Jayson Shaw on a roll.

[Zerksies]

I just find it funny that some of these people don't get much respect or credit for their high runs. Every damn time is Mosconi, Moscconi, Mosconi. We have damn clear proof most of these guys have beaten the high run with video. All we have from Mosconi's run is a verbal conformation. Any really high run is impressive to me, just the ball knowledge alone is amazing

 

[measureman]

What truly set Mosconi above his opponents was he just better at running more balls every inning then the others.

 

[Badpenguin]

I believe Jayson will get to the 1.000 mark and break the 500 mark many more times and maybe as soon as this year. Also to note Joshua Filler has made the commitment to give it a go later this year so we will all be entertained to watch on the Legends of pocket billiards free live stream with unedited non stop video to watch.

Will you still only be streaming on facebook?

 

[MitchAlsup]

Lesser games? What in your opinion makes them lesser games? One could easily claim that Jayson’s mastery of the rotation games is the reason that he makes 14.1 high runs look so easy.

As to lesser games::

No one has ever completed a game of 14.1 continuous in less than 100 strokes. Even Snooker requires a minimum of 38 strokes.
Whereas one can win at 8-B or 9-B on the break (single stroke).

 

[westcoast]

I see the Shaw has gone back to using an extension- a long one too, looks to be around 8 inches.

 

[ChrisinNC]

As to lesser games::

No one has ever completed a game of 14.1 continuous in less than 100 strokes. Even Snooker requires a minimum of 38 strokes.
Whereas one can win at 8-B or 9-B on the break (single stroke).

Last time I checked most big tournament matches are not one single game. I do agree that for tournaments at all levels, a 9-ball made on the break should not result in winning the game, even though it’s considerably less likely to happen with racking templates.

 

[sjm]

No one has ever completed a game of 14.1 continuous in less than 100 strokes.

Obviously false. When two balls go in on one stroke, as long as one of them is the nominated ball, they both count. Hence, it is not at all uncommon for a 14.1 game to end in under 100 strokes.

 

[MitchAlsup]

Obviously false. When two balls go in on one stroke, as long as one of them is the nominated ball, they both count. Hence, it is not at all uncommon for a 14.1 game to end in under 100 strokes.

A game to 125 or 150 taking less than 100 strokes is unheard of

 

[sjm]

A game to 125 or 150 taking less than 100 strokes is unheard of

Agreed 100%. You can only get two points on one stroke so often. Of course, there are races to 50, such as the ones I fondly remember having played with my father.

 

[Texas Carom Club]

Dodging the excessive bs flooding this forum.
It’ll all fit on a pin point. No need to use the pin head.
Radar

 

[Tobermory]

I wanted to comment on or expand three topics raised by members above.

On MEASUREMAN. Yeah, with MosconI you kinda had to be there. There was a French philosopher named Henri Bergson who made some attempts at defining what makes people laugh and why. One of the things he identified was when either a machine acts like a human or a human acts like a machine. Towards the middle of a Mosconi exhibition there would be smiles among people as they would recognize familiar patterns and see this agent, who was apparently human, create those familiar patterns out of nothing and then complete them with the dependability of a machine. There was, however, nothing mechanical about it. It was balletic.

On LOW RIGHT’S observation about the changes in equipment. Go to
your local Goodwill and find the used golf clubs. Pick up a driver from before the big head period and grip it. Now imagine to yourself that pros used to hit balls 260 with that instrument.

ON Stu’s comment about winning tournaments versus high runs. Mosconi’s real greatness lay in neither. Where he really excelled was being able to find two pool rooms a day in two different small towns and cities without GPS and then get there with no or only an incomplete interstate system, and then jump out of his car and run 100.

And is no one going to mention his reliability and sprezzetura in setting up and dispatching trick shots?

 

[tomatoshooter]

Where he really excelled was being able to find two pool rooms a day in two different small towns and cities without GPS and then get there with no or only an incomplete interstate system

I guess he navigated the roads as well as he navigated the racks!

9-footers with the standard 50" x 100" playing surfaces.

I've seen some listed as 49.5×99.

 

[AtLarge]

... I've seen some listed as 49.5×99.

What make? Cutting the dimensions by 1% in each direction means a reduction of the playing surface by about 2%.

 

[ShootingArts]

Willie's biggest gift from Brunswick's standpoint might have been that he made it look like anyone could buy a table an run off a hundred or hundred and fifty balls in a few weeks. He would run a hundred balls or more and never take a shot that a bar room banger couldn't make. He didn't make it look like he did magic, he made pool look like everyman's game.

I have never seen anyone else make pool look as easy as Willie Mosconi did. I have never seen anyone else take less risks than Willie either. That is why I think if Willie could come to today, give him a year and he would still be a champion. If one of today's players could go back to Willie's time a year later they would still be playing second fiddle to Willie.

