How many Pro level players would you say there are residing in the US?

justinb386 said:
No, none of those guys can beat the ghost in a race to 10 playing the ghost, without getting ball in hand after the break. Yes, they have the skill to do it, but can they do it, and beat the ghost with no ball in hand after the break (more times then not) on any day of the week? I think not. I do not know of any player that is really that good. How about this, and you can chose the format if you want to change it. Race the ghost to a 100 playing 9 or 10 ball on a 9 foot Diamond or Brunswick Gold Crown (does not matter to me), and the player can play up to 20 games per day against the ghost (with no ball in hand after the break), and the player need not pocket a ball on the break in order to keep shooting. How much of your hard earned money would you honestly bet on any player beating the ghost (with no ball in hand after the break)? Be honest with yourself, before you reply.
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Jiaqing Wu, Shane Van Boening, Dennis Orcollo, Jayson Shaw, Niels Feijen, Pin Yi Ko, Jung Lin Chang, Carlo Biado, Ping Chung Ko, Alex Pagulayan, Francisco Sanchez Ruiz, Lee Van Corteza, Mike Dechaine, Francisco Bustamante, Jundel Mazon, Efren Reyes, Johann Chua, Kun Lin Wu, Justin Bergman

All 19 of those people can probably break even with the 10 ball ghost without ball in hand.
 
jay helfert said:
Stan Shuffett (Landon's dad) decided to play in the U.S. Open three years ago and finished 9-12th! He beat several top players along the way.
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Stan Shuffett's good finish in the US Open 9-Ball Championship was 25th/32nd in the 2011 event. He won 4 matches (M. Al-Kahanfari, Jerome Rockwell, Chris Futrell, and Donny Mills) and lost to Alex Pagulayan and Daryl Peach.

[He beat Mills 11-1 and lost hill/hill to Peach!]
 
Rhea said:
Jiaqing Wu, Shane Van Boening, Dennis Orcollo, Jayson Shaw, Niels Feijen, Pin Yi Ko, Jung Lin Chang, Carlo Biado, Ping Chung Ko, Alex Pagulayan, Francisco Sanchez Ruiz, Lee Van Corteza, Mike Dechaine, Francisco Bustamante, Jundel Mazon, Efren Reyes, Johann Chua, Kun Lin Wu, Justin Bergman

All 19 of those people can probably break even with the 10 ball ghost without ball in hand.
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Think about it. Think of the pressure that you know you are playing the ghost, and the ghost is only giving you the breaks (and the 1st shot after the breaks, with no ball in hand). I do not know about those players, but that seems like a lot of pressure, no matter how highly skilled they are. Even without that pressure, I do not think they have the skill to do it on average more times then not. All that I am saying is that, yeah, they have the skill to do it, but can they do it on any day of the week (on a consistent bases)?

Do not forget that they would be playing on 9 foot tables, with tight (unforgiving) pockets.

Jayson Shaw broke and ran a 6 pack on the 10 foot table at the Derby, and that was considered exciting news. Players (including him) just do not play that good every day of the week.
 
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justinb386 said:
Think about it. Think of the pressure that you know you are playing the ghost, and the ghost is only giving you the breaks (and the 1st shot after the breaks, with no ball in hand). I do not know about those players, but that seems like a lot of pressure, no matter how highly skilled they are. Even without that pressure, I do not think they have the skill to do it on average more times then not. All that I am saying is that, yeah, they have the skill to do it, but can they do it on any day of the week (on a consistent bases)?

Do not forget that they would be playing on 9 foot tables, with tight (unforgiving) pockets.

Jayson Shaw broke and ran a 6 pack on the 10 foot table at the Derby, and that was considered exciting news. Players (including him) just do not play that good every day of the week.
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if I could only pick 19 in the entire world these would be the ones. If I could only pick 1 then it would be Jaiquing Wu. He should have the best chance to defeat this task.
 
justinb386 said:
This may be a very stupid question, but how many Pro level players would you say there are residing in the US?

These could be lesser known players that work full time jobs, but you would still consider them to be at the pro level, and have been known to beat known pro's from time to time.

These would be guys that if they played pool full time (and could make a living at it) would be right up there with any of the known pro's (like Skyler Woodward to name one example).

One other question is, what States would you say have the most pro level players residing in them?

I am also curious if there are very many Junior players who have high hopes of getting to a solid pro level in pool (and have the skill and desire to do so, just like Skyler Woodward, for example, did)?

Has the level of Junior competition stayed about the same in the last 20 years (for example), or do you think the Junior fields have dwindled and gotten weaker (in competition) over the years? Just curious.

Do you see many kids (with natural talent for the game) falling in love with the sport of pool (and just wanting to play the game all of the time) these days? I am guessing not, but I do not know.

