If you're not in 1st place, you might as well be in last place!
If you're not in 1st place, you might as well be in last place!
There is a LONNNNNNNNNNGG road between 700 and 800+. Reaching 700 is not "terribly" difficult when you are a teen with some innate physical talent and can practice 12 hours a day, every day during your summer break, and during any breaks from school, during the school year. If you have an easy class schedule, you might get 2 hours per night practice. If you are a poor student and don't give school your all, then maybe 4 a night.I can name 5 American players that are 18 years old and under with a Fargo over 700. In my opinion we are sitting pretty good.
Incentive??? It's what they do for a living for 1, and their pay is based off results/performance, gee, I can't figure out a reason to take the game seriously. Wtfehh, there's still plenty of talent in the USA that can potential win any matchroom event, but for now, what are the insentives for these players to go all out? Pool is a funny game in which all it takes is a hot streak and that only usually last 1-2 years. Like someone mentioned before, we thought Filler would be winning everything and right now he's among the mega elites of course, but he doesn't have the invincible auro around him he had before. Same with FSR, it feels like forever when he went on his streak last year.
They will all still be there at the end, but for now, it's such a toss up who wins these things.
What are the populations of those countries?some american fans seem to compare svb and sky to other eras rather than to other contemporaries. the competition now is absolutely cutthroat and we see new players breaking through at almost every event, from all kinds of countries. yet shane is ranked nr 2 and sky nr 15 in the nineball rankings. only austria have three players in that range, only taiwan and spain also have two. but their players don't have anything resembling the same fan expectations as shane and sky
I'll take team Europe, flip itI can name 5 American players that are 18 years old and under with a Fargo over 700. In my opinion we are sitting pretty good.
Maybe you hate factsMaybe you should go elsewhere
I'm leaning towards 800FR - it would take real good odds for me to bet on anybody outside 800FRI think the gap between the US and the rest is widening.
Aside for the two inactive players (Dechaine/Bergman), the US has just two of the top ninety players based on Fargo Rate. Yes, SVB and Skyler are threats to win at a moment's notice. In Matchroom majors, Shane had a gold and a silver in 2022 and a bronze in 2023 and Skyler had two bronzes in 2023. Either might snap off a title, but neither is under 30 years old. To me, there's no consolation in the fact that America's top two remain outstanding players,
Yes, the US has a few up and coming young players, but I refuse to get excited about any young player of any nationality until they reach Fargo 750, and the Top 100 players all have a Fargo of 780, which is, perhaps, the new benchmark for world class nine ball.
In contrast, Europe has 22 year old Pehlivanovic (silver at the World Games and silver at the World 8-ball) at 807, 23 year old Gorst at 839, 23 year old Aleksa Pecelj at 793 (bronze in this year's US Open 9-ball), 24 year old Kaci at 830, 25 year old Pijus Labutis (bronze at the Spanish Open) at 791 and 25 year old Josh Filler at 844. Which Americans of 25 and under are achieving anything close to what these Europeans have already accomplished? Do any of the 25 and under Americans look like they can have results like these? We shall see, but it's hard to be optimistic.
To get the ball rolling, America needs to own the size of the gap rather than live in denial.
Edit: there are 9 from the Philippines rated higher than Sky alone. I think there are a few more that dominate US than what you claimed
I am sure that has nothing whatsoever to do with their general inability to get funds/approval/visas to travel.i wrote "in the nineball rankings", ie money won on the tour. there aren't 9 pinoys higher than sky in the rankings
I am sure that has nothing whatsoever to do with their general inability to get funds/approval/visas to travel.
Fargo is the real measure, if everybody played every tournament then ok, but that's not reality.i wrote "in the nineball rankings", ie money won on the tour. there aren't 9 pinoys higher than sky in the rankings
Fargo is the real measure, if everybody played every tournament then ok, but that's not reality.
Are you saying there's not 28 players from the PHI that play better than Hennessee?
You've got action anytime they play.
It's their "general inability to get funds/approval/visas to travel". Only the absolute world crushers get their shot, and if they don't beat pretty much everyone they play right out the gate, unlikely to get a second chance. So really, only the ones just slaughtering the other players in PHI get their shot. I heard about Raga years before he got his shot to play internationally. Lee Van too.i don't know the individual reasons. if you do, please share.
My point was that when SVB was in his prime, Germany (Filler), Russia (Gorst) and Spain (FSR) had some teens that were around the 700 Fargo Rate. League players dont just wake up and say i am now going to play like a 850 FR.I'll take team Europe, flip it
You dont think it is terribly difficult to get to 700???? How much fun does that even sound like for any teen???? practice 12 hours a day all summer and breaks from school??? Just like the pros do, they practice maybe 20 hours a week. If somebody wants it bad enough even if you have a full time job you could find 2 to 3 hours a day to practice if you wanted to. People would rather find an excuse on why they dont want to put the work in. and say things like 700 is not terribly difficult to reach. 700 FR is extremely difficult to get to. how many people do you play pool with regularly or in your area that are over 700??? SMDHThere is a LONNNNNNNNNNGG road between 700 and 800+. Reaching 700 is not "terribly" difficult when you are a teen with some innate physical talent and can practice 12 hours a day, every day during your summer break, and during any breaks from school, during the school year. If you have an easy class schedule, you might get 2 hours per night practice. If you are a poor student and don't give school your all, then maybe 4 a night.
What separates folks like Shane Van Boening is what they do after they hit 18... Deep, intense study of the game, with a burning drive to be the best in the world? Practicing 8 hours a day on aspects of the game everyone else dedicates 2 hours to?
It takes an exceptional player to resist the "call of hormones" at that age, which is telling them to put down the cue and and go find some p***y.