Almost all of the footage of Willie is in his old age and a lot is from after his medical stroke. To largely defeat age and health issues as he did was awesome but his game was maybe 85-90% of his best game at most. Willie at his peak was a monster. He also wasn't afraid to gamble until his deal with Brunswick forbade it.

Different versions of stories of Willie and Fats meeting in a gambling match, long before the two old men met on TV. At least one version Fats went back to his backer after losing $3500. "I can beat him. He doesn't know how to play one pocket. He just keeps running eight and out on me."

Hu

 

[SBC]

I'd like the one pocket too. But even with 4" pockets, you wouldn't see a lot of 14.1 misses from those two guys.

Shaw is probably the most naturally talented player in history. There are better position players and better safety players, but Shaw just makes everything look so easy. Watching him stroke the ball around the table without even trying is just weird to watch.

Insert Earl Strickland

 

[tomatoshooter]

What make? Cutting the dimensions by 1% in each direction means a reduction of the playing surface by about 2%.

Well, I can't find it now. Maybe I misread something.

 

[tomatoshooter]

Willie's biggest gift from Brunswick's standpoint might have been that he made it look like anyone could buy a table an run off a hundred or hundred and fifty balls in a few weeks.

Yes, he was truly gifted.

Was the cloth really that slow back then? I haven't seen much footage of that era, but what I've watched didn't seem exceptionally slow. I'm sure the rarity of air conditioning and therefore higher humidity slowed the tables down, but seeing Willie's five rail shot makes me believe some of the tables were reasonably fast.

What a shot!

 

[ShootingArts]

Yes, he was truly gifted.

Was the cloth really that slow back then? I haven't seen much footage of that era, but what I've watched didn't seem exceptionally slow. I'm sure the rarity of air conditioning and therefore higher humidity slowed the tables down, but seeing Willie's five rail shot makes me believe some of the tables were reasonably fast.

What a shot!

Some of the upscale places like they were playing in probably had air conditioning. Air conditioning has been around a long time and was mostly based on ammonia I believe. It was too expensive for the average person but it was often a big calling card. I remember my great uncle's movie theater having the somewhat common sign, "fifteen degrees cooler inside" a major calling card.

Cooled down that cloth was more playable but it was much slower than the more common cloth in the seventies when I still ran across the deep stuff sometimes. This was slower than the cloth of the eighties which would be considered slow today. Worse than slow, the cloth was directional. If you weren't shooting fast you had to consider how the cloth weave would affect the shot. Down table curved in, uptable curved out. Shooting slowly across table you could see the ball bouncing across the weave like car tires across railroad ties. If you were shooting at an angle you could walk a ball around interfering balls sometimes.

Five rails would require a lot of thought from me on that cloth. Things would largely cancel out but the final effect would almost certainly be the cue ball kicking short or long. Gives me a headache just thinking about it!

Hu

 

[skogstokig]

Yes, he was truly gifted.

Was the cloth really that slow back then? I haven't seen much footage of that era, but what I've watched didn't seem exceptionally slow. I'm sure the rarity of air conditioning and therefore higher humidity slowed the tables down, but seeing Willie's five rail shot makes me believe some of the tables were reasonably fast.

What a shot!

that is not a slow cloth. of course he had divine superpowers in his stroke and all that, but just watch the object ball..

 

[boogieman]

Some of the upscale places like they were playing in probably had air conditioning. Air conditioning has been around a long time and was mostly based on ammonia I believe. It was too expensive for the average person but it was often a big calling card. I remember my great uncle's movie theater having the somewhat common sign, "fifteen degrees cooler inside" a major calling card.

Cooled down that cloth was more playable but it was much slower than the more common cloth in the seventies when I still ran across the deep stuff sometimes. This was slower than the cloth of the eighties which would be considered slow today. Worse than slow, the cloth was directional. If you weren't shooting fast you had to consider how the cloth weave would affect the shot. Down table curved in, uptable curved out. Shooting slowly across table you could see the ball bouncing across the weave like car tires across railroad ties. If you were shooting at an angle you could walk a ball around interfering balls sometimes.

Five rails would require a lot of thought from me on that cloth. Things would largely cancel out but the final effect would almost certainly be the cue ball kicking short or long. Gives me a headache just thinking about it!

Hu

I was born in 80 but I remember many diners/restaurants etc that had an "Ice Cold Air" sign prominently displayed outside. We often stopped at those places in the summer time. Back then no one really had central AC in this area, you would have a huge window AC at best and use it to cool the whole house. Many people didn't have them. Many businesses didn't. The front door was open and there were decently powerful fans in the stores. Supermarkets had AC as did large stores like Kmart, etc. It was probably early to mid 90s before most places adopted AC, but it probably also coincided with Walmart coming in 1990 and pretty much putting small businesses out of business. You occasionally still see some old antique store or something without AC but it's kind of rare.