Consensus "Greatest of All Time" (GOAT) List

JazzyJeff87

JazzyJeff87

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PoolBum said:
So is this the final tally?
Click to expand...

So I notice a point tie between 3 and 4...Alex and Shane. I know we all love both, with Alex as a very slight favorite BUT we can’t have a numbers tie so someone needs a point taken away.

SVB is known to have hearing problems which allows us to, in good conscience, discriminate against him and take away 1 point. It’s all very scientific.
 
dr_dave

dr_dave

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AtLarge said:
OK, I'd like to bump up SVB (1 point), Varner (2 points), and Busty (2 points).

[My mouse was awake enough to click on "Submit" a few seconds before 6/30 midnight MDT.]
Click to expand...
Thank you for participating.

Nice vote! You moved Shane from 4 to 3 above Alex, Nick from 6 to 5 above Mike, and Francisco from 9 to 8 above Johnny.

This is the last vote, so here's the final Top 10 GOAT List:

Rank - Name - Score

1 - Efren Reyes - 252
2 - Earl Strickland - 126
3 - Shane Van Boening - 119
4 - Alex Pagulayan - 118
5 - Nick Varner - 104
6 - Mike Sigel - 103
7 - Buddy Hall - 56
8 - Francisco Bustamante - 53
9 - Johnny Archer - 52
10 - Dennis Orcollo - 51
 
dr_dave

dr_dave

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PoolBum said:
So is this the final tally?
Click to expand...
After the final vote from AtLarge, here's the final result:

1 - Efren Reyes - 252
2 - Earl Strickland - 126
3 - Shane Van Boening - 119
4 - Alex Pagulayan - 118
5 - Nick Varner - 104
6 - Mike Sigel - 103
7 - Buddy Hall - 56
8 - Francisco Bustamante - 53
9 - Johnny Archer - 52
10 - Dennis Orcollo - 51
 
dr_dave

dr_dave

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JazzyJeff87 said:
So I notice a point tie between 3 and 4...Alex and Shane. I know we all love both, with Alex as a very slight favorite BUT we can’t have a numbers tie so someone needs a point taken away.
Click to expand...
The final vote from AtLarge broke all ties. Thank you AtLarge. That was some good "11th hour" voting. :grin-square:

Again, here are the final results:

1 - Efren Reyes - 252
2 - Earl Strickland - 126
3 - Shane Van Boening - 119
4 - Alex Pagulayan - 118
5 - Nick Varner - 104
6 - Mike Sigel - 103
7 - Buddy Hall - 56
8 - Francisco Bustamante - 53
9 - Johnny Archer - 52
10 - Dennis Orcollo - 51
 
dr_dave

dr_dave

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dr_dave said:
Discussions about the "Greatest of All Time" (GOAT) Pool Players is a popular topic on AZB and Facebook, so I thought it would be fun and interesting to semi-scientifically identify a consensus opinion with input from as many AZB users as possible.

After two rounds of voting (see more info below), here are the final results:

Top 10 GOAT (in the modern era):

Rank - Name - Score

1 - Efren Reyes - 252
2 - Earl Strickland - 126
3 - Shane Van Boening - 119
4 - Alex Pagulayan - 118
5 - Nick Varner - 104
6 - Mike Sigel - 103
7 - Buddy Hall - 56
8 - Francisco Bustamante - 53
9 - Johnny Archer - 52
10 - Dennis Orcollo - 51
Click to expand...
I want to thank everybody who voted: :thumbup2:

This is way more participation than I expected, and I think the final results are difficult to dispute as a result.

For those who want to know more about the process used, see the first post in the thread.

People voted in the second round (total number: 74): 9 Ball Fan, 9andout, AtLarge, atlas333, beetle, Bic D, big_worm, Bob Jewett, bobprobst, Cameron Smith, CGM, charlietango7, Chili Palmer, Cornerman, CreeDo, couldnthinkof01, deanoc, Dimeball, dontscratch, dr_dave, eddieindetroit, evergruven, flyvirginiaguy, follownoone, Get_A_Grip, gordml, Grilled Cheese, harleydon1950, highkarate, icucybe, jay helfert, JazzyJeff87, K2Kraze, kkdanamatt, Luxury, maha, Maniac, Marc, Marcopolo, mark187, markjames, mattb, MattPoland, MississaugaFats, monsterdog, noMoreSchon, oldschool1478, parvus1202, Pete, phj_tc, PoolBum, Poolmanis, pt109, RailBanger, ricardo, Rimfirejunkie, Runnintable, Saint1500, SamShaddey, Scratch85, Sealegs50, SFC9ball, sjharr, sjm, skogstokig, Snooker Theory, Sunchaser, Taxi, Tennesseejoe, Tin Man, Tooler, TwinkleToes, TX Poolnut, West Point 1987.