Thanks.
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when you get a number, find the average age.
 
justinb386 said:
Yeah, she was very successful due to the way that she marketed herself as The Black Widow. By far, probably the most widely known name in pool player history (among the general public). Maybe even more known then Fats or Mosconi.
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It's not even close. Fats was an A-list celebrity, as well known as the top athletes in any major sport, including Mohammed Ali. Jeanette Lee is only known as the Black Widow and would be considered a minor sports celebrity.

The general public knew Fats on sight. Maybe 50% of the general public even knows the name Black Widow and only vaguely at best. By the way, the top Chinese women are making as much or more than her now, and far more than any men players. They have major sponsorship and endorsement deals with the largest companies in China. Mostly in beauty and cosmetics but it stretches far beyond that as well. Some of them may be earning seven figures a year!
 
Rhea said:
Jiaqing Wu, Shane Van Boening, Dennis Orcollo, Jayson Shaw, Niels Feijen, Pin Yi Ko, Jung Lin Chang, Carlo Biado, Ping Chung Ko, Alex Pagulayan, Francisco Sanchez Ruiz, Lee Van Corteza, Mike Dechaine, Francisco Bustamante, Jundel Mazon, Efren Reyes, Johann Chua, Kun Lin Wu, Justin Bergman

All 19 of those people can probably break even with the 10 ball ghost without ball in hand.
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They won't.
Most won't even make a ball more than 50% on the break.
 
Rhea said:
You are welcome, and just for clarification I will even list the only pros in the USA:

Shane Van Boening, Mike Dechaine, Justin Bergman, Johnny Archer, Rodney Morris, Earl Strickland, Skyler Woodward, Corey Deuel, Dennis Hatch, Johnathan Pinegar, Oscar Dominguez, Amar Kang, Larry Nevel, Josh Roberts, Rodrigo Geronimo, Billy Thorpe, Shane McMinn, Manny Chau, Jesse Bowman, Scott Frost, Jeremy Sossei, Chip Compton, Justin Hall, Charlie Bryan, John Schmidt, Shaun Wilkie, Shane Winters, Zion Zvi, Dave Coles Jr, Nelson Oliveira, Stevie Moore, Eric Moore, Mitch Ellerman, Brian Deska, Danny Smith, Brandon Shuff, Joey Gray, Chad Vilmont, Tony Chohan, Jaynard Orque, Robb Saez, Donny Mills, Tommy Kennedy, Max Eberle, Mike Davis Jr, Tom D'Alfonso, Jesse Engel, Taylor Anderson, Johnny Kang, TJ Steinhaus, Ernesto Dominguez, Santos Sambajon, Alex Olinger, John Gabriel, Ian Costello, Tony Robles, Jeremy Jones, Beau Runningen, Brian Parks, Danny Olson, Rory Hendrickson, Tom McCluske, Dustin Gunia, Gabe Owen, Ike Runnels, Jeff Beckley,
James Davis Sr, John Fields, Lee Heuwagen, Jorge Rodriguez

And the only 2 that would do well on a world stage:
SVB and Justin Bergman
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Probably another double or triple this number that toil away in their local poolroom waiting to ambush some of these guys. :rolleyes:
By the way, Geronimo is Filipino, as is Santos. Santos lives here now but Geronimo does not.
 
realkingcobra said:
I know Steve Glenn personally, and he wouldnt call himself a Pro by any means. How many of the players you listed could beat the 10 ball ghost with no racking aid and no BIH to start with in a race to 10?
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Buddy you keep bringing up 10 ball,no ball in hand or racking aid(majic rack etc..) and i am a gambler,so if anyone you know (other than shane and i might let him try too) wants to try this in a race to 10 tell me how much you want to bet and lets count down.seriously.
 
I didn,t even read the whole thread to see that others that are in the know,also feel nobody will try this game for the cash. I,m glad to know i,m not the only one who feels this way.
 
Rhea said:
Shane Van Boening, Mike Dechaine, Justin Bergman I named 3.
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I will give mike and justin 2 on the wire racing to ten or will lay 10,000 to win 7000 your choice.just post up on a regulation diamond with 4.25 inch pockets(no buckets) and let me know when.
 
jay helfert said:
It's not even close. Fats was an A-list celebrity, as well known as the top athletes in any major sport, including Mohammed Ali. Jeanette Lee is only known as the Black Widow and would be considered a minor sports celebrity.

The general public knew Fats on sight. Maybe 50% of the general public even knows the name Black Widow and only vaguely at best. By the way, the top Chinese women are making as much or more than her now, and far more than any men players. They have major sponsorship and endorsement deals with the largest companies in China. Mostly in beauty and cosmetics but it stretches far beyond that as well. Some of them may be earning seven figures a year!
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You can't even put Fats in the same sentence as Mohammed Ali. He was an international celebrity, of a fame, Fats could only dream of.
 
