How do you not get fed up with pool?

timothysoong

timothysoong

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Ive been playing pool for since I was 8. I'm 21 now. I play 9-Ball, I can run out racks easily. I started playing pool almost everyday lately. And well, there are times or a day where I play really awful. Idk why or how it happened. But I was playing good the day before, but the next day I played horribly.

how horrible? I can still pot balls, but I started doubting my strokes, stance, etc.

When i see a chance, I used to have a (im gonna run out this rack) thought, but on that awful playing day, I'd be like ("will i be able to pot this ball?")

And when I played that awful, I tend to tell myself I should play more to get back on form, but the more I play the more frustrated I get and my back, neck, feet tends to get sore more easier when I play awful. :(

Anyone can give me some thoughts or suggestions here?

Tim


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that instructor later became Tiger Wood's Swing Coach and he was right.

timothysoong said:
Ive been playing pool for since I was 8. I'm 21 now. I play 9-Ball, I can run out racks easily. I started playing pool almost everyday lately. And well, there are times or a day where I play really awful. Idk why or how it happened. But I was playing good the day before, but the next day I played horribly.

how horrible? I can still pot balls, but I started doubting my strokes, stance, etc.

When i see a chance, I used to have a (im gonna run out this rack) thought, but on that awful playing day, I'd be like ("will i be able to pot this ball?")

And when I played that awful, I tend to tell myself I should play more to get back on form, but the more I play the more frustrated I get and my back, neck, feet tends to get sore more easier when I play awful. :(

Anyone can give me some thoughts or suggestions here?

Tim


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Click to expand...

I can relate, Tim, even after I had wins over some of the best players in the world I went though the same feelings.......and it was because of my fundamentals. I was playing a lot of tennis and golf at that time and I heard a golf instructor say "if it feels right, it's probably wrong" and it stuck in my mind.....that instructor later became Tiger Wood's Swing Coach and he was right....not just in golf, but pool too from my experience.

Yes, proper fundamentals are essential and there's different levels of fundamentals. There's the ones that "feel good" and are "comfortable" and then there's ones that don't feel comfortable (at first) yet are extremely effective and consistent. It's easier to teach others to just "do what's comfortable" however, I firmly believe this will hold them back at some point from reaching full potential. And it sounds like you want to excel, Tim.

Try thinking about it this way:

Were we put on this earth to play pool? I believe the answer is "no," so to think we can play our best and "be comfortable" too is far fetched and from my experience is simply wrong.

Developing the most effective stance and stroke takes some effort, and pain. Some people pull back from this like it's a hot stove and others embrace it because they know in life "no pain, equals no gain," and this is true in many things and pool is no exception.

I went through a few stance/stroke changes in my early career because I was "doing what was comfortable and natural," and even though I still played at a high level I would never have reached my true potential without learning the correct way, and giving up the "comfortable way".

There are two different ways of playing, one's fine for recreational players, (seeking comfort), and the other one is essential for those that aspire to play their best (those seeking effectiveness, sacrificing some short term pain).

'The Game is the Teacher'.com
 
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CJ Wiley said:
and it was because of my fundamentals. I was playing a lot of tennis and golf at that time and I heard a golf instructor say "if it feels right, it's probably wrong" and it stuck in my mind.....that instructor later became Tiger Wood's Swing Coach and he was right....not just in golf, but pool too from my experience.
Click to expand...

I hate you sooooo sooo sooooo much right now CJ..... Tips are going out tomorrow so I don't hate ya that bad.......

I keep looking for what feels "right".... have for months now trying to get back...

Some days it feels right and I am running out like water again and the next day it still feels right and I 'd be hard pressed to beat a C player even....

I keep doing small video segments but not religiously... How about if it looks right... If it looks right and I am making balls even if it's not the classic fundamentals would that work?? LOL

I'mma seriously gonna punch the next sob in the nose that tells me how this is just like riding a bike.......

Chris
 
"you're right, it's "just" like riding a bike, on a tight rope over alligators

The Renfro said:
I hate you sooooo sooo sooooo much right now CJ..... Tips are going out tomorrow so I don't hate ya that bad.......

I keep looking for what feels "right".... have for months now trying to get back...

Some days it feels right and I am running out like water again and the next day it still feels right and I 'd be hard pressed to beat a C player even....

I keep doing small video segments but not religiously... How about if it looks right... If it looks right and I am making balls even if it's not the classic fundamentals would that work?? LOL

I'mma seriously gonna punch the next sob in the nose that tells me how this is just like riding a bike.......

Chris
Click to expand...

The last guy that told me that I said "you're right, it's "just" like riding a bike, on a tight rope over a pond filled with alligators." :thumbup:

Playing pool, golf, tennis, basketball, football, etc is not more "natural" than doing math, reading, writing, etc.

You have to learn the correct, most effective way, or you will never read or write to your full potential. Imagine your grade school teacher just telling everyone in the room to just write the way they feel comfortable, or read the way they "naturally do".

This is silly and so is thinking that pool's such an exception. That more I'm around the pool scene the more I see one common denominator "someone has been spreading the rumors that pool and pool players are exceptional".....this is a fallacy.

