You are a pretty smart fellow Chris but you don't know everything yet. This game is all about human beings and what they are capable of. It is true that I would bet the top filipinos over the top Americans TODAY! But I'm not so sure I would have bet anybody over Earl in a tournament match in the 80's and 90's. He had a higher speed than anyone else. There is no tournament player today (not Wu, not Dennis, not Ralf, not Mika) that has reached the level Earl was at in his prime. Once again I am only talking tournament pool here.
For money Buddy is one of the two or three best I ever saw. Talk about a grinder, he could wear out a whole poolroom if they lined them up for ten days. You haven't seen 'grind' until you saw Buddy at his best. He would amble around that table all day, playing perfect position and never missing a ball. The only filipino I ever saw who could stand up to that is probably Parica, who I rate above Alex, Dennis or Lee Van. Once again these are humans Chris, and one of the players will eventually wilt. Parica would not wilt if you played for days, weeks, months or years. I've seen all the other filipinos get weak at times and miss balls and position. Jose had a higher gear gambling. You just didn't get to see it.
Alex at his best would not be a favorite over Parica at his best. If you don't believe me (and obviously you don't) ask the older filipinos. See what they tell you about little Jose. Now back to Mr. Worst. He was a very unusual human being, not like most mortal men. He was capable of raising his game to whatever level it took to win the money. If he was playing someone with Alex's capabilities he would just play a little better. I have no doubt in my mind he was fully capable of playing "no miss" pool all day if that's what it took to win. And if that wasn't good enough, he would figure out a way to run more racks. Yes, he was that good.
Did you know that he went to South America and took on the best Three Cushion players in the world in a very unfriendly environment AND WON! He had never played in this level of competition before, winning the American championship over a much softer field. Now he had to play all the legends of Three Cushions, men who had played all their lives. Worst found a way to raise his game maybe two full speeds. And he did it almost overnight! That's like Alex going to Europe and winning a snooker tournament. I know he plays good snooker, but what chance would he have with those guys over there? If you said zero you're right. By the way Worst was all of 24 when he did this.
He came back home, and at age 30 with Three Cushion on the wane, he decided to enter a few pool tournaments. He didn't win the first year, but after that it was all over. He came back the second year and started beating all the guys who beat him. I saw him beat Cornbread in Detroit playing One Pocket and 9-Ball. That's when Cornbread was one of the best. Within two years, Harold Worst was considered one of the top pool players in the world, at all games! He beat a gaff game in Johnston City where 21 balls are racked in six rows. To win he had to run 18 to 20 balls in one pocket! Without missing and without BIH after the break. HELLO! That's a lot of traffic to maneuver around. I saw this Chris with my own eyes. I wouldn't bet on anyone today to do this. NOT ALEX! NOT EFREN! NOT GOD!
Please don't make the mistake of judging someone you didn't know. If you had seen Worst play, you would still be talking about it for the rest of your life. If for some reason you still don't believe me, I would be more than happy to offer the same game to Alex and you guys can empty out betting with me. I mean it - pick a number! You want to win 100 grand, all Alex has to do is beat the same game that Worst did 40 odd years ago. And I didn't stutter Chris.
