I would have loved to see these local guys in their prime...
Dallas West
Wendell Weir
Sailor (Frank Stellman)
Dallas West
Wendell Weir
Sailor (Frank Stellman)
Who is the greatest straight pool player alive?
- Thread starter Earl Strickland
- Start date
What about Niels Feijen who was European straightpool champion in 2002, 2003 and 2004, this year Thorsten Hohmann won.
But winning 3 times in a row with this very strong field is SUPER!!!
And I would like to point out that high breaks are getting borring for pro's, Why would you run 500 balls in 6 hours?? Just stop at 125 and order a beer
But winning 3 times in a row with this very strong field is SUPER!!!
And I would like to point out that high breaks are getting borring for pro's, Why would you run 500 balls in 6 hours?? Just stop at 125 and order a beer
Ball in Hand on a miss
Imagine getting ball in hand on a miss in straight pool. ala 7 ball. With 1 "safety" for every 25 balls ran. (or 50 balls, 100balls, whatever) But the higher your run, the more safeties you get.
Off topic but imagine breaking a rack of 8ball, and getting a certain amount of points for each type of shot. (comb, carom, bank, bank carom, combo bank, two rail bakns, etc... ) shooting a ball straight in does nothing, just lets you have the next shot.... that would draw a crowd. kinda like an artistic-skill hybrid game.
Yeah I know, its off the wall, and I'll probably get flamed. Oh well.
Imagine getting ball in hand on a miss in straight pool. ala 7 ball. With 1 "safety" for every 25 balls ran. (or 50 balls, 100balls, whatever) But the higher your run, the more safeties you get.
Off topic but imagine breaking a rack of 8ball, and getting a certain amount of points for each type of shot. (comb, carom, bank, bank carom, combo bank, two rail bakns, etc... ) shooting a ball straight in does nothing, just lets you have the next shot.... that would draw a crowd. kinda like an artistic-skill hybrid game.
Yeah I know, its off the wall, and I'll probably get flamed. Oh well.
i think it would be fun to watch players who dont cuss or throw temper tantrums. i think it would be fun to watch players who dont think the world owes em somethin. i think it would be fun watch players who dont berate foreign players cause they cant speak english.Earl Strickland said:
matthew staton
Banned
Earl Strickland said:
Are you guys sure i am not the greatest pool player of all time lol i keep telling myself that..
Thanks for resurrecting this thread, I totally missed it when it was started.
I think the best player living would have to be Steve Mizerak (though obviously after his stroke he is not still at that level). For several years in the 70's he totally dominated straight pool, in an era when the best players still played (and had been raised on) straight pool.
I was fortunate to see him play in an exhibition tournament (round robin) held in Pittsburgh in the mid-70's. His domination of Hopkins/Rempe/Marino/Butera/etc. was TOTAL. I believe he also has the highest inning average in championship play.
Mike Sigel would probably warrant an argument in comparison to Mizerak in his prime. In an interview on Accu-Stats, Mike Sigel modestly asserts that he is the best straight pool player ever. Since he learned at the feet of Irving Crane, he does have some basis of comparison in formulating this opinion.
Thankfully, we don't have to consider the deceased players (Greenleaf, Crane, Mosconi, and perhaps Worst or Lassiter).
I would agree with the posters who mention that high run is NOT necessarily the best indicator, since type of equipment is so important. John Schmidt mentioned to me at DCC that if he's playing on loose equipment he feels that he is a threat to run 400 any time he's at the table. He felt that his 112 ball run against Pagulayan (decent equipment, up for 24 hours, long and close match, lots of dollars at stake) was a more significant accomplishment than running a lot of balls in practice. I agree.
In conclusion, while I would like to see the pro's play the offensive brand of straight pool, I would MUCH prefer the regular game. It is the opponent and the competition that really puts the pressure on the shooter; making the high runs more stressful (and of course, less likely).
I think the best player living would have to be Steve Mizerak (though obviously after his stroke he is not still at that level). For several years in the 70's he totally dominated straight pool, in an era when the best players still played (and had been raised on) straight pool.
I was fortunate to see him play in an exhibition tournament (round robin) held in Pittsburgh in the mid-70's. His domination of Hopkins/Rempe/Marino/Butera/etc. was TOTAL. I believe he also has the highest inning average in championship play.
Mike Sigel would probably warrant an argument in comparison to Mizerak in his prime. In an interview on Accu-Stats, Mike Sigel modestly asserts that he is the best straight pool player ever. Since he learned at the feet of Irving Crane, he does have some basis of comparison in formulating this opinion.
Thankfully, we don't have to consider the deceased players (Greenleaf, Crane, Mosconi, and perhaps Worst or Lassiter).
I would agree with the posters who mention that high run is NOT necessarily the best indicator, since type of equipment is so important. John Schmidt mentioned to me at DCC that if he's playing on loose equipment he feels that he is a threat to run 400 any time he's at the table. He felt that his 112 ball run against Pagulayan (decent equipment, up for 24 hours, long and close match, lots of dollars at stake) was a more significant accomplishment than running a lot of balls in practice. I agree.
In conclusion, while I would like to see the pro's play the offensive brand of straight pool, I would MUCH prefer the regular game. It is the opponent and the competition that really puts the pressure on the shooter; making the high runs more stressful (and of course, less likely).
Williebetmore said:
I believe Thorsten Hohmann has nowadays the highest tournament average record. In the European Championships, he played 8 matches, races-to-125 and won the title in 20 innings. That's 1000 points in 20 innings, which makes a total tournament average of 50 points !
S
spartan
Guest
oliver ortmann is a great straight pool player also. seems the europeans in general are better at straight pool than americans.
spartan said:
its played more there........they still have 14:1 tournaments..........you're lucky to see anyone playing a friendly game of straight pool in america nowadays.
VAP
S
spartan
Guest
up here (NJ) there is some straight pool. not much though. its a shame because its a good game. i saw hohmann at the NJ straight pool championships september 03 and he is a fine straight pool player.
mjantti said:
MJ,
Actually I was referring to lifetime average in championship tournaments. I just remember some Accu-Stats commentator referring to this fact on one of my tapes, the average was somewhere around 15/inning; higher even than Mosconi according to the commentator. Since there really aren't any more U.S. or World Championships in straight pool, and since the best players are not concentrating on straight pool any more (except for you, me, and SJM), and since there is no one centralized organization keeping records; I think this particular statistic is a thing of the past. The per inning average has a great deal to do with strength of competition. Not to take anything away from Hohmann, I hope I will eventually see him play some 14.1. I was very impressed with his 9-ball game at DCC.
drivermaker
Banned
Has anyone had more 150 and out's than Mike Sigel in tournament play?