Strickland "Is an Embrassment"

[gromulan]

One day Earl is going to get his a$$ kicked, it's as simple as that.

I do have a funny story about Earl, third-hand though, so I can't swear as to it's validity.

Playing in Texas early in his career, Earl was down on his luck and very close to being busted. He was scuffling about looking for action but because he was so good no one would play him. Eventually he got a line on a guy who would play, but he was warned severely that the guy was a very dangerous character, possibly mob connected, and who was known to have hurt some people very badly over pool bets and other business.

Earl was hesitant, but he figured he needed the action so he looked the guy up and offered to play. The guy, call him John, agreed but with the stipulation that he would only play at his house, not at the pool room. This made Earl uncomfortable, but again, he needed the action so he agreed.

So they went to John's house and played a race for a decent sum. Obviously Earl was winning the set, but when he got down to shoot in the final nine for the win, John pulled a gun out of his pocket and put it to Earl's temple.

"If you make that shot," he said, "I'm pulling this trigger."

Earl stopped and stood up, looking at John to decide if he was bluffing, but he couldn't tell.

Finally he said, "Well, I don't have f--k all to live for anyways," then got down and slammed the nine ball into the pocket!

The windup was, John had so much respect for Earl standing up to him like that, that he actually started taking him around and staking him in matches.

 

[Rich R.]

Removing Earl from the IPT would be a grave error in judgment. In most of these situations, Earl is not the only person guilty of being a disgrace to the sport, so are some of the "fans". Messing with Earl during an important match and expecting him not to react is sort of like intentionally pissing off a rattlesnake and expecting it not to bite you. Banning Earl would makes no sense if KT wants to sell a television program that has great pool, tension, excitement and drama. Earl puts people in the seats, plain and simple. The players are there to play a match. Fans, cornermen, family members, should not interfere with that and if they do, get rid of them immediately, not the player.

David, I responded to your post on the CCB, and I am posting the same response here.


David, on most subjects I agree with you, but on this one I can not.

I have seen Earl blow up too many times, for no good reason.

At last year's U.S. Open, my wife applauded the introduction of Francisco Bustamante, who happened to be Earl's opponent. From that point on, she became the target of Earl's comments for the entire match. He was disgusting.

BTW, Earl totally ignored that fact that my wife also applauded his own introduction.

This is not the first time I have seen Earl go off on one of these senseless tirades and I'm sure it will not be the last. To be honest, I believe he uses these tirades to distract and shark his opponents.

Yes, Earl is a highly decorated player and he is definitely one of the best in history. However, his behavior is inexcusable and TD's around the world seem to give him more slack than they would any other player. Maybe, if someone stopped him years ago, he wouldn't be in the shape he is now.

I didn't witness this latest event, but I hope Deno examines the situation and, if appropriate, Earl is penalized.

Rich R.

 

[Harvywallbanger]

One day Earl is going to get his a$$ kicked, it's as simple as that.

I do have a funny story about Earl, third-hand though, so I can't swear as to it's validity.

Playing in Texas early in his career, Earl was down on his luck and very close to being busted. He was scuffling about looking for action but because he was so good no one would play him. Eventually he got a line on a guy who would play, but he was warned severely that the guy was a very dangerous character, possibly mob connected, and who was known to have hurt some people very badly over pool bets and other business.

Earl was hesitant, but he figured he needed the action so he looked the guy up and offered to play. The guy, call him John, agreed but with the stipulation that he would only play at his house, not at the pool room. This made Earl uncomfortable, but again, he needed the action so he agreed.

So they went to John's house and played a race for a decent sum. Obviously Earl was winning the set, but when he got down to shoot in the final nine for the win, John pulled a gun out of his pocket and put it to Earl's temple.

"If you make that shot," he said, "I'm pulling this trigger."

Earl stopped and stood up, looking at John to decide if he was bluffing, but he couldn't tell.

Finally he said, "Well, I don't have f--k all to live for anyways," then got down and slammed the nine ball into the pocket!

The windup was, John had so much respect for Earl standing up to him like that, that he actually started taking him around and staking him in matches.

