526

[KRJ]

IMHO - we tend to care WAAAAYYYYYY to much about 526.
Not that it isn't plenty impressive, but I've always thought 15
World Championships and crushing all takers for nearly a generation
was much more impressive.

Dale

Yep Very true, the 526 was just icing on top of already pretty impressive cake that I don't think we will ever see the likes of again. Every sport has to have their "Babe Ruth", and Mosconi was ours.

Does not mean others cannot achieve greatness, like the Varners, Earls, Halls, Lassitars, SVB's, Archers, Schmidts etc. etc. etc.... but one usually still stands alone at the very tippy top

 

[john schmidt]

hi

John, I have no issue with the CB being cleaned at any game, but it should not be removed and replaced onto the table by the player. I understand not having a ref, but if it's a record attempt, or a run being marketed as a high run, the player should never touch the CB, IMO.

As to Mosconi resting his hand on an OB, I *highly* doubt it. First off, I saw him run 100 four or five times. Never saw it. Second, Mosconi was a world champion many times over and very comfortable with tournament rules. He was completely aware and comfortable with all ball fouls. Third, Mosconi came up in an era of far greater respect for the game than exists today -- the aficionados of the day would have crucified him for doing that.

Lou Figueroa

guy that told me i believe ,he was there many times too.i dont think they played all ball fouls and if u think mosconi would call a foul on himself if he moved a ball by a millimiter during a exibition i would be shocked.
anyway i mark qball with marker and put it back exactly..i dont know what else to do.
anyway i guess the things ive done in 14.1 u dont count as legit etc . thats ok i cant please everybody.
lou whats your high run again,it must be in the 300 range because your way to opinionated about high runs if u arent a highly skilled player.

 

[CreeDo]

Not to be argumentative - but, among adults, more people recognise
'Minnesota Fats' than all other pool players combined.

You're absolutely right, I had a brain fart. I just named the first two that came to mind, but fats definitely tops 'em all in recognition.

John, what's the minimum you'd need to dedicate yourself to breaking it?
I'd like to see someone (Fatboy??) put up at least 100k to make it worth John's time.
Or maybe we get a collection. I could chip in... wow, almost 14 bucks lol.

John I can't believe a guy with your talent only flexes it a few hours a year. Don't you get kinda rusty? Anyway I shelled out for that 366. I'll pay triple that for a DVD of 527+.

As for ball polishing, anyone should be safe enough to just do it between racks, use water from the sink, and use one of these markers.

 

[Apocalypse2017]

You're absolutely right, I had a brain fart. I just named the first two that came to mind, but fats definitely tops 'em all in recognition.

John, what's the minimum you'd need to dedicate yourself to breaking it?
I'd like to see someone (Fatboy??) put up at least 100k to make it worth John's time.
Or maybe we get a collection. I could chip in... wow, almost 14 bucks lol.

John I can't believe a guy with your talent only flexes it a few hours a year. Don't you get kinda rusty? Anyway I shelled out for that 366. I'll pay triple that for a DVD of 527+.

As for ball polishing, anyone should be safe enough to just do it between racks, use water from the sink, and use one of these markers.

Someone should take out insurance like hole in one challenges or Earl's million dollar 10 pack.

How much would it take 1 million?

 

[john schmidt]

hi

ive mentioned before i would play 6-8 hours a day ,5 days a week for a year. i get 50,000 and if i break run i split bigger prize with whoever put up the 50,000.
if i broke 526 and won 1,000,000 i would split million with whoever put up 50,000.
i can almost guarantee i would break the 526 in a year and if not ,i would at least have many runs in the 2,3 4 hundreds to sell etc.
i would run over 300 once a month and 400 a few times a year and i would say even money to run 527. on 4x8 i would be shocked if it took more then a year,playing that much.
i luv pool and 14.1 but im not going to play 40 hours a week for a year 14.1 for a few pats on the back and no money. if that makes me a lazy bad guy then im sorry.
if the moneys put up i will put down my streetbike,dirtbike,golf clubs,guns,gf,rc car,etc and do nothing but play 14.1 for a year. other then that i just cant c it happening.
i would luv to do 2-4 exibitions around the country for 5 years. it would promote the best game, inspire people to play and spend money in billiards and give me the financial reason to have a shot at breaking run.
we all know that isnt hapening so im gonna go get the dirtbike started lol.

