Ronnie O'Sullivan & Steve Davis vs Jim Rempe & Earl Strickland | 1997 Mosconi Cup

the Americans hold the moscone cup the competition they call the ryder cup pool fielded their strongest lineup but got off to a slow start against inspired European opposition their highest class group at york hall bethnal green in the east end of london has We have been packed to the rafters for this fourth annual event with the United States leading 2-1 overall. We are on the second day and the score is 3-1 for the Europeans. 25 matches scheduled over four days as we join Alan Hughes, ladies and gentlemen. it's the second match of the afternoon for the united states is the king and the pole vault of europe is the golden nugget and the fast rocket ladies and gentlemen jim

rempe

oh

strickland

steve

davis

and

ronnie

o'

sullivan

are not experts at nine ball pool but I guess because the cue ball and the movement of the board in this game are so important, that's the thinking in the European camp: let's put both together and try to get another point.

Yes, actually, it's all a mind game, so even if you don't have that much experience. nine ball they can still control their nerves and show their best shots on the table and I think it's that they have surprise on their side, they don't have as much pressure as the American team right now, Tommy, the American team itself. It's true, last night they seemed to be a little tired in general and a little nervous because a lot of these guys are excellent pool players and had never played for their country before this show aired live in the United States.

You also think the pressure got to them a little bit, but there's still a long way to go and I'm sure they'll come up with some good things later in the tournament, well, both snooker players. I have a lot of work to do because it would be absolutely fantastic if o'

sullivan

and

davis

could put Europe up 4-1 at such an

earl

y stage, yes that's our plan, that's what we talked to Steve about yesterday which put us first and then to us. the surprise on his side and the pressure on the Americans and then taking a good lead and then just crushing them.

Strickland Earl the P

earl

up when he was in the players room, he goes crazy with every shot and last night he was having a good hit. Dong with the crowd, she prepares for these occasions, big occasions like this, she could be a real danger, Tommy, yes, Elle is a great player, she beat me in a tournament earlier this year, she needs to get psyched up from time to time and get underway. when he's in that state of mind he's very very dangerous, well I don't think he was very happy with that because it was a foul, yeah that's good exactly, when he gets into the zone he's really dangerous but sometimes he just can't . control herself, she is a very moody player, yes, so now is an early opportunity to get Europe going again in this match, isn't it?

Hopefully they can get off to the kind of start that you two had in the first match, yeah it's always important. holding a serve so to speak, yes in this game it's okay too, thanks guys and congratulations on getting another point for Europe. It's absorbing entertainment here and to guide you through the second match is our commentary team, Jim Weich and Sid Waddell. Well, thanks to Russ. the nugget on the table forming a couple with rocket o'sullivan and what a couple this is against king james

rempe

and earl

strickland

, in fact, rimpian strickland said that the only couple that so far has put a point on the american scoreboard yes, it was a time when We Brits were the only people who wanted kings and earls, but you won't get classier sitting in a pool hall anywhere else in the world.

Rampi and Strickland, geniuses and genius, another word that easily applies in sports, but oh Sullivan and Davis definitely in that category. six and seven uh, eight is gone davis studying as always slim and elegant rumford slim essex's answer to minnesota fats what you would expect from pool players is a very good pot oh, what you wouldn't expect there is a open pot lost like that there's quite a reaction jim remy smiles at that everyone frowns i think the previous two players are imminent and uh tommy donna analyzed arnold's psyche he's a cross between ian wright and archangel gabriel a wild man in a minute and angel in the next duel that's the way places billiards badmiss returned to spend the night davis returned to the chair christmas and is working miracles team absolutely displeased davis broke here on the second shelf well, the billiard couple will obviously be excellent cuists, but when it comes to experience and knowledge, pairing rempe and strickland could very well be unbeatable, they wouldn't take a backseat to anyone in that regard, well he brought his own resting head, he obviously doesn't like the silences x that come used in most of the work. over here now wow, this is a strange looking contraption, it sounds like some of the Inca Indians might have thrown it at their enemies, well I guess if you're going to take it accurately enough to be a world champion, you take the equipment to despite the excess luggage,

ronnie

.

It won't take you long, you've seen Archer practicing his shots, the current world champion, Ronnie, it won't take you half that time if you're new to this, if you've just arrived, tell your wife you won't ban gifts for 45 minutes. because it's more fun, you have to go for the low ball, you have to hit the one, but as I'll explain to you, you can hit the one line combination or the low ball nine combination at any time or go from the low ball to the nine Or if you want. To go a little easier route, if one of the balls between the one and nine in this position is up, you can play the low ball.

