Thanks guys - I crushed an 8 last night
- Thread starter Zphix
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That is one of the flaws for players with handicapped leagues, if someone wins they view it as a "win" not as a "win because I did not have to work as hard".
Running 2 racks is great, I don't know how long it took me to do that, but I'm sure it was a long time, and well over 20 years by records are still 3 racks in both 9 and 8 ball and 2 in 10 ball (mostly because I just can't sink a ball on the break in 10 ball).
The trap here is not to start boasting all over the place how you beat so and so, or being super happy about a win, especially if you were playing under your true rank and did not have to win nearly as many games as your opponent.
There was a guy in my league that played against my team-mate who was ranked a 112 which is the highest in our league, max is 125. The other guy was an 80 something, with 14 pts a rack, my friend gave up over 2 racks to him.
The next day the guy was telling everyone at his work how he beat my friend (who quite a few people know in the area), of course he did not mention the spot or the fact when most of the time that the guy missed he left my friend hooked.
Running 2 racks is great, I don't know how long it took me to do that, but I'm sure it was a long time, and well over 20 years by records are still 3 racks in both 9 and 8 ball and 2 in 10 ball (mostly because I just can't sink a ball on the break in 10 ball).
The trap here is not to start boasting all over the place how you beat so and so, or being super happy about a win, especially if you were playing under your true rank and did not have to win nearly as many games as your opponent.
There was a guy in my league that played against my team-mate who was ranked a 112 which is the highest in our league, max is 125. The other guy was an 80 something, with 14 pts a rack, my friend gave up over 2 racks to him.
The next day the guy was telling everyone at his work how he beat my friend (who quite a few people know in the area), of course he did not mention the spot or the fact when most of the time that the guy missed he left my friend hooked.
So far, all I've read is how you are really a "6" according to others, you run racks all the time so no big deal, that if you only need to win 2 games you will beat just about anyone, and you read some pool books/videos, and since you are borderline genius you just applied what you read, and play lights out. You broke and ran TWICE against an "8" even though he was really a "7"... I guess you're not as good as reading the rules/ratings as you are at reading pool books. Yet, you are still a "3". Something does not add up at all with this story....
You sure you wanna stick with this story or maybe try another one
You sure you wanna stick with this story or maybe try another one
Welp - my IQ is actually 133.
Anyway - the story is this is my first league so I started as a 4 - lost my first game because of nerves and lack of things I've learned since then. Bumped down to a 3 (which happened 2 weeks ago) then won my match 2 weeks ago against a 4. Played my most recent match against a 7 and broke and ran two racks.
The cause of my growth comes from a) being able to read, apply, and figure things out on my own. b) having a good mentor around me. c) being so dedicated and loving the game so much that it's extremely fun which leads me to learn really fast.
When I started out I was an incredible shot maker and HAD to rely on that to win matches - now, however, since I've learned and practiced cue ball control extensively over the course of 3 weeks it's easier to play position now - mix that with my ability to make shots and it shouldn't be that hard to figure out Chicago....
Situational factors do have an effect on your ability - and it is possible to learn new things relatively fast so I don't see why it's hard to understand how this happened...
Anyway - the story is this is my first league so I started as a 4 - lost my first game because of nerves and lack of things I've learned since then. Bumped down to a 3 (which happened 2 weeks ago) then won my match 2 weeks ago against a 4. Played my most recent match against a 7 and broke and ran two racks.
The cause of my growth comes from a) being able to read, apply, and figure things out on my own. b) having a good mentor around me. c) being so dedicated and loving the game so much that it's extremely fun which leads me to learn really fast.
When I started out I was an incredible shot maker and HAD to rely on that to win matches - now, however, since I've learned and practiced cue ball control extensively over the course of 3 weeks it's easier to play position now - mix that with my ability to make shots and it shouldn't be that hard to figure out Chicago....
Situational factors do have an effect on your ability - and it is possible to learn new things relatively fast so I don't see why it's hard to understand how this happened...
Look, I usually try to be the diplomatic sort, and help the conversation find some common, middle ground.
You have to understand how difficult it is to believe that someone who played poorly enough to lose his first couple APA matches is going to learn enough to run a two-pack in three weeks.
We have 7's here that have been playing for years and don't run 2-packs.
Perhaps it is as you describe. But please understand that it is rather unusual. OK, extremely unusual.
