Kudos to Earl Strickland
- Thread starter Cornerman
- Start date
this deserves to be preserved.
Fran obviously has a different history than the fan population.
I think she should have kept such personal info to herself, but she can put out what she wants, just like the rest of us.
I think she should have kept such personal info to herself, but she can put out what she wants, just like the rest of us.
Very nice! Thank you for this. Props to both players, two of the best for sure. And regardless of how folks think he "might have acted" if it wasn't going his way, he showed class and gave credit where it was due.
Just like to throw out a little Golf Clap for this stupid comment.
Ain't that the truth
I love Romper Room. You only have to be over 4 feet tall to get in.
How did it feel or does it feel now, to be Marry to the Best pool player who ever lived?
Earl sure had/ has great taste, cause you are one beautiful women!
I felt this way the first time I saw the pros playing on the 10 footer. It just looks like the way the game is supposed to be played. Many here will say that size don't matter, that the top pros will just run out no matter how big the table. Well, look at the stats from last nights 10-ball challenge match and count how many B&Rs there were.
Sure, maybe the elite players can learn to make the shots almost as well, but there is the matter of having a big enough and controlled enough stroke to get proper shape that won't have you stretched out over 5' of cloth half the time. Anybody notice how few times they actually had to resort to using the bridge? That's because they're good enough to position their rock close enough to reach the next shot with relative ease. The average player is totally incapable of that, and the 10' table would leave them feeling like they were playing on a football field.
I think this week's interview with Greg Sullivan reflects a similar sentiment. We need to showcase our pros on the hardest equipment we can in order for them to distinguish themselves from lesser players who may well be able to run big packages on occasion but would fall short once the equipment gets tough. Tightening up the pockets doesn't do that, it just turns the game into a sharpshooting contest. Plenty of great young players who can shoot real straight, but fall short of the mark on their safety, kicking, and pattern play. This is where the 10' table will punish them until they bring other aspects of their game up to the level of their ball pocketing skills.
Beside, it just looks better. Even big men look dwarfed by the big table, and this make the game appear harder to the casual player used to a 6-7' bar box at the local bar. Some of the best Brit players on the scene now are coming from English blackball. Those guys are fantastic players and I know the game is a lot harder than it looks, but that's just it. It looks easy - almost comically easy - to the uninitiated. Man pitted against giant table looks a lot more challenging and is lot more enjoyable to watch, at least for me.
You should save your hate of Earl till it is a thread about something he did wrong. There is plenty of them. I suffer from bi polar just like Earl. If things are going good you are on top of the world, sometimes. When things are just a wee bit wrong it seems like the end of the world and sometimes things can be normal and it still seem like you could just ram your fist through a brick wall. Imagine this, think of a time you were the most angry you have ever been. The pressure inside you makes you want to curse , stomp your feet or beak something. This happens to bi polar people for any little thing or sometimes nothing at all. If you don't vent it some how, well you can't help to vent! I know it is hard to understand unless you have been there and I have. The medication will help but your pool game suffers. When you feel real good you play good, loose and fast. The downside of the medication puts you on an even keel you don't have that manic feel good when you are playing or doing anything. It takes away the very lows and unfortunately, that king of the world feeling when everything is going great. If you can't admire his great achievements in pool and only focus on his bad demeanor, you yourself have a problem too. With all that said, I don't like it when he acts like that, but that doesn't stand in the way of seeing just how good he is.
I was there on Wednesday night. Up to that point, it was a back and forth affair until both Efren and Earl were at about 15 racks apiece.
When Earl made that comment, he had just pulled out a big shot and was getting out at the end of the rack, and was on his way to securing control of the match. He had his back to Efren when he said it said it, and honestly, I don't think Efren had any clue what Earl was up to. From his vantage point, it could easily have been construed that Earl was posturing to the crowd following a great shot. It's not like he turned to Efren and said it to his face.
I like Earl, and I think his heart is in the right place. However, I think there are better ways (and better times) to pay someone a sincere compliment if that's what you really mean.
When Earl made that comment, he had just pulled out a big shot and was getting out at the end of the rack, and was on his way to securing control of the match. He had his back to Efren when he said it said it, and honestly, I don't think Efren had any clue what Earl was up to. From his vantage point, it could easily have been construed that Earl was posturing to the crowd following a great shot. It's not like he turned to Efren and said it to his face.
I like Earl, and I think his heart is in the right place. However, I think there are better ways (and better times) to pay someone a sincere compliment if that's what you really mean.
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Based on pure pool skill and passion alone, I am a HUGE fan of Earl Strickland. But it's sometimes difficult, if not impossible, to separate the two, no matter who the athlete is. I call it the Tom Brady Syndrome. People who like Tom Brady love him, because the dude's got skills. But then again, people who hate Tom Brady hate him, because the dude's got skills. If a person is TOO nice, people label them a snobby douche, skilled or not. If a person is NOT nice, people label them an a-hole or worse. Regardless, there are always gonna be haters of both breeds, the douche or the a-hole. I personally don't like Tom Brady (douche-like in my opinion), but I admire his skills. I personally do like Earl, for his skills and passion for the game. If losing doesn't bother a person enough to either be pissed, talk crap, or both, I question that person's passion for the sport. I get pissed every time I lose, not at my opponent, but at myself for not performing up to my expectations or the skill level I have (although it is very low, so it's a low standard...LOL!).
