"Mr. 625" vs. "Mr. 5-time"..??

Larger accomplishment....hard to compare.

Two different things...………….

Only time will tell how long Schmidt's record will stand. The longer it stands the more of an accomplishment it will be.
 
Willy Mosconi never won a world 9 ball championship, Earl Strickland won it 6 times, shouldn't the cup be the "Strickland Cup" of 9 ball?

Just a correction - Earl won WPA World 9b Championships "only" 3 times (1990, 1991 and 2002) ;)
 
For me, Competitive sports accomplishments are Everything. Competition adds an element to sports achievement that nothing else can compare. I know that John talked about feeling the most pressure of his life running those last balls closing in on 526- but in a competitive 14.1 World Event you have that pressure on every shot, in a sense, because the person in the seat can get up and run 150 anytime- that is how all the 14.1 greats viewed the game- you did everything to keep the other guy from the table with an open shot; so to me; doing that for an entire tournament against the very best in the world is a greater accomplishment.

Nice perspective....
In the late sixties as a young college student (cut classes :), I spent many 80 hour weeks at Janscos in Johnston City IL, watching all the greats. One mans actions ''stood out''....Lassiter. He was thee only player I saw (more than once) take the intentional 3 scratch re-rack rule foul....he hated giving his opponent ANY table time. He knew very well the talent level of his peers, as many could run out. Even the man Al Coslosky, who usually racked balls for the later matches, won the 14.1 event one year, he could play and was older than Luther I think.
 
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Competition achievements > exhibition achievements

Willie’s 526 was the cherry on his legendary career. John’s 626 is a better cherry and worthy of celebration and accolades. But Mosconi had a better career and maintains his legend.


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Good post.
 
Just a correction - Earl won WPA World 9b Championships "only" 3 times (1990, 1991 and 2002) ;)

Earl Strickland*was a dominant player during the 1980s and 1990s, and continues to be so today. He currently holds over 100 tournament titles and has been named “Player of the Year” five times. He won the Akron Open nine times and the US Open 9-Ball Championship five times: 1984, 1987, 1993, 1997 and 2000. He has won the World 9-Ball Championship six times: 1984, ‘88, ‘90, ‘91, ‘94 and 2002. He most recently won the World Pool Masters Trick Shot Challenge in 2003. In addition to his individual championships, he has been a team member on nine winning U.S. Mosconi Cup teams, including 2005, and was captain in two of those years. He has conducted numerous exhibitions at trade shows, Air Force bases and at the Raoping Billiard School in China. Mr. Strickland maintains an active charity schedule, donating exhibition time for programs such as Pool Aid ’95, D.A.R.E., Paralyzed Veterans of America, Brenner Children’s Hospital, Billiard Education Foundation, Children’s Burn Center and others.
 
Which do you think is a larger accomplishment: JS's running 625 to beat WM by 100 or Thorsten's 5 World titles? Just curious. I have my opinion on this and would like to hear other's takes.
Despite all the debate, I can't get past the fact that 526 on an 8 footer is probably one of Mosconi's somewhat lesser achievements.
 
No comparison. A single world championship is a bigger achievement than a record run. A record run is a unique achievement and It doesn’t take too much to both respect it as a special achievement and recognise the weight of a world championship.
 
No comparison. A single world championship is a bigger achievement than a record run. A record run is a unique achievement and It doesn’t take too much to both respect it as a special achievement and recognise the weight of a world championship.

I’d say the record is definitely bigger than a single world championship. There is a world champion every year (every year a championship event is held) but a massive record like this may happen once in a decade, generation, or century. Trying to compare it to the impressiveness of 5, or any number, of world championships is a little trickier. I guess it depends on who’s doing the apppreciating.

And to whoever that was a few pages ago: who cares if mosconi didn’t care about running a bunch of balls? He did it and set the bar for the outlying high run of an extremely good player, and people have been trying to beat that high run for years and now someone finally has. No need to get all crazy over it. Straight pool is about running balls after all. It’s the whole point. The safety aspect is only there to prevent your opponent from running out on you, and hopefully get you a shot to run out on him..and if you can run out for 100’s when you get to the table you should be good to go. There. Some straight pool 101 for yous.

Oh but he locked himself in a room with ideal conditions! Or did he go to a pool hall with people watching and taping and play on a 5” pocket table. An easy table by my incredible pool standards but not some kind of gaff contraption where you can’t miss.

1
Lou
Thats just like, your opinion man
One pocket: a game of controlled aggression
CTE haters, how can they wake up every day like that (paraphrased)
Who witnessed your 311, a plant in the corner?
All they want to do is sit and watch, while you run out (something similar)
There’s a pocket imprinted on the back of every ball
Such and such custome cues
Lionize your game
I respect all pool games, but bar rules are my jam (paraphrased)
Let the trolls hate or some such
 
No comparison. A single world championship is a bigger achievement than a record run. A record run is a unique achievement and It doesn’t take too much to both respect it as a special achievement and recognise the weight of a world championship.