We need to accept that we are normal and should do everything that other sports and games do to be successful. We don't have to "reinvent the wheel" however we do have to use a wheel. ;)

'The Game is Still the Teacher' - It's Prudent to Learn the "A,B,Cs" and Multiplication Tables First before progressing to the Spelling B's, and Trigonometry. :eek:
418204_462137357144190_1303502145_n.jpg
 
I had that feeling last night. Played my first 10 ball tournament yesterday. It didn't go well 2 and out. Then went to my APA LTC qualifier session to attempt getting qualified for 9 ball singles. I couldn't find my stroke anywhere and lost my match without a fight. It was a terribly off day. I felt liked I was going to be done playing for a while. Decided to practice some tonight. I've been playing here at the house for the last 2 hours and all is well again.
 
The root cause is probably located in your stance..

BryanB said:
I had that feeling last night. Played my first 10 ball tournament yesterday. It didn't go well 2 and out. Then went to my APA LTC qualifier session to attempt getting qualified for 9 ball singles. I couldn't find my stroke anywhere and lost my match without a fight. It was a terribly off day. I felt liked I was going to be done playing for a while. Decided to practice some tonight. I've been playing here at the house for the last 2 hours and all is well again.
Click to expand...

The root cause is probably located in your stance....I'd bet really high on that and I've never seen you hit a ball.

rootcause.gif
 
Bob Dixon said:
You're 21? Dewd. You're, like- one third my age. I can play eight hours before my back, neck, and feet get barely sore. If you get more sore than that I suggest you see a geriatric physician.
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That's what I was thinking. When I was 21 I could play full court basketball 8 hours a day and do it again the next day. Go play outside every once in a while.

JC
 
I am currently battling this as well.



Dopc.
 
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Bob Dixon said:
You're 21? Dewd. You're, like- one third my age. I can play eight hours before my back, neck, and feet get barely sore. If you get more sore than that I suggest you see a geriatric physician.
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That's cause I play too much other sports.

I'd play at least 3hrs a day of pool. And spent like 2-3hrs playing basketball, soccer, badminton or tennis before I go to a pool hall. And I tend to sore badly especially after a few days of playing soccer


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JC said:
That's what I was thinking. When I was 21 I could play full court basketball 8 hours a day and do it again the next day. Go play outside every once in a while.

JC
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The thing is I exercise a lot. Sometimes I tend to play too serious and make my muscles worn out the next day.


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Everybody deals with off days. I've had bad weeks before. They come and they go.Just work on fundamentals.
 
Back when I was the OP's age (21-ish) my brother and I decided to go to Cornbread's in Houston, TX and play 24 hours straight (no breaks, we ate at the table as we shot and did bathroom breaks when the other guy was shooting)...just to do it and see what it was like. If you've never done that, let me tell you it's a BEAR. I had blisters (actual blisters!) on my bridge hand, and was walking like an 80 year old for a couple of days afterward.

CJ's right, nothing about pool is "natural"; you're bending over at the waste in a bad way, using muscles for stuff that we don't generally do and focusing our brain on concentration for longer periods of time than we normally ever do. There are shortcuts to stance and stroke that we fall into because it takes some strain off or the "dog" is getting out and we turn away from it. All you need is to take a break from time to time.

My advice to you, though, is take things A LOT less seriously. Pool is supposed to be fun. You're 21 for crying out loud! You're supposed to be chasing girls and figuring out what you're going to do for a living. Take a break. Pool isn't going anywhere. Everybody has bad nights when they can't run three balls. Everybody. It's part of the challenge of the game.
 
timothysoong said:
Ive been playing pool for since I was 8. I'm 21 now. I play 9-Ball, I can run out racks easily. I started playing pool almost everyday lately. And well, there are times or a day where I play really awful. Idk why or how it happened. But I was playing good the day before, but the next day I played horribly.

how horrible? I can still pot balls, but I started doubting my strokes, stance, etc.

When i see a chance, I used to have a (im gonna run out this rack) thought, but on that awful playing day, I'd be like ("will i be able to pot this ball?")

And when I played that awful, I tend to tell myself I should play more to get back on form, but the more I play the more frustrated I get and my back, neck, feet tends to get sore more easier when I play awful. :(

Anyone can give me some thoughts or suggestions here?

Tim


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

You still did not discover all secrets to be consistent; once you do you will never doubt yourself. Yes there are secrets in pool, or if you want to call it what distinguishes a pro from a very high advance player. When you miss you must learn why you miss. No substitute to learning all 4000 shots of pool.
 
That mcdonald's prank is maybe even better than habba babba.

naji, I must say, I get a kick out of it every time you mention the 4000 shots in the hopes that someone
will bite and ask "What do you mean". Nobody ever does, but maybe once a year someone humors
you, then you get the satisfaction of saying "It's a secret" and it's like nourishment for your soul.

timothy: your mental state has a lot to do with how you play. It's hard for me to admit, but if I'm
a little mad about something, or a little bored, not really in the mood... I just won't shoot good pool.
I want to shoot well always, and it makes me mad that I'm missing, but sometimes my mindset is not correct.

Maybe you're the same way. I can understand if you don't play much because of muscle pains,
but maybe if you're honest you just don't feel like playing every day. It's ok to just stay home
if your heart's not in it.
 
Here's how not to get fed up with pool:
Get married and have kids. I guarantee you'll cherish every precious moment at the table like it's your last.
 
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