Damm, you had to bring us back to reality.......
Is TAR done with Earl?
- Thread starter Magyar19
- Start date
Damm, you had to bring us back to reality.......
Earl is Earl. The problem with people who have bad attitudes and great talent is their gift is granted too them but at a cost. I have known dozens if not hundreds of "Earls" and everyone of the has a problem with society but they are good at what they do.
I am in no way sticking up for those folks who want to alienate themselves from society....but they are interesting to watch.
It is not about what you do.
It is about both what you do and how you do it.
I respect many players, SVB clearly among them, who play exceptionally well and behave well. Playing well and behaving well are not mutually exclusive.
Earl is an asshole. He works at it. He works at it really hard and succeeds. No amount of talent can offset just how bad he is for the game. I agree with TAR in banning him, and, I was there when he got booted from Allen Hopkin's event and I applauded when he was thrown out.
He thinks he is bigger than the game, but, he is a small man and should be treated with the same respect he shows his fellow pros and the spectators... Which is not much!
It is about both what you do and how you do it.
I respect many players, SVB clearly among them, who play exceptionally well and behave well. Playing well and behaving well are not mutually exclusive.
Earl is an asshole. He works at it. He works at it really hard and succeeds. No amount of talent can offset just how bad he is for the game. I agree with TAR in banning him, and, I was there when he got booted from Allen Hopkin's event and I applauded when he was thrown out.
He thinks he is bigger than the game, but, he is a small man and should be treated with the same respect he shows his fellow pros and the spectators... Which is not much!
Before all the "Earl Haters" get on another rant, I think this bears repeating. I don't have the skill set required to improve on it..........
it seems there seems to be several degrees of opinions here, so I don't want myself lumped in with many that I disagree with. Like anyone cares anyway
There seems to be many different groups here when it comes to Earl.
1. Hard core Earl fans, doesn't matter what he does, he's the man! Everyone else is a hater. He beat that old lady over the head with his 70 incher... she was asking for it
2. Earl fans that are tied into his accomplishments. They admire him for all the titles.. he will be forever the greatest pool player ever. Any talk of anything other then pool related Earl, has no bearing on anything.
3. Earl fans that love him for his craziness. The crazier the better. They cant' wait until he flips his lid. They scream with delight. C'mon Earl...go off like a rocket!!! Yippee! They would pay to see him.. not for his play but to see what spectacle he can make. Different group then #4, these guys just like to watch.
4. Earl button pushers - These are the guys that love egging him on, hoping he'll snap. They feed off of others like them. They laugh and clank their bottles together and conspire to figure out ways to get him to go off. After all, it is a game.. Let's get drunk and get Earl to go the f&(k off!
5. Earl sympathizers - these guys understand that he has some medical issues, they understand he's one of the greatest players to ever play the game, they respect that but they don't give him a free ride to do whatever he pleases. Yes, he's earned their respect for his accomplishments, but he still is held to the same standard as everyone else as a person.
6. Earl friends - They understand that he has some issues. They too are saddened that they won't take his meds, but they believe that he believes that he can't take them and be who he wants to be on the table. They don't speak up often, because they get nowhere trying to tell people there are different sides of Earl. It appears that even friends of Earl have difficulty getting thru to him.
7. Earl haters - Doesn't matter what he does, they hate him. He sucks, he's a ahole. A dirtbag, piece of crap, always has been, always will. Some of them have never even met him one on one. They just hate him from what they see or what they hear.
8. Earl apologists - This group is a splinter group of others here, they're main focus is to find excuses for everything he does wrong. This group gets in some serious overtime.Earl threw the cueball at Shane? Well, no he was trying to set it down on the table and it slipped out of his hands. Earl yelled at the little kid asking for a autograph and the kid started bawling? Surely there was a reason, did anyone ever consider the possibility that the kid said f*(*k off to Earl? You know, maybe his parents put him up to it.. to make Earl look bad.
9. Lastly, the group that has nothing against Earl personally, they're just firm believers that everyone should act within reason. Don't tell me about medical issues, don't tell me about money issues, don't tell me about being abused as a child or the fact that someone gave you a atomic wedgie in 8th grade... There are no excuses for anyone acting anything other then normal. End of Story.
