Random thoughts after the first two days. It feels like we’ve seen a lot of pool already, but these are only the preliminaries. At 4-4 there is still so much pool to be played! As SJM has reminded us so many times, the MC is a marathon and not a sprint. The short races can be deceiving. There is a lot of pool to be played over the course of four days.
On Day Three we get down to the nitty gritty of this grueling contest. One side may well take command and establish a big lead going into the final day. I for one hope that is not the case. Personally I like to see a competitive MC and not a blowout. A runaway victory takes the luster off a great event.
It’s hard to overlook the imposing line up the Euros present here. All five are champion players in my opinion. There is no weak link, and I don’t anticipate seeing any chinks in their armor during the final two days.
The US squad is not as well endowed. We have one true champion leading the charge and one former champion striving to find a little lost glory. One other player who has thoroughbred credentials and a young gun who is just emerging as a high level player. Our last player is a journeyman pro who is certainly capable of competing against the star studded line up facing him, but must be considered an underdog against any one of them. In other words the US has thrown a motley crew into this contest and they have acquitted themselves well so far. Credit must be given to coach Jones who has molded this team into a formidable force.
Somehow, some way the US side must find a way to dig deep and play not only their best games, but step it up a notch and play above that level. Like the collegiate filled US hockey team in the 1980 Olympics, the 2022 US pool squad must go beyond what is expected of them to pull off what would be a miraculous victory. From where I sit it looks like David vs. Goliath. And we know how that one turned out!
Lastly, we absolutely MUST get this event on television in the United States! Period! Exclamation point!! It is too important for the future of our sport for the MC to continue not being televised in the biggest television market on the planet, especially when one of the teams represents the USA! Can you imagine if the Ryder Cup was only available on a live stream in America? There would be a revolt!
I will remind you there are many television options here, ESPN being only one of them. The MC could be on Travel Channel and millions would watch it! DAZN is simply not the right place for an event of this magnitude! Many years ago when Matchroom began producing the World Pool Chamionships, they were also not being televised here. This was before the days of YouTube and the like. I made a deal with Barry Hearn for the North American rights to sell videotape copies of the final matches from the Quarterfinals on. That way the hardcore American pool fans could see all the great matches that I had seen in person in Cardiff, Wales. That hardcore base of pool fans has greatly expanded since then! I am seeing the evidence of that right here, with literally thousands of fans traveling great distances to witness the competition in person. I’m certain there are a million others who wish they could be here. Do not buy into that fallacy that no one knows who the top pro players are. The internet has changed all that! Shane may be the biggest star on this team, but he is not the only one. All the other players are getting the star treatment here, signing autographs and being in one photo op after another.
Time to build on that momentum and put pro pool in front of as many people as possible. I’m calling on Matchroom, the BCA and all the biggest pool companies to join forces and get the MC on television here where it belongs. And I’m calling myself out too. I plan to take action on my own to see that this happens.
