Lessons

[Steve Lipsky]

Pursuant to my earlier post where I mention getting laid off, I'm gettin' into the lessonin' business!

My teaching style is a bit different than most. I will play scotch doubles straight pool, 8-ball, or rotation with you, in a you-shoot-then-I-shoot format. I have found it promotes a great dialogue between us, and really lets you get in my head, and me in yours. It keeps both of us engaged and really facilitates a great transfer of knowledge.

This style is really conducive to teaching intermediate to advanced players. I can't help with fundamentals, so if you're having trouble with your stroke, there are many supremely qualified candidates in the area.

Anyway, PM me if interested. Looking forward to getting some highly motivated students who are really looking to improve.

Thanks,
Steve

 

[stevekur1]

Pm has Been sent !

 

[Ratta]

good choice Steve !
next *usual* lessons on fundamentals and techniques i love to do it like you do.- first shooting by student following your *way* has a great chance to bring your knowledge better to the student. I also like to play for example *straight-pool* with the student together- each stroke changing- makes him and you thinkin a lot of the game.

With this combination for sure many of your students will have a great *AHAAA- Effect*
good luck for your Steve- and gratz for your students


lg
Ingo

 

[HAKurtz]

If I lived closer to u and had the xtra cash I would take u up on that in a heart beat!!! You will be an awesome teacher Stevie!!! Best of luck!

 

[sausage]

steve: being a motersickle bum, getting "laid off" has a totally different connotation. if you are talking about losing your job, i wholeheartedly support your new career. it will open up even more avenues to make a living doing what you love to do. being a wage-slave has few benefits.

hopefully i will be in florida soon with a new 9' table of some kind. if you ever make it down that-a-way, " (North Port south of Tampa) i'd appreciate a PM and would love a lesson or two. because i've been bad all my life, i only plan to visit new jersey upon my inevitable demise. :grin-devilish:

 

[ctyhntr]

Steve,

Sorry to hear the news about your job. I like your attitude, taking lemons and making lemonade. When one door closes, another opens. Good Luck on your new endevour.

 

[berniep]

Pursuant to my earlier post where I mention getting laid off, I'm gettin' into the lessonin' business!

My teaching style is a bit different than most. I will play scotch doubles straight pool, 8-ball, or rotation with you, in a you-shoot-then-I-shoot format. I have found it promotes a great dialogue between us, and really lets you get in my head, and me in yours. It keeps both of us engaged and really facilitates a great transfer of knowledge.

This style is really conducive to teaching intermediate to advanced players. I can't help with fundamentals, so if you're having trouble with your stroke, there are many supremely qualified candidates in the area.

Anyway, PM me if interested. Looking forward to getting some highly motivated students who are really looking to improve.

Thanks,
Steve

Steve,

Good to hear you considering this avenue.

I'm a big supporter of your teaching style. I did the exact same thing a few years ago with Scott Frost, while trying to learn a few 1 pocket techniques. (me being the student...of course).

I was happy to pay him to simply play a standard game with me. Before I shot, I stated what I had in mind and Scott would give me the pros and cons of each option.

Likewise, when it was his turn to shoot, he would comment on the risk/return of various shot options that he had, with %'s, depending on what the ball count was, the speed of your opponent, etc.

It was without doubt the best instructional investment that any player could make. That type of honest, immediate feedback has the ability to cut through the uncertainty and provide a professional insight that would otherwise be unavailable.

Judging by the time and effort that you put into your regular posts here, it strongly supports that you will be very effective in your coaching endeavors.

Good luck!.

Thanks. Bernie.

 

[dmgwalsh]

If I lived out on the East Coast, I'd definitely have to get some lessons on New York Straight Pool. Everyone knows that is where they play the game the right way.

Steve, Can you tell us who your mentors were and generally speaking what you learned from them. I think you probably learned from Danny Barouty, but were there others? And who did Danny learn from?

Many of us 14.1 students have heard the names of a lot of East Coast 14.1 wizards, but have never had the opportunity to know what they taught.
Names like Nagy, Colavita, Eufemia, Ervolino have been mentioned here and there, but we do not know who taught what to whom. SJM and I were discussing the old style of 14.1 and how as the older teachers pass away it is getting harder and harder to find someone who can teach it.

