<tagging Lou as I hop into the ring>
Without a doubt - IMHO - those who have only seen Willie on TV or videos, and not
in person, have no idea how smooth his stroke was. And not just his stroke, it
was like he was floating around the table. He made running balls look like a stroll
in the park.
I used to say "Fred Astaire just WISHED he was as smooth as Mosconi".
And while I'm up on this soapbox - can we give the 'big pocket' myth a rest.
5 1/2 inches is a mis-statement<lie> based on misunderstanding. I have talked
to a very respectable 'shortstop' who played on the very table... many times. It
was exactly typical of pool hall tables of that era.
And besides, anyone who saw him, like Lou has, knows that 90% + of his shots,
he could have pocketed in 3 inch pockets - 12 inches from the OB, 10 degrees off
dead straight in, pocket speed perfect...
followed by 12 inches from the OB, 10 degrees off dead straight...
You get the idea.
Dale(who only wishes his vocabulary was good enough to think of words like 'fluid')