Uncrowned Champion

Jimmy, why don't you tell them about the time you literally bet your life! You're the only guy I ever knew to do that.

Sounds like an episode of the Twilight Zone.

da da da duh da da da duh This is Jimmy Pretty Boy Floyd, a real life pool hustler, walking into a bar to strike up a game. Little does he know he will soon be be playing a game of pool for everything. The stakes? His own life. Here in a smoky dive bar, somewhere just off Main Street, in a tiny corner of ...The Twilight Zone. duh duh duh duh daaaaaa
 
I joined "AzBilliards" in June of 2018. I am usually writing posts on the "onepocket.org" site in reference to multiple issues regarding the pool game of "one pocket." On occasion I will review but never post on issues on "AzBilliards." Tonight, I found that I must post on the particular issue regarding an "Uncrowned Champion."

Is Jimmy Mataya the Pete Rose of Pool? Is Jimmy Mataya being shut out by the BCA Pocket Billiards Hall of Fame because of a conduct issue? A famous 16th Century English poet and scholar once wrote, "In forming a judgment lay your hearts void of foretoken opinions; else, whatsoever is done or said will be measured by a wrong rule." Jimmy Mataya's list of exceptional pocket billiard achievements should be the one and only issue for induction into the Hall of Fame. Let's make it a fair game. Jimmy deserves the recognition and to do otherwise puts him right next to Pete Rose sitting on that proverbial "bench."
 
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I knew I had the whole set, I just needed to look through another drawer. :thumbup:

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I joined "AzBilliards" in June of 2018. I am usually writing posts on the "onepocket.org" site in reference to multiple issues regarding the pool game of "one pocket." On occasion I will review but never post on issues on "AzBilliards." Tonight, I found that I must post on the particular issue regarding an "Uncrowned Champion."

Is Jimmy Mataya the Pete Rose of Pool? Is Jimmy Mataya being shut out by the BCA Pocket Billiards Hall of Fame because of a conduct issue? A famous 16th Century English poet and scholar once wrote, "In forming a judgment lay your hearts void of foretoken opinions; else, whatsoever is done or said will be measured by a wrong rule." Jimmy Mataya's list of exceptional pocket billiard achievements should be the one and only issue for induction into the Hall of Fame. Let's make it a fair game. Jimmy deserves the recognition and to do otherwise puts him right next to Pete Rose sitting on that proverbial "bench."
The answer is no, he is not “shut out...because of a conduct issue.”

Every other year, a 5-person committee gets together to nominate one and only one deserving Veterans Player. There are at any time about ten players that deserve recognition. But only one can get in at a time. Every person that doesn’t get in, there seems to be any number of conspiracy reasons. That’s a bit unfair to the person that got in that year.

I’ll give the same advice as I did with other deserving candidates: campaign. Put the accomplishments out in an easily digestible format. And don’t do it on Wikipedia.

Look at this Veterans Player list:

Wade Crane / Billy Johnson
Larry Lisciotti
Jimmy Reid
Louie Roberts
David Howard
Jimmy Mataya
Grady Matthews
Keith McCready
Mary Kenniston
Bugs Rucker

And so on. All but one will be shut out this year. Some won’t get more than a cursory look. Some won’t get a breath to their name. I’d put them all in if I had a magic wand.

Freddie <~~~ got not wands
 
don't have a game anymore,,quit years ago,,barmaid asked me to play some 20 a game the other night,,had to turn her down ! be safe !

Hello and welcome. I'm curious, do you miss playing pool? Also curious if you traded pool for another second career? I'm always curious about pool champions' other endeavors. Seems like so many great and even legendary players don't get their place in pool history properly documented...sounds like you are one!

Best wishes,

JL
 
Quite frankly I am shocked Jimmy Mataya is not in the Hall of Fame. Hopefully the situation will be rectified in his lifetime. Best of luck and stay safe.
 
The answer is no, he is not “shut out...because of a conduct issue.”

Every other year, a 5-person committee gets together to nominate one and only one deserving Veterans Player. There are at any time about ten players that deserve recognition. But only one can get in at a time. Every person that doesn’t get in, there seems to be any number of conspiracy reasons. That’s a bit unfair to the person that got in that year.

I’ll give the same advice as I did with other deserving candidates: campaign. Put the accomplishments out in an easily digestible format. And don’t do it on Wikipedia.

Look at this Veterans Player list:

Wade Crane / Billy Johnson
Larry Lisciotti
Jimmy Reid
Louie Roberts
David Howard
Jimmy Mataya
Grady Matthews
Keith McCready
Mary Kenniston
Bugs Rucker

And so on. All but one will be shut out this year. Some won’t get more than a cursory look. Some won’t get a breath to their name. I’d put them all in if I had a magic wand.

