2026 Predator Bali Aramith Mens Open

GideonF said:
I think Niels is only 6 years older than Shane, but your point is still valid.

I do think Shane is not quite as consistent as he once was, although it’s also true that the general level of competition has increased since his earlier days.

Part of the issue with some older players is whether they can or will still put in the work off the table as much as they once did. This has been noted in snooker where the famed Class of 92 still are top 16 players but have admitted they don’t practice like they used to. They can still hit the high gear but not as often.

In Shane’s case, in his prime be probably hit more balls than any other pool player. I’m sure he still works hard but I’m not sure it’s quite as dedicated. Maybe I’m wrong.

Also, sometimes the game and the format don’t suit him. He’s always extremely frustrated when he can’t put together packages. The Predator rack, ref racking etc mean a lot of dry breaks. You can just see it getting to him - indeed in the match he lost he was up, was playing well and then seemed to get frustrated by the bad racks.
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That's a very well-reasoned and well-presented post.

I agree that sustaining the work ethic over a long period is difficult. Today's two greatest players, Filler and Gorst, are about ten years into their lives as full-time touring professionals. Like Shane, they reached superelite status through workaholism. Will they still have the fire ten years from now? Will they still be top ten in the world, or will their skills or motivation decline? We shall see.

I also agree with you that the game may not suit him right now. In his best years, 2010-15, he succeeded by outbreaking everyone and running packages with the 1ball on the spot, four-and-a-half inch pockets, and break from anywhere in the kitchen. His tactical skills were good but not great, but it mattered little because he did not have to use them all that often back in the day. Today's WNT tournaments are not ideal for him, with a very narrow break box, four-inch pockets and 9ball on the spot. These conditions have meant a lot more defense and a lot more grinding, and there are more than a few who do this better than Shane. That's why he has just two wins in the five years of the WNT (actually, WNT year five will end with the Philippines Open later this month). In truth, Shane has stepped up his tactical game in the past few years but is still sometimes at a disadvantage when he has to grind against the most elite.

I'm in no position to confirm or refute the claim that he has been getting some bad racks at key moments but, true or not, it underscores his (and our) perception that he is more reliant on his break than any player of the last fifteen years.

I remain awed by Shane's play, and so what if he's not at the very top of the game anymore? He's still a player to be reckoned with, one nobody much wants to see in their draw. Wishing him well.
 
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sjm said:
Five of the sixteen undefeated qualifiers are Filipino. That's impressive.
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Nothing new here! They've been killing in tourneys for decades now. Staying four to a room with twin beds, a rice cooker and chopping up the prize money. They were and are basically overseas workers, sending money home to their families.
 
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sjm said:
That's a very well-reasoned and well presented post.

I agree that sustaining the work ethic over a long period is difficult. Today's two greatest players, Filler and Gorst, are about ten years into their lives as full-time touring professionals. Like Shane, they reached superelite status through workaholism. Will they still have the fire ten years from now? Will they still be top ten in the world, or will their skills or motivation decline? We shall see.

I also agree with you that the game may not suit him right now. In his best years, 2010-15, he succeeded by outbreaking everyone and running packages with the 1ball on the spot, four-and-a-half inch pockets, and break from anywhere in the kitchen. His tactical skills were good but not great, but it mattered little because he did not have to use them all that often back in the day. Today's WNT tournaments are not ideal for him, with a very narrow break box, four-inch pockets and 9ball on the spot. These conditions have meant a lot more defense and a lot more grinding, and there are more than a few who do this better than Shane. That's why he has just two wins in the five years of the WNT (actually, WNT year five will end with the Philippines Open later this month). In truth, Shane has stepped up his tactical game in the past few years but is still sometimes at a disadvantage when he has to grind against the most elite.

I'm in no position to confirm or refute the claim that he has been getting some bad racks at key moments but, true or not, it underscores his (and our) perception that he is more reliant on his break than any player of the last fifteen years.

I remain awed by Shane's play, and so what if he's not at the very top of the game anymore? He's still a player to be reckoned with, one nobody much wants to see in their draw. Wishing him well.
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The Filipinos have that work ethic. They just want to play all day, every day. They are at home on the pool table!
 
sjm said:
I'm in no position to confirm or refute the claim that he has been getting some bad racks at key moments but, true or not, it underscores his (and our) perception that he is more reliant on his break than any player of the last fifteen years.

I remain awed by Shane's play, and so what if he's not at the very top of the game anymore? He's still a player to be reckoned with, one nobody much wants to see in their draw. Wishing him well.
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To be clear I’m not saying he’s getting more bad racks than anyone else or at worse times. The format (hand racks by refs with that Predator rack and no ability to even look at the rack) is designed to produce what I would call a bad rack - where the balls aren’t all perfectly frozen and therefore you cannot reliably make balls on the break.