So what we have here, is a snapshot of society. You could delete Earls name and put about any other person that has become somewhat of a known figure and has some issues, from the star basketball player in podunk, TN, to Mike Tyson. Doesn't matter who it is, there will always be these types of groups out there. You got worshipers, haters, lovers, apolgizers, enablers and a few in between.
I don't hate Earl. I don't claim to know Earl. I know what I see, read and hear. I hung around Earl away from the pool table when he was guest at a strangers house and he was calm and polite, almost shy. Around a pool table in that same atmosphere, he became more animated but still respectful and did not need to be the center of attention. I also interviewed Earl for a short time and he was lucid, thoughtful, even keeled and respectful.
I've lived with someone that was bipolar, twice. (different people, not same person but both sides of them
So, I am in the Group 5. I respect him in his pool career, but he's a person like all the rest of us and he has to fit in with society. If he's been diagnosed with something, he needs to continue to experiment with different meds to find the one that works the best for him. It's going to take awhile. It's got to build up in your system. If you lose 2 balls off your game because of it, so be it. Therein lies where you become responsible. He needs to understand that he can't sacrifice him being a a$$hole just so he can play better. They make a lot of generics meds in that area, so there should be plenty to choose from to see how they work.
But he has choices. I for one, hope he makes a good one. Because I don't' condone what he does. I am saddened and disappointed by his choices so far. It may take him hitting rock bottom in order to change.
But many of those groups listed above, have nothing to contribute here except for their own pleasure. There's many ways to say you don't approve of something. There are also many ways that you do not say you don't approve of something.
Because everyone is held to the same standard, no matter which side of the fence you are on this.
Think about it
Peace
I can understand why Justin doesn't want Earl on the TAR any more. However, I would bet that Earl is good for business- there must be a lot of people that purchase TAR when Earl is on it. Probably more than almost any other player- maybe the most actually
the Mosconi Cup, the TOI Video and a move to a new studio/office in Ft. Worth
After getting "side tracked" with the Mosconi Cup, the TOI Video and a move to a new studio/office in Ft. Worth we're back working on the Earl Stickland Million Dollar Documentary. The interview we got in Tunica is awesome and I can't wait to get this completed and also we have two matches with Earl playing me and Jimmy Mataya doing commentary. I'll keep everyone informed as we progress, I'd guess we're 75% done now and probably 4-6 weeks from completion.
After getting "side tracked" with the Mosconi Cup, the TOI Video and a move to a new studio/office in Ft. Worth we're back working on the Earl Stickland Million Dollar Documentary. The interview we got in Tunica is awesome and I can't wait to get this completed and also we have two matches with Earl playing me and Jimmy Mataya doing commentary. I'll keep everyone informed as we progress, I'd guess we're 75% done now and probably 4-6 weeks from completion.
I have only watched a few games with Earl, at 1st I used to think it was funny and entertaining.
Now I think he has a medical problem and feel sorry for him at times.
I really hope he sorts himself out, but we all know he won't, because he does not want to.
There are now a new generation of great players coming through that I would rather be watching.
Now I think he has a medical problem and feel sorry for him at times.
I really hope he sorts himself out, but we all know he won't, because he does not want to.
There are now a new generation of great players coming through that I would rather be watching.
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IMO, no matter what his antics are, he is one of the greatest players to wield a cue. I think his ability to play should over look his antics. It should be how you play the game IMO. People dont buy the pay per view to watch elite players play and Earl definately fits into that category.
Sorry for the newbish question but I've been wondering for a while what is TAR the acronym for?
the action report
Thanks a bunch. With that info I was able to find their youtube channel. Interesting stuff and lots of content.
Their main thing (which may not have been clear from the youtube channel) is live streamed events... which are basically two high level pros playing 1v1 in a long race for money... might be just 5k, might be 50k. No set timing for these events, they average about one every other month. They'll announce on the forum when it's time for the next one.
Often the featured players are the best in the US, occasionally the best in the world. There's a live chat where you can interact with other AZB people and occasionally the commentators. Watching these with other pool fans is a great way to pass a weekend.