thoughts on IPT final on tv today. . . . .

what got me

Is how horrible Mike played in the first set, while obviously he is 3x better than probablly any of us on this board (excluding any pros here), I was simply amazed he couldnt run out several times when he got a shot, and ended up hooking himself off the second shot, missing what seemed to be a relativly easy shot, or missed shape. In the 2nd set he seemed to catch a gear and make a bit more of a match but hey, its nice to see that a Pro can have some inconsitency also ;)
 
Efren was warmed up and in stroke. He had been playing all week. Sigel was busy hanging with KT. What he should have done was had a private practice room he could slip away to, and have his old pal Nick Varner to play against. The Colonel was deadly at 8 Ball in the 80's.:)
 
Im pretty sure they said near the beginning of the match Mike had been practicing on the very table they played on.
 
I would like to see a Re-match. For Free of course. When Mike is back in stroke, and has a few tourneys back under his belt.:D :D :D
 
CaptainHook said:
Efren was warmed up and in stroke. He had been playing all week. Sigel was busy hanging with KT.
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I'm wondering if all the commentary happened well *after* the tournament was done.

For those of you who were *at* the event - especially the finals - did anyone *see* KT, that other commentator guy, and LJJ sitting around jabbering into microphones *while* the match was played? Or, did you see those folks wandering around doing other things while the match was going?

If the commentary was taped during the match, that's one thing - if afterwards, then it's a whole different situation.
 
derekdisco said:
If mike wins the 1st set 8-0, and gets every roll in the book, the second set commentary probably goes like this. . . Lori jon "mike is playing absolutely perfect, I knew that there was no way he could lose, he has NEVER lost a final when his opponent needed to win 2 sets, he truly is the best pool player ever." The other 2 tools : "lori you are 100% right, mike is the best and even he said so, oh efren just made an impossible cut shot, but back to mike, he has to be the best living player, lets cut to a montage of random players saying how they idolize him, and btw, efren respects mike more than ANYONE! Even GOD!"
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LMAO! I for one would like to see Allen Hopkins in the commentary booth for the tourny at the Ventian, much better than LJJ.
 
derekdisco said:
I think that mIke woulda owned efren if the table wasn't all wet, haha.
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Yeah I heard this comment too even with the turned down volume. What was Mike trying to say? For some reason, I just did not get it :mad:
 
It's amazing that people are still making excuses for Mike, "if he was in stroke....."

He knew he was going to play Efren and *tried* to get in stroke every chance he had, at the qualifiers, Florida Pro Tour and even practicing on the table that they had the final match on. He was a great player no doubt, but it seems his focus is making comments and wiggling his eyebrows now.
 
s'portplayer said:
Mike had to bribe Loree Jon to make her such PRO SIGEL during her commentary. Not once did she ever wish Efren well wishes or a chant of "GO IN" for a close shot, like she did for Mike. Wonder what kind of excuses he's going to give about getting beat, after all the trash talking he's been doing in the other King of the Hill episodes.

CONGRATULATIONS "Bata"
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I thought the very same thing.
 
kidrock said:
Yeah I heard this comment too even with the turned down volume. What was Mike trying to say? For some reason, I just did not get it :mad:
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He meant that he thought that the room was humid and the cloth was retaining some of that moisture and humidity thus making it play slower and making the angles play differently than when he practiced on it prior. Now before I get jumped on I'm not making excuses for Mike Sigel. I'm just answering the question about what Mike meant when he said that.
 
cueball1950 said:
I could not believe when KT made the statement that at the last U S Open 14.1 mike got mad and broke his stick. Mike did not break that stick on purpose. That cue was broke by accident. Mike even tried to buy that tape from AccuStats. What he more or less did was sorta like tap (a little hard. but not hard enough in my opinion to break a cue) the butt on the floor while holding the shaft in his hand and the cue broke near the joint.
Anybody can say what they want about all Mike's titles and how great he was. But in person Mike is a real Jerk and so full of himself that he would make a dead man throw up. I have seen him play on many numerous occasions and he has been rude to people unless he knew you. I even had the nerve to ask him for an autograph one time when he was standing and talking with Nick Varner and Buddy Hall. when their conversation ended i asked all 3 for an autograph. Both Nick & Buddy signed my program but mike wanted $20.00 for his and he was not kidding either, as he walked away when i refused to pay the money...........mike
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Man you serious now that is taking it to far LOL. 20 dollars LOL.
 
StraightPoolIU said:
He meant that he thought that the room was humid and the cloth was retaining some of that moisture and humidity thus making it play slower and making the angles play differently than when he practiced on it prior. Now before I get jumped on I'm not making excuses for Mike Sigel. I'm just answering the question about what Mike meant when he said that.
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Is this why Efren was completely comfortable with the table as how there Climate is down where he lives each day.
 
satman said:
I've read this whole thread to this point. And did anyone besides me notice the rule violation on Mikes turn at the table? It happened more than once. Did anyone see Earl on one of the earlier shows get in trouble for making comments to his opponent? I'm pretty sure you're not allowed to speak to your opponent or make comments about them. Mike did that a lot. As far as the commentating, The best commentators in pool, were sitting in the stands watching. LJJ does not belong in the booth. As much as I dislike Mike, he did a fair job of commentating as far as describing what needed to be done by the players. Except for him talking about how great he was. I said it before," he is still a great player, but nowhere near the speed he was in the 80"s. His whining is just rediculous, to say the least. And his overall attitude, SUCKS." Have a great day, Sam
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Good points here, made me think how the match would of been if it was Mike and Earl that have matched up that would of been some good t.v. there. But Efrens play was great to watch how quiet he was at the table.
 
The thing I got out of this is that Mike was obviously quite nervous and off his game. After all the "trash" talk, scripted or not, Mike knew he had to perform and his game went from bad to worse after the first few shots. Efren, on the other hand seemed as comfortable as if he were playing for a dollar.

Efren had two days of tough play on the tables before playing Mike. Efren was a winner either way. Mike had everything to lose while Efren had everything to gain. I have lots of tapes of Sigel back in the day and he never looked as bad as he did in this tournament.

I think Sigel just needs to get back in the game and mix it up. His skills will come back. Efren never quit. He actually started winning more as he got older.

I found the commenting irritating but tolerable. Could use less hype about the poor state of professional pool before the IPT came along. The viewers can get how much pressure the players are under without constant reminding by the announcers.

Well, in two weeks we'll see how Mike fares when he starts at the same time as everyone else. I predict he'll do well if he can settle down.

John
 
Fart sniffer said:
It's amazing that people are still making excuses for Mike, "if he was in stroke....."

He knew he was going to play Efren and *tried* to get in stroke every chance he had, at the qualifiers, Florida Pro Tour and even practicing on the table that they had the final match on. He was a great player no doubt, but it seems his focus is making comments and wiggling his eyebrows now.
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It's not an excuse. Mike clearly was not "in stroke". If he was then the match would have been much tighter. Mike had plenty of opportunities, it wasn't as if Efren outplayed him and prevented him from coming to the table. Mike had a decent shot almost every game and he failed to execute.

Efren came to the table with relatively easy layouts (for him) each time. Any PLAYER can tell you that your opponent's weakness pumps you up. Efren got into a mode where he could freewheel while Sigel struggled.

Mike is a great player. Just as Earl is a great player. Both of them have all the skills they ever did. What gets them now is that they can't stand the fact that there are a lot more champions waiting for them than in the past. Efren just smiles and gets lucky! :-))

John
 
Fart sniffer said:
It's amazing that people are still making excuses for Mike, "if he was in stroke....."
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Unfortunately there are some people around that think Mike is a god:rolleyes: It's as if they actually buy into the bullshit you hear coming from his mouth.
 
terrible play

I was surprised at how bad and uncomfortable Mike looked at the table. He made a couple good shots but that was it. He never looked in control of the table and I don't care how out of stroke you are no champions jump up on every key shot like he did - that was the most surprising aspect of his play IMHO. He made the comment I gonna shotit this way but I'm not sure what will happen. He will get crushed in Vegas if he doens't bring his game up 10x and relearns to keep his head down - he even made that comment how strange for a champion to have issues with keeping his head down????

He has clearly forgotten some of the basics, which really makes no sense at all????
 
I gotta say, I'm pretty impressed with everything. I've never looked forward to watching pool on TV before. Sure, I DVR all the ESPN matches, but it's mostly because I feel like I should. I very rarely get around to watching any of them.

But this IPT thing has me pretty excited. I mean, most of the commentary is atrocious (more on that later), but Sigel's atrociousness is addicting. KT is clueless, but he's got a nice speaking style and I'm sure the beginners watching the telecast actually learn more from him than from the others. For us, the endless rule explanations are tedious, but we are hopefully in the minority for the viewing audience.

The production values are excellent. In my opinion, ESPN's lighting is annoying. It's almost yellow. The darker shades of the IPT broadcasts is refreshing. If only we could get them to film it, rather than videotape it, then we'd really be on to something. Why is coverage of the World Series of Poker (filmed) so easy to watch, and the World Poker Tour (video) so cheesy?

The thing that has struck me so far is the level of play exhibited. Is it just that they show the games with turnovers? I guess that makes sense, but if anyone who was there can let me know how the general level of play was, I'd appreciate it. Was it mostly runouts or were there just a lot of mistakes?

Finally, back to the commentary. If these matches were commentated by Grady, the telecasts would skyrocket in viewability. And, in my opinion, they are already the most watchable pool programs this jaded player has ever seen.

- Steve
 
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