This format suits someone like Alex (still in this tournament) who loves to play safe and grind out. Could also be why there are so many Pinoys left in this event. Shane *can* play that style at an elite level but you can see it frustrates him. Just like Shane might be top 10 in the world in one pocket and he hates the game and therefore doesn’t play it that much.

I think it’s the same thing here. Go to rack your own or template and Shane (and Shaw and Fedor) are probably still in this event. And Alex probably doesn’t beat Max Lechner in straight sets like he did here.
 
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jay helfert said:
The Filipinos have that work ethic. They just want to play all day, every day. They are at home on the pool table!
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Yeah, they have been superb, producing five of the last sixteen left in the draw.

As for the Filipino love of pool, I always think of a story told to me by Mike Lebron. As I'm sure you know, Efren often stayed with Mike while in the USA and often practiced in Mike's room. According to Mike, when he and Efren would arrive in the parking lot of Mike's pool room, Efren was so eager to get onto the practice table that he'd screw his cue together while walking from the car to the entrance of the pool room. LOL.
 
GideonF said:
To be clear I’m not saying he’s getting more bad racks than anyone else or at worse times. The format (hand racks by refs with that Predator rack and no ability to even look at the rack) is designed to produce what I would call a bad rack - where the balls aren’t all perfectly frozen and therefore you cannot reliably make balls on the break.

This format suits someone like Alex (still in this tournament) who loves to play safe and grind out. Could also be why there are so many Pinoys left in this event. Shane *can* play that style at an elite level but you can see it frustrates him. Just like Shane might be top 10 in the world in one pocket and he hates the game and therefore doesn’t play it that much.

I think it’s the same thing here. Go to rack your own or template and Shane (and Shaw and Fedor) are probably still in this event. And Alex probably doesn’t beat Max Lechner in straight sets like he did here.
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Then there's Eklent Kaci who is getting quite a few break and runs even in this format
 
Lowell said:
Then there's Eklent Kaci who is getting quite a few break and runs even in this format
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Unfortunately our brilliant At Large doesn’t really track who the ref is. I remember the Shane vs Jayson match from last week where I could swear they broke dry 80 or 90 percent of the time (two guys with elite 10b breaks).

Like anything, I’d wager that there is a big variation between the racking style (or ability) of different refs. There are some racks I’ve seen that King Kong couldn’t make a ball. But yes with at least half decent racks Kaci’s giant break has been working pretty well.
 
chinese mi le beat maciol in straight sets to reach the semis. i hadn't seen him play before. big guy, very accurate with decent rhythm to his game. will play semifinal against capito, i think i like his chances.

kyle amoroto beat wojciech but lost to FSR. filler beat carlo and will play FSR in semi.
 
sjm said:
I watched him in the World 10ball. Played for like 820 to me. Very talented. Possibly not very experienced.
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don't know. i suspected heyball background, checked youtube but only found a couple such videos (beat good players though)
 
It's an appetizing final four. US Open 9ball finalists FSR and Capito are joined by Filler and relative unknown, but obviously talented, Chinese cueist Mi Le.

Capito will play Mi Le in one semifinal. No idea what to expect there. FSR beat both Filler and Capito double hill at the US Open 9ball, so the latest stages of this event seem sure to deliver, with FSR and Filler meeting in the semis.

I didn't see much of the quarterfinals, which ran very late into the night here in New York City, but the semis will be played at the manageable hour of 9:30 PM tonight here.

FSR has a chance to join Filler as the only player to win both a 9ball major and a 10ball major in 2026.

Filler's consistency in the biggest events continues to blow the mind. Josh has medaled in each of the following: 1) Predator PBS Las Vegas Open (gold), 2) WNT UK Open (gold), 3) WPA World 10ball (bronze), 4) WNT European Open (bronze), and he will medal at Predator PBS Bali. Add to this a Derby City 9ball title and a Euro-tour title, and a top ten in every WNT major and he is clearly the one to beat for player of the year. Still, there's lots of pool left to be played, and FSR, with US Open 9ball gold and World 8ball silver, will be in the player of the year conversation with a title at Predator PBS Bali this weekend.

I think a win by Capito in Bali would greatly please most of us, after he fell one rack short of a US Open 9ball title in August. Robbie is surely in the most improved player conversation this year, perhaps along with Pecelj, Januarta, and Vogel.

Mi Le would be one of those Cinderella stories that are so few and far between in our sport. For me, the most memorable time an "I never heard of him" player prevailed at a major was in 2003 when Thorsten Hohmann won the World 9ball.

Good luck to the four fine players that remain. One of them will write a great story this weekend.
 
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skogstokig said:
no fargo for mi le. but 810+ wouldn't surprise me
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811 with 193 games before this event, in as Le Mi

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