Why Cant Jimmy Wych

[Shawn Armstrong]

Favourite Commentators

Jay,

You're one of the more pleasant ones to hear on TV during a game. I have watched countless videos and TV matches. Here are my favs and why, and my least favs and why:

1) Jerry Forsyth - great voice for TV, understands the game, and adds little things to the commentary that you are usually interested in.
2) Jim Rempe - only heard him do two matches, but his play by play during the famous Strickland/Reyes game at the Sands was classic. Great voice, and some subtle game tips during the match.
3) Jay Helfert - not sucking up. Always pays attention to the table instead of going off on some tangent about a gambling session or a great shot he made 50 years ago. Always keeps it between the 4 rails.

Least favourite:

1) GRADY MATTHEWS - like listening to paint dry. If I hear another stupid story about a gambling session, or why Mike Sigel and all the other straight pool players are the best players to ever play the game, I'll puke. He is drier than a rice cake, and the sport doesn't need him.
2) SID WADDELL - I have no clue how many times I've had to rewind a game to figure out what the hell he's talking about. His comment about Deuel "weilding a rapier, and the claymore, not the little one" to me is an absolute classic - I had to actually look it up that a claymore is a broadsword. Educational, but annoying.
3) BILL INCARDONA - boring, boring, boring. 'Nuf said.

Just my rant.

I'm actually friends with Jim Wych. You would not meet a nicer guy. He'd give you the shirt off his back, and even have it altered to fit you. I like his commentary. I could see why the American players may not like him. You have to realize that Jim was one of the top 3 snooker players in the world back in the early 80s, so the Canadians and the Euros really respect him. Played him a set of 9-ball at his house a few years back. I saw the table when the score was 5-0. Picks up a cue less than 12 times a year, and still runs racks in his sleep. He went to university in the US on a golf scholarship. The guy is a natural athlete. I have mucho respect for Jim.

 

[jay helfert]

Absolutely. Count my vote for Jim, I find his commentary informative and interesting without being condescending.



The one time I heard your commentary, Jay, I thought it was just fine. Matter of fact, maybe we should throw you and Jim together. A perfect team in my opinion.

We actually did team up on a few shows during the 1999 and 2000 WPC in Cardiff. He was a pleasure to work with and a real pro. We had fun working together, and hung out afterward. It was a little hard for me to get used to his use of Snooker terminology during a pool match, but I didn't see it as a big problem. He had a lot of enthusiasm in the booth, to make up for my "calm" approach.

 

[JCIN]

At least he doesn't call him Efrem.

You better get used to it though...there'll be years of hearing Orcullo as "Or-cawl-o" or "Or-cola" as I heard this past weekend. It should be pronounced "Or-cool-yo" per those that know him. Worse yet, there is confusion as to how to even SPELL his name...is it Orcullo or Orcollo?

It is spelled O-R-C-O-L-L-O.

How do I know? Because last Friday I said "Hey Dennis. How do you spell your last name?" and he said "O-R-C-O-L-L-O."

We never got into the whole "Yeah, but how do you say it?" thing.

I pronounce it OR-COAL-OH. Not because it is necessarily the proper way but because that is how most people I know pronounce it and I am an American and too damn lazy to find out if it is right or not.

 

[JCIN]

Jay,

You're one of the more pleasant ones to hear on TV during a game. I have watched countless videos and TV matches. Here are my favs and why, and my least favs and why:

1) Jerry Forsyth - great voice for TV, understands the game, and adds little things to the commentary that you are usually interested in.
2) Jim Rempe - only heard him do two matches, but his play by play during the famous Strickland/Reyes game at the Sands was classic. Great voice, and some subtle game tips during the match.
3) Jay Helfert - not sucking up. Always pays attention to the table instead of going off on some tangent about a gambling session or a great shot he made 50 years ago. Always keeps it between the 4 rails.

Least favourite:

1) GRADY MATTHEWS - like listening to paint dry. If I hear another stupid story about a gambling session, or why Mike Sigel and all the other straight pool players are the best players to ever play the game, I'll puke. He is drier than a rice cake, and the sport doesn't need him.
2) SID WADDELL - I have no clue how many times I've had to rewind a game to figure out what the hell he's talking about. His comment about Deuel "weilding a rapier, and the claymore, not the little one" to me is an absolute classic - I had to actually look it up that a claymore is a broadsword. Educational, but annoying.
3) BILL INCARDONA - boring, boring, boring. 'Nuf said.

