1997 Xlt Touring Hard Start

My old reliable 97 XLT with 5200 miles on the odo is giving me fits starting , gotta crank and crank and crank .. it will fire once and awhile.. in this condition it really hates the choke and will stop firing if I use it .. a friend of mine is thinking rings .. My compression tester is questionable but is showing 122 psi on alll three. Runs great warm. new plugs since this started. Hummm just thinking about this, My mechanic syncronised the carbs, could the choke on several of the carbs be stuck , it smokes like nuts when it starts ,, or would this be a byproduct of the bad compression?

Or any other thoughts !??