Freddie <~~~ got not wands
I feel your pain on this one. I get calls about why this person or that person is not in the International Cuemakers Hall of Fame. Our ICA members nominate qualified cuemakers to run against each other and then the membership votes them in. A third time nominee runs unopposed for his category. The rules are pretty simple. The best way to get one on the ballot is to campaign like you said by sharing their qualifications on our members only forum. But I have been told by non members that this one or that one builds a better cue than someone else that is already in. We have even had one cuemaker say he did not want to be in the hall of fame and I have not shared his name with the public, but we get criticized for him not being in yet.
Like you said every year there are always several highly qualified candidates, but only one goes in each time for their category.
As far as the BCA Hall OF Fame I think Jimmy should get in soon, but I also see three or four more on the list that would be a toss up with him. Like I said I feel your pain.
 
having been around all of them to an extent in their primes.

i would rate the two jimmys as about even on their chances

then keith with grady close

then larry and louie.

and mary for sure very close to the top as she belongs and they also should put a woman in very regularly. as most understate their accomplishments just because few played as well as the very top men did.
 
I joined "AzBilliards" in June of 2018. I am usually writing posts on the "onepocket.org" site in reference to multiple issues regarding the pool game of "one pocket." On occasion I will review but never post on issues on "AzBilliards." Tonight, I found that I must post on the particular issue regarding an "Uncrowned Champion."

Is Jimmy Mataya the Pete Rose of Pool? Is Jimmy Mataya being shut out by the BCA Pocket Billiards Hall of Fame because of a conduct issue? A famous 16th Century English poet and scholar once wrote, "In forming a judgment lay your hearts void of foretoken opinions; else, whatsoever is done or said will be measured by a wrong rule." Jimmy Mataya's list of exceptional pocket billiard achievements should be the one and only issue for induction into the Hall of Fame. Let's make it a fair game. Jimmy deserves the recognition and to do otherwise puts him right next to Pete Rose sitting on that proverbial "bench."


I don’t see how Jimmy compares at all to Pete Rose. I haven’t heard anything about Mataya agreeing to a banishment from pool, did I miss it? Pete Rose got exactly what he deserved. He admitted to gambling, right? He agreed to the punishment he received, didn’t he? Why should he ever be allowed back into baseball? Because he’s an old lying degenerate and about to kick the bucket??
 
Hall of Fames are a funny thing depending on who is doing the choosing.

Regarding the Country Music Hall of Fame, here is short list of entertainers NOT in the hall.

Hank Williams Jr.
John Denver
Charlie Rich
Johnny Paycheck
Ronnie Milsap
Kenny Rodgers

Seems strange for a couple of those folks and I believe Country chooses 3 artists per year.

What I want to know from Cornerman or anyone..,.if you know, is do any of the players have anyone present during the selection process that is advocating for them or do you just read a list of accomplishments?

Thanks
 
What I want to know from Cornerman or anyone..,.if you know, is do any of the players have anyone present during the selection process that is advocating for them or do you just read a list of accomplishments?

Thanks
During the selection process? No.

For the regular Greatest Players Category, players that are over 40 are considered eligible. Each player gets a player bio. I would encourage anyone who really wants their player in to get into helping write a clear and concise bio. Each player can get a 'yay' or 'nay' from the voting members. The person with the most 'yays' gets in. Anyone getting over 75% of the votes also gets in. Such was the case when Johnny Archer and Alison Fisher got in the same year. Johnny was named on the highest number of ballots, and Alison was also past the 75% mark.

For Veteran Players (over 60), basically a 5-person committee have a round-table discussion on the nominated Greatest Players who the Committee feel was grossly overlooked during their prime days. Unfortunately, it happens, so this is the vehicle to get those players in. Similarly to the yearly Greatest Player category, each player gets a bio.

None of the players are present during these voting processes. During the Meritorious Service years, a nominated individual has typical abstained from voting if they are a voting member. I don't think that's a bylaw.

Anyway, submit a bio for a player you feel worthy. If not, the bio is left to the committee members to piece together.
 
Hall of Fames are a funny thing depending on who is doing the choosing.



Regarding the Country Music Hall of Fame, here is short list of entertainers NOT in the hall.



Hank Williams Jr.

John Denver

Charlie Rich

Johnny Paycheck

Ronnie Milsap

Kenny Rodgers



Seems strange for a couple of those folks and I believe Country chooses 3 artists per year.



