my opinion. They both dig deep at times, work their way through tough racks, and sometimes put a few together. But they can also fall short either due to the occasional lapse of focus or some nerves, or just due to the difficulty left on the table. This is very suspenseful and it feels much more closely related to how I feel when I play pool matches. It is relatable.
The last couple of years I haven't watched as much pool. Now I know why. I have been crazing this. The balance of skill vs. adversity with Oscar and Omar makes this match compelling and super enjoyable to watch.
Additionally the players each have a contrast in styles and strengths. Omar has a clear striking and stroke edge that comes out on long and firm shots, he has a juggernaut gear, and he can overpower the table. At times though he has displayed some nerves and he has made some surprising mistakes when Oscar is keeping him off his game. Meanwhile Oscar is a fierce competitor with a ton of heart that moves really well and has done well managing the flow of the match to keep Omar under control. I keep waiting for Omar to just break through and run away with this. It looks like that could happen. At the same time we've seen many examples of where a great manager can contain a great shooter. Chip Compton beating Roberto Gomez playing one pocket earlier this year comes to mind.
Will Oscar be able to keep the heat on Omar and deny him the opportunities he needs to overpower him (like Chip vs Roberto)? Or will Omar find his monster gear and break through in a big way on day two (like SVB vs Sky)? I can't wait to find out. I hope you all will join me tonight at 8PM Central (6PM PST)!!!