De420MadHatter said:
You can't even put Fats in the same sentence as Mohammed Ali. He was an international celebrity, of a fame, Fats could only dream of.
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next your gonna tell us Ruth was higher profile than Greenleaf lol

Fats would smash Ali with his mouth lol. Fats was round long time before Ali lol
 
Rhea said:
You are welcome, and just for clarification I will even list the only pros in the USA:

Shane Van Boening, Mike Dechaine, Justin Bergman, Johnny Archer, Rodney Morris, Earl Strickland, Skyler Woodward, Corey Deuel, Dennis Hatch, Johnathan Pinegar, Oscar Dominguez, Amar Kang, Larry Nevel, Josh Roberts, Rodrigo Geronimo, Billy Thorpe, Shane McMinn, Manny Chau, Jesse Bowman, Scott Frost, Jeremy Sossei, Chip Compton, Justin Hall, Charlie Bryan, John Schmidt, Shaun Wilkie, Shane Winters, Zion Zvi, Dave Coles Jr, Nelson Oliveira, Stevie Moore, Eric Moore, Mitch Ellerman, Brian Deska, Danny Smith, Brandon Shuff, Joey Gray, Chad Vilmont, Tony Chohan, Jaynard Orque, Robb Saez, Donny Mills, Tommy Kennedy, Max Eberle, Mike Davis Jr, Tom D'Alfonso, Jesse Engel, Taylor Anderson, Johnny Kang, TJ Steinhaus, Ernesto Dominguez, Santos Sambajon, Alex Olinger, John Gabriel, Ian Costello, Tony Robles, Jeremy Jones, Beau Runningen, Brian Parks, Danny Olson, Rory Hendrickson, Tom McCluske, Dustin Gunia, Gabe Owen, Ike Runnels, Jeff Beckley,
James Davis Sr, John Fields, Lee Heuwagen, Jorge Rodriguez

And the only 2 that would do well on a world stage:
SVB and Justin Bergman
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yea thanks for playing....figured you were fargoing lol.
 
Rhea said:
Jiaqing Wu, Shane Van Boening, Dennis Orcollo, Jayson Shaw, Niels Feijen, Pin Yi Ko, Jung Lin Chang, Carlo Biado, Ping Chung Ko, Alex Pagulayan, Francisco Sanchez Ruiz, Lee Van Corteza, Mike Dechaine, Francisco Bustamante, Jundel Mazon, Efren Reyes, Johann Chua, Kun Lin Wu, Justin Bergman

All 19 of those people can probably break even with the 10 ball ghost without ball in hand.
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First of all Rhea, thank you for the really strong contribution you made to this thread. These are great posts. I didn't think anybody would go to the trouble of answering Justin's posts.

I don't think all of the players above could do it, but consider that some of them, especially those with the most effective break, will break and run 20% - 25% of the games anyway. So now all they have to do is break and play position on the 1 ball, and get out 25% to 30% of the rest of the time.

It would be close with no BIH, but I think there would be money on both sides on a Diamond Pro table. It would be a fun proposition game for streaming.
 
How many that can play at a pro *LEVEL* ... I'm guessing thousands. But probably only a couple hundred actually making a living at it. Maybe if there were one single authority (like PBA or PGA), it would be different - but there just doesn't seem to be the money there that other pastimes have. It seems somewhat backwards to me since there's a ton of private pool tables - not so much with golf courses and bowling alleys. For me - I'd much rather watch a good game of pool over bowling or golf. And of course I'd rather /play/ pool over other things.

Now for my official answer: 173

PM me for where to mail the official custom made cue to that the winner gets. :-)

Ched
 
Shane and Shaw both live here, so 2. Nobody else is making a living if those 2 are playing in the event.

Most underrated player Donnie Mills, has a job and I'd bet on him against anybody that's not on the top 7 for the fargo usa list.
Actually Shane, MD, Berg, and Sky. I feel he is close enough to the rest that ya'll got action. I also cannot bet against Earl
Jason
 
jay helfert said:
It's not even close. Fats was an A-list celebrity, as well known as the top athletes in any major sport, including Mohammed Ali. Jeanette Lee is only known as the Black Widow and would be considered a minor sports celebrity.

The general public knew Fats on sight. Maybe 50% of the general public even knows the name Black Widow and only vaguely at best. By the way, the top Chinese women are making as much or more than her now, and far more than any men players. They have major sponsorship and endorsement deals with the largest companies in China. Mostly in beauty and cosmetics but it stretches far beyond that as well. Some of them may be earning seven figures a year!
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That is really interesting. I did not know that Fats was that famous. Was he that famous before The Hustler came out, or more famous after the movie came out? Just curious.

That is really cool that the sport of pool is that big in China.
 
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