Ted Harris said:
The rack becomes even more important when you are losing. The "stink" is actually coming from the guy that is putting the rack on the breaker. Funny how when the same guy racks his own, he knows how to freeze them and not tilt the rack or use some other underhanded tactic to cause the breaker to not make a ball, huh? Now maybe Bustamante has said to Mika to rack your own...but he would most definitely not allow that if he were gambling for his money. Ever wonder why?
I applaud Hilbilly and anyone else for having the fortitude and tenacity to not let other players "shit" on him by cheating him on the rack.
Ted, I agree with you 100 percent. It is the truth.
One TD told me that, in a breaker-racks-their-own format, if a player doesn't recognize an opponent giving him/her a rigged rack, then it is his/her fault for not making the opponent re-rack it. When I see a player taking an excessive amount of time racking the balls, it gives me pause.
Sure, sometimes players are only trying to get the "perfect" rack, maybe because of a ding in the table. This does happen, faulty equipment making it impossible for the balls to lay perfectly in the rack, forcing you to rack a little ahead of the spot. However, it is well known in the pool community WHO the BEST rack-riggers are. Some players actually boast about their rack-rigging skills on the offs, and the players know who they are. Neutral rackers is the only remedy, though economically not feasible in most venues.
About Hillbilly, I have spoken to him on the subject, and his philosophy is that he ALWAYS tries to give an opponent a fair rack. Charlie Bryant has integrity. I believe him to be honest, but when an opponent tries to screw him on the rack, he sees red because he knows the difference between a "good" rack and a "rigged" rack.
BTW, I read that Francisco Bustamante won the 2005 Masters, $5,000 for first place. These were GREAT payouts for all of a 45-player field, and WOW, what a nice payday for Bustie's first stop in the States!
I think it is worth mentioning that the Masters tournament was advertised as a $10,000-added event BASED ON 128 players. However, it looks like to me that Barry Behrman still added the full $10,000 even though there were only 45 players in attendance and not 128. The payouts for the Masters total $18,600.
Thank you, Barry Behrman, for providing a golden opportunity for pool players to shine. We'll be seeing you at the U.S. Open. Get some rest because you're going to need it!
Picture of U.S. Open and Masters promoter Barry Behrman and his beloved Buddy!
JAM