Billy Thorpe gone wild!

[Island Drive]

When I see something like this, I know.
Something else'', is taking place on the table. hummmmm
Its probably/most likely theeeeeeeE....''I'm better than you''....moment....''Classic''.
Match Play on line one pocket heads up....I heard Alex P. saying that out loud to Scott Frost.
Knowing how these two play/compare, I think Rob is the favorite.
He doesn't have allot of dog in em.
Some dogs whine when drubbed..

That's my read....

 

[pvc lou]

Yes, agreed... just felt motovated to point out the distinction.

I believe the USA is the only country on the American continent with "America" in its name...so makes sense to me that American is understood to mean from the USA.

 

[Kid Dynomite]

So what your saying is no matter what he's somebody's bitch(your words not mine)? Wowzer!

This is rather poetic!

A dog never bites the hand that feeds him!!!

So, who feeds the pool player?

Local mafia syndicate?

Or

Matchroon?

Since one of the above feed the pool player! Biting the hand that feeds them is far from smart.

Kd

Sent from my moto z4 using Tapatalk

 

[TexasShooter]

The 2 YouTube posts of this fight have 26k views in 4 days. Look on the bright side, the general population may discover pool again. McEnroe 2.0.

 

[The_JV]

I believe the USA is the only country on the American continents with "America" in its name...so makes sense to me that American is understood to mean from the USA.

lol... the one thing I'm most confident of on this forum, is knowing that people will not adhere to things that make sense... The world is bigger than and this forum is accessible beyond, your borders. Believe it or not, some people on this planet will need to look at a map to get a sense of the lands masses called "America".

I also fixed your post...

 

[pvc lou]

lol... the one thing I'm most confident of on this forum, is knowing that people will not adhere to things that make sense... The world is bigger than and this forum is accessible beyond, your borders. Believe it or not, some people on this planet will need to look at a map to get a sense of the lands masses called "America".

I also fixed your post...

Thanks for the correction. I hope you got a nice dopamine boost from correcting a dumb, insular American. (Notice after you read that last sentence there was no ambiguity in your mind about what I meant by "American," because of the denigrating context.)

 

[sjm]

Stu I have a lot of respect for you. I don’t mean this to be a personal attack. But I gotta ask—why is it so shocking that many of us think this is a case of virtue signaling and overreaction over Thorpe’s actions? You’ve been around pool for longer than me and I’m getting close to 40 years in the game. In that time I’ve never once been to a pool room where such behavior wasn’t the norm. I’ve personally put men in the hospital, drew my gun on others, (hell I almost shot the newspaper delivery guy because he drove up on me at about 60 in the parking lot and I thought I was being robbed). I’ve seen drugs EVERY SINGLE TIME I’ve been to a pool room. Fights are an almost daily occurrence. The language used by Thorpe was normal. I’m not saying this stuff is right, merely that it is the norm. And anyone honest will admit that. I’m saying that this is American pool and IT WILL NEVER CHANGE as long as testosterone and booze and gambling continue to mix in so-called “billiard parlors”. Personally I find myself right at home with it. I’ll likely get shot some day, I admit, but I feel right at home with the environment and if it goes away I think we are losing one of the last vestiges of true historic masculinity in America. You do realize that what we think of as civilized male behavior these days is not the norm in history right? Persia, Greece, Rome etc et al. What Billy did was kid behavior back then. Trust me I’ve got 10 years of higher education that backs me up. Maybe if we weren’t so castrated these days and so prone to faux outrage we’d see this like I do: humorous. Thorpe acted like an ass. Saez probably did too. Nobody got hurt. Nobody got killed. Nobody even got arrested. I don’t think any property got damaged. Compared with the BLM/Antifa bunch these guys were angels and those rioting nutjobs are called heroes by our “woke culture”. If the folks in the pool community want to keep going down the same path of virtue signaling outrage they’re going to get exactly what they’re asking for. Unfortunately it’s going to entail the disappearance of the pool room from this country. The idea that this will hurt pro pool’s popularity seems ridiculous to me. The major sports have much worse behavior. But it’s the “woke” attitude that’s killing their ratings not the bad behavior. The things I’ve seen from pros since the 80s make this seem trivial. My mentor, a well known and loved pro (rest his soul) used to give me qaludes when I was a teen for Pete’s sake. He used to joke about popping different color pills and “waiting for the glow”. He had some tantrums that make Thorpe seem tame. And he’s still one of the most beloved players in history. I bet if I named him I’d get crucified for sullying his name. But all of a sudden Thorpe gets drunk and acts like an ass and folks are calling for him to be banned from Mosconi, his cue sponsor canceled him and if these folks have their way another top player is gone from the American scene. Yeah that’s going to do wonders for American pro pool.