If thats true that is one good story. And by the way it sounds to me like Nick was the A hole in this one. He knows how Earl is. I don't think there was a need to hold his hand and make him look him in the eye. Give me a break!

 

[thebestpoolroom]

That whole Milquetoast attitude has resulted in our players becoming second-class in the international field. We used to dominate. Now we're a bunch of butt-kissers.

Doc

I disagree with you 100%. Acting like Earl hasn't won him any tournament lately. Champions need to have class so that they can be role models to others, especially kids who aspire to be like them. Just imagine the negative impacts on our sport if we have 100 Earls walking around.

John

 

[Mr. J]

edicate...

Perhaps we all need an official writeup for:

Pool and Billiards Play:

Player edicate...

Spectator edicate...


Referee deicatae...


Tournament director edicate...


All of these writeups and guidelines would be vastly different for the many different sports that we all play and are a part of in some way...


Jeff

 

[Cuebacca]

WHAAAAAT...are you kidding me ...Earl threw a ball in to the crowd..okay..are you just joking or are you serious...if that is the case he is lucky someone hasnt kicked his azzzzzzzz before now

Did he really throw a ball into the crowd? If so, he's really getting out of hand, and I would think there could be legal repercussions for something like that. A flying pool ball could literally kill someone.

I agree that Earl's character could be good for pool, but they shouldn't just completely unleash him if he can't control himself. If an audience member is causing a disturbance, that person should be ejected, or firmly warned if appropriate.

However, if a player verbally attacks an audience member unprovoked, or throws a potentially danergous object into the crowd for any reason, that's unacceptable, in my opinion. Fines, suspension, or loss of tour card should not be out of the question, depending on the situation.

When those punishments occur, its unfortunate for everyone, but it is up to the individual, Earl in this case, to control himself so that someone else isn't stuck in the awkward position of having to control him.

 

[sniper]

I'm not sure on exactly what happened so it wouldn't be fair for me to criticize either Earl or Nick, as long as Earl doesn't get too out of hand I think he will definitely be an asset to the IPT. Just give him a fine every now and then when he get's out of line and then he should really be fired up

 

[Blackjack]

David, I responded to your post on the CCB, and I am posting the same response here.


David, on most subjects I agree with you, but on this one I can not.

I have seen Earl blow up too many times, for no good reason.

At last year's U.S. Open, my wife applauded the introduction of Francisco Bustamante, who happened to be Earl's opponent. From that point on, she became the target of Earl's comments for the entire match. He was disgusting.

BTW, Earl totally ignored that fact that my wife also applauded his own introduction.

This is not the first time I have seen Earl go off on one of these senseless tirades and I'm sure it will not be the last. To be honest, I believe he uses these tirades to distract and shark his opponents.

Yes, Earl is a highly decorated player and he is definitely one of the best in history. However, his behavior is inexcusable and TD's around the world seem to give him more slack than they would any other player. Maybe, if someone stopped him years ago, he wouldn't be in the shape he is now.

I didn't witness this latest event, but I hope Deno examines the situation and, if appropriate, Earl is penalized.

Rich R.

Rich,

I understand some (probably most) will not agree with me. That's okay. I know Earl and I know most of these incidents occur due to relentless provocation.

Earl is not the only player to lose his temper. Many players have had outbursts that never got any attention in this or any other forum. I've seen Double J put his fist through a wall out of frustration, I have seen Ralf Souquet scream obscenities out of frustration - Johnny Archer snap his cue over his back - do these incidents make these guys bad people? No. Emotion is part of competition.

As far as sportsmanship, I believe you have two ends of the spectrum - with Earl on one side and Tony Robles on the other. The rest of us fit somewhere in between. I do not believe Earl's actions are appropriate, but I also don't believe the actions of those that intentionally provoke him are appropriate either - no matter what excuse these people use.

 

[breakup]

He can put spectators in an uncomfortable situation also.

