Commentaries on Streaming Pool Matches.

[CageyCraigey]

Nothing is more annoying than listening to two in the booth that have never played pool in their life. Sometimes they have a guest announcer in the booth that has never seen a pool table. "Do you think he's going to combination the 9?" "Probably not, the 9 is at the other end and the 1 is at this end." "Perhaps he'll elect to jump?" "No, Mike Zuglan doesn't allow jump cues at this event." We know which streams we have to mute.

As a professional commentator who has often ha to cover events O new practically zero about one of the first things you learn is to study the rules, identify the moves and say as little as possible. I once had to do figure skating but thank God I had an analyst who knew the sport well. A month before they sent me a tape of all most popular moves so I could learn what to look for an give it a name!

 

[CageyCraigey]

-you say it is ‘largely atrocious.’

i don’t disagree

-you mention commentary and then
point out that in USA it is announcing

certainly ken doherty in the commentry box
is different that jeremy jones in the booth


but we are all different and some people prefer blondes and some brunettes

some people live in the mountains and some in the city

cues and tips too, we could argue all day about what’s the best but it’ll never be true for everyone

some people love steak rare, other people say the best is well done and then there are the vegetarians

i love listening to grady mathews but his lisp is horrible and makes me wonder why nobody ever told him about it?

maybe it’s just me, my problem not his

and if incardona says the word ‘elect’
one more time i’m hitting the mute button

but maybe he actually talked like that i don’t know maybe the bartender asked him hey what are you drinking? and he said-
‘i elect to consume one draft lager and a shot of silver tequila at this time.’

It may not be the case commentating in all sports but you can definitely in a sport like horse racing easily spot the well prepared caller who memorizes and calls through binoculars versus those who do not and are looking at a monitor. Or those who have not changed their style in 30-40 years.

 

[Oikawa]

Imran Majid and Jeremy Jones are great. Knowledgeable about the game and shares their insights, great to listen for intermediate/advanced players who are trying to improve their game.

 

[Cornerman]

i've gotten used to pool commentary being talkier than other sports, but there are definitely some streams that are unlistenable.

slightly off topic but i've noticed that many pinoy streams are in english sprinkled in with tagalog. is that because they have different languages, so english is like a lingua franca between tagalog and cebuano?

English is spoken by most Filipinos due to the PI being a former US Territory. So inter-mixing English is a daily, common thing. Since the Shark stream is meant for an international audience, they speak more English than anything.

 

[jay helfert]

i've gotten used to pool commentary being talkier than other sports, but there are definitely some streams that are unlistenable.

slightly off topic but i've noticed that many pinoy streams are in english sprinkled in with tagalog. is that because they have different languages, so english is like a lingua franca between tagalog and cebuano?

English and Tagalog are often used interchangeably in everyday language over there, even by their politicians. I did commentary on many pool tournaments being held in the Philippines - World Ten Ball, World Team Championships and others. I would work side by side with a Filipino commentator. He would do maybe two thirds Tagalog and one third English commentary and me only English. It worked out great.

I did paid commentary on many major pool events including the Mosconi Cup and several World Championships, and I still enjoy sitting in on a streaming match once in a while.

One last thing, do your homework before commentating a match! Who the players are, what's at stake, how many players left, prize money etc. and talk to the players pre match to get an idea of their match history. If you know and understand the game of pool the rest is easy.

 

[dquarasr]

Most annoying for me are situations where the commentators are reminiscing about some past event, name dropping, giving irrelevant stats about another tournament, totally ignoring the match being played for multiple innings at a time, where fantastic shots are being made or blatant errors have been committed by missing an easy pot or missing shape. Grrrrr.

I usually yell at the screen “Pay attention to the g-damned match!!!”

P.S. this had been perpetrated by pairs of female commentators. I don’t remember their names because I muted them.

 

[jasonlaus]

Most annoying for me are situations where the commentators are reminiscing about some past event, name dropping, giving irrelevant stats about another tournament, totally ignoring the match being played for multiple innings at a time, where fantastic shots are being made or blatant errors have been committed by missing an easy pot or missing shape. Grrrrr.

I usually yell at the screen “Pay attention to the g-damned match!!!”

