I’ve seen Earl at his best and at his worst. At the end of the day he was a great player and was good for the game.
Ditto. Earl's an anomaly. His competitive resume speaks for itself, and he's indisputably one of the best ever.
His tendency to show insufficient respect for opponents, tournament officials, event producers, and fans is surprising to me, because Earl has so much respect for pool itself. Another thing I always liked about Earl was that he never entered the tournament room without being well dressed, even if he had already been eliminated.
Call him what you want, but at bare minimum, call him unforgettable.