First of all, I don’t read this as a personal attack. This is just two pool players comparing notes.

Sounds like we play in different poolrooms. To be honest, I haven’t seen a fight in a poolroom in about twenty years. Yes, I’ve seen occasional drunkenness and rowdiness, as well as sporadic profanity, but never from the pro players that play in my room. I’ve seen drunken, rowdy, profane players kicked out of the room in which I play, too. I’ve never seen a drug deal go down inside any poolroom in which I’ve ever played. You are both accustomed to and comfortable with such behavior and occurrences where you play, and it’s not for me to say you shouldn’t be. Perhaps they are the norm where you play, but they are not the norm everywhere.

As for your concern that switching to a path of virtue would bring the poolrooms of America to near extinction, the truth is that it has already happened. Even before COVID, poolhalls were dropping like flies in America. Youth are no longer going to poolrooms, and this is, at least in part, because of the culture you have described as acceptable. Pool must either address this or lose the next generation of players.

I have often taken note of the fact that pro pool players have the option to throw in the towel and be satisfied with pool being in the gutter, which is where you seem to think it belongs. That said, it will reduce sponsorships and reduce the appetite of investors to put money into pro pool. You don’t see it as a big deal when pro players act in a way that compromises those who sponsor, produce, or invest in pool, and it’s your every right to see it that way.

I, on the other hand, have watched pro pool players blow opportunity after opportunity by failing to support the efforts of those who have the means to help them and their sport. It bothers me, but it seems it doesn’t bother you, and that’s OK.

 

[Cuedup]

Stu I have a lot of respect for you. I don’t mean this to be a personal attack. But I gotta ask—why is it so shocking that many of us think this is a case of virtue signaling and overreaction over Thorpe’s actions? You’ve been around pool for longer than me and I’m getting close to 40 years in the game. In that time I’ve never once been to a pool room where such behavior wasn’t the norm. I’ve personally put men in the hospital, drew my gun on others, (hell I almost shot the newspaper delivery guy because he drove up on me at about 60 in the parking lot and I thought I was being robbed). I’ve seen drugs EVERY SINGLE TIME I’ve been to a pool room. Fights are an almost daily occurrence. The language used by Thorpe was normal. I’m not saying this stuff is right, merely that it is the norm. And anyone honest will admit that. I’m saying that this is American pool and IT WILL NEVER CHANGE as long as testosterone and booze and gambling continue to mix in so-called “billiard parlors”. Personally I find myself right at home with it. I’ll likely get shot some day, I admit, but I feel right at home with the environment and if it goes away I think we are losing one of the last vestiges of true historic masculinity in America. You do realize that what we think of as civilized male behavior these days is not the norm in history right? Persia, Greece, Rome etc et al. What Billy did was kid behavior back then. Trust me I’ve got 10 years of higher education that backs me up. Maybe if we weren’t so castrated these days and so prone to faux outrage we’d see this like I do: humorous. Thorpe acted like an ass. Saez probably did too. Nobody got hurt. Nobody got killed. Nobody even got arrested. I don’t think any property got damaged. Compared with the BLM/Antifa bunch these guys were angels and those rioting nutjobs are called heroes by our “woke culture”. If the folks in the pool community want to keep going down the same path of virtue signaling outrage they’re going to get exactly what they’re asking for. Unfortunately it’s going to entail the disappearance of the pool room from this country. The idea that this will hurt pro pool’s popularity seems ridiculous to me. The major sports have much worse behavior. But it’s the “woke” attitude that’s killing their ratings not the bad behavior. The things I’ve seen from pros since the 80s make this seem trivial. My mentor, a well known and loved pro (rest his soul) used to give me qaludes when I was a teen for Pete’s sake. He used to joke about popping different color pills and “waiting for the glow”. He had some tantrums that make Thorpe seem tame. And he’s still one of the most beloved players in history. I bet if I named him I’d get crucified for sullying his name. But all of a sudden Thorpe gets drunk and acts like an ass and folks are calling for him to be banned from Mosconi, his cue sponsor canceled him and if these folks have their way another top player is gone from the American scene. Yeah that’s going to do wonders for American pro pool.

You should find better places to play.

I'm no stranger to pool halls but I've never been to one where this behavior was the norm and wouldn't frequent it if it was. Let the scumbags school together and kill each other, I'll be playing pool in a more respectable place where violence isn't "the norm".