 

[Maniac]

ive mentioned before i would play 6-8 hours a day ,5 days a week for a year. i get 50,000 and if i break run i split bigger prize with whoever put up the 50,000.
if i broke 526 and won 1,000,000 i would split million with whoever put up 50,000.
i can almost guarantee i would break the 526 in a year and if not ,i would at least have many runs in the 2,3 4 hundreds to sell etc.
i would run over 300 once a month and 400 a few times a year and i would say even money to run 527. on 4x8 i would be shocked if it took more then a year,playing that much.
i luv pool and 14.1 but im not going to play 40 hours a week for a year 14.1 for a few pats on the back and no money. if that makes me a lazy bad guy then im sorry.
if the moneys put up i will put down my streetbike,dirtbike,golf clubs,guns,gf,rc car,etc and do nothing but play 14.1 for a year. other then that i just cant c it happening.
i would luv to do 2-4 exibitions around the country for 5 years. it would promote the best game, inspire people to play and spend money in billiards and give me the financial reason to have a shot at breaking run.
we all know that isnt hapening so im gonna go get the dirtbike started lol.

Sounds as if you've got this thing figured out pretty good, John. Life's too short to squander our time away on anything that doesn't give us warm and fuzzy feelings. Go crank that dirt-bike up and hit a few berms on the high-side for me (I'm too old for that sh*t nowadays)!!!

Maniac

 

[lfigueroa]

guy that told me i believe ,he was there many times too.i dont think they played all ball fouls and if u think mosconi would call a foul on himself if he moved a ball by a millimiter during a exibition i would be shocked.
anyway i mark qball with marker and put it back exactly..i dont know what else to do.
anyway i guess the things ive done in 14.1 u dont count as legit etc . thats ok i cant please everybody.
lou whats your high run again,it must be in the 300 range because your way to opinionated about high runs if u arent a highly skilled player.

John, tHe problem is that on the internet it is all to easy to make a claim about a player with little to no evidence, whether it's you believing Mosconi would rest his hand on an OB or someone claiming you wipe down the CB with a silicone impregnated cloth. I know better, so I choose to not believe either.

Me? My high run is 126 and I've only run 100 maybe a dozen times. It's not a run-of-the mill thing for me so when iI do it I always feel like popping a bottle of champagne. But that does not mean that I cannot provide knowledgable commentary on the sport. And for better or worst it's guys like me and Dale and others who have followed the sport for decades and who have seen Mosconi and you and others play, who can provide informed opinions. I know this is not ESPN or SI, but it's what we got.

Lou Figueroa

 

[Marop]

Mosconi was a world champion many times over and very comfortable with tournament rules. He was completely aware and comfortable with all ball fouls. Third, Mosconi came up in an era of far greater respect for the game than exists today -- the aficionados of the day would have crucified him for doing that.

Lou Figueroa

Watch the last 5 seconds of this video it might change your mind about his respect for all ball fouls. I have seen him rest his hand on an object ball while making a bridge in a exhibition in 1966.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eIE5AOayYvI

 

[lfigueroa]

Watch the last 5 seconds of this video it might change your mind about his respect for all ball fouls. I have seen him rest his hand on an object ball while making a bridge in a exhibition in 1966.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eIE5AOayYvI

Good grief, Bill. How old is he in that? Isn't that his last major appearance? He's a very old man in that vid and not the man who was 15 times world champion or still touring the country giving exhibitions in retirement.

Lou Figueroa

 

[arnaldo]

Originally Posted by john schmidt

Lou whats your high run again,it must be in the 300 range because you're way to opinionated about high runs if u aren't a highly skilled player.
-------------------------------------------------------
John,

With all due respect to your tremendous playing ability (I've got, and greatly benefit from 3 of your Straight Pool DVDs) I think your above comment to Lou is not only way out of line, but fundamentally illogical.

I'm old enough to have heard several decades of extremely "opinionated" statements pro and con regarding the possibility of any baseball batter ever breaking the 60 homeruns record. Thousands of comments from amateur ball players, and assorted barber shop "sweators" who'd be lucky to hit 3 homeruns during their lifetime, but nonetheless knew respectworthy volumes about the game they loved (and about the past and current capabilities of any of its most talented professional-level players.

