Questions about Ronnie Alcano.

inside_english

inside_english

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Does he not know English very well? In both interviews with Jim Wyche (sp?) after two matches he seemed uncomfortable and painfully shy. I assumed it was because he was modest and cannot speak English very well. Nothing wrong with being modest of course, but I was wondering if anyone else here knew of his English speaking limitations.

Don't get me wrong, I am not complaining...he can speak English far better than I can speak his language...:)

I was just curious.

Regarding his pool game, it is pretty scary. I thought the finals between him and SVB was one of the best I had seen in a while. That match really could have gone either way.
 
inside_english said:
Does he not know English very well? In both interviews with Jim Wyche (sp?) after two matches he seemed uncomfortable and painfully shy. I assumed it was because he was modest and cannot speak English very well. Nothing wrong with being modest of course, but I was wondering if anyone else here knew of his English speaking limitations.

Don't get me wrong, I am not complaining...he can speak English far better than I can speak his language...:)

I was just curious.

Regarding his pool game, it is pretty scary. I thought the finals between him and SVB was one of the best I had seen in a while. That match really could have gone either way.
Click to expand...


You would think that after spending 3 or so years here in the Northeast playing on, and dominating it, the Joss Tour that his English would be pretty good.................mike
 
Not only environment but it also depends on the person's flair..how frequent he uses that language. I only picked up french in six months but someone taught me japanese until today (3 years) I still don't know what's going on..different people better in different areas I guess..
 
Not necessarily. I know people at my job who have been here for over 25 years and can't even manage "How was your weekend?"

Why? Because there is no pressure for them to learn English.
 
Oh, he knows his english very, very well. It's just that, he knows inside english and outside english a lot better than spoken or written english. :p

In all seriousness, I've met Ronnie Alcano a few times here in the Philippines... and if you know his life story, you would find out that he grew up very poor...literally lived in a shanty and that his education came more from billiard halls and playing money games to earn the few pesos each day to buy dinner for himself and his mom and siblings.

English, as common as it is in the Philippines, was just not Ronnie's native tongue. He grew up in the streets... and thus learned and spoke Tagalog, i more than English. I would think he even thinks in Tagalog... and not in English. So, it is more difficult for him to speak in English right now.

I actually do hope that he would try to learn more english, and be more conversant in English now that he is the current world champion and because his talent in pool has now put him in the limelight. Will that happen? I dont know... i hope so. It all depends on his willingness to learn and on who takes the time to teach him.
 
I've met him 3 or 4 times here in Kuwait, he came to Kuwait & played here for few months. he thought he could make alot of money here but he was disappointed about that one since it's not allowed to gamble in public here. however he do speak english very good.
 
Does anyone know why he has finger nails like a woman and wears nail polish on them????Just a observation i noticed while sitting 6 feet from him at the open:D
 
Like Beckham's and the late Paul Hunter's ponytails, having manicured fingernails is very metrosexual :) And they do come in handy whenever a screwdriver isn't available
 
Last edited:
cuedoctor said:
Does anyone know why he has finger nails like a woman and wears nail polish on them????Just a observation i noticed while sitting 6 feet from him at the open:D
Click to expand...


Bustamonte used to wear his like that several years ago. I have no clue why they do it. :eek:
 
cuedoctor said:
Does anyone know why he has finger nails like a woman and wears nail polish on them????Just a observation i noticed while sitting 6 feet from him at the open:D
Click to expand...
Long nails are popular on men in a lot of asian cultures. Efren Reyes' nails get pretty long too.

I'm not surprised if Ronnie doesn't speak well in front of the camera. My girlfriend is Korean and she speaks English better than every Korean I've met, with the exception of those who grew up in English speaking countries. She still gets nervous speaking to native English speakers, unless she knows them well.
 
cuedoctor said:
Does anyone know why he has finger nails like a woman and wears nail polish on them????Just a observation i noticed while sitting 6 feet from him at the open:D
Click to expand...