For example I was watching his match on Monday. I don’t know him at all. He turns to me and starts going on about what a loser he is and he has not won anything in ten years ...blah blah blah. Then starts asking me questions. I know his game so I try to pay as little attention as possible but he is 2 feet from me looking straight at me. Now I don’t want to answer his questions and give him something to go off about on the other hand I don’t what to totally ignore him either so I just kind of shrug. I think he realized I was not going to be any fun and left me alone, but a later match I saw him do the same thing to someone ask them a question and they answered. He shot the next ball for shape on the 8 got flushed in the face and started pointing and yelling at the guy in the audience saying You have a lot of nerve sir, I’ll have you thrown out of here BLAH BLAH BLAH. Well the refs came over and defused the situation and he fired in the case 8 ball.

I don’t know what was said but whatever it was it was what Earl was looking for.

 

[cuetechasaurus]

David, I responded to your post on the CCB, and I am posting the same response here.


David, on most subjects I agree with you, but on this one I can not.

I have seen Earl blow up too many times, for no good reason.

At last year's U.S. Open, my wife applauded the introduction of Francisco Bustamante, who happened to be Earl's opponent. From that point on, she became the target of Earl's comments for the entire match. He was disgusting.

BTW, Earl totally ignored that fact that my wife also applauded his own introduction.

This is not the first time I have seen Earl go off on one of these senseless tirades and I'm sure it will not be the last. To be honest, I believe he uses these tirades to distract and shark his opponents.

Yes, Earl is a highly decorated player and he is definitely one of the best in history. However, his behavior is inexcusable and TD's around the world seem to give him more slack than they would any other player. Maybe, if someone stopped him years ago, he wouldn't be in the shape he is now.

I didn't witness this latest event, but I hope Deno examines the situation and, if appropriate, Earl is penalized.

Rich R.

So you are saying that out of all the people clapping, Earl just decided to pick your wife for no other reason than doing the proper thing, which is applauding the introduction of a player. There must have been something else that you are leaving out.

 

[Cuebacca]

Rich,

I understand some (probably most) will not agree with me. That's okay. I know Earl and I know most of these incidents occur due to relentless provocation.

Earl is not the only player to lose his temper. Many players have had outbursts that never got any attention in this or any other forum. I've seen Double J put his fist through a wall out of frustration, I have seen Ralf Souquet scream obscenities out of frustration - Johnny Archer snap his cue over his back - do these incidents make these guys bad people? No. Emotion is part of competition.

As far as sportsmanship, I believe you have two ends of the spectrum - with Earl on one side and Tony Robles on the other. The rest of us fit somewhere in between. I do not believe Earl's actions are appropriate, but I also don't believe the actions of those that intentionally provoke him are appropriate either - no matter what excuse these people use.

Great post, Blackjack. I think the tournament promotion companies should have someone in place to warn and/or eject spectators that provoke/distract players. I imagine that they already do, but perhaps additional efforts could be made somehow, to minimize the nonsense that players have to tolerate. It isn't right, in my opinion, for players, including Earl, to have to deal with disrespect from the fans.

Maybe I'm wrong because it seems like a given in other sports that a certain amount of heckling from fans will occur, but I think its not the same in pool somehow.

Pool players are only human, and emotions will get involved. The punishment should fit the crime. If you punch a hole in the wall, you should at least have to pay for the hole to be repaired, and maybe a little extra for some kind of fine. I always thought it would be handy to have a punching bag handy near a pool table because this game is frustrating! It could be part of standard equipment -- table, light, balls, score beads, punching bag, etc.

People make mistakes and people deserve second chances in most cases. I just think that, unfortunately, without some kind of repercussions, some people might not have incentive to reflect on their actions and make an honest attempt to improve. However, I also think that the incidents should be reviewed and circumstances should be considered before deciding the penalty, to be fair to the player.

Anyway, great point you made. A bad decision doesn't always mean a bad person. There's a difference between emotion and sportsmanship, although one can often affect the other.

 

[rackmsuckr]

I posted about his bizarre behavior yesterday, in the IPT section in the thread where I posted all the pictures. He really does need a warning and perhaps some counseling.

 

[gulfportdoc]

I disagree with you 100%. Acting like Earl hasn't won him any tournament lately. Champions need to have class so that they can be role models to others, especially kids who aspire to be like them. Just imagine the negative impacts on our sport if we have 100 Earls walking around.

