"Sevenkiller"....is this a deserved nickname???

Maniac

Maniac

2manyQ's
Silver Member
In my APA 9-ball league last night I was dubbed "sevenkiller" by one of my teammates. As a SL6 it seems that I almost always win my matches (as I again did last night) when paired against a SL7. I am of the mindset that I feel as though my chances are better when being spotted balls as opposed to spotting my opponents balls. I have the dickens-of-a-time playing the SL4's and most SL5's. I had rather play someone better than me anyway. It makes me bear down and focus better, therefore I play better. Now I am starting to wonder if maybe the nine ball spot difference between a SL6 and a SL7 is a tad too much? What do the APA 9-ball league players out there think?

Do I deserve the "sevenkiller" moniker or is the spot too high? Keep in mind that a lot of times I get my 46 balls while the SL7's are still in their 30's or low 40's ( I beat one a few weeks ago 46-22). I would like to test my theory on a few SL8's and SL9's, but there just aren't any in my APA area.

This post is most definitely not bragging as I know that in the real world of pool I am not a wart on a real poolplayers ass :embarrassed2:. Just wondering what y'all think about the nine ball spot difference between the two skill levels?

And please, PLEASE don't turn this into an APA-bashing thread!!!

Maniac
 
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Sevenkiller

If you keep beating all the other 7s , My first thought would be you are underrated.
The other possibility is that you are underrated but have a mental block against giving up a spot so you tend to lose to lower rateds, which keeps you as a 6.
 
book collector said:
If you keep beating all the other 7s , My first thought would be you are underrated.
The other possibility is that you are underrated but have a mental block against giving up a spot so you tend to lose to lower rateds, which keeps you as a 6.
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Yeah, I think you're onto something there. I tend to shoot well against the better players, but when I play someone I'm spotting balls to and they start shooting better than me, it kinda gets into my head a bit (even though I do the EXACT very same thing to the SL7's). It's probably something I need to improve on if I'm ever going to go up in skill level, which I strive to do (it's a pride thing).

Maniac
 
It sounds like you tend to buckle down and play harder against the higher rated players. I did that pretty well in 8 until I hit a 7 and the game changed to me being the target for others. If you're hitting your #s before they do, that means you're probably concentrating more on your shots and defenses. When playing down, keep in mind that you still need to play the same way (defensive, etc) to keep the spread alive. If you think that little number by your name is all it takes to beat somebody that's ranked lower, well, it sounds like you already found that out..
 
Sevenkiller

I have learned to expect everyone I play to play perfect whether they are a 3 or a 9, I try to play safes when I am supposed to and shoot when I am supposed to, that way you don't get that shock when they make a great shot and get in the game.
There is actually a pretty small margin between a 5 and a seven imo. the 7 just does most things a little more consistent and may know a few more shots or play a bit tighter safes.
Same thing between a 7 and an 8 or 8 vs 9.
Subtle differences that may or may not show up in a short race.
When I played league they always threw their lowest player at me who was usually sand bagging {I was not}.
Many times I had to spot people who beat me gambling even. I just made up my mind to make them hate playing me. I tried to bear down on them like I was playing for my life and never give them a good shot.
It worked usually but it wasn't worth the stress to me to always have to overcome the nuts to win nothing.
 
A lot of APA 7's are over rated thanks to LO's splitting teams prematurely.
You may be playing victims of circumstance or getting better.
 
In 9-ball 6's and 7's are very similar skill wise. You should have trouble against most 8's and all 9's imo. As a 9, I beat 6's and 7's easily. 3's and 4's are tough if they can play smart.
 
Just very curious that there "just aren't any" 8s&9s in your area . Did you have the chance to play against any while you were in Vegas this summer ? I'd think , given the tone of your post , that you'd have wanted to try a few on the practice table . . .. .

If you are consistently beating 7s , especially by a large margin , it may well be that you are under rated .
The spot of nine balls doesn't even seem to be the issue for you if you are beating them cold to begin with . . . . . . .
perhaps you should be the s/l 8 , spotting THEM 10 balls !:rolleyes:

could possibly be that there should be some 8s & 9s in your area , and your LO is artificially suppressing the s/ls . . . . .
 
ridinda9 said:
Just very curious that there "just aren't any" 8s&9s in your area . Did you have the chance to play against any while you were in Vegas this summer ? I'd think , given the tone of your post , that you'd have wanted to try a few on the practice table . . .. .
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Whatever gave you the idea that I was in Vegas this summer??? FWIW, I've never been west of the Grand Canyon. You must be mistaking me for someone else.

