Strickland "Is an Embrassment"
- Thread starter Sieben
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cuetechasaurus said:
Evidently you never watched Earl Play. He does that all the time.
Once I thought he was going to pick on me but he was actually looking over my shoulder at the guy standing behind me. I actually think he might be crosseyed.
I care less about him, or any player for that matter, I just like to watch them play the game.
Sometimes Earl is pretty nice, granted not often lately, but when he starts to go off you can do a couple things. One, go watch someone else or two bet on his opponent.
Jake
Give him a break
I understand your view point, however as someone who has sat and talked with the man rather extensively I have to say that his viewpoints when broken down are correct. to name a few, players should dress casual but with class, players should not be betting in the tournament arena, and SPECTATORS SHOULD KEEP THERE MOUTHS SHUT WHEN A PLAYER IS ON HIS SHOT!
In any other sport where qiet and concentration is a must, golf, for instance, degrading or intentionally distracting a player on his shot is usually followed by an escort from the spectator area. It should be the same in pool. Ive watched earl play in many venues, including the Mosconi cup in 2001 where he was a most likable player. I traveled there with my APA team just to watch. Earl Invited all of us to dinner and Lou Sardo offered to pick up the tab. After it was over Earl gave his cue to a spectator, gave myself his team shirt along with Johnny Archer and Corey. Earl even invited us to the practice room where they practiced and we watched videos of previous years Mosconi Cup matches. Before you decide he should yanked from the tour, listen to what he has to say. You may come away believing hes right. Should he speak up about it? Should he have to put up with it? Who else is jumping up on his behalf to put a stop to the badgering from the cheap seats? And when the mosconi Cup team governing body changed hands to the UPA, who had barred Earl from playing in there sancioned matches and the europians forced an exception on them to let earl play, there was a reason for that. He makes the game exciting! People come to see him do what he does. What he does is play an awesome game!
Sieben said:
I understand your view point, however as someone who has sat and talked with the man rather extensively I have to say that his viewpoints when broken down are correct. to name a few, players should dress casual but with class, players should not be betting in the tournament arena, and SPECTATORS SHOULD KEEP THERE MOUTHS SHUT WHEN A PLAYER IS ON HIS SHOT!
In any other sport where qiet and concentration is a must, golf, for instance, degrading or intentionally distracting a player on his shot is usually followed by an escort from the spectator area. It should be the same in pool. Ive watched earl play in many venues, including the Mosconi cup in 2001 where he was a most likable player. I traveled there with my APA team just to watch. Earl Invited all of us to dinner and Lou Sardo offered to pick up the tab. After it was over Earl gave his cue to a spectator, gave myself his team shirt along with Johnny Archer and Corey. Earl even invited us to the practice room where they practiced and we watched videos of previous years Mosconi Cup matches. Before you decide he should yanked from the tour, listen to what he has to say. You may come away believing hes right. Should he speak up about it? Should he have to put up with it? Who else is jumping up on his behalf to put a stop to the badgering from the cheap seats? And when the mosconi Cup team governing body changed hands to the UPA, who had barred Earl from playing in there sancioned matches and the europians forced an exception on them to let earl play, there was a reason for that. He makes the game exciting! People come to see him do what he does. What he does is play an awesome game!
cuedoctor said:Europe,but not asia.And it sounds like pool in china is about the same here. Enlighten me,name some very talented athletes beside Yo Ming(?)the center for Houston in the NBA(pretty far from china).Please do not include ping pong,chinese checkers,or any board game players.Take it easy,just having some fun,thats what this board is for sometimes
Hicham El Guerrouj, Moroccan middle distance runner, perhaps the best ever, holds several world records
Saïf Shaheen, world record holder at steeplechase, from Qatar
Xiang Liu, 110M hurdle world record holder, from China
Sergey Bubka, my man Sergey from the Ukraine, world record holder in pole vault, an un-frickin-believeable athlete in his day !
Jonathan Edwards, triple jump world record holder, from UK
Roman Sebrle, world record holder in decathalon (worlds best athlete ?), from Czech Republic
Jürgen Schult, world record holder in discus, from Germany
Yuriy Syedikh, world record holder in hammer throw, a Russian
Jan Zelezny, world record holder in javelin, from Czech Republic
cuedoctor said:
That's not an excuse, imo.