I'm not sure why everybody says Earl is bi-polar. He may very well be, but only he, his shrink, his confidants... and maybe his ex-wife know for sure. I do know he behaves very poorly at times, but I am able to separate that from his brilliant play, and so, remain a fan. Whatever, though, there is no doubt that Earl suffers from some sort of emotional illness. Yes, Fran, there is actually an illness known as "narcissistic personality disorder". Maybe that is Earl's official diagnosis.
"Fasted", I am pleased that you have come out here with your own mental health issues. I have similar issues. I've never actually gotten an official diagnosis of bi-polar, but I probably fall somewhere along the mood disorder spectrum of illness (maybe cyclothymia?). I refuse to take medication except for the usual booze and a little weed, and I often struggle to keep my emotions in check. Just ask my wife (a licensed psychotherapist) what a roller coaster her life is with me in it.
I know what you mean when you say you get so angry that you just have to put your fist through the wall. I got to be an expert in drywall repair over the years. I also had a chipped bone in my right hand from punching a cement block wall years ago. I can really relate to what you and Earl must go through. I make no excuses for my own behavior. Like Earl, I spend a lot of time apologizing for my outbursts. But anybody who knows me knows that I am the nicest and sweetest guy in the world 99% of the time and would never hurt anybody intentionally. Just gotta vent at times, and that has kept me from ever getting violent toward another person.
IMO Earl has had a very tough road to travel and the pool world has not been kind to him. If I were him I would have pulled a Bobby Fischer and just walked away from the game. I give him a lot of credit for continuing to put himself in the line of fire, and into situations that are doomed to bring out the worst in him. I find it repulsive that anybody would root for him to have a meltdown instead of rooting for him to display mastery at the table, but I'm not a judgmental person and figure these folks have their own reasons for their behavior. I feel sorry for them. They are missing out on the appreciation of one of the most natural cueists who ever lived. And a real nice guy, apparently, at least when you're not staring down the barrel of his long rifle.
Helluva post SloppyP.
I'm not sure why everybody says Earl is bi-polar. He may very well be, but only he, his shrink, his confidants... and maybe his ex-wife know for sure. I do know he behaves very poorly at times, but I am able to separate that from his brilliant play, and so, remain a fan. Whatever, though, there is no doubt that Earl suffers from some sort of emotional illness. Yes, Fran, there is actually an illness known as "narcissistic personality disorder". Maybe that is Earl's official diagnosis.
"Fasted", I am pleased that you have come out here with your own mental health issues. I have similar issues. I've never actually gotten an official diagnosis of bi-polar, but I probably fall somewhere along the mood disorder spectrum of illness (maybe cyclothymia?). I refuse to take medication except for the usual booze and a little weed, and I often struggle to keep my emotions in check. Just ask my wife (a licensed psychotherapist) what a roller coaster her life is with me in it.
I know what you mean when you say you get so angry that you just have to put your fist through the wall. I got to be an expert in drywall repair over the years. I also had a chipped bone in my right hand from punching a cement block wall years ago. I can really relate to what you and Earl must go through. I make no excuses for my own behavior. Like Earl, I spend a lot of time apologizing for my outbursts. But anybody who knows me knows that I am the nicest and sweetest guy in the world 99% of the time and would never hurt anybody intentionally. Just gotta vent at times, and that has kept me from ever getting violent toward another person.
IMO Earl has had a very tough road to travel and the pool world has not been kind to him. If I were him I would have pulled a Bobby Fischer and just walked away from the game. I give him a lot of credit for continuing to put himself in the line of fire, and into situations that are doomed to bring out the worst in him. I find it repulsive that anybody would root for him to have a meltdown instead of rooting for him to display mastery at the table, but I'm not a judgmental person and figure these folks have their own reasons for their behavior. I feel sorry for them. They are missing out on the appreciation of one of the most natural cueists who ever lived. And a real nice guy, apparently, at least when you're not staring down the barrel of his long rifle.
I have to take medication . I have type 2. This means my swings are mostly from a major depressed mood to very high anxiety. I haven't had too many angry out burst with medication. I have broken thousands of dollars worth of stuff to vent in the past. Earl has heart and feels bad and apologizes when he gets out of line. People with the narcissistic personality disorder don't feel sorry for any of the things that they do. The have no compassion for anyone. In their mind they are perfect and everybody else is below them no matter how sorry of a person they are.
I agree and very well said.
A quick question. Does anyone know what glove Earl was wearing on his grip hand and specifically why he wears it?
I think I read somewhere that Earl has gotten to where he doesn't want to feel the cue in his hand. I believe that's a golf glove he was wearing. Between the glove and all the tennis racquet wrap he uses on the cue itself it seems likely that he is insulating his grip from the vibrations of the cue hit.
Personally, I love the feel of the cue hit, and rely on it to tell me how well I'm hitting the ball. Earl is a very highly strung individual. Perhaps he just finds it distracting. It's not like he needs to get tactile feedback to get whitey to obey his wishes, so why add something extra to the mix when it may take away more than he gets out of it?
Pure speculation, of course.