J R Hendy vs One Pocket Ghost

[lfigueroa]

You know you play around the same speed as both of us don’t you? We are old, we miss, and we bet enough to put some pressure on ourselves.

Did you see any good shots, seems you only remember the bad ones.:grin:

I wasn't tuned in until I got a text mentioning the quality of play.

So I watched a few hours over the course of the three days, usually kibitzing with three other guys (all one pocket.org members) via text. And without going into detail and quoting comments, no I didn't see many good shots, runs, or defensive play. Many offensive opportunities were passed on leading one guy to make a funny about a potential WWYD.

And I'm not sure what my level of play has to do with a match in Chicago.

Lou Figueroa

 

[lfigueroa]

Exactly, and let's not forget although these guys are both very good players during 5+ hour matches everybody misses now and then..lol I know I missed plenty on that table earlier. Of course Lou being Lou always finds fault with anything that doesnt involve him.. Lighten up a little bro it was a fun deal with plenty of great shots and moves. I think the sad thing here is these two pool Icons put themselves out there at their own expense to show a fun match to the pool world and they have to fade criticism. Pitiful.

No idea who you are and I don't know why you're making a personal attack because an opinion differs from yours.

The thing is, if you do "put it out there," people are entitled to give their honest opinion and not be expected to blow butterflies and flowers up the players' keisters. Knowledgeable people can differ in their opinions about quality of play and everyone sees the same match through different prisms. That you can't appreciate that is the only thing "pitiful."

Lou Figueroa

 

[jtompilot]

First let me clarify that I didn't see the match. I do watch one pocket sometimes, whenever there are creative and aggressive players playing. Not a fan of 1.5 hour wedge games.

However...When players are truely struggling to put balls in the hole, as it were, I find it quite puzzling that nobody questions the pocket sizes used. To me it seems as if pockets are sized so small for one pocket as to discourage shooting. I can appreciate the people who enjoy a bit of tactical play. I play a lot of snooker and blackball, and it certainly is a huge part of both of those games, but still, in the end it's all about putting balls in the pockets. Blackball certainly has tiny pockets, but then again, the table itself is tiny, so there is always a good chance to play offensively.

As far as snooker is concerned, nobody would want to watch even decent level amateurs on a pro snooker table, like on tv. The pockets are just too small. Nobody would get any runs together. You need to be at least a semi pro to play half decent on them.

When pockets are too small for the players (relative to their skill), the threat to the safety player is greatly diminished, as is the general stress level of the game. Errors are not forced to the same degree as a more realistic table, where the safeties have to be perfect, in order to stop the player from running out. The whole thing becomes a test of patience, rather than a tense contest. I just watched the warming up, and noticed that the pockets were tiny (not sure what the sizes actually were). If the players were indeed struggling, then that certainly wouldn't help matters.

My feeling is that the insisting upon smaller and smaller pockets (even in one pocket) is a misunderstanding based upon disregarding the totality of the game, in order to remove the advantage of shotmakers. The problem is, that this doesn't reward tactical play, as much as NOT punishing sloppy tactical play. There is a difference. At the very highest level, this barrier too shooting is mostly overcome by sheer brute force. Still, I think we'd se a lot more delicate, explosive and creative one pocket with normal (pro) size pockets. It might even have made matches such as these more exciting.

This is just an observation, btw, not a call to change one pocket.

You obviously don’t know much about 1P. A properly set up table(extended rails) with 4 1/8 corners allow an incredible amount of specialty banks that can’t be even attempted on 4.5 pockets much less buckets. Sure I miss more with the smaller pockets but you wouldn’t believe the banks that are possible when the ball is left very close to the corner pocket. There’s not a 1P player dead or alive that likes a pocket larger than 4.5 inches. I personally think 4 1/4 is best. It’s also good for 9 ball.

 

[jay helfert]

You obviously don’t know much about 1P. A properly set up table(extended rails) with 4 1/8 corners allow an incredible amount of specialty banks that can’t be even attempted on 4.5 pockets much less buckets. Sure I miss more with the smaller pockets but you wouldn’t believe the banks that are possible when the ball is left very close to the corner pocket. There’s not a 1P player dead or alive that likes a pocket larger than 4.5 inches. I personally think 4 1/4 is best. It’s also good for 9 ball.

Jim, you'd love my Diamond with 4.25" corners. Many top pros have spent hours practicing on it. Next time you fly into L.A. stop by and practice with me. I need sparring partners. Otherwise I never play.

 

[Ron Padilla]

that table had a roll out on the left pocket, I didn't read all the entries in this post but it did cost John a few balls during the match, shots that looked to be very well placed causing again a miss that made me at least sit back and cringe. I don't know the ghost but have known John since I was a 14 year old kid and now retired but him a few others are a wealth of info and playing ability that I hope to have over the next few years. Great game John glad that you took home the cash.

 

[jtompilot]

Jim, you'd love my Diamond with 4.25" corners. Many top pros have spent hours practicing on it. Next time you fly into L.A. stop by and practice with me. I need sparring partners. Otherwise I never play.

Looks like I’ll need a chance to get my $50 back after Tony keeps dogging it.