This seems to me a fair analogy that properly shows the essential oddness of your question to Lou about his own 14.1 skills and your implied irrelevance of *any* comments he might make about high runs.

Arnaldo

 

[vicki h]

breaking 526

hi everybody, ill put up the 50,000 if somebody puts up the million dollar bonus, im in. gary henry owner of garys victor billiards

 

[john schmidt]

hi

Originally Posted by john schmidt

Lou whats your high run again,it must be in the 300 range because you're way to opinionated about high runs if u aren't a highly skilled player.
-------------------------------------------------------
John,

With all due respect to your tremendous playing ability (I've got, and greatly benefit from 3 of your Straight Pool DVDs) I think your above comment to Lou is not only way out of line, but fundamentally illogical.

I'm old enough to have heard several decades of extremely "opinionated" statements pro and con regarding the possibility of any baseball batter ever breaking the 60 homeruns record. Thousands of comments from amateur ball players, and assorted barber shop "sweators" who'd be lucky to hit 3 homeruns during their lifetime, but nonetheless knew respectworthy volumes about the game they loved (and about the past and current capabilities of any of its most talented professional-level players.

This seems to me a fair analogy that properly shows the essential oddness of your question to Lou about his own 14.1 skills and your implied irrelevance of *any* comments he might make about high runs.

Arnaldo

i know lou well and u have to read between the lines.
its gets old being told how, what, when, where, why, i should do things by somebody who doesnt have as good a understanding as me as all facets involved poolwise.
its funny guys like thorston,oliver ,etc who are my friends and peers never say anything negative or discredit me.
lou has an opinion and it counts but when it comes to pool i value other peoples opinion way over his. guys like hohmann,ortmann etc who are my friends and peers. they clean qballs themselves etc.
they never say anything negative to me about anything ive done poolwise or 14.1 wise.
we have discussed my runs,mosconi,pocket size,etc etc etc.
when guys like that say it discredits a run to clean qball myself i might listen.
until then its just another guy giving me a hard time to hear himself talk.

 

[lfigueroa]

i know lou well and u have to read between the lines.
its gets old being told how, what, when, where, why, i should do things by somebody who doesnt have as good a understanding as me as all facets involved poolwise.
its funny guys like thorston,oliver ,etc who are my friends and peers never say anything negative or discredit me.
lou has an opinion and it counts but when it comes to pool i value other peoples opinion way over his. guys like hohmann,ortmann etc who are my friends and peers. they clean qballs themselves etc.
they never say anything negative to me about anything ive done poolwise or 14.1 wise.
we have discussed my runs,mosconi,pocket size,etc etc etc.
when guys like that say it discredits a run to clean qball myself i might listen.
until then its just another guy giving me a hard time to hear himself talk.

Sorry you feel that way, John.

But, as in every other sport, it not the opinions of the players themselves that count. It is the opinions of the aficionados of the sport that count. The guys that can look at the play of any particular player and honestly discuss it in the context of the game's history and lore and write about it knowledgeably.

I probably know you as well as you know me, which isn't very much. And you, as great a player as you are, are too young (and too close to things) to put your play in context with Mosconi's (though I do recall a comment from you to the effect as to how you were tired of people saying you couldn't carry Mosconi's jock strap) or fairly consider how your runs are viewed by students of the game who know the history of the sport.

Sooooo, you can listen to whomever you want. Some guys will lie to you and whisper, "Hey, John, it's OK to cut corners and make the mountain easier to ascend." While the guys that are actually trying to help you out are the one's telling you that the greater honor and glory lies in conquering an ascent that got tougher as you neared the summit.

Lou Figueroa

 

[Jude Rosenstock]

Wow, it's really unfortunate this thread took a few unfortunate turns. Koodos to John for replying to this thread, it must've been a real treat for the original poster to get a reply from the only living two-time 400+ runner.

I think John's statement about financial incentive is very warranted. In general, there's not a lot of money floating around pool but that especially applies to 14.1. I'm in no place to say what it would take to beat Mosconi's record (or any of the unofficial records) but would like to just say, a lot has changed over the years for pool. I can't even say if tables are easier now or tougher.