What I want to know from Cornerman or anyone..,.if you know, is do any of the players have anyone present during the selection process that is advocating for them or do you just read a list of accomplishments?



Thanks
They only chose 2 or 3 max and if 3 it's one modern (last 20 years), one veteran (go back 45 years)and a non-performing person like a writer or producer. At that pace there will be a backlog for a very very long time.

Sent from the future.
 
Hello and welcome. I'm curious, do you miss playing pool? Also curious if you traded pool for another second career? I'm always curious about pool champions' other endeavors. Seems like so many great and even legendary players don't get their place in pool history properly documented...sounds like you are one!

Best wishes,

JL

don't miss playing at all ! sometimes wonder why i didn't quit ten years earlier, i'll tell you something about american pool ,, it's a game of ego's and jealousy,,you put 100 hungry lions in a arena with only one piece of meat,,lot of fighting goes on for that meat! the one that comes out with the meat is going to get knocked ! players knock you,,backers who lost there money betting against you will knock you,,pool politicians,,back stabbers,,gossip columnist,,clicks,, and more politics,, it was not the players that took the heart out of me ,,it was these people !!they are the ones that ruined pool,, and the hall of fame ! i enjoy playing the stock market,,or poker on line,,win or lose,,no one there to knock you ~!
 
Hall of Fames are a funny thing depending on who is doing the choosing.

Regarding the Country Music Hall of Fame, here is short list of entertainers NOT in the hall.

Hank Williams Jr.
John Denver
Charlie Rich
Johnny Paycheck
Ronnie Milsap
Kenny Rodgers

Seems strange for a couple of those folks and I believe Country chooses 3 artists per year.

What I want to know from Cornerman or anyone..,.if you know, is do any of the players have anyone present during the selection process that is advocating for them or do you just read a list of accomplishments?

Thanks

Here are some bands/acts not in the Rock & Roll HOF.

Iron Maiden

Pat Benatar

John Coltrane

Tina Turner

Judas Priest

Motorhead

Warren Zevon

Bad Company

Procal Harum
 
Here are some bands/acts not in the Rock & Roll HOF.

Iron Maiden

Pat Benatar

John Coltrane

Tina Turner

Judas Priest

Motorhead

Warren Zevon

Bad Company

Procal Harum

Some of those names up there...Crazy!!

They should have started a one hit wonder hall of fame years ago and it would have eliminated some bands that have gotten it.
 
Some of those names up there...Crazy!!

They should have started a one hit wonder hall of fame years ago and it would have eliminated some bands that have gotten it.

I would agree. Many seem to deserve it on this list, I'm a little shocked that Warren Zevon has not made it. Warren was respected by many of his peers.
 
Procol Harum has been performing since 1967. Still going, still sound good.

Here are some bands IN the R&R HOF that should NOT be.

The Paul Butterfield Blues Band - Ever hear of them? I havent.

Laura Nyro - Same thing

N.W.A - Music could never be called rock and roll, but theyre in there

Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five

The list can go on an on.

The point is that HOFs are worthless IMO because they do not represent worthiness, they are a popularity contest by people who are chosen to choose. Be it voted in by the public or a closed group. Sometimes there are extenuating circumstances and backstage bullshit etc that can influence entries as well.

People who are greats in whatever they do are remembered and talked about. Their legend wont die. Hell most of the time, the legend grows. :grin:
 
Jim I just the match again between you and Johnny Archer, Man you shoot a smooth stick ! You belong in the HOF . I can list 15 of the greatest pool players of all time and you would be in that list.
 
don't miss playing at all ! sometimes wonder why i didn't quit ten years earlier, i'll tell you something about american pool ,, it's a game of ego's and jealousy,,you put 100 hungry lions in a arena with only one piece of meat,,lot of fighting goes on for that meat! the one that comes out with the meat is going to get knocked ! players knock you,,backers who lost there money betting against you will knock you,,pool politicians,,back stabbers,,gossip columnist,,clicks,, and more politics,, it was not the players that took the heart out of me ,,it was these people !!they are the ones that ruined pool,, and the hall of fame ! i enjoy playing the stock market,,or poker on line,,win or lose,,no one there to knock you ~!

Keep it in perspective, Jimmy.....all fields of endeavor are like that...scholars,scientists.
writers, inventors...etc
You’re in the right place to get something done about...we had a big drive for Danny
Diliberto and Jose Parica...and they made it....keep visiting.

In this new world of social media, there’s a lot of crap...but voices can be heard to get
things done also.
 
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