Lukas Verner wins WNT Ranking Event

[skogstokig]

He is fun to watch, though, especially given the paucity of high-level American players.

he used to be quite a chore to watch when events didn't have shot clock.. he can be real slow.

 

[sjm]

I didn’t see Bergman in his prime as sjm did, but I have watched almost every match he has played at the PLP and the St Louis events.

His tactics, strategy and safety play are very high level. He’s made some incredible shots, too. His only major shortcoming is with the short stick.

No, in his prime and even now, his break was, by a mile, the weakest part of his game. It was the reason that, despite elite tactical skills and solid pattern play, he could never win a major, and I do not recall him ever reaching the final of a major in either 9ball or 10ball.

If Justin is not an elite jumper, he is definitely a first-rate kicker, so substandard jump skills, as was the case with Efren, won't stop him from winning his share of all tactical exchanges and, in my opinion, if he ever becomes a top player again, it will be his defense and kicking that get him there.

I am not sure if he’s struggled with tight pockets as much as sjm suggests. For long stretches he pockets balls with no problem. His cueball placement at times is unusually precise.

Yet Bergman has definitely been inconsistent. Out of the blue, he will miss some easily makeable shots. In many of those instances, though, the misses were bad enough that tight pockets weren’t the main issue in my view.

My suspicion is, the misses and lack of consistency stem mostly from not being a regular on tours that use tables with tighter pockets. You have to play on these tables a lot, under real world pressure, to truly become acclimated.

Can he get to that point? Oh, I think he can, but it won’t happen overnight. The best players on the tour have been playing under these conditions for years.

He just doesn't have enough experience on really tight equipment, and until he gets it, inconsistent pocketing is likely to remain the case. His pattern play, a strength in his prime, is still every bit world class.

I sense that we both feel that he could possibly get there, although I can't imagine him ever being Top 50 based on Fargo. Still, I'd love to see him succeed. Until he starts playing in some WNT ranking events, however, his pedigree will be a complete mystery.

Before we hastily proclaim him worthy, let Justin show us that he can reach Day 6 of a WNT major, as Tyler Styer did at the 2025 UK Open and as Skyler Woodward has done multiple times. Let him win a tough field 9ball event, as Tyler Styer did at the Kremlin Cup and at the Texas Open. I know that since the 2025 Mosconi Cup, it has been open season on Tyler Styer, but there's no knocking his competitive resume and I don't want him replaced by somebody having no high finishes of which to speak.

 

[jbart65]

No, in his prime and even now, his break was, by a mile, the weakest part of his game. It was the reason that, despite elite tactical skills and solid pattern play, he could never win a major, and I do not recall him ever reaching the final of a major in either 9ball or 10ball.

I didn't mention breaking as a weakness because Bergman actually broke pretty well at the PLP. He struggled a bit the first day to pocket the one, but seemed to get the hang of it the rest of the week.

The Matchroom break rules appear to benefit Bergman. He doesn't need a powerful break to master it.

 

[Hammie42]

I may have missed it during this thread, but does anyone know why Lukas was not at the World Championship?