I for one think that Mosconi's record can and some day will be broken. The main problem I see with the attempts being made today is the player starts with a break shot. That's an advantage Mosconi didn't have to start his run. That one fact alone would taint any new record for authenticity. Another problem is all the multiple attempts being made, one after another. Mosconi set his record as a continuation of a regular exhibition match. He would typically play one match a day on his exhibition tours, four or five days a week, for a month or more. He didn't get to try over and over each day to set a record. Almost exclusively, when he reached 150 points during an exhibition Mosconi would put his cue down. He had done his job, which was almost always the result of a 100+ ball run to end the match. And he did this every day!! In my mind, his most amazing feat is the thousands of times he ran 100+ balls. I'm sure he far surpasses whoever is second on this list.
I wonder what his record might be if he kept on shooting every day after he had reached 150, and was already on a long run. I had the good fortune to play an exhibition against the great Mosconi in 1968. He was probably well into his 50's then. Willie had a well rehearsed routine he would go through before starting the Straight Pool match. It consisted of maybe a dozen trick shots, most of which he made on the first try (he set each one up quickly and adroitly), some wing shots, a masse shot or two and a dialogue with the crowd about his personal history in Pool. If questioned about Fats, he would get agitated and dismiss him as an entertainer and imposter.
He won the lag, broke and deliberately left me a long cut shot on the corner ball. I missed badly and he ran 19 balls and left me with an open rack. I ran 3 and missed. He then proceeded to run a picture perfect 131 and out, never once getting seriously out of line. He easily could have run many more balls that day. We were playing on a GC1 with 5" pockets. It took a very good player to run 100 balls on that table. Willie did it on his second turn at the table and probably could have done it on his first inning as well.
I saw Joe Balsis, Cicero Murphy, Irving Crane, Jimmy Caras, Luther Lassiter, Steve Mizerak and Mike Sigel play in competition and none of them impressed me as much as Mosconi. His cue ball control was BETTER than Efren and his shot making was as good as an Orcullo or SVB. :yes:
