What was the final score.....?
Did anyone else feel like they overstated how bad Shane was doing?
- Thread starter CreeDo
- Start date
100-83...
I don't think anyone was bashing on Shane, just stating the obvious really.... I think even Shane knows he played pretty bad, rattling the pockets, and leaving Earl easy outs and such...He just couldn't shake it...
What an epic match...
I don't think anyone was bashing on Shane, just stating the obvious really.... I think even Shane knows he played pretty bad, rattling the pockets, and leaving Earl easy outs and such...He just couldn't shake it...
What an epic match...
I can tell you didn't watch the match.
Let shane get some practice on this table and in the next matchup i'll gladly bet with someone even.
Shane dogged alot of shots that any pro is favored to make. I'm feeling that's why so many people were saying Shane was off his game, that along with his position play not being as crisp as it normally is.
It was very odd at times, Shane would look like he found his stroke for a few games or make a great runout and then all of the sudden miss a shot and then lose his momentum.
Hmmmm
SVB had 8 hours of practice on Friday night alone..... how many more hours would someone need to adjust to a table? Plus, the rules were made months in advance that a 10 foot table would be involved. Yeah, very tight pockets, you just gotta shot straight and they go in, you know,kinda like Earl !!
PS: No way SVB wants a rematch on a 10 footer... well, maybe when Earl is pushing 60 he might. SVB is a champion, no doubt, but Earl was and is too !!
SVB had 8 hours of practice on Friday night alone..... how many more hours would someone need to adjust to a table? Plus, the rules were made months in advance that a 10 foot table would be involved. Yeah, very tight pockets, you just gotta shot straight and they go in, you know,kinda like Earl !!
PS: No way SVB wants a rematch on a 10 footer... well, maybe when Earl is pushing 60 he might. SVB is a champion, no doubt, but Earl was and is too !!
they were both there monday -thursday practicing on that table before the match started on friday..........strickland never practices on a 5x10 by the way....he plays on a 9' goldcrown at gate city just about every day he is home for about 4 hours or so a day...........strickland always said that he thinks he would be able to really showcase his game on a 5x10 with tight pockets where the break wouldnt show up as much and the opponent would have to play perfect position to beat him. I definetly agree tho that if Shane puts some time into practicing on a 5x10 the outcome could go either way but it will never be a lock that he would win. I bet that if they play again no matter how much he practices and improves on a table like this that Earl will not be a 18 game pre game dog!!!
Shane got there on Monday, according to JCIN, and put in some major table time every day.
If he can't adjust after 30 hours or so of practice and 180 games, he will never adjust.
never... haha i love this forum
Shane has too much class to come on here and complain, but I happen to know that Earl's antics definitely upset him. He never expected this from someone he thought respected him. Shane did his best to handle it on days one and two, but finally just gave up on day three, when Earl had him rattled. Unlike Earl, Shane has respect for the game of pool and his opponents. You all want to congratulate Earl, go ahead. NOT ME!!!
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Jay I almost always agree with what you say, but this seems a little... weird to me. I mean, did SVB really think that Earl wouldn't be "Earl" just because he's playing SVB? I mean, seriously, everyone in pool knows what Earl does and how he acts, and if you accept a game with him, you had better accept (and expect) all the other parts too. The opponent can't pick and choose which parts of Earl they get to play.
Regardless of came out of Earl's mouth during the match, the performance he put on the table was unquestionably impressive. You don't have to like him, but you can't say he didn't play the game extremely well.
I stand by my earlier statement. Shane and Earl had been on very friendly terms up until this match began. Shane did get blind sided here, whether you want to believe it or not. He NEVER expected this kind of outrageous behavior from Earl in this match. Nothing even close to this happened in their first match.
Well, I'm not privvy to any inside information, and unfortunately I haven't seen their first match (yet), so I can't comment on their history or personal relationship. But, I thought I heard on the stream that this was not the first time Earl has said, while playing SVB, that he wishes he were deaf or something similar.
I can absolutely imagine though, that if Shane wasn't expecting it, it could be quite a bit unsettling. I would expect that Shane should be able to handle it though; he's not new to pressure or the random opponent's or room's noises, comments, etc.
I wonder if the fact he never really caught a gear coupled with Earl's ranting is really got to him... but who knows which is the chicken and which is the egg. *shrug* I'm not sure any of us could say.
I can absolutely imagine though, that if Shane wasn't expecting it, it could be quite a bit unsettling. I would expect that Shane should be able to handle it though; he's not new to pressure or the random opponent's or room's noises, comments, etc.
I wonder if the fact he never really caught a gear coupled with Earl's ranting is really got to him... but who knows which is the chicken and which is the egg. *shrug* I'm not sure any of us could say.
shane can be happy that earl cant play his top speed for 3 days if earl w as in his
prime the outcome whould have been much worse
prime the outcome whould have been much worse
its gambling and that stuff happens people either learn to play and focus on the table or they dont and they focus on there opponent and the people in the room svb knows this and has played in much worse situations than this........pool , gambling , being on the road you get seasoned to it and learn to except your loses and not blame antics , sharking , or other factors and Shane has excepted this lose and time to move on. He may not have expected it from Earl but being a seasoned gambler and high profile action player he WAS prepared so that is why he isnt blaming it on that.
Couldn't agree more, it had to be said. I'm glad it was you Jay.
It was apparent from the outset of this match that sharking Shane was a big part of the game plan. Getting a great player on a gaffe table then sharking the hell out of him is a tale old as time.
Earl Strickland is the biggest hypocrite in pool. He viciously berates fans and his opponents for doing exactly what he does. Guys like him are a dime a dozen in the poolrooms I've played in over the years. Only exception is that unlike those other guys Strickland has a sixth gear and once the sharking and gaffe are in place he can take it down with no remorse (and still freaking complain while he's doing it). I respect those that can put a cue together and break someone down purely by playing the game (Efren, Johnny, Buddy, Nick V, etc). Those that need every move in the book are not deserving of any respect, regardless of how straight they shoot.
And for the record, enough with the euphemisms people. What Earl does are not 'Antics', he's not a 'Character'. He flat out cheats, sharks, and cries like a baby when things don't go his way.
its amazing how well shane played with that broken they gave to make sure he played this match ,, fact is that he just got beat by a old man with ear muffs and plugs a stick that looked like a javilin and weights on his wrists ankles and ass that he handed him
if u cant handle the heat stay out of the kitchen
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I can't argue momentum and psychology didn't play a part, nor can I argue that at some point shane was 17 games down... so if they'd play about equal on a 'normal' day, shane dropped 7 or 8 games he shouldn't have. So yeah, he didn't play at his full speed.
I just feel the concensus was that he played some of the worst pool of his life, and 'fell apart' when he in fact he was within spitting distance (single digit deficit) for a large chunk of the match . I don't think all three of these statements can be true:
-Earl played as well as a human possibly could on that table, like a demon.
-Shane played horribly, missed more makeable shots than he ever has before.
-This equals a 17 game difference after 183 racks (and near the end shane pulled within 7)
Somehow, that math doesn't add up.
A top pro on his worst day + another top pro on his best = something like a 40 game blowout (aka earl vs. shane I). That's when all the hyperbole should come out.
I think we have this mental optical illusion going on. When earl dropped 8-10 racks and let shane crawl back from a 17 game deficit, and dogged a routine shot leading to multiple assaults on his harpoon and headphones, nobody remembers, they just remember the times Shane's rail cuts got spat out by the V-shaped pockets. Shane made all but about 3 of his kicks and earl left shane looks at the whole ball on several safes, those things aren't shane at his worst or earl at his best.
I just feel the concensus was that he played some of the worst pool of his life, and 'fell apart' when he in fact he was within spitting distance (single digit deficit) for a large chunk of the match . I don't think all three of these statements can be true:
-Earl played as well as a human possibly could on that table, like a demon.
-Shane played horribly, missed more makeable shots than he ever has before.
-This equals a 17 game difference after 183 racks (and near the end shane pulled within 7)
Somehow, that math doesn't add up.
A top pro on his worst day + another top pro on his best = something like a 40 game blowout (aka earl vs. shane I). That's when all the hyperbole should come out.
I think we have this mental optical illusion going on. When earl dropped 8-10 racks and let shane crawl back from a 17 game deficit, and dogged a routine shot leading to multiple assaults on his harpoon and headphones, nobody remembers, they just remember the times Shane's rail cuts got spat out by the V-shaped pockets. Shane made all but about 3 of his kicks and earl left shane looks at the whole ball on several safes, those things aren't shane at his worst or earl at his best.
I think Shane absolutely out-safed Earl, overall, no arguing there - but he did seem to be missing shots, by more than just the facing, at the end of the match. At the same time, he was firing full-table shots 100 miles an hour, it was just he wasn't quite as consistent as he normally is.
Earl did, for the most part, play better position though - which left him (generally) easier shots to pocket, so of course he's going to look better.
Earl missed a lot of the same shots Shane missed, people do need to remember that - but at the same time, he missed them much less frequently than Shane missed them. Shane got some free games because Earl dogged the 10-ball, but not nearly as many free games Shane gave to Earl by missing the 7,8,9.
Earl did, for the most part, play better position though - which left him (generally) easier shots to pocket, so of course he's going to look better.
Earl missed a lot of the same shots Shane missed, people do need to remember that - but at the same time, he missed them much less frequently than Shane missed them. Shane got some free games because Earl dogged the 10-ball, but not nearly as many free games Shane gave to Earl by missing the 7,8,9.