Just my rant.

I'm actually friends with Jim Wych. You would not meet a nicer guy. He'd give you the shirt off his back, and even have it altered to fit you. I like his commentary. I could see why the American players may not like him. You have to realize that Jim was one of the top 3 snooker players in the world back in the early 80s, so the Canadians and the Euros really respect him. Played him a set of 9-ball at his house a few years back. I saw the table when the score was 5-0. Picks up a cue less than 12 times a year, and still runs racks in his sleep. He went to university in the US on a golf scholarship. The guy is a natural athlete. I have mucho respect for Jim.

So.....

Grady and Billy = Bad

Jim "I call them colors not balls" Wyche= Good.



It actually makes me mad when I here Wyche on a match, because I know that now I have to watch it without any commentary. The guy is horrible. He might be the best dude to ever walk the earth but I would rather listen to a soundtrack of screaching cats than listen to him butcher a match.

What the hell is Pat Fleming thinking?

 

[jay helfert]

It is spelled O-R-C-O-L-L-O.

How do I know? Because last Friday I said "Hey Dennis. How do you spell your last name?" and he said "O-R-C-O-L-L-O."

We never got into the whole "Yeah, but how do you say it?" thing.

I pronounce it OR-COAL-OH. Not because it is necessarily the proper way but because that is how most people I know pronounce it and I am an American and too damn lazy to find out if it is right or not.

I will guarantee you it's ORCULLO on his birth certificate. It was misspelled by immigration, so he left it that way. He told me this himself.

 

[Terry Ardeno]

Jay,

You're one of the more pleasant ones to hear on TV during a game. I have watched countless videos and TV matches. Here are my favs and why, and my least favs and why:

1) Jerry Forsyth - great voice for TV, understands the game, and adds little things to the commentary that you are usually interested in.
2) Jim Rempe - only heard him do two matches, but his play by play during the famous Strickland/Reyes game at the Sands was classic. Great voice, and some subtle game tips during the match.
3) Jay Helfert - not sucking up. Always pays attention to the table instead of going off on some tangent about a gambling session or a great shot he made 50 years ago. Always keeps it between the 4 rails.

Least favourite:

1) GRADY MATTHEWS - like listening to paint dry. If I hear another stupid story about a gambling session, or why Mike Sigel and all the other straight pool players are the best players to ever play the game, I'll puke. He is drier than a rice cake, and the sport doesn't need him.
2) SID WADDELL - I have no clue how many times I've had to rewind a game to figure out what the hell he's talking about. His comment about Deuel "weilding a rapier, and the claymore, not the little one" to me is an absolute classic - I had to actually look it up that a claymore is a broadsword. Educational, but annoying.
3) BILL INCARDONA - boring, boring, boring. 'Nuf said.

Just my rant.

I'm actually friends with Jim Wych. You would not meet a nicer guy. He'd give you the shirt off his back, and even have it altered to fit you. I like his commentary. I could see why the American players may not like him. You have to realize that Jim was one of the top 3 snooker players in the world back in the early 80s, so the Canadians and the Euros really respect him. Played him a set of 9-ball at his house a few years back. I saw the table when the score was 5-0. Picks up a cue less than 12 times a year, and still runs racks in his sleep. He went to university in the US on a golf scholarship. The guy is a natural athlete. I have mucho respect for Jim.

Nice, intelligent 1st post. We are opposites, however, on who we feel is "least favorite"...

My least favorite are Mitch Laurence and Tony Annigoni.

My all time #1 favorite is Grady Mathews. He has knowledge, wit, humor, insight, polish and great stories. Nobody says funnier stuff than he does...

* "He scrutinized the multi colored spheres longer than the time I took to select my 2nd wife."

* "I want to know if you use hair color. I suspect you do."

* "I'de like to avail myself to that veteran mind of yours."

* "I'll give him a 1 way ticket to anywhere in the world, provided he stay a year."

*"What a splendid speciman of womankind."

*"That cue looks like an 8th grade woodshop project, with a D grade to boot."

*"That's his power break, which won't hurt our ears."

Grady Mathews is, in my opinion, the very best of a great bunch of wonderful commentators. My other favorites are Billy Incardona (knows as many nuances of the game as anyone), DiLiberto, Freddy Bentivegna (his voice alone plus the great stories and bowery-boy way with words), Jerry Forsyth, Nick Varner, Howard Vickery and Buddy Hall for their knowledge and easy listening "folksy" tone.

 

[Terry Ardeno]

So.....

Grady and Billy = Bad

Jim "I call them colors not balls" Wyche= Good.



It actually makes me mad when I here Wyche on a match, because I know that now I have to watch it without any commentary. The guy is horrible. He might be the best dude to ever walk the earth but I would rather listen to a soundtrack of screaching cats than listen to him butcher a match.

What the hell is Pat Fleming thinking?

When Accu-Stats was affiliated with the Billiard Club Network, by contract they HAD to use Wyche as one of the broadcasters. He was on board, according to BCN, for the polish he brought to the booth.
Wyche was not the worst ever, but he was so predictable and bland. If he knew more than he let on, then he must have defered to whoever was in the booth with him.

 

[suckershot]

So.....

Grady and Billy = Bad

Jim "I call them colors not balls" Wyche= Good.



It actually makes me mad when I here Wyche on a match, because I know that now I have to watch it without any commentary. The guy is horrible. He might be the best dude to ever walk the earth but I would rather listen to a soundtrack of screaching cats than listen to him butcher a match.

What the hell is Pat Fleming thinking?

I'll bet Pat Fleming is thinking that Jim knows how to do his job and that's why he's kept him around on the tapes doing commentary. Yes, as Jay said, Jim uses some snooker terminology, and yes, as you say, he sometimes says "colors" instead of balls. So he varies his vocabulary...how dare he? God forbid he should change it up a little as he's calling the matches in some effort to keep from being repetitive.

I have no problem with Billy. I always thought he and Jim made a pretty good team.

As far as Grady goes...I wouldn't go quite as far as the other poster, but I do not care for Grady's commentary either. It can sometimes be condescending, and I likewise do not care much for the gambling stories and the self-promotion. I do not particularly care to hear that Grady would've shot a safety right away that Efren took a couple minutes contemplating because, as Grady put it, "it was a hanger" (old US Open video). Again...condescending. I don't need someone telling me about all the things they know.

I will say one thing in Grady's defense however...the other poster had stated something about Grady claiming that the straight pool era players being the best to play the game. When asked about this, in a clip on propoolvideo.com, he said that he thought today's players were stronger.

Back to Jim Wych though...I think that it's clear that Jim knows what he's doing. I think that the kind of people who like Jim and what he does prefer to hear an unbiased account of what's happening on the table.

 

[Shawn Armstrong]

I'll bet Pat Fleming is thinking that Jim knows how to do his job and that's why he's kept him around on the tapes doing commentary. Yes, as Jay said, Jim uses some snooker terminology, and yes, as you say, he sometimes says "colors" instead of balls. So he varies his vocabulary...how dare he? God forbid he should change it up a little as he's calling the matches in some effort to keep from being repetitive.

I have no problem with Billy. I always thought he and Jim made a pretty good team.

As far as Grady goes...I wouldn't go quite as far as the other poster, but I do not care for Grady's commentary either. It can sometimes be condescending, and I likewise do not care much for the gambling stories and the self-promotion. I do not particularly care to hear that Grady would've shot a safety right away that Efren took a couple minutes contemplating because, as Grady put it, "it was a hanger" (old US Open video). Again...condescending. I don't need someone telling me about all the things they know.

I will say one thing in Grady's defense however...the other poster had stated something about Grady claiming that the straight pool era players being the best to play the game. When asked about this, in a clip on propoolvideo.com, he said that he thought today's players were stronger.

Back to Jim Wych though...I think that it's clear that Jim knows what he's doing. I think that the kind of people who like Jim and what he does prefer to hear an unbiased account of what's happening on the table.

He did say today's players were better - he was talking about Mosconi and Greenleaf versus guys like Hopkins, Sigel, Mizerak, etc. They were all straight pool players. It was at the end of his instructional video called "Pool".

FYI, I love Grady's instructional tapes. I think he is a great coach and an awesome player. I just really do not care to hear him provide commentary on matches. Too monotone, too predictable. If you've heard him once, you're good for the next 8 matches.