Dave
DaveK said:
Did you just get back from hunting for BIG FOOT or something?This discussion ended yesterday.But I want to thank you for looking up all these fine athletes who nobody has ever heard of and posting them here.I am surprized that you havent listed any record holders from curling?
memikey said:cuedoctor said:I know everyone hates us because of G.Bush.........
Some do,yep...........
Who gives a crap about these other countries........
......but even more hate USA for the kind of blind ignorance and selfishness personified by remarks like that.....
.......there would be no europe if it wasnt for the usa.....
......that is debatable but what is certain is that there would in fact have been no USA were it not for Europe......
Right you are memikey. Just to clarify a couple things though.
I don't know anybody here who hates America as CueDoctor states. They may not always agree with current policy, but do not hate the country or the people. I'm sure that is not always true in the Arab world however.
I've never been to a ping pong, badminton,rugby, cricket, sumo wrestling or soccer match either and have no plans to go. Just because I don't go does not mean they are not real sports with real athletes and millions or billions of fans.
I also am not promoting another country or saying anything bad about the US. I am as proud to be a conservative capitalist American as anybody.
I will end my participation in this thread here as I think CueDoctor has eloquently demonstrated his level of knowledge of international sports. He is now the world's authority on what is and is not a "real" sport with "real" athletes. Could you give us a definition of "real" sports and "real" athletes?
One final comment. Those who don't give a crap about other countries should demonstrate their feelings by not purchasing anything which comes from another country starting with clothing, shoes , televisions, and gasoline.
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Timberly
Guest
I was out of town so I must get caught up.cuedoctor said:Have Nice Day Everyone,there is no reason for us to continue this
Talking about Earl is like talking about politics... the majority of people find his actions a disgrace (He can go off like a rocket and say all of his babble in the after interview & still make for good tv) and then there's those that insist on making excuses for him. Just like political debates, no one is going to convert anyone on the opposite side to their way of thinking. 
Earl is the only player that any of the other players act up against? I only ask because he's the only one that acts like he does everytime.cuedoctor said:
Arguing loudly with an audience member while in the middle of a match or slouching in his chair with his hand over his eyes and his head bowed for 3 racks, only to get up and just swing at the cue without even aiming and then stomping back to his chair to assume said position is not showing your opponent respect. The sulking in his chair bit happened at the Open last yr when he played Ralf Souquet... you know what Ralf did to provoke that? He played good, solid pool, and was ahead of Earl in the score. Through the whole pitiful act, Ralf remained stoic and professional.RiverCity said:
I'm all for holding the fans accountable. If it were up to me, everyone would be quiet, stay in their seats until the player is done shooting, turn their cell phones off, and not use flash photography. Anyone caught doing any of those things, including heckling a player, should be kicked out and no refund given. If they can't have respect for the players and the concentration it takes to play the game on that level or any level then they don't deserve to be allowed to sit there.Blackjack said:
I will not hesitate to say something to someone for rude behaviour at a tournament. I politely inform them that there is a tournament and could they please stop whatever it is that they happen to be doing. Just today during the finals of a tourney I was at some guy was maybe 10 ft from the finals match and was trying to call someone on his nextel using the walkie talkie feature. I said something to him and he stopped using it and walked to the other side of the pool room. I've said things to waitresses and spectators. If people see spectators acting up, they should either say something to them or go get someone that will.
I'm not nearly as "angry" as it might've come across, I'm simply annoyed. My actions don't come close to being comparable to the topic of conversation. Yes, we all have our "moments". To compare this to Earl having a moment is apples to oranges. There's probably over a 100 threads on this forum alone about Earl and his antics... this is my first time getting involved in it and my reason for doing so is that not only does his antics get old and are completely disrespectful to his opponent and whoever his target might be, but I've sat back & watched people make excuse after excuse for him. I guess this 100th plus time was the straw that breaks the camel's back. Earl does it all the time, I got annoyed by it enough to come forward with my opinion on it once. I also took offense to the insinuations that Rich's wife had to have provoked Earl. Rich & his wife are two of the nicest people, and biggest supporters of the game that you'll ever meet. Yes, I got annoyed, yes, I spoke up, and no, it's nowhere near comparable to Earl "having a moment".
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Earl is being hypocritical to complain about Nick van den Berg's gurus talking while he's playing. Today, I was watching the OLN reruns of the IPT King of the Hill tournament. Earl was playing Gerda Hoffstater and was talking out loud while she was shooting. The referee told him to stop it yet Earl was arguing with the referee about his constitutional right to speak being violated.
Earl is very much a spoiled brat who will continue to engage in unsportsmanlike conduct until he gets the appropriate disciplinary action.
Earl is very much a spoiled brat who will continue to engage in unsportsmanlike conduct until he gets the appropriate disciplinary action.
I have the Earl Strickland- Ralf Souqet match on tape, and for the life of me I can't see what was so wrong about what he did. Sure he sulked, sure stopped caring about the match. But when I watched the match after reading the billion page thread about how much of a$$ he was in that match, all I saw was a guy who sulked in his chair because things weren't going well for him, a guy who clapped for Souqet's great shots and a guy who clapped for Souqet's win at the end.
I am now convinced that that alot of what I hear about him is exagerated for effect. Or at least people see what he does as worse than it is because, it is Earl doing it.
I'm not saying he doesn't ever get out of line, I just think that sometimes he is judged too harshly. I am sure that if another player sulked in his chair while losing a match, people here very likely would sympathize them.
I am now convinced that that alot of what I hear about him is exagerated for effect. Or at least people see what he does as worse than it is because, it is Earl doing it.
I'm not saying he doesn't ever get out of line, I just think that sometimes he is judged too harshly. I am sure that if another player sulked in his chair while losing a match, people here very likely would sympathize them.
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Timberly
Guest
I guess everything is a matter of opinion. I don't like to watch children pout, let alone a grown man. His pouting and not caring (by your own admission) are actions not becoming of an athlete, a pro, or an adult. If you find that behavior enjoyable to watch, then that's great for you. I didn't even read the thread about it, I was there watching it and all I could think of was what an immature ass.... just because he's not winning he's going to pout & sulk. It wasn't enjoyable to watch and it's unbecoming of a "professional".Cameron Smith said:
LOL, that's just one example out of hundreds... it just happens to be one of the last tournaments that he played in that I attended and I used it as an example. Go ahead, jump on the lets make excuses for Earl bandwagon if you want to but I assure you, it's a rare instance that the stories told about him are exaggerated.
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Timberly
Guest
Unless I missed it, I don't recall anyone saying he hasn't impacted the game. Maybe it was in an earlier post and I've forgotten it, I don't know. What I do know is that like John pointed out earlier... the guy has a PHENOMENAL game. I never have and never will try to dispute his talent and accomplishments. Those things are totally different from what I'm talking about. I'm saying when you strip him down from a pool player to a man, a human, like the rest of us, his actions are unacceptable and being a great pool player does not give someone carte blanch to act like he does....IMO of course because there's others here who think differently.Fleece3 said:
That being said... you guys will be continuing this without me... I can't stand going around in circles and constantly having to repeat myself but just using different words so yet another person will understand me.
Fleece3 said:
I don't think anyone doubts Earl's ability and skill at 9 ball and he undoubtedly has had an impact on the pocket pool world. Unfortunately, much of the positive impact is offset by his poor personal performance in the matches.
You can make all the excuses you want for him, but there is no excuse for his bad manners and lack of civility. He appears to feel that if other people perform in a manner that doesn't suit him, they should be chastised, humiliated and punished, but if he does the same thing, that's OK because of who he is.
I've seen several of his matches on video, none live, but his poor attitude and lack of respect for his opponents is apparent. He is constantly whining about something or showing his opponent and the paying audience disrespect by ignoring the match. The term "Great Player" might apply to him, but "Class Act" does not.
I don't doubt that outside of a tournament or match setting, he may be a wonderful guy.
Where there is this much smoke for this many years, there is fire.
Earl is the instigator...IMO...
I'm not sure if anyone mentioned this altercation from the tournament yet...but I think it was on Wednesday, Earl was playing Gary Abood...
Very similar to the story that Breakup mentioned that he witnessed...it was Earl that started throwing out questions to viewers in the stands...
Well during this match, Earl was chatting back and forth with a spectator....nothing bad at all, they were just talking friendly about things happening in the match...then Earl makes a shot, almost scratches....and then says, "...I got lucky there....no, I really did get lucky..." Then he looks at the spectator and says to him something like, "...Well, that's the one time that I got lucky..." and the spectator responds with something like, "...That's actually the second time...and he holds up two fingers. It seemed like the guy was sincere and that he just wanted to clarify that point with Earl...
Well of course, Earl goes ballistic....and starts hollering at the guy that he has a lot of nerve to talk to him like that... Then he tells him that he can get him thrown right out of the place... Eventually, a bunch of refs come over and calm Earl down....and then the refs are stern with the spectator too and tell him not to keep talking.
In my opinion...it is Earl looking for things to blow-up about...and he is the one instigating most of it... Sure people talk during matches...and maybe that could be a legitimate thing to get mad at....but the match on Saturday between Efren and Ralph S...there were a lot of people watching the match...many people talking...they were breaking down the set of the TV match next to them...banging things, etc....and neither of them said a thing...they just stayed focused and kept playing...
Although in this match...when Efren and Ralph were on the hill...Ralph comes up dry on the break and about 4-5 Philipino guys start cheering and clapping very loud because Ralph didn't make a ball. To me, that didn't show much class or respect for Ralph... Ralph looked ticked and looked sternly over at the guys...but that was it. He didn't carry-on or make a scene...
I just think that Earl is out to instigate trouble...and as strange as it might sound, from what I saw....I think that he wants to find something to get upset about so he can go off...maybe that's the way he gets rid of his nervous energy or something... I saw a couple other things that Earl said and did while at the tournament...and they definitely don't paint a good picture of the guy...at least to me...
I'm not sure if anyone mentioned this altercation from the tournament yet...but I think it was on Wednesday, Earl was playing Gary Abood...
Very similar to the story that Breakup mentioned that he witnessed...it was Earl that started throwing out questions to viewers in the stands...
Well during this match, Earl was chatting back and forth with a spectator....nothing bad at all, they were just talking friendly about things happening in the match...then Earl makes a shot, almost scratches....and then says, "...I got lucky there....no, I really did get lucky..." Then he looks at the spectator and says to him something like, "...Well, that's the one time that I got lucky..." and the spectator responds with something like, "...That's actually the second time...and he holds up two fingers. It seemed like the guy was sincere and that he just wanted to clarify that point with Earl...
Well of course, Earl goes ballistic....and starts hollering at the guy that he has a lot of nerve to talk to him like that... Then he tells him that he can get him thrown right out of the place... Eventually, a bunch of refs come over and calm Earl down....and then the refs are stern with the spectator too and tell him not to keep talking.
In my opinion...it is Earl looking for things to blow-up about...and he is the one instigating most of it... Sure people talk during matches...and maybe that could be a legitimate thing to get mad at....but the match on Saturday between Efren and Ralph S...there were a lot of people watching the match...many people talking...they were breaking down the set of the TV match next to them...banging things, etc....and neither of them said a thing...they just stayed focused and kept playing...
Although in this match...when Efren and Ralph were on the hill...Ralph comes up dry on the break and about 4-5 Philipino guys start cheering and clapping very loud because Ralph didn't make a ball. To me, that didn't show much class or respect for Ralph... Ralph looked ticked and looked sternly over at the guys...but that was it. He didn't carry-on or make a scene...
I just think that Earl is out to instigate trouble...and as strange as it might sound, from what I saw....I think that he wants to find something to get upset about so he can go off...maybe that's the way he gets rid of his nervous energy or something... I saw a couple other things that Earl said and did while at the tournament...and they definitely don't paint a good picture of the guy...at least to me...
Timberly said:
I know it is just one example, but you just reminded me of that match which is what prompted my post. I have heard plenty of things about that match, and in some ways I was dissapointed by how uncontroversial (in my mind anyways) in turned out to be, lol.
Certainly you're right he wasn't very mature in that match. I would have preferred he gave it his all, but I was amused nonetheless. I remember he did the same thing in the 2004 WPC, and I found it funny then too.
I am not making excuses for him, I don't know him. I will be the first to admit that my experiance with pro pool is greatly limited as I haven't been involved with the game for very long, so I concede a lot to yourself and others who have been around the game for far longer.
Nevertheless I just think that people should lighten up on Earl in some instances. I refuse to judge him since I have lost my cool during matches as well. Granted my frustrations are always introverted criticism as I never take it out on anybody else, but I can sympathize.
At least it's Earl we are dealing with and not Alex Higgins
."...you name the biggest nutter, come wierdo, come nasty person in any sport that you can think of, from a gentlemens point of view, well I guarantee you Alex Higgins is the worst"
-Steve Davis