P.S. this had been perpetrated by pairs of female commentators. I don’t remember their names because I muted them.

Or they have no idea what the score is, or there is an argument and we can't hear because they are professional yappers. STFU!!!! Same for poker commentary

 

[jay helfert]

Most annoying for me are situations where the commentators are reminiscing about some past event, name dropping, giving irrelevant stats about another tournament, totally ignoring the match being played for multiple innings at a time, where fantastic shots are being made or blatant errors have been committed by missing an easy pot or missing shape. Grrrrr.

I usually yell at the screen “Pay attention to the g-damned match!!!”

P.S. this had been perpetrated by pairs of female commentators. I don’t remember their names because I muted them.

Agree 100! To this day that bothers me the most, when the commentators are not paying attention to what's happening on the table. I want to scream and say "What about that shot? How good did he hit it?" My second pet peeve (see this often in the MC) is when the coms are talking over the players who are having a convo with each other). I'd like to hear that conversation! Isn't that why the players are mic'd up?

There is a time to talk (usually before or after a shot) and a time to be quiet (most of time). Many times the action speaks for itself and there is no need to overlay commentary, like when a guy is making a perfect run out. Tell us after the game how he did it.

 

[markjames]

matchroom commentators are better
when they don’t force the snooker terms
on the game of pool such as

draw level
three- nil
pot the ball
cannon the brown seven
third frame
on the trot
total clearance
break off shot
with pace
into baulk
the rest
mid session interval
it went scrappy
force a decider

etc, screw, fluke, in-off, double

not that i don’t fancy
flawless sessions of snooker
with cracking pots and massive clearances,
delicate little nudges and telling safeties

i will admit that check side
is more precise
than inside english
especially if you are english

 

[Buckzapper]

"Yes, it looks like he just put a full stroke of reverse-intake, side vacuum suck on the cueball to snatch it around the rails, when he could have just stopped the cue ball right there." "Yes, he's the House Pro at Louie's Laundromat and pool emporium."

 

[Brookeland Bill]

Imran Majid and Jeremy Jones are great. Knowledgeable about the game and shares their insights, great to listen for intermediate/advanced players who are trying to improve their game.

Imran Majid and Jeremy Jones are great. Knowledgeable about the game and shares their insights, great to listen for intermediate/advanced players who are trying to improve their game.

JJ is the worst. Can’t shut his yap. He has oral diarrhoea.

 

[gerryf]

Most annoying for me are situations where the commentators are reminiscing about some past event, name dropping, giving irrelevant stats about another tournament, totally ignoring the match being played for multiple innings at a time, where fantastic shots are being made or blatant errors have been committed by missing an easy pot or missing shape. Grrrrr.

I usually yell at the screen “Pay attention to the g-damned match!!!”

P.S. this had been perpetrated by pairs of female commentators. I don’t remember their names because I muted them.

My favourite was a match with two commentators. They were always going on about some hustler they knew back in the old-days. The commentary was all about who knew who. Suddenly there was a roar from the crowd. Commentator 1 says "What just happened there, I missed it?". Commentator 2 replies "I don't know, I wasn't watching".

 

[CharlesUFarley]

JJ is the worst. Can’t shut his yap. He has oral diarrhoea.

This a unique take. You're the first person I've ever heard say they didn't like his commentary.

 

[maha]

yes many are bad but the good ones are good and dont work cheaply unless its a favor. most streams make candy money at best and are done for love.

they also have to appeal to very uninformed social players that do watch as well and arent that intent on each shot but more on the out come and listening to quirky talk.

 

[ShortBusRuss]

This a unique take. You're the first person I've ever heard say they didn't like his commentary.

JJ is by far the most knowledgeable commentator we have in pool, and it's not even close. He brings up concerns that I did not even realize were things to be worried about, until he mentioned them. You can tell he has done a LOT of thinking about the finer points of pool.

 

[Brookeland Bill]

This a unique take. You're the first person I've ever heard say they didn't like his commentary.

He never shuts up. If it’s a straight in shot he has to tell you. One reason I watch is to try and guess the shot a players going to attempt. Not with JJ’s second guessing and comments on anything and everything.

Ken Venturi said it best. Why do I have to comment on the obvious.