Wow, let the guy enjoy his moment in the sun. Perhaps the balls just lined up incredibly well with those two racks. It happens. He didn't say but perhaps he hit a couple of slop shots to continue his runs. Who cares? Obviously, it made him joyful about the game of pool and that can only be a good thing. He didn't steal money from anyone here so łet him enjoy the moment.
Okay guys-
I think I've got a solution as to why this happened.
1) We were playing on a bar box 7' footer- not a 9' table that I, and probably most of you are, am accustomed to. Things get so much simpler on a BB - less space, more spreading on the break, less distance for balls to travel.
2) The guy was a BB hero who I found out only plays on 7' - not a good safe player, just able to make anything from anywhere on the table because of the distance and supreme familiarity with the tables.
When I transition from 9' to 7' it takes a minute because of the slight differences that my body gets accustomed to playing on the 9' but everything else gets much much much simpler.
I don't feel too proud about this anymore haha
I think I've got a solution as to why this happened.
1) We were playing on a bar box 7' footer- not a 9' table that I, and probably most of you are, am accustomed to. Things get so much simpler on a BB - less space, more spreading on the break, less distance for balls to travel.
2) The guy was a BB hero who I found out only plays on 7' - not a good safe player, just able to make anything from anywhere on the table because of the distance and supreme familiarity with the tables.
When I transition from 9' to 7' it takes a minute because of the slight differences that my body gets accustomed to playing on the 9' but everything else gets much much much simpler.
I don't feel too proud about this anymore haha
Fact is that you still broke and ran 2 racks of 8-ball. The fact that you did it against a bar-box hero 7 as opposed to a world champion or another 3 is somewhat irrelevant -except perhaps you felt more pressure to run out against the higher SL. But still, breaking and running 2 racks is impressive...full stop.
Furthermore, the fact that it was on a BB - imo - does not diminish this feat. Although shot making is easier on a BB, clusters are far more prevalent. It is possible that you had 2 lucky spreads, but still it is impressive.
I believe that if the title of your original post had been "I broke and ran 2 racks of 8-ball" vs. "I crushed an 8 last night" ... people would not have been as put off (myself included). But saying you crushed an 8 then brings in questions of sandbagging, playing to your correct SL, etc...
BTW...how much of your recent success do you attribute to your cross legged karate stance?
You have plenty of reason to be proud, running a 2-pack is pretty damned cool, in my opinion. For APA anyway.
The rest of it will take care of itself. Skill Levels and all that....don't worry about it, and play. Good luck this week! They'll be on the lookout for you now
No, no, by all means feel proud, I find 9 footers easier to play on overall. More space for position play, less cutter, and a lot of times the bar tables are so poorly maintained that kicks, banks and even regular position shots are a guess as to where they will end up.
BJ - No more cross legged stance for me haha.
CJ Wiley replied back to me with a few tips, and I now have a more regular pool stance - just spread my feet more and step back farther from the table.
His exact words to me were: I would recommend starting down to the ball by moving your hips/midsection BACK away from the ball to make your head go down....this will help you keep your back straight without "hunching" down to the ball.
Remember, hips BACK to make your head go FORWARD....this will take some practice, just remember that the flex in your back should remain nearly the same from start to finish....this will solve your problem if possible.
However - I break with my right leg forward and left leg back which causes me to lean forward a bit more and it adds a little power to my break... not exactly sure why though.
ANYHOW - Thanks for the kind words guys - I'll be posting a recap of my next match and should be recording some videos of me practicing.
Yes, my bad. I forgot you started out in this game as an expert shot maker, and you only had to learn cueball control to dominant. Thanks for clarifying that for me. Yet, everyone around you thinks your a stud player, should be a "6", and you run racks all the time (your words, not mine) so no offense, but I expect a player as good as you claim to run two racks once in awhile. If you were an apa 3, I'd say nice going, nice to get lucky once in awhile.
This is not possible without understanding how to "clear the hips".
This technique is difficult to teach and requires some effort to learn, however the rewards make the game so much easier. You can suddenly look straight down the line of the shot and the game becomes so much easier.
This is not possible without understanding how to "clear the hips".....this may be the single most important movement to go from a "7/8" to the professional level.
'The Game is the Teacher'
This technique is difficult to teach and requires some effort to learn, however the rewards make the game so much easier. You can suddenly look straight down the line of the shot and the game becomes so much easier.
This is not possible without understanding how to "clear the hips".....this may be the single most important movement to go from a "7/8" to the professional level.
'The Game is the Teacher'