As expected the Taiwanese and filipinos are coming up big so far. Many from both countries will be in the final 64. I worked the TV commentary for the group with Ko Pin-Yi in it yesterday. He is the 18 year old Taiwan Qualifier winner. This guy is the real deal! He drilled both Thorsten and the next guy he played, something like 9-3 and 9-3 again. He is a calm cool executioner, showing no emotion in either match. A good looking young man, who plays like a seasoned veteran. Watch out for him!
Mika looked good in his matches, very comfortable on these tables. Maybe because he has so much time in on them the last few years. Francisco is playing GREAT! He let his opponent to the table ONCE in one match yesterday. He got to kick at a ball! The performance everyone was talking about. Marlon looks good to me as well, such a nice relaxed game he plays. Ronnie also is on top of his game. De Luna does not know or care about a soft break. He just crushes the balls, making 2 or 3 almost every time. He made four balls twice in his last match. OUCH! The filipinos as a group look hungry and determined to keep the title here.
The Taiwanese players have dominated the Asian Tour this year, and it is easy to see why. They all play a similar methodical, clear the table style. No mistakes, always in line, and no hiccups either. They appear unflappable, but for some intangible reason I still like the filipinos in a clutch situation, where all the marbles are on the line. They come from two different schools. The Taiwanese train in an Academy, with a complete curriculum, including Martial Arts, Meditation and so forth. The filipinos train in pool rooms, fighting for blood money every day.
We all (TV Commentators) watched Earl play his last match of the night, sitting high up in the stands. You get the sense that many people are there to see the anticipated Earl "meltdown". A lot of people chose to sit near Earl, almost hoping to engage him in banter. There was a very revealing little TV clip they got of Earl talking about his behavior problems. He really opened up and said that he knew he had mental problems, and that he was his own worst enemy. He knows that his actions are unhealthy and don't help him play good pool. I was stunned to see him being so candid.
That said, Earl acted very strange in his match with Li. At times holding his head in his hands and not looking at the table. The referee Nigel Rees had to tell him more than once it was his turn. He had "rabbit ears" for any comments from the crowd. Almost every trip to the table was met with anguish and dismay at the predicament he faced. He was not happy with any shot or situatiuon he faced. He actually got a couple of very fortunate rolls, but didn't seem to be aware that the Pool Gods had shined on him.
Several times he swung his cue wildly about, almost hitting Rees on two occasions. And it would have been a hard blow. He finally did give Rees a tap on the noggin, luckily not one of his harder strikes. Rees handled it well, laughing it off. Some officials might have scolded Earl and things would surely have escalated. After that tap on the head, Earl went to some length explaining to the crowd between games that ALL players swing their cues. RIGHTTTT!!
Li had the meltdown, missing ball after ball when he had opportunities to win games. Earl did run a few racks. But I noticed he was pretty helpless on any long tough shots. If he can keep the cue ball close to the object balls, he can still run out. You can see flashes of Earl's old greatness, but not enough to surmount this field. There are too many authentic and "current" champions here. Watching Earl, one gets the feeling that he is never far away from coming totally unglued. One wrong word or perceived misdeed, and he could be off and running. He teeters on the brink of annihilation each day. Literally and figuratively.
I feel bad watching this man right now. I don't feel this is the place for him, in the glare of the tournament arena. He is obviously a very unhappy man, but he knows nothing else but to hit balls. So he does. It is almost like watching a wild animal act. They perform because they have to, not because they want to. This is my perception of what I see when I watch Earl perform now. I long admired Earl as the best tournament 9-Ball player of all time. But that is not the same man I watched last night.