There’s a good argument for a few points of view.
626 is tremendous.

But Sam Snead was the first pro golfer to break 60 in a tournament...( non-PGA)
....but Slammin’ Sammy is remembered for his 82 PGA wins.

....but it gets so personal....I watched Greg Norman shoot a 62 at the Canadian Open...
...I saw Andy Bean hit a 400 yard drive in the same tournament...
...I think I prefer the 400 yard drive...:lovies:
 
I’d say the record is definitely bigger than a single world championship. There is a world champion every year (every year a championship event is held) but a massive record like this may happen once in a decade, generation, or century. Trying to compare it to the impressiveness of 5, or any number, of world championships is a little trickier. I guess it depends on who’s doing the apppreciating.

And to whoever that was a few pages ago: who cares if mosconi didn’t care about running a bunch of balls? He did it and set the bar for the outlying high run of an extremely good player, and people have been trying to beat that high run for years and now someone finally has. No need to get all crazy over it. Straight pool is about running balls after all. It’s the whole point. The safety aspect is only there to prevent your opponent from running out on you, and hopefully get you a shot to run out on him..and if you can run out for 100’s when you get to the table you should be good to go. There. Some straight pool 101 for yous.

Oh but he locked himself in a room with ideal conditions! Or did he go to a pool hall with people watching and taping and play on a 5” pocket table. An easy table by my incredible pool standards but not some kind of gaff contraption where you can’t miss.

1
Lou
Thats just like, your opinion man
One pocket: a game of controlled aggression
CTE haters, how can they wake up every day like that (paraphrased)
Who witnessed your 311, a plant in the corner?
All they want to do is sit and watch, while you run out (something similar)
There’s a pocket imprinted on the back of every ball
Such and such custome cues
Lionize your game
I respect all pool games, but bar rules are my jam (paraphrased)
Let the trolls hate or some such


If this is directed at me I will need a translator.

Lou Figueroa
 
If this is directed at me I will need a translator.

Lou Figueroa

No no I was just feeling frisky because of the nice weather and decided to add the signatures of anyone I could remember off the top of my head. My mind gets going sometimes
 
No no I was just feeling frisky because of the nice weather and decided to add the signatures of anyone I could remember off the top of my head. My mind gets going sometimes


Thank you for the clarification.

I'm usually pretty good at figuring out the cryptic stuff but admit I was stumped.

Lou Figueroa
 
Or at least the same plant material. :thumbup:


lol.

Quick funny story: Gail and I were in Amsterdam a couple of years ago and towards the end of our trip I tell her that I wanted to sample a local "coffee" shop. She's like, "OK." But can tell she's not wild about the idea.

Anywhos, we swing a dead cat and hit a coffee shop, go upstairs, and share one of the Netherland's finest. A little while later we go out into the Dutch sun, hit a famous landmark bar, and sit down to enjoy a beer.

Shortly thereafter, Gail turns to me and says, "I think... I've forgotten... how to walk" and starts giggling.

I start laughing my ass off and then she very earnestly looks me in the eye and says to me, like out of an old WWII movie, "Please... don't leave me behind."

I laugh some more and get us safely back to our hotel.

Lou Figueroa
 
Or at least the same plant material. :thumbup:

Funny thing River, I had your signature in mind as well but couldn’t remember the phrase well enough :grin-square:

As for my extra curricular activities, well... Bob Marley was a pretty decent chap, probably played good pool too, though that’s only speculation at this point.
 
lol.

Quick funny story: Gail and I were in Amsterdam a couple of years ago and towards the end of our trip I tell her that I wanted to sample a local "coffee" shop. She's like, "OK." But can tell she's not wild about the idea.

Anywhos, we swing a dead cat and hit a coffee shop, go upstairs, and share one of the Netherland's finest. A little while later we go out into the Dutch sun, hit a famous landmark bar, and sit down to enjoy a beer.

Shortly thereafter, Gail turns to me and says, "I think... I've forgotten... how to walk" and starts giggling.

I start laughing my ass off and then she very earnestly looks me in the eye and says to me, like out of an old WWII movie, "Please... don't leave me behind."

I laugh some more and get us safely back to our hotel.

Lou Figueroa
Niiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiice. ;)
 

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If you had a year and you had to either 1) run 626 or 2) win a world championship, which would you pick? They would obviously both be long shots, but which would be your best bet?

I'd go with the WC. With outstanding play, a lucky draw, and some good rolls, it is at least possible that I could get a WC thanks to the potential for my opponents making blunders. There is simply no chance I could run 626. For this reason I think the WC isn't as difficult.

But I get where sjm is coming from and am not trying to elevate JS over guys that have devoted decades of their life to actual competition and gotten the job done. Just thinking of this question from another angle.

Stop using common sense, your gonna confuse some on here.
 
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