wincardona
Verified Member
Yes John, I was the person that was responsible in arranging the financial end of the match for The Ghost..
There has been a lot of criticism in regard to ..shot selection...speed of play....and decision making...however, what we are failing to realize is that this was a very unique match that carried a lot of pressure..on many fronts. Types of pressure that both players were not familiar with, and there is no greater pressure than dealing with the unknown, simply because we really don't know how to prepare for something that we're not familiar with, do we?
Both players know the game of one pocket well, imo The Ghost has a little better understanding of the game than John, however, John is a seasoned gambler who understands how to deal with "big game pressures" better than The Ghost. I'm really not trying to 'sugar coat" any of this, just like I don't "sugar coat" any thing I talk about in the WWYD threads. I played both John and The Ghost several times and my feel is that The Ghost moves better than John but John plays more solidly in terms of playing to his speed. I also believe that if they play again I would give the nod to the Ghost because I believe that the weakness in the Ghost's game will be lessened the next time they play because of the experience Bruce has picked up in the match. I also believe that the pressures that were present through the match affected The Ghost more and was reflected in the tempo that he played with. It's very common (in all sports) when playing "meaningful matches or games" to play more cautiously, sometimes to the point of being overly cautious, which I feel happened with The Ghost. Do I feel that it hurt the Ghost? Yes I do because I believe it took him away from his natural rhythm that we/he feels most comfortable playing with. Imo playing cautiously puts more pressure into the situation, and when we are overly cautious it puts even more pressure into the situation. Playing one pocket well is a learning process, which both John and The Ghost have learned and play well, however, winning/playing in big money matches is also a learning process which John is better prepared to deal with than Bruce but it could be a very different story if they play again.
I believe that both players will play better the next time they play (if they ever do) And I also suspect that the interest for their next match will be even greater than it was for this one because the rematch with all rivals is always very intriguing.
Don't forget Ghost...You're on make up.
Dr. Bill
There has been a lot of criticism in regard to ..shot selection...speed of play....and decision making...however, what we are failing to realize is that this was a very unique match that carried a lot of pressure..on many fronts. Types of pressure that both players were not familiar with, and there is no greater pressure than dealing with the unknown, simply because we really don't know how to prepare for something that we're not familiar with, do we?
Both players know the game of one pocket well, imo The Ghost has a little better understanding of the game than John, however, John is a seasoned gambler who understands how to deal with "big game pressures" better than The Ghost. I'm really not trying to 'sugar coat" any of this, just like I don't "sugar coat" any thing I talk about in the WWYD threads. I played both John and The Ghost several times and my feel is that The Ghost moves better than John but John plays more solidly in terms of playing to his speed. I also believe that if they play again I would give the nod to the Ghost because I believe that the weakness in the Ghost's game will be lessened the next time they play because of the experience Bruce has picked up in the match. I also believe that the pressures that were present through the match affected The Ghost more and was reflected in the tempo that he played with. It's very common (in all sports) when playing "meaningful matches or games" to play more cautiously, sometimes to the point of being overly cautious, which I feel happened with The Ghost. Do I feel that it hurt the Ghost? Yes I do because I believe it took him away from his natural rhythm that we/he feels most comfortable playing with. Imo playing cautiously puts more pressure into the situation, and when we are overly cautious it puts even more pressure into the situation. Playing one pocket well is a learning process, which both John and The Ghost have learned and play well, however, winning/playing in big money matches is also a learning process which John is better prepared to deal with than Bruce but it could be a very different story if they play again.
I believe that both players will play better the next time they play (if they ever do) And I also suspect that the interest for their next match will be even greater than it was for this one because the rematch with all rivals is always very intriguing.
Don't forget Ghost...You're on make up.
Dr. Bill
Last edited:
