The Mighty Earl

poolcuemaster

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Earl the Pearl beat Larry the truth Nevel twice but lost to Jeff Abernethy twice once in the hotseat 9 to 4 and in the first set of the finals 9 to 1 so Jeff won 18 to 5 against Earl today. Ole Jeffro was smokin hot and in deadstroke for sure.--Leonard
 
Great showing by The Mighty Earl. His new American-made cue stick must have the magic "hit" that players desire. Thank goodness, he got rid of the metal crap cue and is shooting with a real man's cue today. Oh, and did I mention AMERICAN-MADE?! :D

Hopefully, the best is yet to come for Earl. I am glad he had a good showing this weekend at Shannon and Marge's Southern Billiard Tour tournament in South Carolina. This is great news.

JAM
 
Congrats to Earl on a very good tournament. I thought he was Ali there for awhile making predictions. Let's hope he continues to shoot well and act well in the up coming tournaments. Johnnyt
 
Napalm of the Day

poolcuemaster said:
Earl the Pearl beat Larry the truth Nevel twice but lost to Jeff Abernethy twice once in the hotseat 9 to 4 and in the first set of the finals 9 to 1 so Jeff won 18 to 5 against Earl today. Ole Jeffro was smokin hot and in deadstroke for sure.--Leonard

WOW, I thought Larry was playing like burning hell? Earl beats him twice. Earl must have played quite well to beat Larry twice. Jeff on the other hand was NAPALM OF THE DAY.

Congratulations to all of the players.

JoeyA (every dog has his day)
 
JAM said:
Great showing by The Mighty Earl. His new American-made cue stick must have the magic "hit" that players desire. Thank goodness, he got rid of the metal crap cue and is shooting with a real man's cue today. Oh, and did I mention AMERICAN-MADE?! :D

Hopefully, the best is yet to come for Earl. I am glad he had a good showing this weekend at Shannon and Marge's Southern Billiard Tour tournament in South Carolina. This is great news.

JAM


i agree 100% he will need time to adjust and more importantly because he is an emotional guy the SUPPORT of the fans not the knocks, I guarantee anyone that if people embraced him and didnt knock him he would play better, when your a kid your parants acceptence is huge, well it is for some pro althletes Earl being one of them, with the crowd behind him and a decent cue he will win, with his natural talent and feeling good about himself-gameover.
 
JAM said:
Thank goodness, he got rid of the metal crap cue and is shooting with a real man's cue today. Oh, and did I mention AMERICAN-MADE?! :D

JAM

Yeah...he only won how many world championships and U.S. Open championships with that "metal crap cue"?...not to mention the $100K salary that went along with using it. Boy, he sure got the "bum's rush" didn't he?:rolleyes:! Just because YOU don't like them, doesn't mean that Cue-tec cues are crap. They are very serviceable playing cues for very little money...and exceptionally durable for bar play. The facts are that a majority of cues today are manufactured overseas...even if the 'brand' name is American. Like everything, some are better quality than others...but you cannot call them all junk, just because they are not "AMERICAN-MADE"...jmo. For the record...I play with 'American-made' cues too (Samsara). I just don't feel the need to badmouth anybody else's cues, regardless of where they're made.:D

Scott Lee
www.poolknowledge.com
 
JAM said:
Great showing by The Mighty Earl. His new American-made cue stick must have the magic "hit" that players desire. Thank goodness, he got rid of the metal crap cue and is shooting with a real man's cue today. Oh, and did I mention AMERICAN-MADE?! :D

Hopefully, the best is yet to come for Earl. I am glad he had a good showing this weekend at Shannon and Marge's Southern Billiard Tour tournament in South Carolina. This is great news.

JAM


It was great to see Earl shooting good and in good spirits. Earl is always a fan favorite and it showed here in Greenville. The fans here were definitely pulling for him. When he beat Larry both times the crowd erupted. So I don't care what anybody says he is still a champion and the fans absoulutely love him. That was still evident this weekend. So everyone here that likes to bash the pros remember we are all people w/ feelings and problems- find something better to do w/ your time than talk about Earl. That's all I am going to say.
 
Scott Lee said:
Yeah...he only won how many world championships and U.S. Open championships with that "metal crap cue"?...not to mention the $100K salary that went along with using it. Boy, he sure got the "bum's rush" didn't he?:rolleyes:!

Gee whiz, Scott Lee, are you privy to the fact that Earl earned $100,000 salary? I had never heard that figure quoted before. I don't think Earl has either, FWIW!

Just imagine how well Earl would have hit 'em with an American-made custom cue, you know, the kind that most professional players use to compete with.

I think it stinks that Cuetec dropped Earl like a hot potato after 17 years of this company riding on his shirt tails while he was raking in those five U.S. Open titles, world championship tournaments, and the other events too numerous to list in this thread. They used him and then spit him out like a piece of garbage after they were done with him. Their business integrity sucks.

Yes, Scott Lee, I think Earl did get the bum's rush from Cuetec. He put them on the map, and Cuetec dropped this world-champion and American legendary player like a hot potato as soon as the American subsidiary sold the company to Imperial. I guess they call that downsizing.

BTW, there are MANY threads in this forum about Cuetec disgracing Earl Strickland, the American champion, on this forum. Maybe you could do a little search, and we could rehash it all over again.

Scott Lee said:
Just because YOU don't like them, doesn't mean that Cue-tec cues are crap. They are very serviceable playing cues for very little money...and exceptionally durable for bar play. The facts are that a majority of cues today are manufactured overseas...even if the 'brand' name is American. Like everything, some are better quality than others...but you cannot call them all junk, just because they are not "AMERICAN-MADE"...jmo. For the record...I play with 'American-made' cues too (Samsara). I just don't feel the need to badmouth anybody else's cues, regardless of where they're made.:D

Cuetec are serviceable playing cues? Maybe for a league player, bar banger, and social shooter. If they play on Earl's level, they'd have to do some MAJOR OVERHAUL to get it to hit even a little, much less a ton, just like Earl had to do to his Cuetec cue.

And FTR, it seems like everything here in America is being outsourced today to countries overseas, and I'm sick of it. When I call for assistance for Verizon, American Express, or any other American company I need to get service from, I'm transferred to an operator overseas, and I'm tired of it. Now China's product quality is affecting the health of not only American citizens, but their beloved pets. So, if I want to support the American cuemakers, I'm going to do it. Sorry if this ruffles your feathers. Today, some American cuemakers have to send their wares overseas to make a sale because the majority of Americans who are bar bangers, social shooters, and league players want to purchase the metal overseas-manufactured cuesticks instead of supporting the good old U.S. of A. and the American pool industry. Of course, I guess the majority of those bar bangers, social shooters, and league players don't give a damn about professional pool, much less buying American-made products.

God bless American pool players and cuemakers. USA, all the way!

JAM
 
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Fatboy said:
i agree 100% he will need time to adjust and more importantly because he is an emotional guy the SUPPORT of the fans not the knocks, I guarantee anyone that if people embraced him and didnt knock him he would play better, when your a kid your parants acceptence is huge, well it is for some pro althletes Earl being one of them, with the crowd behind him and a decent cue he will win, with his natural talent and feeling good about himself-gameover.

I'm not going to add to the Earl bashing, but My God give me a break, I'm not about to bend over backwards to treat him with kid gloves (as the saying goes), he's a grown man (with an incredible talent) and he needs to act like one.
 
Well here is my two cents on Cuetec cues. I will say this I have seen some guys who shoot pro speed who have shot with a cue tec. I want an american made cue, i really do..right now i shoot with a Lucasi and i enjoy it..I love Earl the Pearl and have been a fan of his "shooting ability" I think the whole American made thing gets blown out of porportion some time. I do think support American made stuff for sure. My family owns a resturant and we love the fact that we had the opportunity to try and be successful and thats what America is about . But people go where the money is. I mean EVERYONE LOVES and RESPECTS the American cuemaker who created the BLACK BOAR. I have seen and hit with two of his cues and dear god ..they are amazing..but if im not mistaken arent all of his cues going over seas. I believe i heard somewhere that every cue he makes now goes to some guy in Japan or some where like that..if im wrong then Oppsss. But people go where the cash is. Earl went were the money was with cuetec. Is it shi** what happned...yes ...did earl behavior have something to do with it..well that something that cuetec and Earl will only know. I will support American made stuff but not at the cost of calling others crap. JMO
 
JAM said:
I think it stinks that Cuetec dropped Earl like a hot potato after 17 years of this company riding on his shirt tails while he was raking in those five U.S. Open titles, world championship tournaments, and the other events too numerous to list in this thread. They used him and then spit him out like a piece of garbage after they were done with him. Their business integrity sucks.

I wasn't aware it was "Hyperbole Week".

I love Earl as much as the next guy, but these comments are overboard. "dropped him like a hot potato" and "spit him out like a piece of garbage". Give me a break. After *17 YEARS* (!!!) they decided not to continue sponsoring him.

And besides, how did they "use him"? It was a mutually beneficial arrangement that both parties agreed to. Earl agreed to take their cash, they agreed to use his name. You act like Earl was a helpless victim of sorts. Nope, doesn't work that way.
 
shinobi said:
I wasn't aware it was "Hyperbole Week".

And I wasn't aware it was "Shinobi's opinion is the only one that is right and all others are not" Week.

shinobi said:
I love Earl as much as the next guy, but these comments are overboard. "dropped him like a hot potato" and "spit him out like a piece of garbage". Give me a break. After *17 YEARS* (!!!) they decided not to continue sponsoring him.

Let's get it straight, Shinobi. It isn't that Cuetec "dropped him like a hot potato" as much as it is the manner in which they did it. Capiche?

shinobi said:
And besides, how did they "use him"? It was a mutually beneficial arrangement that both parties agreed to. Earl agreed to take their cash, they agreed to use his name. You act like Earl was a helpless victim of sorts. Nope, doesn't work that way.

Again, when the American subsidiary of Cuetec sold to another company, it was THEN and only THEN when Earl was spit out like a piece of garbage. For Cuetec to treat a 17-year-old employee, freelancer, representative, whatever you want to call it, in the disgusting manner in which they did release him, it is something that forms my opinion that this Cuetec company lacks integrity. If I gave 17 years of my life to a company and they released me in the manner in which they did Earl by publishing it in the pool media, the industry in which Earl Strickland will continue to work in, there is where it stinks to high heaven, just like their Cuetec products do.

JAM
 
JAM said:
And I wasn't aware it was "Shinobi's opinion is the only one that is right and all others are not" Week.

Actually, that one is an year-long event :P

JAM said:
Let's get it straight, Shinobi. It isn't that Cuetec "dropped him like a hot potato" as much as it is the manner in which they did it. Capiche?

This is "the manner in which they did it":

"Cuetec president, Jones Chang, said, "Earl has endorsed Cuetec from 1990 until 2007...He made great contributions to the game and to Cuetec. But when he loses, he loses himself. And that affects the Cuetec image. His behavior is detrimental to our promotion. We have stood by him in the past, but now it is time to end our relationship.""

I can't find fault or even the slightest exaggeration in those words. They chose to end the relationship, and provided a very acceptable reason.

Of course it would be published in the pool media. If any company drops sponsorship of a well known athlete, a press release is automatic.

Plus, you said they "used him" -- I just don't see that at all. He got paid.

I'm a massive Earl Strickland fan. I don't mind his outbursts. And I don't respect Cuetec pool cues. Despite all that, I really don't see any surprise in Cuetec ending their relationship with him. His name has been associated with crazy behaviour and not with winning for years now.

In any case, like with any "breakup" the best way Earl can stick it to them is to start kicking ass again. Best of luck to him.
 
shinobi said:
....Of course it would be published in the pool media. If any company drops sponsorship of a well known athlete, a press release is automatic....