I read about your method of scotch doubles and that Ralf Souquet did it with a student. One of the guys out here who tries to teach me agreed to play that way with me and we usually start with a 100 point game of Scotch Doubles talking about what to do and where to put the cue and why and it is helpful as he has run 100 a couple of times.

Good Luck in your venture. If I get out east during the next World Championship 14.1, perhaps you could squeeze me in.

 

[Bobby]

If I lived out on the East Coast, I'd definitely have to get some lessons on New York Straight Pool. Everyone knows that is where they play the game the right way.

Steve, Can you tell us who your mentors were and generally speaking what you learned from them. I think you probably learned from Danny Barouty, but were there others? And who did Danny learn from?

Many of us 14.1 students have heard the names of a lot of East Coast 14.1 wizards, but have never had the opportunity to know what they taught.
Names like Nagy, Colavita, Eufemia, Ervolino have been mentioned here and there, but we do not know who taught what to whom. SJM and I were discussing the old style of 14.1 and how as the older teachers pass away it is getting harder and harder to find someone who can teach it.

I read about your method of scotch doubles and that Ralf Souquet did it with a student. One of the guys out here who tries to teach me agreed to play that way with me and we usually start with a 100 point game of Scotch Doubles talking about what to do and where to put the cue and why and it is helpful as he has run 100 a couple of times.

Good Luck in your venture. If I get out east during the next World Championship 14.1, perhaps you could squeeze me in.

I can't speak for Steve, I'm not really sure if he had a mentor, but as to those other older players you mentioned I can fill you in a little bit. From what I understand Gene Nagy was basically a pool prodigy, he quit Julliard and became completely obsessed with pool, practicing the same shots over and over to a ridiculous degree. He didn't really have a mentor but being around the new york pool scene in the 60's must have really rubbed off on him.

Johnny Ervolino learned a lot from Abe Rosen. Johnny was a young kid of 13 or 14 who could pocket balls really well but needed the knowledge so Abe would show him one shot and wouldn't show him anything else until he mastered it. Johnny also said he learned a lot as a kid just from watching James Evans and Johnny Irish play 75 no count on a 5 x 10 table with brutal pockets. They really had to play carefully on that kind of equipment. Apparently the old 7/11 poolroom had a table with a curtain around it with limited seating, that's where Evans and Irish played all the time. The house would charge people 75 cents (this the late 40's) to watch them, and no one was allowed to make a sound. Johnny said those lessons were an absolute bargain.

 

[Steve Lipsky]

If I lived out on the East Coast, I'd definitely have to get some lessons on New York Straight Pool. Everyone knows that is where they play the game the right way.

Steve, Can you tell us who your mentors were and generally speaking what you learned from them. I think you probably learned from Danny Barouty, but were there others? And who did Danny learn from?

Many of us 14.1 students have heard the names of a lot of East Coast 14.1 wizards, but have never had the opportunity to know what they taught.
Names like Nagy, Colavita, Eufemia, Ervolino have been mentioned here and there, but we do not know who taught what to whom. SJM and I were discussing the old style of 14.1 and how as the older teachers pass away it is getting harder and harder to find someone who can teach it.

I read about your method of scotch doubles and that Ralf Souquet did it with a student. One of the guys out here who tries to teach me agreed to play that way with me and we usually start with a 100 point game of Scotch Doubles talking about what to do and where to put the cue and why and it is helpful as he has run 100 a couple of times.

Good Luck in your venture. If I get out east during the next World Championship 14.1, perhaps you could squeeze me in.

Thanks Dennis. My main mentor, by far, is Danny Barouty. There were a few before him, such as Jerry Nacovsky, Bobby "C" (houseman at Leisure Time on Long Island), and Dale Baker in Ithaca.

I'd love for Danny to chime in and write about his upbringing in the game. I'm sure it would be an interesting read...

- Steve

 

[SpiderWebComm]

Pursuant to my earlier post where I mention getting laid off, I'm gettin' into the lessonin' business!

My teaching style is a bit different than most. I will play scotch doubles straight pool, 8-ball, or rotation with you, in a you-shoot-then-I-shoot format. I have found it promotes a great dialogue between us, and really lets you get in my head, and me in yours. It keeps both of us engaged and really facilitates a great transfer of knowledge.