People who voted in the first round (total number: 59): 9 Ball Fan, AtLarge, atlas333, beetle, Bic D, Bob Jewett, CGM, Chili Palmer, Cornerman, Creedo, CrownCityCorey, deanoc, Dimeball, dontscratch, dr_dave, evergruven, follownoone, Get_A_Grip, gordml, highkarate, icucybe, JazzyJeff87, JC, jeephawk, Johnny Rosato, justadub, kkdanamatt, LeftyIke, Luxury, Magyar19, Maniac, Marc, mark187, markjames, mattb, MattPoland, megatron69, Mich, Mick, monsterdog, noMoreSchon, oldschool1478, Pete, PoloBob, PoolBum, Poolmanis, ricardo, Rico, Rimfirejunkie, SamShaddey, Scratch85, Sealegs50, sjm, Snooker Theory, spliced, Tennesseejoe, Tin Man, Tooler, TX Poolnut.
 
sjm

sjm

Older and Wiser
Silver Member
First and foremost, thanks Dave for all of your efforts in conducting this poll.

... and, of course, congrats to Efren.
 
Luxury

Luxury

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Awesome poll! Thanks for all the hard work. Happy to see Shane Take the third spot I’m sure he’ll be very proud


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
dr_dave

dr_dave

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sjm said:
First and foremost, thanks Dave for all of your efforts in conducting this poll.
Click to expand...
You're welcome. It was a lot of fun seeing the list take shape and shift around as all of the votes came in.

Thanks again for actively participating in the thread,
Dave
 
dr_dave

dr_dave

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Again, here are the final results:

1 - Efren Reyes - 252
2 - Earl Strickland - 126
3 - Shane Van Boening - 119
4 - Alex Pagulayan - 118
5 - Nick Varner - 104
6 - Mike Sigel - 103
7 - Buddy Hall - 56
8 - Francisco Bustamante - 53
9 - Johnny Archer - 52
10 - Dennis Orcollo - 51

Shane and Alex flip-flopped a few times, as did Nick and Mike, but I think the final order is the most appropriate.
 
sjm

sjm

Older and Wiser
Silver Member
dr_dave said:
Again, here are the final results:

1 - Efren Reyes - 252
2 - Earl Strickland - 126
3 - Shane Van Boening - 119
4 - Alex Pagulayan - 118
5 - Nick Varner - 104
6 - Mike Sigel - 103
7 - Buddy Hall - 56
8 - Francisco Bustamante - 53
9 - Johnny Archer - 52
10 - Dennis Orcollo - 51

Shane and Alex flip-flopped a few times, as did Nick and Mike, but I think the final order is the most appropriate.
Click to expand...

The tiers, especially, are very credible.

Tier 1: Efren is and should be in a class by himself.

Tier 2: Earl, Shane, Alex, Nick, and Mike are clearly above all but Efren.

Tier 3: Buddy, Francisco, Johnny, and Dennis round out a very reasonable top 10.
 
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dr_dave

dr_dave

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sjm said:
dr_dave said:
Again, here are the final results:

1 - Efren Reyes - 252
2 - Earl Strickland - 126
3 - Shane Van Boening - 119
4 - Alex Pagulayan - 118
5 - Nick Varner - 104
6 - Mike Sigel - 103
7 - Buddy Hall - 56
8 - Francisco Bustamante - 53
9 - Johnny Archer - 52
10 - Dennis Orcollo - 51

Shane and Alex flip-flopped a few times, as did Nick and Mike, but I think the final order is the most appropriate.
Click to expand...

The tiers, especially, are very credible.

Tier 1: Efren is and should be in a class by himself.

Tier 2: Earl, Shane, Nick, and Mike are clearly above all but Efren.

Tier 3: Buddy, Francisco, Johnny, and Dennis round out a very reasonable top 10.
Click to expand...
Well stated. I agree.

Regards,
Dave
 
pt109

pt109

WO double hemlock
Silver Member
I pondered doing some ballot stuffing near the end...a few phone calls would’ve put
Alex way past Earl.....but I stayed my hand...seemed kinda petty.

But I’ll leave this thread with a quote from Alex a few years ago....
...”I may not be the best, but I’ll gamble with the best.”
 
dr_dave

dr_dave

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pt109 said:
I pondered doing some ballot stuffing near the end...a few phone calls would’ve put
Alex way past Earl.....but I stayed my hand...seemed kinda petty.
Click to expand...
You're as bad as the Russians. :grin-square:

pt109 said:
But I’ll leave this thread with a quote from Alex a few years ago....
...”I may not be the best, but I’ll gamble with the best.”
Click to expand...
... like when he lost $10,000 on a coin flip recently? :eek: :confused:

I'm glad you didn't tamper with the election,
Dave
 
jay helfert

jay helfert

Shoot Pool, not people
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sjm said:
The tiers, especially, are very credible.

Tier 1: Efren is and should be in a class by himself.

Tier 2: Earl, Shane, Alex, Nick, and Mike are clearly above all but Efren.

Tier 3: Buddy, Francisco, Johnny, and Dennis round out a very reasonable top 10.
Click to expand...


I would tend to agree with this list for the modern era of pool, say post Worst and Lassiter era. The one glaring omission imo is Steve Mizerak. He pretty much schooled everybody on this list in all games until Earl (9-Ball only) and Efren of course (Efren's prime came after Mizerak had faded). He and Buddy were always the favorites in any 9-Ball tourney until Sigel and Varner got on equal ground with them. Earl came along a little later.