When Falcon Cues dropped a regional tour several years ago, after only one year of sponsorship, I read no press release about it. They just did it because they closed their Canadian office and moved everything overseas. The tour, BTW, was growing by leaps and bounds every single month, the tournament results being printed in all the pool mags, not to mention the members of the tour increased dramatically. Yet, Falcon didn't give a damn, moved their crap overseas, and withdrew their funding, putting this tour in a difficult spot financially. Fortunately, the tour thrived and still grows every year. Falcon's loss is Tiger's gain.

I do not believe I have ever read of a pool industry member dropping a sponsored pool player and publishing it in the trade magazines, and I have firsthand knowledge of MANY pool players who have lost sponsors over the years.

Cuetec's handling of Earl Strickland's release was a low blow, classless, and crappy, just like their inferior products, and I will continue to shout it from the rooftops.

JAM
 
Earl was pretty quick with a comeback after it happened anyway, he said something like "they complained I wasn't winning more but I could have won more if they'd start making better sticks for me to shoot with" I think he also said "I was giving up 2 or 3 balls per game with that stick, it's really been holding me back" (something like that).

Pretty funny actually... I think Cuetec lost big here, whether people take Earl's statements as honest or just sour grapes. I don't disagree with them that Earl has been associated with bad behavior, I just think having a 'character' and a top level player under their belt will do more for them than trying to appear squeaky clean.

I don't know anyone who decided not to buy a cuetec cue just because it's endorsed by a loose cannon. If anything, people are reluctant to buy them because they see them as low end, but then they reluctantly say "yeah but earl uses it... there must be something to it if a guy shoots that good with one".
 
JAM said:
When Falcon Cues dropped a regional tour several years ago, after only one year of sponsorship, I read no press release about it. They just did it because they closed their Canadian office and moved everything overseas. The tour, BTW, was growing by leaps and bounds every single month, the tournament results being printed in all the pool mags, not to mention the members of the tour increased dramatically. Yet, Falcon didn't give a damn, moved their crap overseas, and withdrew their funding, putting this tour in a difficult spot financially. Fortunately, the tour thrived and still grows every year. Falcon's loss is Tiger's gain.

I do not believe I have ever read of a pool industry member dropping a sponsored pool player and publishing it in the trade magazines, and I have firsthand knowledge of MANY pool players who have lost sponsors over the years.

Cuetec's handling of Earl Strickland's release was a low blow, classless, and crappy, just like their inferior products, and I will continue to shout it from the rooftops.

JAM
Jam,

I could be wrong, but I do think there was a press release when Falcon dropped their sponsorship of the Planet-Pool Tour.

Again, I could be wrong, but I was living in Minnesota at the time and I know I read it somewhere. I thought it was Inside Pool or Billiards Digest.
 
stubbed their own toe

They said: (quoting from here, didn't verify myself)

"Cuetec president, Jones Chang, said, "Earl has endorsed Cuetec from 1990 until 2007...He made great contributions to the game and to Cuetec. But when he loses, he loses himself. And that affects the Cuetec image. His behavior is detrimental to our promotion. We have stood by him in the past, but now it is time to end our relationship.""

Something like this would have seemed much smarter and is typical throughout the sponsorship world. Players in many arenas that do far worse than Earl are parted company with far more politely.

"Earl has endorsed Cuetec from 1990 until 2007...He made great contributions to the game and to Cuetec. However Cuetec is moving in a new direction and it is time for Earl and ourselves to move on. We wish him every success in the future."

Instead Chang chose to air dirty linen, as big of a PR blunder as anything Earl has done. I'd say that I won't buy a cuetec which is true, but I wasn't their market anyway. I had my fling with fiberglass and aluminum cue sticks back when I was fifteen. The fiberglass cue sticks didn't have much at all to recommend them but the aluminum ones did hold up better in impromptu swordfights when brothers disagreed on a ruling.

Hu
 
Maybe you know this one Jam

When i first started playing pool i started with a Durfrin two piece (lowers his head in shame) but i was a poor boy just starting ..then i moved to a Muccie Sneaky Pete and then to their maximum series cue..which i still have..i have retired old bettsy..but back then Johhny Archer was sponcered by Shawn. That was the cue that every one wanted..what happned to that sponsership...did johnny walk away to start Scorpian cues ?
 
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