It sounds complicated, but it's much easier when you have a stick in your hand and take a long path. time for him obviously jim plays pool like he plays snooker racing around the table like a ferrari with a rolls-royce queuing jim white is there auditioning for the position of motorsports commentator noisy appreciative crowd and at the right time for the Let's see how the genius gets to the meeting. Maybe a floor genius might let his temper get away, but if you could bottle it and put a Kentucky label on it, you could make millions. What Strickland has is pure genius with Earl Strickland's blueberries when he came up for a safety. attacked plays with pure adrenaline where is his heart on the sleeve of his shirt?

Earl the Pearl Strickland doesn't like messing with the eye of a genie, the execution of a tiger, okay, maybe he sometimes parodies himself, he suddenly seems almost to want to become him. he gets excited maybe the crowd will catch him maybe he will reach the crowd all part of the animal in action genius at work it's almost like a tumblr echoing this is what we can do with you the stars and stripes take stew applause you love it or hate it He, Earl Strickland, is a genius in action 1-1 in the first set here, Europe and the United States, very good, here we are, they are called fentanyl green friends and, even though the Americans are in the hole, as they say, 3-1, a little less for Europe. in a mood jim rumby just said it to

steve

davis he just made two outrageous blues try to hit them in a pocket you're aiming for the good spirit even though the americans are under the cashier just hunt eminent and donlin wins a marathon match against archer and davenport and now we have the brilliance of Earl Strickland and Jim Ramsey stronger than the combined pool skills of O's Sullivan and Steve Davis.

The rambian player managed the combination to knock down all three with one perfectly legal, as long as you touch the lowest ball on the table and now up for the two and take a look where the nine is well placed over the corner pocket. This is a two nine for the mortgage at 2-1 on the Americans and he made it in the blink of an eye at 2-1. use now the best box of his name in the game strickland well, they also call him the million dollar man. He won a million dollars by collecting 10 racks in the US, very similar to running a perfect game in the world of snucker europe, yes, wine. on a tobacco farm when he was about 10 years old.

He was playing pool for a lot of money when he was 16 years old in Kentucky. Well, Ronnie got the nine moving. We noticed that today Sid, in stark contrast to yesterday's game, nine seemed practically lodged in the middle of the table, but there is better rock, that helped. I think the referees have been doing their job today. Look at that silky smooth o'sullivan tail action. Effortlessly, two sets win the game. We are in the first set. of this American league two racks to one and we are increasing Strickland's game I can clean mine very quickly, Ronnie is not left with either 15 balls on the table or nine, he is the recently crowned UK pool champion, is he?

Do you know if he ever did it? decided to get serious about the nine ball, he got used to the team and the changes in tactical play related to the game could very well be a force in North America, yes, if Ronnie ever went from the east end of the cable to the west side, he could distinguish a story or two by removing the balls very quickly from the rocket o'sullivan levels accounts here with america thanks for playing pool look at the tips a little bigger than a normal tail you need it with these bigger balls well, that's right, you have Much bigger, heavier balls and sometimes you can do some damage.

You see O'Sullivan's cue right next to it, a little longer and obviously a smaller tip, and still Earl Strickland checking his progress. By the way, all Americans have brake pads and the Europeans at least davis and o'sullivan break with their play tail on the brake pad actually bends considerably on impact, sometimes up to four inches at a time, you see in the US actually a transfer of power from the knees through the stomach muscles to the stomach muscles. shoulder is a fantastic feat of coordination. I'm not kidding, it is very difficult to synchronize the movement of the arm and wrist with the movement of the leg, taking the weight.

One of the best shooters the game has ever seen. There you can see the remaining colors. the eight have been taken from the break, he has to take them in order and every time he can choose to attack the nine, the difference between the eye and the execution is infinitesimal, he goes straight to the shots, he is the most exciting player in the world to watch . Well, that didn't work out ideally for him, the orange five, the next ball, he played it with a lot of edge. One thing the Americans do is spin that target around the table, they really make it work, you can see. he didn't touch the nine, it could have come out very well under the five ball, but he's going to need a very good bounce here to continue, where's the Jim of the afternoon?

