Reyes vs Strickland "The Final Showdown", Demonstrates the Lack of "Hype" in Pool.

As mentioned in the introduction of this blog, I will be sometimes discussing the current state of pocket billiards. Unfortunately for our great sport, it has been on the decline in popularity for decades now and after last weeks results from the Reyes/Strickland challenge match the future does not look any brighter.

Every pool player that has held a cue long enough to learn the game has heard of Efren Reyes and Earl Strickland, two of the best of all time. In 1997 still riding the success of the 1986 film "Colour of Money" a challenge match was issued between these two greats. The game was 9 ball race to 120 games winner takes all for 100,000 and this match was dubbed "Colour of Money." The match was truly epic and can be seen on youtube in its entirety for free, mind you, one needs to clear a weekend in order to watch it all as this match took 3 days to play.

The hype this match received was uncanny; it actually shook the world it was so entertaining. I find myself watching it a few times a year nearly a decade after I was introduced to it. Now the match that took place last week was once again over three days and was hyped in the same manner. Being that these are two legends with a storied history and here is one more event to ad to their legacy. However the excitement was just not there. I have not seen any numbers regarding the PPV audience, furthermore I have not seen an article or a blog anywhere boasting its success.

My quick assessment would be the lack of money that the players were competing for is what hurt the hype for this match. Because when these two names face off in a tournament bracket people take notice - even today 30 plus years into their rivalry. So logic would dictate that a challenge match between these two would garnish a lot of attention and a lot of PPV money. But I think a lot of people took my approach to this match, which was "I already saw them play for $100,000. Is it really a rematch if the winner of all three sessions receives less than $10,000?"

All credit to Allision Fisher (www.nycgrind.com) and Inside Pool Magazine for even having an event like this. However this matchup, if billed properly, could have provided some much needed hype. There was not enough build up to this match, there was no significant sponsorship and the prize fund was not enough to gather the attention these two deserved.

The promoters of our great sport need to stop doing "rush jobs" in these challenge matches. I know money is tight and bills need to get paid but these productions need the proper time and billing to receive the hype required to bring pool back to the forefront of popular culture.

Happy New Year Pool Junkies

First off I would like to wish everyone a Happy New year and may your 9 balls not rattle all year.These past two weeks have been busy for me with work and family as the holidays always are however I did find some time to attend a few tournaments.

On the 27-28 of December I hit the road to Saint-Hyacinthe to play in a 1000 dollar added handicap tournament. 63 ppl showed up and the Calcutta was 4600 so their was some money to be won. In my first match I played an A player who recently beat Quebec legend Alain Martel in a Pro tournament. He was spotting me 2-9 and unfortunately lost on the hill. But not without controversy as in my opinion my opponent attempted to shark me and did so successfully. Once I was shooting a 9 somehow all his equipment found its way to the floor in a loud crash. Then I played a very difficult full table combination on the 9 to bring myself to the hill first then he screams foul. Accused me of hitting another ball during my follow through however my Girlfriend who was watching never saw it, neither did a few others and I did not feel it. But he made such a dog an pony show out it I was forced to re-rack. After these incidents there was a noticeable drop in my performance and it cost me the match. So of course one of my new years resolution is to acquire a better mental game that handle these type of players.

I was able to get a handle on my game after that match as I grinded out the B side afterwards for 5 matches and finished tied for 13 and just in the money. My good friend Justin Miller who 2013 was a real coming out party for, continued to impress as he finished 4th and lost to the guy who eventually won the tournament. Miller played a solid game as he is AA and spotted over 50% of the field.

Little did I know just a few days after I made my New Years Resolution I would get a chance to put it to practice. My first match this past Saturday in AA tournament in Pierrefonds Quebec did not start out well for me as I was down 2-6 when my opponent decided to take a break. I took this moment to wash my face relax and refocus and it payed off. As I quickly found my game and began my comeback. However once I got to 6-7 he accused me of cheating by marking two games at a time, which is impossible as I did not even get to the paper to mark the game I just won. Then after that, twice I had him on 2 fouls but he would not let me call him on it, said it did not happen and tried to take advantage of my poor french by making me explain each time exactly how he got to two fouls. Needless  to say once again I was rattled and my preformance once again suffered long enough to lose 7-9. I bounced back next set 7-4 then lost a hill match to a strong player. I left this tournament disappointed as I knew I let a guy who I should of, could of, and would of have beat, get the best of me with cheap tactics. I could lay the blame on him but there are many more like him out there and if I am going to reach my goal and get to the next level I will have to learn to block this stuff out. But man is it frustrating sometimes. Till next time.

