Efren GOAT ** Keep in Mind....

Duane Remick

AzB Gold Member
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All these shots,
He's in Major tourneys,
Not in a basement, or rec center goofing off,

No one else shoots these shots, that I can recall "
Efren, Certainly deserves his legendary status :bow-down:
 

pooldawg8

My Pride and Joy
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100% agree Duane Efren is amazing to watch I`ve watched a ton of videos with him playing but never seen him play in person. Wish I could`ve seen that
 

matcase

Blondie's #1 fan
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All these shots,
He's in Major tourneys,
Not in a basement, or rec center goofing off,

No one else shoots these shots, that I can recall "
Efren, Certainly deserves his legendary status :bow-down:

AND, he isn't just smackin them, he calculates and makes them. Amazing for so many years!
 

Nine ... corner

BANNED
Silver Member
He absolutely boggles the mind with some of his creativity. He is most definitely the GOAT in my opinion. I did have the pleasure of seeing him play at Griff's in Las Vegas during his retirement tour. Just another point, on top of his skill is his demeanor. A total gentleman … he can miss a shot and smile! Something the Pearl never learned.
 
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sjm

Older and Wiser
Silver Member
Efren is the greatest of this era, just a little above Sigel in my estimation. That said, I don't know how to go about comparing Efren to guys like Lassiter, Crane, Mosconi and Greenleaf. Best to give them all their due.
 

westcoast

AzB Silver Member
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All around, it is hard to argue. Efren was and still is amazing to an extent- he still has some great days.

Some people say Nick Varner doesn't get enough credit for his all around talent.

Also, Earl's top gear is considered the best of all time- he just couldn't sustain it all the time.
 

PoolBum

Ace in the side.
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Some people say Nick Varner doesn't get enough credit for his all around talent.

Unless he's mentioned right there with Efren, he doesn't. In an all-around competition including 9-ball, straight pool, banks, one pocket, and 8 ball, with both in their prime, it's a toss up.
 

evergruven

AzB Silver Member
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Unless he's mentioned right there with Efren, he doesn't. In an all-around competition including 9-ball, straight pool, banks, one pocket, and 8 ball, with both in their prime, it's a toss up.

my education on the matter limited
I want to give efren the edge
but am curious to see more opinions on this matchup..
 

book collector

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
All these shots,
He's in Major tourneys,
Not in a basement, or rec center goofing off,

No one else shoots these shots, that I can recall "
Efren, Certainly deserves his legendary status :bow-down:

Efren Reyes and Ronnie O Sullivan are certainly the 2 contenders in my lifetime. I always wonder where Alfredo DeOro would fit in if it were possible , the guy just beat so many people for so long and at different games , he is all over the record books for 20 years and even though they list other champions during those years , most of them never beat him to get the title , they were only an interim champion because he was stripped of his title at pocket billiards when he won a carom event , and then when he won a pocket billiards event ,they stripped him of the carom title, he had to have been an amazing player, to be that dominant for over 20 years.
He even went to England and beat the incomparable John Roberts at English Billiards, which no one thought possible.
Reminds me of Efren actually.
I also believe, that unless something is changed in snooker , it may be many decades before anyone accomplishes what O Sullivan has. Even if someone came along with the skill level , it is so difficult to have longevity and stay focused once you reach the top.
I will always remember that run to be the first to ever make 1000 centuries .
He was making so many, he made it look easy.
 

Duane Remick

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Unless he's mentioned right there with Efren, he doesn't. In an all-around competition including 9-ball, straight pool, banks, one pocket, and 8 ball, with both in their prime, it's a toss up.

Yes,
I agree....
Nick Varner definitely 1 of the best to play pool
 

Bic D

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I grew up watching Mike, Nick, Steve, Buddy, Jim, Jim, Kim, Keith, David, Earl, Efren Jean, Loree Jon, Ewa all when they were playing during the time when ESPN was doing the filming from Caesars.

Steve Mizerak would help commentate and give the score cards before the matches as to who he thought would win based on Experience, Break and a couple other areas.

In my area, we used to get what was called a Green Sheet in the Saturday paper which gave the TV line up for the whole week. I would immediately go through the week and then set the VCR to record EVERY billiard match. It should be noted at this time that I did this without the express written consent of ESPN or its sponsors.

I remember being gravitated towards Mike Sigel and Nick Varner.

Now looking back and hearing Mike doing all his talking while others are shooting and his general attitude and changed my opinion a little bit.

I think Efren is the GOAT (of my life time) but there is no way I would bet on him during any given match between Earl, Mike or Nick all in their primes. I just thought all of those players were so great.