He is behind the bottom left to use the cushion position at six, which concerns him the most. the cue ball goes too, he's going to be running, he's not very happy about it, it seems that if he chooses to play this towards the center, that cue ball would travel very close to the corner pocket, he forgot to putt, I think he tried . Bank that, but it turned out very well, very lucky, he won't be terribly displeased with that effort. There you can see that he totally cuts that green six right in the middle of the ball on the five, so Steve just looks where he wants. contact if you hit this perfectly, you can leave that cue ball behind the six and there you can see the situation, you have to make contact with this very full, you just overdid it, you had the right idea, just a little too much pace, so the turn the team applied wonderfully there brambi was born and raised still lives in scranton pennsylvania major 80 yard titles in a brilliant career well it looks like jim rempe has been around forever and at 50 years old and from the looks of it he will be around for a while however, I controlled this very simple nine beautifully to go one rack ahead of the Americans who lead Europe now three racks to two in the first set remember they have to win by two clear racks so here they are on the bubble of winning a set , but the americans have two aces and i mean asus here and they could do with no early christmas gifts like that davis out of the package well when that cue ball finds its way to the pocket i have been here no bad spells luck bad news steve and his partner oliver ortman lost last night against the pair of rumpy and strickland, look at all the balls left on the table, but jim rempe with the white ball in his hand simply emphasizes the order, if they are outdoors, You take them as they run from two to nine. you can see shots that involve a higher ball, as long as you hit the low ball, it's legitimate to go, say, two to five, well, if you can see a low ball to nine, plant or cannon, then you fold, it's your birthday , well, he's doubling his city. you need to angle this red three towards the right center so you can grab the cue ball for the pink four below which is right at the bottom of the table in your photo take this rack take the first set and nick tomorrow the captain american I will breathe a sigh of relief and chew another half pound of gum in the next 10 minutes.

It seems like he just has to force this a little bit, he overdid it, he had to force it to be very straight and he hit it very hard. Wanted tobe close, yes, so once again for Jim Rempe he has to look for a very good defensive shot. Harry would like to hide that white ball. He tries to take it behind the eight, the black one on the left side, as if he had achieved his goal. target, I don't know if Ronnie can hit the pink four here, well it looks like he can because he's looking at the six combination, yeah, I have to hit the low ball, which is the four, if it rolls into the six. good run played the intermediate shots very well, as long as you hit the low ball you can clear any other.

What a fantastic shot from O'Sullivan, yes, as good as any we've seen. He's even loosening the jaws of the two US stars, Rambi and Strickland, you know, we were talking before, sometimes complacency can creep in. in o'sullivan's pool game, he seems faithful and true in this very fast macho man's game, i think hello guys like remy. it's 50 jim which brings him up to speed thanks to an inspired little combination taken by ronnie we're watching steve davis and ronnie o'sullivan against the earl of pearl strickland and king james rempe strickland and rempe gave a point the only point What America has was by virtue of their win last night over Davis and Oliver Ortman and the counter nine which gives them an excellent 4-3 lead which just goes to show what the advantage of having a great break in nine balls can do for you in a single shot. and yes the golden break, just watch that nine ball roll slowly and get into the bag being boris becker on the tennis circuit having a massive serve, it's such a dynamic and powerful weapon to have in the nine ball that most tournaments you know in America say they are don't alternate breaks, the winner breaks and you can smash your opponent with three four five racks on the trot and really put pressure on them and it's not the kind of thing you learn in kindergarten or puppies , you learn it in the pool hall where they like it.

From Strickland the boys left some of them since they were 10 years old. Hello Sullivan, showing us the benefit of having a good rest with a billiard that is very good in the two blue ones on the top right, the four, the pink four that is at the same end of the table will be next, he made the three, the five and the eight at the break and then there is the diagram with the scoring pattern of three down, two, four pink, is next in sequence, but if you can't see any near a ball, then the six, the seven or the nine will be close to the hull and you could play a shot from the low ball which is allowed on the nine, it gives you play, the orange five, the next ball and then gently down for the green six, so Ronnie looks good to take us to a sudden point. rack of death in this opening set, Europe 3-1 surprisingly against the USA.

Yes, just get off the subway or your bench and your bike clips and put the kettle on. This is tri-water Europe and it looks good, a level play here in the game. five in the moscone we're going to see a playoff, the nine falls and that's exactly what we have our second playoff of the day here on the second day of the moscone cup against davis and o'sullivan strickland and remy and it will be a decisive game who, well, ronnie o'sullivan from east end london is a snooker genius. You may hear a lot more about them in the world of nine-ball pool, so these players will fall behind. for the break exactly as they did when determining thanks to the first match of the day the white ball closest to the furthest band we will separate here and it seems that it is going to be the europe ronnie's bowl so that sullivan can make a break europe very similar to the one he just showed you you will have laid the foundation for a victory nothing down sid but at least he hasn't left anything to strickland yes, strickland starred in last year's moscone cup he played in the last game cj whiteley took the cup to the united states who he was in dagenham here beyond bethnal green and last night he was the strongest American in the open session that's a brilliant shot earl strickland is pulling rabbits out of hats tremendous pot there he is in the blue two he has to dig into the cue ball to try throw it around three, so the graph here shows the ball on, so the shot is played in relation to balls that are difficult to follow, but with this guy some things are not difficult, five-time world champion strickland, he known as The Road Warrior played for thousands of dollars, especially in Lexington and Kentucky, when he was no more than 16 years old.

Now he doesn't like to talk about that time in the game when he was a money player. He now considers himself a professional athlete. why is he spinning around that table like linford christian custis right now he's a man on a mission walking around like a caged animal it's a sudden death game here the winner of this rack will take the first set strickland just has to score these four balls remaining and there's a look on rumpy's face that pretty much says "that's my boy, he ain't gotta do nothing but make sure this black is completely straight, played with power to make it completely straight again." Strickland shines like that brilliance of Pearl's American earl. it was a valiant effort by the davis europeans second second ronnie o'sullivan here had a task on his hands against two legends of the game rampi and strickland at such a vital point for the Americans given the score of 3-1 at the time when no You can afford to let the Europeans get too far away, they just want to keep buying time, let the jet lag and jet lag start to wear off, let them start showing the kind of form that Earl Strickland is showing in this moment. winner rack sid from positions that don't even seem to present the winning line well that's the definition of genius oh an infinite ability to make other people feel pain he has that like strickland oh look oh the table is leaking unfortunately one of the balls is the cue ball on strickland showing how he pushes that arm and cue on the break shot, but that cue ball makes its way to the top corner and o'sullivan takes advantage of it with the cue ball in hand, no problem with the remaining balls here, the green six is ​​easy after the pink, there is the low pink ball coming off the cushion, you just learn the technique, the long pocket technique and the position which is easily achieved from the side rail again with a long pocket, leaving the black long, making quick work of this and making it look like child's play.

It's not that o'sullivan is that good, they're down nine and they've tied it here in the second set, a rack each in this race to three, steve davis and ronnie o'sullivan feel much more comfortable on a pool table , but I think they are having fun playing nine ball here in the moscone cup on the east end of london we are still in the second set the score a tie each europe is leading the americans 3-1 over the entire moscone cup in the second session, but it was a small resurgence on Rambi's boat at Plain Owl and Strickland.

They are leading this party. They have a preparation for three, but it is 1-1 in the second set. O'Sullivan and Davis don't have that luxury. They lost their set well, three balls came out of the break, but the cue ball was not exactly in the position that Jim Rempe would have wanted for the blue, two on the side rail by chance, I think so, the blue righted itself much sooner than expected. what he intended, he accidentally got into the cesspool. that was one he wished he hadn't had. I think he will have to deviate from this or play from the top cushion.

What a way to get out of jail is to get out of jail in a big white limo laughing at the gods. flew into the corner pocket another look at this, an airborne King James looking up at the three, perhaps looking at the three-nine combination here, well, King James, who is called Uptown sixth and first known as the wisest fool in Christianity and could not have played. a shot like that look at that perfect finger bridge oh i tried the barrel he tried the barrel on the nine he would have taken the double kiss well jim is talking to his balls right now he has a little fun with the crowd no He is a stranger. center stage in front of the television cameras, he has been involved in films that he has screened around the world, but I have to say that sid, I don't know if he has ever represented the USA with other top five players in a group tournament in Ryder Cup format that bears the name.

American legend Willie Moscone mentioned in the same breath that Minnesota Fats and Rudolph Juan Arono Jr are, so the game that was once frowned upon in River City and everywhere is now worth waving the stars and stripes and wearing with pride. in their chests, folks, if you're looking in the states and jim trying that tricky double bank again he might have gotten it stuck maybe a little flash that was unnecessary there well he kept rolling the dice and this time they didn't come up seven rail shot for sd Well, maybe that bit of exhibitionism on the ramp could cost him here, this could put Europe ahead.

Davis takes the next two balls in this second set, stabbing the object ball with a bit of simultaneous draw and contact on the rail of the ball, no bother. there was no problem for referee davis, he was just asking for too much, the one who placed the piece and it would mean more, everything says for nick varner, the american captain, so the crowd at home, on this side of the atlantic, anyway, in europe and in continental europe we hope that when the davis has a productive break here just leaning on the break that looks perfect certainly blows flow in brown got in the middle the rest of the table is open i will never have a better chance of reaching the level you have to go to the one now then the three and continue with the nine beautiful shots, a lot of background movements to get the black out of your way and are very useful for placing it later at davis high school.

One thing that pool players should try to guard against is knowing the size of these pockets and certainly given the comparison between these and pool tables, they don't want to take anything for granted and davis said that since he lost the last outing, which was at lakeside in essex, about three months ago, I had been working on controlling the white tables and Este, who is Jim White, knows the key to success in this so-called spheroid ball game billiards. This is because White ends up too straight on the eight ball, so he will have to make a longer nine, but this should not represent any obstacle. give Uncle Sam a little more pain under the top hat second set the second set is for the Europeans they have tied it it's a set a piece the third and the deciding set will be next here steve davis and ronnie o'sullivan face off to earl Strickland and Jim Rempe well, we continued playing during the break there and the Americans actually took that starting position in this third set, so Davis breaks in the second game, but there is no loose ball and the nine looks very ominously positioned for the euro. guys, it's hanging in the lower right and now jim robbie is in play, the ideal man to take advantage of the balls being open, he has to go for the one first, but he's keeping an eye on the nine, he's going to cut the one that's there.

Blue nine, I think that's what I was looking at, Jim, well rest assured Sydney, these gentlemen always know where that nine ball is on the table and right now the combination of two nines, yes, that's the floor that goes to plant now, will you plant or will you face it? What's the best way, Jim? He will play both and he will play it until nine. He will try to put the nine in the corner pocket. He can run the cue ball to the top of the table. The other option would be to play outside the. two, but it would be a little harder to judge, it all depends on what Jim likes at the moment.

He could play the two in the corner pocket and play the cue ball to the nine, bottom left and bottom right, look at them both instead of yes and strickland. I appreciate here two of his most important stars, Remy in the Strickland geniuses, both look good to return to 3-2 like Davenport and Archer. I think that's Kim Davenport's wife, since they look a little more relieved than they did 10 minutes ago. America has the opportunity here to break away from the victory by two to zero. They are one point away from winning their second point. The first order of the day was fulfilled.

They got a ball on the fast break, but nothing easy and again the nine is lurking a foot from the bottom right pocket so the vector matrix inside Rampy's mind is working out how to get to that nine as quickly as possible there's the low ball, the one that is far away, is taking a look at this pattern of balls on the right of the table while we look at him, he is also looking at the blue, which I think passes the orange. Did he try it? He didn't try the three three balls. No, it was simply poor execution.

That time, from Rempe a rye smile. This was just plain old Miss Sullivan. Just took a quick look, they're both in the orange five. The next one, I have the feeling of running, was after nine, that was a bit adventurous and one and two feel a different mood in Strickland's psyche. Looks like he's sniffing the postorange wood. is the one who has to hit uh it's very difficult what can what you have to do is fine you're just supposed to put them in order but you can't go to an intermediate level and use the low ball to target one of the others oh yeah, cool Look at the white ball.

Wow, well, Ronnie saw her coming to the pocket and just tipped her out and I'm afraid on the European side that could well be the beginning of the end for Strickland at the table and you can't expect him not to. Take advantage of this and, in a way, it's appropriate that the brooding and flawed has to say that Strickland is a genius in show business. It's fitting that the team put the grass code in this game. His early confidence and quick play set the pace for Remy. Intervene with some class. For me, Strickland has dominated the tournament so far and he is holding it in place here to hold off the Americans in this their second match and gives the Americans solid relief up top for Nick Barna, the captain, and the rest of the equipment.

The team and Strickland take it and the score is now Europe Three America Two An emphatic victory for the Americans Thank you please to the four players If you thank me for the confirmation from the school May I remind you that we still have one more game left this afternoon? more to go in favor of europe you