 

[sjm]

Do you really believe Matchroom is actually going to make pro pool that big IN AMERICA? We are not Europe. I think they’ll be a colossal failure frankly. I’ll bet 5 to 1 Matchroom is a pipe dream as far as making pool hugely popular in America. American pool players do not think the same. We aren’t anything like the snooker fans. To me this idea is a complete joke.


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Yes, I think their impact is already being felt. For example, their taking over the US Open 9-ball has already resulted in much more added money. Although it was cancelled in 2020, the added money was going to be nearly three times what it was prior to Matchroom taking it over. They have also jacked up the payouts at the Mosconi to 30K/15K when it used to be 20K/10K. Their recent takeover of the WPA World 9-ball will also likely result in greater added money in that event. Matchroom are already doing their part to make pro pool a more lucrative career for the American pro.

Let's not discount the efforts of others here, either. CSI has created the Diamond 10-ball and the World 10-ball Championship and AccuStats has created the International 9-ball. That's three new WPA sanctioned tournaments on American soil in three years.

Pro pool is offering greater earnings opportunities for American players due to the efforts of Matchroom and others, but these investments in pro pool should not be taken for granted. They'll stay the course just as long as they are satisfied with the sport's direction, and the behavior of the most visible pros, like Billy Thorpe, will influence how they feel about the advisability of continuing to invest in pro pool.

 

[Brookeland Bill]

Yes, I think their impact is already being felt. For example, their taking over the US Open 9-ball has already resulted in much more added money. Although it was cancelled in 2020, the added money was going to nearly three times what it was prior to Matchroom taking it over. They have also jacked up the payouts at the Mosconi to 30K/15K when it used to be 20K/10K. Their recent takeover of the WPA World 9-ball will also likely result in greater added money in that event. Matchroom are already doing their part to make pro pool a more lucrative career for the American pro.

Let's not discount the efforts of others here, either. CSI has created the Diamond 10-ball and the World 10-ball Championship and AccuStats has created the International 9-ball. That's three new WPA sanctioned tournaments on American soil in three years.

Pro pool is offering greater earnings opportunities for American players due to the efforts of Matchroom and others, but their investments in pro pool should not be taken for granted. They'll stay the course just as long as they are satisfied with the sport's direction, and the behavior of the most visible pros, like Billy Thorpe, will influence how they feel about the advisability of continuing to invest in pro pool.

Well said. My biggest criticism to date has been the lack of a dress code in tournament pool and high dollar matches on UTube, Facebook and pay for view. Team sports and golf and tennis have a uniform or dress code. It sets the stage for professionalism. I don’t know if it would have put Billy in a professional mindset but it wouldn’t hurt. I’m surprised his sponsor Cuetec didn’t require it. I’m so tired of seeing pros in sloppy t-shirts, baggy shorts, jeans with holes and hats on backwards I want to reach out and grab them by the nape of their neck.

 

[ExilePreacher]

First of all, I don’t read this as a personal attack. This is just two pool players comparing notes.

Sounds like we play in different poolrooms. To be honest, I haven’t seen a fight in a poolroom in about twenty years. Yes, I’ve seen occasional drunkenness and rowdiness, as well as sporadic profanity, but never from the pro players that play in my room. I’ve seen drunken, rowdy, profane players kicked out of the room in which I play, too. I’ve never seen a drug deal go down inside any poolroom in which I’ve ever played. You are both accustomed to and comfortable with such behavior and occurrences where you play, and it’s not for me to say you shouldn’t be. Perhaps they are the norm where you play, but they are not the norm everywhere.

As for your concern that switching to a path of virtue would bring the poolrooms of America to near extinction, the truth is that it has already happened. Even before COVID, poolhalls were dropping like flies in America. Youth are no longer going to poolrooms, and this is, at least in part, because of the culture you have described as acceptable. Pool must either address this or lose the next generation of players.

I have often taken note of the fact that pro pool players have the option to throw in the towel and be satisfied with pool being in the gutter, which is where you seem to think it belongs. That said, it will reduce sponsorships and reduce the appetite of investors to put money into pro pool. You don’t see it as a big deal when pro players act in a way that compromises those who sponsor, produce, or invest in pool, and it’s your every right to see it that way.

I, on the other hand, have watched pro pool players blow opportunity after opportunity by failing to support the efforts of those who have the means to help them and their sport. It bothers me, but it seems it doesn’t bother you, and that’s OK.