 

[GrayBeard]

I have mixed feelings about JJ. He is VERY knowledgeable, but he could delete every other sentence (or two) and he would still get the point across. He at least pays attention to the matches he is commentating though, unlike some.

 

[ChrisSjoblom]

He never shuts up. If it’s a straight in shot he has to tell you. One reason I watch is to try and guess the shot a players going to attempt. Not with JJ’s second guessing and comments on anything and everything.

Ken Venturi said it best. Why do I have to comment on the obvious.

Why would JJ's commentary keep you from making your own guess as to what shot the player will try? After all, you're probably watching the game on a larger screen than JJ, so you have an advantage of better seeing the angles and obstructions. Make it a contest - see if you can predict more shots correctly than him! Best of luck.

 

[Maniac]

.If OTOH, the match is top flite and they keep guessing wrong, the sound goes off so I can sweat in peace.

This is my biggest annoyance in pool commentary. After, let's say five wrong guesses, the commentator shouldn't open his/her mouth until AFTER the shot is taken.

I rolled my eyes when I read the Cornerman's interview. One of his mentioned co-commentators that he enjoyed working with was very prolific at the aforementioned annoyance. Even heard him on one stream second-guess SVB on his shot selection on multiple shots throughout the match, as if HIS way would have been a better choice. Of course, SVB without fail always made the shot and got position on the shot he chose to play.

I won't go into naming names, but there was another commentator mentioned by the Cornerman that I also prefer to not listen to because of his use of "two-dollar" words and approach that seemed to be aimed at educated/highly intellectual viewers that just made me want to puke. Like he's trying to prove to the audience how smart and knowledgeable he is.

Then there are the ones that don't really "commentate" but rather spew nonsense about anything and everything. They seem more concerned with conversing with the people in the chat room than talking about the actual match being played.

What I really like hearing in a pool stream is the sound of the balls being racked (when using a triangle), the balls clacking at the time of impact, the balls hitting the back of the pocket, some light background music, and some light commentary about what just happened after a shot. All this guesswork about shot/english/number of rails to be used, etc. drives me crazy (and that's a short drive). 8-ball is the worst to watch with the commentators tripping all over themselves about which ball to start with and then which pattern to get to the 8-ball. Geez Louise. Gimme a freakin' break!

Rant over. Carry on.

 

[ChrisSjoblom]

This is my biggest annoyance in pool commentary. After, let's say five wrong guesses, the commentator shouldn't open his/her mouth until AFTER the shot is taken.

I rolled my eyes when I read the Cornerman's interview. One of his mentioned co-commentators that he enjoyed working with was very prolific at the aforementioned annoyance. Even heard him on one stream second-guess SVB on his shot selection on multiple shots throughout the match, as if HIS way would have been a better choice. Of course, SVB without fail always made the shot and got position on the shot he chose to play.

I won't go into naming names, but there was another commentator mentioned by the Cornerman that I also prefer to not listen to because of his use of "two-dollar" words and approach that seemed to be aimed at educated/highly intellectual viewers that just made me want to puke. Like he's trying to prove to the audience how smart and knowledgeable he is.

Then there are the ones that don't really "commentate" but rather spew nonsense about anything and everything. They seem more concerned with conversing with the people in the chat room than talking about the actual match being played.

What I really like hearing in a pool stream is the sound of the balls being racked (when using a triangle), the balls clacking at the time of impact, the balls hitting the back of the pocket, some light background music, and some light commentary about what just happened after a shot. All this guesswork about shot/english/number of rails to be used, etc. drives me crazy (and that's a short drive). 8-ball is the worst to watch with the commentators tripping all over themselves about which ball to start with and then which pattern to get to the 8-ball. Geez Louise. Gimme a freakin' break!

Rant over. Carry on.

I'm with you on most of this, although I do like one of the commentators to whom you alluded in your screed above.

When a commentator is hard to listen to I usually I just turn off the sound and enjoy the play. What bothers me the most, though, is the streamers that insist on inserting a video window of themselves doing the commentary and/or the scrolling text of the chat. Like they are somehow important enough visually to distract from the actual game, or like I cared at all about what the people on the chat had to say. Those I usually give a thumbs down and leave the stream/video.