No one ever had a bigger, more powerful game than the Mighty Miz! His addiction to food and the obesity that came with it was his downfall as a pool player.
 
dr_dave

dr_dave

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atlas333 said:
dr_dave said:
dr_dave said:
After two rounds of voting (see more info below), here are the final results:

Top 10 GOAT (in the modern era):

Rank - Name - Score

1 - Efren Reyes - 252
2 - Earl Strickland - 126
3 - Shane Van Boening - 119
4 - Alex Pagulayan - 118
5 - Nick Varner - 104
6 - Mike Sigel - 103
7 - Buddy Hall - 56
8 - Francisco Bustamante - 53
9 - Johnny Archer - 52
10 - Dennis Orcollo - 51
Click to expand...
I want to thank everybody who voted: :thumbup2:

This is way more participation than I expected, and I think the final results are difficult to dispute as a result.

For those who want to know more about the process used, see the first post in the thread.

People who voted in the second round (total number: 74): 9 Ball Fan, 9andout, AtLarge, atlas333, beetle, Bic D, big_worm, Bob Jewett, bobprobst, Cameron Smith, CGM, charlietango7, Chili Palmer, Cornerman, CreeDo, couldnthinkof01, deanoc, Dimeball, dontscratch, dr_dave, eddieindetroit, evergruven, flyvirginiaguy, follownoone, Get_A_Grip, gordml, Grilled Cheese, harleydon1950, highkarate, icucybe, jay helfert, JazzyJeff87, K2Kraze, kkdanamatt, Luxury, maha, Maniac, Marc, Marcopolo, mark187, markjames, mattb, MattPoland, MississaugaFats, monsterdog, noMoreSchon, oldschool1478, parvus1202, Pete, phj_tc, PoolBum, Poolmanis, pt109, RailBanger, ricardo, Rimfirejunkie, Runnintable, Saint1500, SamShaddey, Scratch85, Sealegs50, SFC9ball, sjharr, sjm, skogstokig, Snooker Theory, Sunchaser, Taxi, Tennesseejoe, Tin Man, Tooler, TwinkleToes, TX Poolnut, West Point 1987.

People who voted in the first round (total number: 59): 9 Ball Fan, AtLarge, atlas333, beetle, Bic D, Bob Jewett, CGM, Chili Palmer, Cornerman, Creedo, CrownCityCorey, deanoc, Dimeball, dontscratch, dr_dave, evergruven, follownoone, Get_A_Grip, gordml, highkarate, icucybe, JazzyJeff87, JC, jeephawk, Johnny Rosato, justadub, kkdanamatt, LeftyIke, Luxury, Magyar19, Maniac, Marc, mark187, markjames, mattb, MattPoland, megatron69, Mich, Mick, monsterdog, noMoreSchon, oldschool1478, Pete, PoloBob, PoolBum, Poolmanis, ricardo, Rico, Rimfirejunkie, SamShaddey, Scratch85, Sealegs50, sjm, Snooker Theory, spliced, Tennesseejoe, Tin Man, Tooler, TX Poolnut.
Click to expand...
This was a great thread! Totally agree with the 10
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Thank you. I also think the Top 10 came out correct in the end. It really helped that so many people participated. I honestly didn't expect such good participation, but I was very happy with the level of response.

Regards,
Dave
 
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dr_dave

dr_dave

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jay helfert said:
I would tend to agree with this list for the modern era of pool, say post Worst and Lassiter era. The one glaring omission imo is Steve Mizerak. He pretty much schooled everybody on this list in all games until Earl (9-Ball only) and Efren of course (Efren's prime came after Mizerak had faded). He and Buddy were always the favorites in any 9-Ball tourney until Sigel and Varner got on equal ground with them. Earl came along a little later.

No one ever had a bigger, more powerful game than the Mighty Miz! His addiction to food and the obesity that came with it was his downfall as a pool player.
Click to expand...
I had Mizerak at 11 in my initial ranking, but he did not get enough first-round votes to put him in the running for the Top 10.

Regards,
Dave
 
pt109

pt109

WO double hemlock
Silver Member
jay helfert said:
No one ever had a bigger, more powerful game than the Mighty Miz! His addiction to food and the obesity that came with it was his downfall as a pool player.
Click to expand...

dr_dave said:
I had Mizerak at 11 in my initial ranking, but he did not get enough first-round votes to put him in the running for the Top 10.

Regards,
Dave
Click to expand...

Jay, after all, this is an opinion pool...many who voted never saw the Miz in person...
...it was amazing to see a big man stroke the ball with the delicate touch of a child...
....and then make a nine ball break sound like a cannon.
Buddy always spoke up for the Miz...admired his stroke.

Doc, I’d like to see this done again by games...just pool in general is a bit vague.

..and i think Nicky Varner would’ve killed Earl in an all-round in their prime....
...and Efren didn’t have to like it either.
 
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