Stu, youth CANNOT go to pool rooms. They would if they could. Most youth are actually attracted to what you are saying is keeping them from pool rooms. Especially young men. But our culture (including yourself) has decided that such environments are unacceptable. If there is booze, smoke, or testosterone induced behavior it’s all off limits. Toxic masculinity and all. And from the responses I’ve received it would seem the castrated beta-males have won. I personally think folks on here need to be either more honest or get a better sense of their own situational awareness. Are people actually going to tell me with a straight face that in their pool rooms guys don’t do drugs? That the parking lot doesn’t often have the smell of weed? That men don’t get drunk and belligerent? That whores don’t come by to try to get a John? Well I’ve seen it all over the country. Also I keep hearing the term violence thrown around willynilly. Y’all actually call what happened in this incident violence? If so, grow up. This wasn’t violence. This was a scuffle. I’ve seen violence. I’ve committed violence (in self defense only). No one was injured. No one died. Property wasn’t destroyed. I’ll leave this to y’all. It’s clear from the responses that we are already doomed. And frankly with such neutered viewpoints being the norm we deserve exactly what we get.


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[Biloxi Boy]

If bad behavior is a part of why kids don't play pool, it is a small part. Video games and instant gratification are the big problem. I am concerned about youth and pool. I have sons who could care less about pool. One thing I had was real pool rooms that, once I made the cut, were like second homes. Pool for my sons was barboxes in bars, and such just did not take -- I can't blame them at all. I can't say it enough, if we want pool to have a future, we must have real pool halls.

 

[8intheside]

If bad behavior is a part of why kids don't play pool, it is a small part. Video games and instant gratification are the big problem. I am concerned about youth and pool. I have sons who could care less about pool. One thing I had was real pool rooms that, once I made the cut, were like second homes. Pool for my sons was barboxes in bars, and such just did not take -- I can't blame them at all. I can't say it enough, if we want pool to have a future, we must have real pool halls.

I agree. We definitely need places more upscale that takes the game seriousl,and provide a good environment

 

[Get_A_Grip]

Stu, youth CANNOT go to pool rooms. They would if they could. Most youth are actually attracted to what you are saying is keeping them from pool rooms. Especially young men. But our culture (including yourself) has decided that such environments are unacceptable. If there is booze, smoke, or testosterone induced behavior it’s all off limits. Toxic masculinity and all. And from the responses I’ve received it would seem the castrated beta-males have won. I personally think folks on here need to be either more honest or get a better sense of their own situational awareness. Are people actually going to tell me with a straight face that in their pool rooms guys don’t do drugs? That the parking lot doesn’t often have the smell of weed? That men don’t get drunk and belligerent? That whores don’t come by to try to get a John? Well I’ve seen it all over the country. Also I keep hearing the term violence thrown around willynilly. Y’all actually call what happened in this incident violence? If so, grow up. This wasn’t violence. This was a scuffle. I’ve seen violence. I’ve committed violence (in self defense only). No one was injured. No one died. Property wasn’t destroyed. I’ll leave this to y’all. It’s clear from the responses that we are already doomed. And frankly with such neutered viewpoints being the norm we deserve exactly what we get.


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I think what is getting confused are "normal" players in a pool room versus PROFESSIONAL players. There is a difference between the two. In fact, I would say that a top player that is being sponsored, should be held to an even higher standard of behavior. The reasons for this should be obvious, but I think that the differences are being lost by many amateur players and posters in this thread.

 

[ShootingArts]

To address a couple of things, yes most accept the USA as North America or even America although I hear that citizens of Mexico may call Mexico America and lump the US and Canada together as North America. If the Mosconi Cup was really America against Europe The Lion could have really spiced up our team and we would have probably won a few more cups. I am as guilty as anybody for calling the USA America but I know it isn't.

I believe drug money financed the fabled Rack for the most part and major crime and gambling have often had a close relationship. I have known a few people that were sitting on closetful's of dirty money. They were smart enough they wanted to invest it, real estate if nothing else. Far too paranoid to do it, just as soon drop a dime on yourself. One guy told me that he had bought over a dozen T-birds for one night stands when they were popular 77-79. A closet full of money and nothing to do with it. High stakes gambling was one way to launder some of this money but another thing is that these people were action junkies. They were dealing dope in quantities to put them in prison for a decade or so when they had four or five years living expenses on hand. That doesn't make sense from a practical standpoint.

These people were sometimes violent but it wasn't focused on pool halls. That was simply one place they frequented. I was there a few minutes after one person was killed in a pool hall but it could just have easily been in a bar or on the street, even a store, wherever the parties met.

