Post a reply

Who do you rate as the better player?

Steve Davis
8
35%
John Higgins
15
65%
 
Total votes : 23

Who is the superior player?

Postby TheRocket

People always compare Hendry and O'Sullivan. What about these two? They are similar in terms of style of play.

Davis: 6 WC, 6 UK's, 3 Masters, 28 Ranking titles

Higgins: 4 WC, 3 UK's, 2 Masters, 30 Ranking titles.

Davis has won more majors but Higgins played in a much tougher era and won more Ranking titles

Re: Who is the superior player?

Postby Ash147

Higgins. He's the best all round player the game has seen. The only area he's behind Davis in is TC wins, and that's only because he's played in the toughest era of Snooker.

Re: Who is the superior player?

Postby Cloud Strife

Higgins for me, easily.

John plied his trade in the toughest era snooker will probably ever see, certainly for a very long time. Whereas Davis made his name beating up on old relics from the Dark Ages.

Swap the two and Higgins would have won every single world championship in the 80s IMO. He most definitely would not have lost to Taylor or Johnson over 35 frames, that is for sure.

Re: Who is the superior player?

Postby SnookerFan

Cloud Strife wrote:Higgins for me.

John plied his trade in the toughest era snooker will probably ever see, certainly for a very long time. Whereas Davis made his name beating up on old relics from the Dark Ages.

Swap the two and Higgins would have won every single world championship in the 80s IMO. He most definitely would not have lost to Taylor or Johnson over 35 frames, that is for sure.


Taylor won the World Championship?

Everybody is so reluctant to mention it.

Re: Who is the superior player?

Postby Ash147

SnookerFan wrote:
Cloud Strife wrote:Higgins for me.

John plied his trade in the toughest era snooker will probably ever see, certainly for a very long time. Whereas Davis made his name beating up on old relics from the Dark Ages.

Swap the two and Higgins would have won every single world championship in the 80s IMO. He most definitely would not have lost to Taylor or Johnson over 35 frames, that is for sure.


Taylor won the World Championship?

Everybody is so reluctant to mention it.


I don't recall that happening. Which year was it?

Re: Who is the superior player?

Postby Cloud Strife

Ash147 wrote:
SnookerFan wrote:
Cloud Strife wrote:Higgins for me.

John plied his trade in the toughest era snooker will probably ever see, certainly for a very long time. Whereas Davis made his name beating up on old relics from the Dark Ages.

Swap the two and Higgins would have won every single world championship in the 80s IMO. He most definitely would not have lost to Taylor or Johnson over 35 frames, that is for sure.


Taylor won the World Championship?

Everybody is so reluctant to mention it.


I don't recall that happening. Which year was it?


1066

Re: Who is the superior player?

Postby Cloud Strife

Ash147 wrote:Hastings Direct?


Taylor defeated Davis at the Battle of Hastings, and was thus known ever since as Taylor the Conqueror.

Re: Who is the superior player?

Postby Ash147

Cloud Strife wrote:
Ash147 wrote:Hastings Direct?


Taylor defeated Davis at the Battle of Hastings, and was thus known ever since as Taylor the Conqueror.


Image

Re: Who is the superior player?

Postby Pink Ball

KrazeeEyezKilla wrote:If Higgins was around in the 80's he wouldn't have been playing at the same standard as he had later.

Correct. It's only natural that a few players drag the standard up, and then the others up their own standards. If Davis were around today, he'd win multiple World Championships. Davis was such a fantastic player.

Re: Who is the superior player?

Postby Dan-cat

Pink Ball wrote:
KrazeeEyezKilla wrote:If Higgins was around in the 80's he wouldn't have been playing at the same standard as he had later.

Correct. It's only natural that a few players drag the standard up, and then the others up their own standards. If Davis were around today, he'd win multiple World Championships. Davis was such a fantastic player.


He really was.

Re: Who is the superior player?

Postby Johnny Bravo

Higgins by a country mile.
Davis's domination was cut short by a one dimensional player like Hendry.
Higgins is almost as good a breakbuilder as Hendry, and lightyears in front in terms of safety and tactical play.

Re: Who is the superior player?

Postby Andre147

Hendry didnt have a bad safety game, sometimes he just chose not to use it because he could pot his way out of trouble with tremendous long pots. That was his trademark back in his heyday.

Re: Who is the superior player?

Postby Pink Ball

Johnny Bravo wrote:Higgins is... lightyears in front in terms of safety and tactical play.

What utter horseshit. I would have Higgins and Davis as my top two safety players of all time, and I'd find it very hard to separate them. Up until the mid noughties, a lot of people still felt Davis was arguably the best safety player in the world, and with good reason. I think Higgins and Selby have been better tactical players, but if we're strictly talking safety, Davis is right up there with anyone, and ahead of Selby.

Re: Who is the superior player?

Postby Pink Ball

As for breakbuilding, I agree that Higgins is better, but Davis was an excellent breakbuilder. He made 355 centuries despite playing for many years on relatively poor tables, and at a time when there were fewer tournaments. He is, for example, a much better breakbuilder than Mark Williams, who has made nearly 500 centuries.

Davis' safety play was so good that his excellent breakbuilding was often overlooked, not unlike Mark Selby today. Also not unlike Ronnie O'Sullivan, albeit the other way around; Sullivan is an excellent safety player but is much better known for his breakbuilding.

Re: Who is the superior player?

Postby Iranu

Pink Ball wrote:
Johnny Bravo wrote:Higgins is... lightyears in front in terms of safety and tactical play.

What utter horseshit. I would have Higgins and Davis as my top two safety players of all time, and I'd find it very hard to separate them. Up until the mid noughties, a lot of people still felt Davis was arguably the best safety player in the world, and with good reason. I think Higgins and Selby have been better tactical players, but if we're strictly talking safety, Davis is right up there with anyone, and ahead of Selby.

I think Johnny meant lightyears ahead of Hendry.

I’ve always thought Davis was underrated as a breakbuilder, and I only really watched him in his twilight years.

Re: Who is the superior player?

Postby Johnny Bravo

Pink Ball wrote:
Johnny Bravo wrote:Higgins is... lightyears in front in terms of safety and tactical play.

What utter horseshit. I would have Higgins and Davis as my top two safety players of all time, and I'd find it very hard to separate them. Up until the mid noughties, a lot of people still felt Davis was arguably the best safety player in the world, and with good reason. I think Higgins and Selby have been better tactical players, but if we're strictly talking safety, Davis is right up there with anyone, and ahead of Selby.


You misunderstood Pinkey.

My point was that Davis got beat by Hendry, who had a one-dimensional game. Hendry was a tremendous potter and breakbuilder, but was an average safety and tactical player. Yet he manged to beat Davis most times simply by out-potting and out-scoring him.

Than I said that Higgins is almost as good a potter and breakbuilder as Hendry, but lightyears in front when it comes to safety and tactical play (compared to Hendry, not to Davis).

Now, since this is about Davis vs Higgins, there isn't a single department of the game where Davis beats Higgins:
- potting - they're about even;
- breakbuilding - Higgins has the edge;
- safety play - again, they're even;
- tactical play - small edge to Higgins.