Maniac
 
I would usually say it's a good thing if you are rising to the challenge of beating higher ranked players, as long as you don't have problems giving a spot to lesser players also. That can't be a bad thing in my mind, I'm surprised you haven't gone up to a 7 if you're winning all these matches.
 
I'd need to know more about the wins against '7's.

How many breaks and runs a match are you averaging ?
How many innings per game ?

If your innings are in the 0/1 range per game (not including defensives of course) then your playing well enough to beat a decent 7. More then that and perhaps your '7's are on the weaker side and playing closer to your level and giving you the spot.
 
I will say what many are thinking :grin-square:: You are better at sandbagging then the 7's , but not the 4's&5's!!
 
RRfireblade said:
I'd need to know more about the wins against '7's.

How many breaks and runs a match are you averaging ?
How many innings per game ?

If your innings are in the 0/1 range per game (not including defensives of course) then your playing well enough to beat a decent 7. More then that and perhaps your '7's are on the weaker side and playing closer to your level and giving you the spot.
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I think you have hit on something that I have suspected for a while, that the SL7's in my area are on the weaker side. I break and run a rack every once in a while. The SL7's I play only break and run a rack every once in a while themselves. I always expect a BNR or two every time I'm up against a SL7, but it just don't happen as often as it should. imo.

I usually average around 2 to 2 1/2 innings a game. Thursday night we played 11 racks in 27 innings with three safties by me and four by him, which is fairly typical for one of my matches.

For the most part, I figure I'm a strong 6 playing weak 7's.

Maniac
 
alphadog said:
I will say what many are thinking :grin-square:: You are better at sandbagging then the 7's , but not the 4's&5's!!
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Sorry, but you're WAY off base with the sandbagging comment. In fact, I am the total OPPOSITE of a sandbagger. I want to beat my opponent, not JUST a win, but an ass-whuppin'. I want to beat him/her in as few of innings as possible, in as little time as possible. I don't want to even see my opponent at the table (although at my skill level, this is impossible). I have NEVER missed a shot on purpose (that wasn't a "called" safety). My goal is to win each and every game I play, ALL the time!!!

Maniac
 
I think that is probably the answer, right there.

While I don't play APA 9-ball, the issue is similar in APA 8-ball. I'm most certainly on the low side of SL5, compared to other SL5's that I've played regularly. There are SL6's in our division that I consider to be equal to a lower ability SL7. It goes both ways. I got beaten this week by an SL4 that is most certainly among the better SL4's in our division. Could he be an SL5, probably. If he played that way consistently.

I think this is to be expected, given how unexact the system can be, and how uneven people can play from week to week. So long as people aren't more than one level off, it seems to be workable. (So long as it isn't multiple players on a team that are off, and all of them being too low, of course. I don't believe this happens as much as others may think.)
 
If you're beating higher skilled players with a handicap and losing to lower skilled players while giving a handicap. you're not "killing" anyone

Nicknames are only given to people who can actually play consistently well usually pro caliber. Which sounds like you're not. Maybe it's a mental thing but when you lose to a lower skilled player it and people have given you a nick name it makes you look silly and makes your teammates look stupid.

Instead of worrying about whether your teammates nickname to you is deserving your efforts maybe better spent wondering why you're losing to lower skilled players and work on changing your strategy, mental toughness or playing style.
 
If you're not sandbagging, then I would say you're probably suffering from what most Amateurs suffer from. You play to your competition.

I don't play APA any more. In fact, I don't play in any leagues now. But, about 15 years ago, I was the captain of an 8 ball team in Stillwater, OK. I had a three young ladies I called my six killers. Not that they played better than their 3 rating, but I could always count on the local 6's to play down to these ladies skill level.

One night we were playing a real strong team loaded with some of the best players in Stillwater (and some of the best sandbaggers too). Anyway, they put up one of their 6's and I put up one of my six killers. The guy walks up to me and says "so you playing me off" meaning I was sacrificing my players to keep one of my higher rated players for later. I didn't say a word. After my six killer embarrassed him, I walked over and said "No, I knew you couldn't beat her".

Steven
 
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