Part of me thinks pool shouldn't be treated like it's in a vacuum. To an extent, it's important to examine it by generation. Could John Schmidt run 527 if we got him on the same table Mosconi ran it? I think another valid question not often asked would be, if Mosconi were alive and in his prime today, could HE run it on a 9-foot Crown V? On a Diamond? That's pool today. Nobody plays on 8-footers anymore so as much as we'd like to compare today's greats with yesterday's, it may no longer be applicable.

 

[AtLarge]

Watch the last 5 seconds of this video it might change your mind about his respect for all ball fouls. I have seen him rest his hand on an object ball while making a bridge in a exhibition in 1966.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eIE5AOayYvI

I looked it up -- Mosconi was 78 and Caras 82 at the time of that exhibition (1991). Perhaps they were playing CB-fouls-only in deference to age.

As to your 1966 experience -- you can remember that from 47 years ago, and you're only 49 now?:wink: Again, who knows what rules they were using. He usually played a fairly good local player, but maybe they "relaxed" the rules sometimes. Or could it have been in the demo portion of the show?

 

[lfigueroa]

Wow, it's really unfortunate this thread took a few unfortunate turns. Koodos to John for replying to this thread, it must've been a real treat for the original poster to get a reply from the only living two-time 400+ runner.

I think John's statement about financial incentive is very warranted. In general, there's not a lot of money floating around pool but that especially applies to 14.1. I'm in no place to say what it would take to beat Mosconi's record (or any of the unofficial records) but would like to just say, a lot has changed over the years for pool. I can't even say if tables are easier now or tougher.

Part of me thinks pool shouldn't be treated like it's in a vacuum. To an extent, it's important to examine it by generation. Could John Schmidt run 527 if we got him on the same table Mosconi ran it? I think another valid question not often asked would be, if Mosconi were alive and in his prime today, could HE run it on a 9-foot Crown V? On a Diamond? That's pool today. Nobody plays on 8-footers anymore so as much as we'd like to compare today's greats with yesterday's, it may no longer be applicable.

Regardless of the sport, that's part of the fun in discussing who was the greater champion or how a past champion would fare in today's game. Equipment, rules, training, standard of play, and more evolve and it makes for an interesting discussion.

Lou Figueroa

 

[Maniac]

Regardless of the sport, that's part of the fun in discussing who was the greater champion or how a past champion would fare in today's game. Equipment, rules, training, standard of play, and more evolve and it makes for an interesting discussion.

Lou Figueroa

And.......last I checked, this still IS a discussion forum!!!

Maniac (opinions are gonna vary. get used to it)

 

[Jude Rosenstock]

Regardless of the sport, that's part of the fun in discussing who was the greater champion or how a past champion would fare in today's game. Equipment, rules, training, standard of play, and more evolve and it makes for an interesting discussion.

Lou Figueroa

I agree with you at least 95%. It's the recognized most important number in pool. I just wish that there was a degree of standardization for our records. I thought it was very intriguing when John Schmidt mentioned his high-run on a Diamond. That's a table that has very consistent dimensions. A person that runs 300 on a Diamond in Cali in 2008 can easily compare that run to another one in New York City in 2013. There's little to scrutinize.

 

[lfigueroa]

I agree with you at least 95%. It's the recognized most important number in pool. I just wish that there was a degree of standardization for our records. I thought it was very intriguing when John Schmidt mentioned his high-run on a Diamond. That's a table that has very consistent dimensions. A person that runs 300 on a Diamond in Cali in 2008 can easily compare that run to another one in New York City in 2013. There's little to scrutinize.

True and I agree. It's one of the reasons I was disappointed that the 14.1 Challenge at the DCC this year was on 10 footers.

Lou Figueroa

 

[Maniac]

I agree with you at least 95%. It's the recognized most important number in pool. I just wish that there was a degree of standardization for our records. I thought it was very intriguing when John Schmidt mentioned his high-run on a Diamond. That's a table that has very consistent dimensions. A person that runs 300 on a Diamond in Cali in 2008 can easily compare that run to another one in New York City in 2013. There's little to scrutinize.

Funny thing is, as often as the subject of 526 gets brought up on here, (using this thread as an example) it still gets plenty of discussion.

IMHO, I'm with John that if someone wanted to go through the hardships of dedicating themselves to do it, the record could probably be broken within a year. But also like he asked, who would WANT to do that?

Maniac