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Wanted: Your 2 Cents - US Giants List
Posted By: Jake Jacobs In Response To: Wanted: Your 2 Cents - US Giants List (Coolrey)
Date: Sunday, 7 June 2009, at 4:06 a.m.
Hi Ray:
You (and everyone else) may email your ballot.
Best,
Jake
PS I have been catching up on the posts I hadn't yet read (when I should be getting things done before my trip to the US). I would tend to agree with Christian that Denmark could probably field a top ten that would outplay the US. Japan can't yet, but give them a few more years. I don't think Germany can either, but don't really know.
There is a myth about America dominating the list because the voters are American. Like most myths there is a kernel of truth. In its earliest years most voters were American, though American voters (from what I have seen, and I have both seen the ballots, and discussed them with many of the voters) make a conscious effort to include players from other countries.
And there is another kernel, perhaps less palatable. Back around '96, when I was getting an earful from people like Goran Hasselquist, the Chicago Barpoint Club could have fielded a top ten team (assuming I got to pick the team) of weekly club players that would have been favorites against any country outside the US. They might even have been favorites against ALL other countries put together, though I wouldn't go that far. Admittedly the roster was unusually strong. Things is that places like Germany and Denmark were filled with players who were about to become great, but hadn't gotten there yet. People like Leverman and Schiemann who were soon to be viewed as the best in the world were two years away from fame, while players like Phil Marmorstein were already drifting away. Ralf Jonas is the only player bridging the gap between the 1st and 2nd wave of German Giants. Sweden had Jerry and Joker and ... nobody (I went and looked ;-)). Denmark had Peter Jes, and Gus was already clearly on his way to the top, but at the time the other best player was almost certainly John Sjolin - everyone else was a kid, and raw. Japan had no one remotely close to top 32. Norway, I believe Christian mentioned? Dag Egmark and ... nobody. Holland had Evert and a couple of decent players. In France Francois was up and coming. Falafel was still an American player, and nobody special. Canada had Hal Heinrich and Carl Sellars. (There was a talent!) Australia had Tino.
The great thing is that a decade ago the list hardly changed from cycle to cycle. Now I see names under consideration I had never heard of two years ago, Stick being one such.
PPS My team from the 1996 Barpoint? In no particular order: Howard Ring, Neil Kazaross, Me, David Wells, Joe Sylvester, Dean Munch, Bob Zavoral, Rich Lloyd, Gary Kay, Wendy Kaplan. Remember, we are talking about how they played back then compared to how the competition played at that same time.
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