This style is really conducive to teaching intermediate to advanced players. I can't help with fundamentals, so if you're having trouble with your stroke, there are many supremely qualified candidates in the area.

Anyway, PM me if interested. Looking forward to getting some highly motivated students who are really looking to improve.

Thanks,
Steve

Hopkins told me that's the only way to teach someone straight pool - scotch doubles. I'm up for a lesson, but can't make it your way for a few weeks.

 

[stevekur1]

Thanks Dennis. My main mentor, by far, is Danny Barouty. There were a few before him, such as Jerry Nacovsky, Bobby "C" (houseman at Leisure Time on Long Island), and Dale Baker in Ithaca.

I'd love for Danny to chime in and write about his upbringing in the game. I'm sure it would be an interesting read...

- Steve

ahhhh the good ole days of Leisure Time Billiards, would give anything to be able to travel back in time to those days !!

I Should of spent more time working with Bobby "C", Georgie, And Charlie Gaibel.....And less time getting robbed by Jerry "Rabbit's Foot" Nacovsky !!

Steve

 

[john schmidt]

hi

i promise anybody looking to learn how to play 14.1 better or any pool game for that matter would be wise to see steve.

he will speed up the learning curve ,unclutter your mind ,and show you the way a pro thinks,and how you should think.

when i was first learning i would have been one of your first students.

funny thing is i still think i could learn things from you.

 

[POCKETWOLF]

Now this is something i could get into. Now if we can get that schmidt guy to come back to lincoln.....are you seeing this john? Sounds great steve, hope it works out for you.

 

[center pocket]

Steve, I really had no idea to what caliber of a player you were till just recently. I looked at the AZ Straight pool challenge from a few years ago and you had a run into the 200's. I would love to take some lessons but unfortunately I am in Arizona, a hop skip and a jump away from NYC.

 

[lockwood]

Good News for 14.1

Anyone who wants to learn from one the best pattern players on the East Coast
has the chance. Take it.
JLS

 

[stevekur1]

I can't agree with you more john !

Anyone who works with Stevie "the mission" will not be disappointed.

It is a great way to learn, it will allow both of you to get deep inside each others heads.

I am trying to work it put so I can do some 3 hour sessions.

Steve

 

[sjm]

To all who aspire to become proficient and scholarly over the glorious green felt, this is a special opportunity. Steve is a true guru of the game we love, and will bring you to the next level.

The question of mentors arose in this thread, and, of course, Steve names Dan Barouty, a player who, like me, was lucky enough to be very close to the pool scene of the late 1970's and the ealy and mid 1980's in New York and New Jersey.

It's scary how many good players lived in the New York City metropolitan area back then, but among them were Ray Martin, Steve Mizerak, Tom Jennings, Pete Margo, Jack Colavita, Allen Hopkins, John Ervolino, Pat Fleming, Ernie Costa, George Mikula and, yes, Jean Balukas. South Jersey gave us 300-ball runner Jose Garcia (and, to be fair, nearby Philadelphia featured Jimmy Fusco and Pete Fusco, another two old school straight shooters).

All of us who frequented the pool scene back then were lucky enough to get to see these great players on a fairly regular basis at the pool rooms of New York City and surroundings and in tournaments and were afforded the opportunity to study how the old masters went about their business over the glorious green felt.

Upstate New York featured yet another contingent of world beaters, including Irving Crane, Pat Howey, Mike Sigel, and Art "Babe" Cranfield of Rochester, NY and Dan DiLiberto, who had lived in Buffalo, NY. Yes, New York and New Jersey were the places to be back then if you wanted to watch the old masters in action.

Dan Barouty mingled with and watched the aforementioned crowd regularly back in the day, and it made him, in my opinion, one of our game's greatest scholars. He has passed his incredible knowledge on to his protege and friend, Steve Lipsky, and Steve's outstanding game speaks for itself.

Do yourself a favor, get in touch with Steve, whose encyclopedic knowledge of our game is now available to you.

 

[BayGene]

"Old" Timers

The upstate pantheon should include Mike Zuglan.

 

[BayGene]

Upstate 14.1 Greats

....and of course that other Mike from Rochester: Sigel.