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I've been fortunate enough to play some of the past generation's legends. To my experience, those guys had no off switch playing anyone; they always played hard.
I believe many set mental goals for themselves before the match to try to force themselves to play hard (i.e. "hold their opponent under ___". Having that been said, when the pressure is really on, the top guys seem to be able to squeeze out that little something extra. If nothing else, when real money is on the line (even backer's money), you can see the anguish and pressure on their faces more, sometimes you can even see it in their stroke. For me, that makes it more entertaining to watch.
In this match, it seems like they are both playing hard and want to win, but I don't see that anguish in their expressions. If I had to guess, neither has any cash to be won or lost on the line.
This strikes me as about right. Most top pros play hard all the time, but they tend to have an extra gear when something is on the line.
That said, it's not common for most pros to find the themselves in situations in which nothing is at stake. Especially with team sports. It is more common in an individual sport, say pool or tennis. Top pool players play in plenty of exhibitions, for instance.
I don't get paid to play anything, but I play hard all the time. Heck, I don't even go easy on my kids, not now as adults or even when they were young. My wife used to get mad at me for not letting them win sometimes. I'd just say, they'll never learn anything if I just hand it to them. The need to learn to earn it.
Most times when I am playing pool with nothing at stake, I play to the best of my ability. It's a point of personal ... something. Pride, perhaps, or just the feeling of doing things well. My father would always say, if you are going to do something, do it right. Or do it well. That's my philosophy, too.
Of course, we are all human. Sometimes we take "plays' off. I was critical of SVB, for instance, during the PLP because I could tell there were times he was going thru the motions a bit. Sjm expressed surprise at my sentiment, but I saw what I saw. SVB didn't give it his all even when something was, in fact, at stake.
As for Gorst-Tkon, I think people have sold Tkon short. He plays more like a borderline 800 Fargo player than a 770 player. He is actually very, very good and was middle of the pack in the 2024 PLP.
That said, I do think Fedor has taken some shots he normally wouldn't in a big WNT tourney. Both players are playing to win, but the match definitely does not have the feel of a WNT quarter or semi or even the long race last year by SVB and Gorst.