There was a long gap in my life in pool halls but I can't remember the last real fight. None of the loud arguments lasted long enough to talk about and most of them were about who needed a spot and how much of one they needed. Most people want to make a game where they can win without breaking a sweat.

Things have changed several generations down from when we were young men. Not considering fights with siblings, many young men have never been in a fight. Few have been in more than a small handful of fights. For better or worse not the way things are settled anymore. A lot less scars but grudges linger on for years. The modern pool hall is going to have to cater to the new realities to survive. Fights, heavy smoke, drug deals inside the place, aren't going to cut it. Any place allowing fights and drug deals with no real effort to control them deserves to close. Heavy smoke, even smokers rarely want to go home smelling like an ashtray!

Today and tomorrow's pool hall needs to be a place where eighteen to thirty-five year olds feel at home. Old dinosaurs may not be crazy about these places but the old dinosaurs aren't the ones that pay the rent. I don't have all the answers, don't have any to be honest. I am out of touch with what it takes to appeal to youth. However, pool halls will have to find what the young people with money to spend want or they are going to disappear.

Hu

 

[ExilePreacher]

I think what is getting confused are "normal" players in a pool room versus PROFESSIONAL players. There is a difference between the two. In fact, I would say that a top player that is being sponsored, should be held to an even higher standard of behavior. The reasons for this should be obvious, but I think that the differences are being lost by many amateur players and posters in this thread.

So amateur players should hold professional players to a higher standard than they do for themselves? Really? Who are the fans? Amateur players. The pro players used to be amateurs. They learned from the environment of the amateur players. But once they turn pro they are supposed to just forget that? Bullshit. The most beloved pool room in my memory was likely Chicago Billiards. Mention that place to anyone who played there and you’ll likely see a tear in their eye. The most beloved players were very unprofessional by your standards. Lisciotti? McCready? My mentor. Fats. I could go on but you get the idea. The more of a scoundrel the more we loved them. THAT is American pool. Look at other sports. McGregor is a complete jackass thug and he’s worshipped in what is likely the fastest growing sport in the world. Mayweather got the two biggest paydays in boxing history AFTER he went to jail for beating up a woman for Pete’s sake (and for the love of beer please don’t say I’m promoting domestic abuse, you know that’s not my point). Conners and McEnroe. Ray Lewis was on trial for murder. Need I go on. As Charles Barkley said about 30 years ago, these guys are not role models. And it’s stupid to act like they are or to require them to be.


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[sjm]

But our culture (including yourself) has decided that such environments are unacceptable. If there is booze, smoke, or testosterone induced behavior it’s all off limits.

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I don't have an opinion on whether the poolroom is acceptable or unacceptable to America's youth, but I feel the culture surrounding pool greatly influences the parents who have great authority and control over which leisure-time activities are the ones in their kids may partake. If that culture is as low-life as you perceive, perhaps pool is already doomed and the next generation won't play it.

In the end, America's youths do what their parents allow and/or encourage them to do. If parents view poolrooms as safe, they'll let their kids go to the poolroom. If parents view pool as a positive experience for kids, they might encourage schools to offer pool as a recreational activity in the schools. This has already happened in some schools.

If parents view the pool scene to be as dangerous and culturally bereft as you believe it to be, they won't let their kids near the pool scene. The pool scene in which you live is not anything similar to what I've ever experienced. You speak of the poolroom parking lot --- the poolrooms I have always played in don't have parking lots. In fact, I can't even think of one that did.

Let's just say that we've had a very different experience in pool, rather than arguing about what the pool scene really looks like. It's an unproductive and ultimately unnecessary debate.

 

[Biloxi Boy]

Gambling (not pool gambling, but bookmaking and backroom crap and card games) was the financial backbone of the pool halls I came up in. Think blackboards with endless numbers chalked upon them. The "Daily Racing Form" was the most popular reading material. One room actually had tickertape machines. There were no fights in these places because everyone understood whose house they were in.

 

[pt109]

Thanks for the correction. I hope you got a nice dopamine boost from correcting a dumb, insular American. (Notice after you read that last sentence there was no ambiguity in your mind about what I meant by "American," because of the denigrating context.)

As a Canuck, I’m quite comfortable with the terms American, North American, and South American.
I’m sure that all around the world, if you say you’re American, everybody knows where you’re from.

 

[BeiberLvr]

if you say you’re American, everybody knows where you’re from.

New York City?