Greatest 9 Ball Player Dead/alive

I played Dorothy Wise some straight pool at California Billiards in San Jose, back when she in her 50's. She hit me with a 43 and 38 back to back, not bad for an "old lady"! I enjoyed my visits in San Jose.
 
Question for Gremlin. I remember watching
Balukas play & she was great, but I don't
remember her being as strong as Alison
or Karen are today. Am I wrong?
 
There is no way to say whom is best. To me the best player is the one standing at the table or leaving with the ca$h.....

Not much has been heard of Balukas since she attempted to play the mens tour(BBQ).......
 
Hondo, I know you ask Gremlin so sorry if I'm out of line but in my humble opinion, yes, you are wrong. Jean Balukas was, and still could be, the greatest pool playing woman ever. "Note" I didn't say "Snooker".
 
I saw Jean on ESPN a few months ago. She said she is thinking about coming back but didn't say for sure or not. If she hasn't played a lick since she quit, it might be difficult. Who knows if she'll play as good as she did. I sure hope she gives it a try! No offense intended towards Allison and Karen but it would be great having an American player dominate the game again!
 
Rick, even if she doesn't dominate it would be great to see her on tour again. Her game could be off some but I'm sure she could get back in stroke a few tournaments down the road. Best of luck to you Jean, whether you come back or not but like Rick said, many of us would like to see you again........$Bill
 
Ted Harris said:
If I remember correctly, you played Efren in the finals. I cannot remember if you won or not?
Click to expand...

Hi, Ted. When I played Efren in that tournament he won, I came in second. Thanks for the compliments, and hopefully, we can see some of those good games again in the future that we had in the past.
 
There is no man in the world who can touch Efren's cue-ball control. If he had Bustamante's break, he would be the best 9-ball player. Efren is in the top 5 for 9-ball, but for everything else on a 9", he is king.

For 9-ball it's Earl the Pearl.
 
The best ever is probably Reyes.

But the best guys NOW? It's young flesh I'm afraid...

Hohmann, Pagulayan, Yang, Hsia are taking over slowly...

And they have not even reached their peak!

Earl admits that he fears playing Yang.
 
Earl Strickland, by far.
6 World Championships and 5 US Open
titles, no one has come close to
that.
 
Reyes is the best "pool" player to ever live but he was not the best to ever hold a cue. That honor goes to Stephen Hendry.
 
Last edited:
I will say this. In a long race when efren is at the top of his game you can put anyone alive or dead and they would lose. Forget earl as the best, even he has said "He is the best player ive ever played and i played them all!!" Like i said he beat earl in the color of money 1&2 and both were long race"s.
 
Bobby said:
Earl Strickland, by far.
6 World Championships and 5 US Open
titles, no one has come close to
that.
Click to expand...

Some would say Mosconi beat that soundly.

As far as being a dominate force in pool over a long period of time I will also tip my hat to Earl Strickland for the best modern player. As good as Efren is he has not been able to be the dominate force in pool over a long period of time that the other champions were. He had a streak in the early 90's where he was virtually unbeatable but it did not last. He has what, only 1 world championship? I am sorry but that is not enough to claim the best player ever title from Mosconi or even Earl Strickland. History will look back at Efren and ask "well what did he win and how many times did he win the big events?" When people have the answer he will fall short of the best player ever title. If Efren was not a modern player and instead played in the era of Mosconi or Lassiter he would not have the fame of either of those players or the recognition due to his lack of premier titles. He is fortunate in debates such as these for the simple fact he is a modern current player that people can watch and see and most people who give their opinion in these debates of the best player ever cannot see anything but the present.
 
If you're going to gauge the best player based on the number of chmapionships won, then i would vote for Earl. I would vote for Efren though based on the impact he had on the game. He revolutionized the way 9-ball is being played imo
 
Celtic!! Efren has more than one world title he has many world 8 ball titles i dont care if they are 8ball. Efren has won more titles in the past years than alot of great players put together!!. When did earl win his world titles back in the 80s? when there were only 10 great players in the world and all of them were in the USA Reyes wins more now with how good players are today than Earl does with out a doubt!!!!
 
didnt Earl win the us open last year? that isnt a "world" event? the best players in the world show up every year......
 
What about Nick Varner??? The "Little Big Man" has done everything that could be done with a pool cue. Back in 89 he even defeated Reyes in a challenge match that took place in Manilla. He never seems to get much attention, but I think when push comes to shove no one is tougher to beat than Nick.
 
Souquet won the US Open last year without Reyes and Bustamante. And Varner isn't the only one who won against Reyes in a challenge match. But the thing is that nobody plays pool like Reyes. Ask Archer or Strickland, and even Bustamante amongst the few. The truth is, Efren is the greatest of all time. Now why is that so goddamn hard to accept?
 
scratch said:
The truth is, Efren is the greatest of all time. Now why is that so goddamn hard to accept?
Click to expand...

Because I doubt you have ever seen Mosconi, Greenleaf, Lassiter, or Crane ever shoot a game of pool and therefore you dont know jack about the greatest of all time. You know the greatest you saw on T.V. last week.

BTW King Cueball, last time Earl won the World Championships was not in the 80's. You been living under a rock the last couple of years?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top