Payouts can be found at www.webillard.com

Europe Continues to Dominate On Day 2

After an historically bad day for the U.S side, they needed to come out of the gate strong today. However the tone for this session was set right from the start as the European side of Neils Feijen and Karl Boyes won the lag then broke in a nine immediately, 1-0. Before Rodney Morris and Johnny Archer could blink its 3-0. Unlike yesterday the Americans were able to stop the bleeding and fought back to 3-3. Shortly there after some solid play insued and a few good rolls and it was over 4-6 for Europe and up 0-6.

To the Americans credit they took it in stride and looked to take the next match. It looked good for the U.S as Denis Hatch came out strong and established a 4-1 lead against Ralf Souquet, then the stoic veteran began to show his class and play some exceptional safeties and took control of the match with a 4-5 lead. After Hatch broke in a 9 to get to 5-5, Souquet broke then with a difficult rack began a kick safety clinic until he had a chance to run out for the win.

Finally it was SVB and Strickland time to pair up and try and get a point for the U.S. The Americans seemed to have the edge in skill however the rolls kept this match close as Mika Immonen and Darren Appleton could do no wrong. Earl missed a 1 ball at 5-3 up and the whole mood of the arena changed as if they sensed doom. However at 5-5 Immonen planted on the side rail tried to cheat the pocket a bit and rattle the 7, giving SVB a bank and perfect shape on the 9. Finally the U.S get one.

Their hopes were quickly dashed however as Feijen blanked team captain Johnny Archer 0-6. Then the Americans edged out a 6-5 win in the final match of the day between SVB/Morris and Immonen/Boyes.
It was evident again today that the Americans are outclassed in this team event. The Europeans seem too play flawless as one continual threat, while the Americans do not seem to be gelling as a team at all. Down 2-8 lets see if the Americans can win a session tomorrow and bring this to day 4.

Mosconi Cup Day 1: Disaster For Team USA

Team USA pulled out all the stops and brought on paper what was supposed to be the strongest U.S. side in years and they fail to register 1 point on day one. The Mosconi Cup is scheduled to be a 4 day event but that looks unlikely after today.

The biggest surprise to me was how average Shane Van Boening looked. As pool fans, we are used to seeing SVB almost robot like in how he breaks and runs rack after rack. However with the no 'breaking from the side rail' rule in place Shane looked lost trying to figure out the break. Each break I witnessed on Sky Sports 2 seemed to be either a scratch or a dry break - very unlike Shane, who under normal rules, is one of  the best breakers in the game.

It might be a bit unfair to put so much responsibility on SVB but he is the 3 time U.S Champ from this era. He might be the least experienced team member but he is the best player on paper America has and is the only one who is currently winning major tournaments. With his shaky start it seemed to throw the whole team for a loop. Another surprise would be that most people would think Earl would be the reason for most of their troubles. However he has been the strongest player on the team up to date and he and Rodney Morris were a victim of some bad rolls in their match against Darren Appleton and Karl Boyes. I believe Appleton even pocketed a 9 off the snap; on a race to 6 that can be devastating.

Perhaps it is now a foregone conclusion that Europe will once again be the Champs. But what is unclear is whether or not the U.S. will be able to make a showing of this. There was a time when people feared the end of the Mosconi Cup because the lack of competitiveness from team Europe.The 20 year Anniversary of the Mosconi Cup could reignite this argument except now Team USA has been the team unable to compete for several years in a row. Hopefully the U.S. will get their act together and make a go of this, because an 11-5 blow-out does nothing for pool at this time especially on American home soil where the game has been waning as of late.

Maurice Herne SGA 55+ District Champ

This past Friday Rack-M-Up Billiards played host to the inaugural SGA 55+ Disctrict 8, 8ball Championships. It was clear that that Herne was coming into this tournament an early favourite. He seemed to thrive under the pressure as he did not drop one set during the day. Another Local Player Mike Bergeron took second place.

The SGA was founded in 1982 and is dedicated to helping keep seniors active. They have games at the regional, provincial and national level. This was the first year for pool to be introduced in this region and will hopeful catch on and continue to grow in the future. More information on the SGA can be found at their website http://www.ontarioseniorgames.ca/page.asp?id=9