John

You've missed the whole point. I'm not suggesting players emulate Earl's antics. Put your disgust of Earl aside for a moment. I'm wishing that more U.S. players had some gumption and backbone, like they used to. You're too young to have seen the past great pool champions. Most of them were real men who didn't take guff from anybody. Mosconi was the biggest S.O.B. to ever play the game. They had admiration and respect because they were good at what they did, and they didn't put up with any crap. Today it's as if everyone is trying to show how "fair" and "caring" they are. Leave that to the women's tour. I'd rather see some men's action.

Doc

 

[Cuebacca]

You've missed the whole point. I'm not suggesting players emulate Earl's antics. Put your disgust of Earl aside for a moment. I'm wishing that more U.S. players had some gumption and backbone, like they used to. You're too young to have seen the past great pool champions. Most of them were real men who didn't take guff from anybody. Mosconi was the biggest S.O.B. to ever play the game. They had admiration and respect because they were good at what they did, and they didn't put up with any crap. Today it's as if everyone is trying to show how "fair" and "caring" they are. Leave that to the women's tour. I'd rather see some men's action.

Doc

One way to look at these types of antics is that they are a sign of a "real man". Another way to look at it is that it is acting like a boy who, in some ways, never grew up. Thowing a temper tantrum isn't the way to act like a real man, in my opinion.

(Not trying to be all high and mighty by saying that -- no one's perfect, I'm certainly not. Just food for thought, thats all. )

 

[JoeyInCali]

You've missed the whole point. I'm not suggesting players emulate Earl's antics. Put your disgust of Earl aside for a moment. I'm wishing that more U.S. players had some gumption and backbone, like they used to. You're too young to have seen the past great pool champions.
Most of them were real men who didn't take guff from anybody.
Mosconi was the biggest S.O.B. to ever play the game. They had admiration and respect because they were good at what they did, and they didn't put up with any crap. Today it's as if everyone is trying to show how "fair" and "caring" they are. Leave that to the women's tour. I'd rather see some men's action.

Doc

Sorry but it sounds to me you're badmouthing Mosconi to make Earl look good.
Most of them were real men who didn't take guff from anybody.
What should these pros do when Earl does his antics? Whack him with a stick?
You're too young to have seen the past great pool champions
Did Earl ever see Irvinng Crane? Maybe he can emulate him.
Today it's as if everyone is trying to show how "fair" and "caring" they are. Leave that to the women's tour. I'd rather see some men's action.

Now, lemme see ANYONE do what Earl does to him. Fortunately, nobody is that low.

 

[JoeyInCali]

I posted about his bizarre behavior yesterday, in the IPT section in the thread where I posted all the pictures. He really does need a warning and perhaps some counseling.

Hit him where it hurts. His pocket.

 

[Cameron Smith]

. I've seen Double J put his fist through a wall out of frustration, I have seen Ralf Souquet scream obscenities out of frustration - Johnny Archer snap his cue over his back

This way off topic but, you have no idea much better this makes me feel. I needed to hear about this.

 

[Cameron Smith]

Sorry but it sounds to me you're badmouthing Mosconi to make Earl look good.

It is fairly well known that Willie was pretty tempermental himself. But I don't remember hearing any stories of fans provoking him as they do Earl.

My take on this is simply what many others have said, Earl Strickland puts bums in seats. Outbursts are what draw fans. I first starting watching tennis after seeing a match with Marat Safin who goes through quite a few rackets in a tournament if you know what I mean. He once got a fine for wrecking a players seat at the French Open.

I know most pool fans want to see perfect gentlemen's playing the game but that isn't always very interesting. There are a lot of people who may have been channel flipping and come across the Strickland Van Den Burg match and watched it because of the controversy.

 

[vagabond]

Sorry but it sounds to me you're badmouthing Mosconi to make Earl look good.
[

I do not think gulfport doc is bad mouthing.u ask any body who knew willie,they will all describe willie much worse than the DOC.Willie once assaulted the TD as per the book I read.EARL NEVER DID THAT kind off stuff.

 

[catscradle]

I do not think gulfport doc is bad mouthing.u ask any body who knew willie,they will all describe willie much worse than the DOC.Willie once assaulted the TD as per the book I read.EARL NEVER DID THAT kind off stuff.

The real question is would Earl's behaviour get him banned on AZB?