The man just plays too perfect. I think he is about a ball better than Archer at the moment, but Archer in his prime was about even with him. Ralph just doesn't make mistakes. If he does, which is very rarely, it's because he's got an extremely tough shot to execute. I don't think any of the players in the past could stand up to Ralph today. What do you think?
Not Surprised Ralph Won
- Thread starter cuetechasaurus
- Start date
Its a coin flip for hundreds of players. It was his turn, I guess...
Pool is a game that is played on an equal field. No one player is truely better than the next... The game can be mastered by many because there is no secrets, just knowledge...
The man can play, no doubt...
Pool is a game that is played on an equal field. No one player is truely better than the next... The game can be mastered by many because there is no secrets, just knowledge...
The man can play, no doubt...
I think all of the top players, and many below that level, have the necessary knowledge to win any tournament. The winner is the player who executes the best, during the span of the tournament, especially during the final rounds.CaptiveBred said:
Ralf can definitely execute, when necessary.
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cuetechasaurus said:
A ball better!!!! WHAT you must be crazy LOL LOLMAO thats not even close to true,and GAMBLING if Ralph did he would get the 8 and stand NO chance.Nobody in the WORLD plays a ball better than Johnny.Thats just my feelings.LOL
he won because the light reflects off his scalp and allows a better vision on the table. Hopefully the rest of my hair falls off soon and I too get that advantage.
Yes there is a sexy bald spot on my scalp. but it is not big enough that I can shine light onto the table the way he does.
Yes there is a sexy bald spot on my scalp. but it is not big enough that I can shine light onto the table the way he does.
Ryan is right, nobody plays a ball better than Archer. But in reality, it was a nine ball tournament and nine ball tournaments usually at that level (IMO) come down to who got the rolls and who was able to stay focused the longest FOR THAT TOURNAMENT. Ralf is a great player, not a doubt, one of the best in the world, but so is Archer and on any given day under most any condition, each of them is liable to beat the other.
Congrats to Rals Souquet. I like Ralf, he & I have been friends for years. He is a great player & a good man. He's friendly, humble, clean of mind, spirit & body. He is a true Champion. As far as being a ball better than anyone, I wish I knew how to judge that ability.
I'm voting "no" on the ball better statement. Maybe "HELL NO".
Johnny's nine ball record is up there with the best of all time and he still keeps on winning.
Too bad this was only a race to 7 and not a real championship length match. Wasn't Johnny on the winner's side and only lost one match- a stupid race to 7- without getting a chance to redeem himself?
Ralf is a great champion for sure. Seems to really like the short races format like this tourney, the DCC (race to 7 too, isn't it?).
Johnny's nine ball record is up there with the best of all time and he still keeps on winning.
Too bad this was only a race to 7 and not a real championship length match. Wasn't Johnny on the winner's side and only lost one match- a stupid race to 7- without getting a chance to redeem himself?
Ralf is a great champion for sure. Seems to really like the short races format like this tourney, the DCC (race to 7 too, isn't it?).
It's been a long time coming for Ralph, his game just hadn't been 100% the last year or so. Ever since he missed that critical nine ball at the European Championships last year he's seemed to have some struggles. He must be shooting fine because this event had one of the toughest fields of any event in the world. It's great to see Ralph back in the winners circle.
O
onepocketchump
Guest
bud green said:
I guess he likes the long races too since he has won both the US Open and the World Championships in races to 13.
On another note though - who has the most high finishes (top four) during the last decade. I would vote for Johnny on this one.
John
I'd take Orcullo over Johnny right now.Ryan McCreesh said:
Ryan McCreesh said:
Gambling, who knows how Ralph plays. I said that at the moment I think Ralph plays that much better than Johnny. You and I and everyone here knows that Johnny went into a terrible slump a while back, a slump so bad he would toss his cues in the air in frustration. Johnny has not 100% recovered from that slump. I'd say he's around 85% of what he used to be. For him to be winning occasionally and placing high in tournaments, that says alot for Johnny in his present state. That's why I think Ralph plays a ball better, at the PRESENT TIME. When Johnny was playing his best pool, then I think Archer might edge out Ralph because of the break department, but ability wise, I think they would be the same. And Ralph has a much larger resume than Johnny in the past two decades or so. See for yourself.
JoeyInCali said:
Maybe so but its still a coin flip. I think Dennis will prove to be one of the best ever. I believe that JA already has.
JA in his prime was simply unreal. Not the best position player but he just ran the heck out!! He broke them great and might have been the best racker ever.
RS is in JA league however I would think that in 100 races to 9+ that JA would take down 60-70 percent. In races to 7 it might be a little closer.
I really wish JA would get loose like the JA of the early 90s. Its fun to watch
frankncali said:
I think Dennis is a better player than Johnny for the money right now. But I agree with you. If Johnny could get his game back to 100%, nobody is a favorite over him in an extended race. However, Ralf is in top form, and has been for a long time. Presently, Ralf is playing better than Johnny.
As a side note, it seems Ralf has been working on his kicking game for a while now. Nobody kicks as good as Efren, but Ralf might be one of the players closest to him.
JoeyInCali said:
Speaking of Orcullo, I've been hearing all the hype about how no one in the Philippines wants to play him, including Efren, but I really find it hard to believe that Efren would just flat-out say "no" to playing anyone - Orcullo included. I finally got to see him play when he played Efren on the winner's side in Vegas. I don't think he played his best. He made a few mistakes down the stretch that pretty much sealed the deal for Efren. Efren played real well that match only missing one ball that I saw.
Jimmy M. said:
I totally agree with you. There is no way Efren would refuse to play anyone in the world even. Dennis is one of the top money players over there for sure, but my friend tells me that when Efren is in town, he's still the best. Maybe when Efren's eyesight was very bad prior to his surgery, he might have said no, but that's a legitimate reason.
I agree with you about Johnny's game. BTW, technically Ralf didn't win. Both he and Johnny only had 1 loss each.Ryan McCreesh said:
Doc