A couple of years ago I saw a Taiwanese player with one extra long fingernail. Somebody explained to me that that was a kind of symbol / signal to illustrate that you were not a "labourer", in the context that you did not have to work with your hands for a living (and destroying your nails), but were doing something more "noble" - like pool;)

I am not sure if this is the reasons for Ronnies long nail though.
 
pooladdict said:
A couple of years ago I saw a Taiwanese player with one extra long fingernail. Somebody explained to me that that was a kind of symbol / signal to illustrate that you were not a "labourer", in the context that you did not have to work with your hands for a living (and destroying your nails), but were doing something more "noble" - like pool;)

I am not sure if this is the reasons for Ronnies long nail though.
Click to expand...



Thanks for all the explanations.....you have calmed some of my worst fears:D :D :D He is a great player ...but SVB has arrived!
 
inside_english said:
Does he not know English very well? In both interviews with Jim Wyche (sp?) after two matches he seemed uncomfortable and painfully shy. I assumed it was because he was modest and cannot speak English very well. Nothing wrong with being modest of course, but I was wondering if anyone else here knew of his English speaking limitations.

Don't get me wrong, I am not complaining...he can speak English far better than I can speak his language...:)

I was just curious.

Regarding his pool game, it is pretty scary. I thought the finals between him and SVB was one of the best I had seen in a while. That match really could have gone either way.
Click to expand...

From recent personal experience, I can tell you Ronnie knows how to say "EASY MONEY" as good as any English speaking person. He had plenty chances to say that to me the first couple of games of one pocket we played at the U.S. Open 9 Ball Championship (actually it was at Q Masters where we played). He is very friendly and understands English better than he speaks it but that is quite understandable.

If any of you talk to him soon, tell him he can hang out with JoeyA anytime and I will trade English speaking lessons for pool lessons. :)

JoeyA (going to Derby City Classic and wants to get a rematch from Ronnie Alcano and Jay Helfer). (I'm just a glutton for punishment.)
 
First of all, let me make it clear that I don't know Ronnie Alcano or how well he speaks or doesn't speak English. In general, in the Philippines, school is conducted in English entirely. In the past, students were punished, sometimes quite harshly, for speaking Tagalog or any native dialect other than English. English is the language of business, especially at the higher levels, although Chinese has made great inroads. Speaking English properly, including grammer and diction, has been the mark of a well educated Filipino since right after the Spanish/American war, and those who can speak well with a good vocabulary are few and they are respected by just about everyone there. A graduate of Anteneo de Manila, the Jesuit University in Manila, will probably speak English better than you and I, while a college graduate from a state college in Mindanao may speak what we would call "broken English" , despite years of study, simply from lack of use. There are many Filipinos who cannot afford school however, and Tagalog and the other many languages of the Phils continue to be spoken exclusively as the first language at home...Tom
 
cuedoctor...Just so you know, wearing polish on your fingernails means nothing...other than you have great hygiene. I regularly have my hands manicured and nails polished because I do exhibitions, and people are always looking closely at my hands. I also wear a coat and tie when I perform too. I do it because it LOOKS good, not because of any other reason.

Scott Lee
www.poolknowledge.com
 
Terry Ardeno said:
Bustamonte used to wear his like that several years ago. I have no clue why they do it. :eek:
Click to expand...

It's kinda cooth and status symbol back in the Philippines if you have clean and well polished nails. I think it's a cultural thingy, as I am is still gross out by unkempt or unclipped fingernails unless it's manicured. It's probably because Asians tend to have more defined fingernails, so if they are not taken cared off they will just look dirty.
 
Last edited:
inside_english said:
Does he not know English very well? In both interviews with Jim Wyche (sp?) after two matches he seemed uncomfortable and painfully shy. I assumed it was because he was modest and cannot speak English very well. Nothing wrong with being modest of course, but I was wondering if anyone else here knew of his English speaking limitations.
Click to expand...

It's good enough to get by. English is something that he picked up. Even Marlon Manalo with a college degree might still be intimidated by long-winded questions.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top