When you think of overall GOAT, you have to take into consideration all aspects of the game including attitude towards the game and towards the other players and if I do that then it is certainly Efren and then Nick as 1B...IMO
 

tonyboy59

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Agreed, no doubt Efren is the best that ever picked up the cue however I recently watched a youtube clip of he and Corey Duel playing Ray Martin in a IPT eight ball match. I have to say I was impressed with Ray's cue ball control.
 

Duane Remick

AzB Gold Member
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Agreed, no doubt Efren is the best that ever picked up the cue however I recently watched a youtube clip of he and Corey Duel playing Ray Martin in a IPT eight ball match. I have to say I was impressed with Ray's cue ball control.

" I read somewhere about Ray....
"The Grand Master of the cue ball:)
 

PoolBum

Ace in the side.
Silver Member
I think Efren is the GOAT (of my life time) but there is no way I would bet on him during any given match between Earl, Mike or Nick all in their primes. I just thought all of those players were so great.

When you think of overall GOAT, you have to take into consideration all aspects of the game including attitude towards the game and towards the other players and if I do that then it is certainly Efren and then Nick as 1B...IMO

It's worth mentioning that Sigel, Varner, and Strickland all have winning records against Efren in tournament play. And of course Varner played Efren a race to 60 9-ball in the Philippines in 1990 and beat him 60-47. Nick Varner was a world champion in all five disciplines I mentioned: 9-ball, straight pool, one-pocket, banks, and 8-ball.

I'm not saying Nick was a better all-around player than Efren, just that a matchup between the two of them in their primes competing at those five disciplines is a pick-em.
 

terryhanna

AzB Silver Member
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Yes,
I agree....
Nick Varner definitely 1 of the best to play pool
Nick went the Philippines and played Efren a big money 9 Ball match back when Efren was in his prime.

Match was not even close, Nick won by 20 games or so i think :eek:

Nick Varner & Efren Reyes lagging for the break in a race to 60....JPG
 

pt109

WO double hemlock
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Unless he's mentioned right there with Efren, he doesn't. In an all-around competition including 9-ball, straight pool, banks, one pocket, and 8 ball, with both in their prime, it's a toss up.

my education on the matter limited
I want to give efren the edge
but am curious to see more opinions on this matchup..

Nick Varner....world titles at five different games....
...and sent Efren to the rack at 9-ball....on Efren’s home turf....hung around for a while..
...but didn’t get asked for a rematch...Nick’s own words.


I see I JUMPED IN BEFORE READING ALL THREAD
 
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pt109

WO double hemlock
Silver Member
When Earl and Ronnie the Rocket get mentioned in these GOAT threads.....
....they tend to qualify as GOAT consideration at only one game....Earl at nine-ball...
...Ronnie at snooker.
As a one-trick-pony GOAT....I think Walter Lindrum wins that....he ruined English Billiards
.....in his prime, the second best player might’ve lost with a thousand start going to 4.000.


By the way....the term “GOAT” aggravates me somewhat....it’s a nonsense word...
...aint nobody alive has the right to say “all time” even if they think time is finite.
....how about “GREATEST IN HISTORY”?
 

brilliance

AzB Silver Member
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hi

Efren was top the longest time, other players used to pop-up and go.

I think that todays players such as Ko, Chung Jung Lin and Filler could even be better as long as they can keep this level of play trough years.
 

evergruven

AzB Silver Member
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I see I JUMPED IN BEFORE READING ALL THREAD

appreciate you jumping in, the same :)
and all who replied on the subject
I think the only entire match I've watched of nick's
was vs. effie 94 uso
otherwise, from that, and what other bits I've seen
and heard, via his commentary
I dig the way nick carries himself
he's humble and cool
but smart, and strong
I'll make an effort to pay more attention to his game
so that I can appreciate him more

ha..as I'm finishing this post, I toss on a 1p match
and who happens to be commentating, but nicky ^_^
 

evergruven

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
When Earl and Ronnie the Rocket get mentioned in these GOAT threads.....
....they tend to qualify as GOAT consideration at only one game....Earl at nine-ball...
...Ronnie at snooker.
As a one-trick-pony GOAT....I think Walter Lindrum wins that....he ruined English Billiards
.....in his prime, the second best player might’ve lost with a thousand start going to 4.000.


By the way....the term “GOAT” aggravates me somewhat....it’s a nonsense word...
...aint nobody alive has the right to say “all time” even if they think time is finite.
....how about “GREATEST IN HISTORY”?

as a tennis fan, I have to deal with "goat" more than you might be able to stand..
goat this, goat that, he's a goat, she's a goat, everyone's a goat, goat
western thinking..what's the best/who's the best?
ignore the rest

that said
my favorite players tend to transcend material achievement
and it's the *way* they play and carry themselves that attracts me
not surprisingly, there is a connection between process and result
but ultimately, "goat" is a goat of a term
and while somebody gets celebrated
the game, as a whole
often suffers
baa
 
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