Your Thoughts In A Pressure Situation

Pidge

Pidge

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
US Open Final or the Thursday night bar tourney in the next town over, it doesn't matter. The person involved will feel pressure. So, you are hill/hill down to the last ball and its a 50/50 shot. What are you thinking about? Do I go for it or do I play safe? Why wont my hands stop shaking? God, I wish I didn't eat that chilli last night? Crap, I forgot to buy my wife a card for her birthday tomorrow!?

I'm always interested in another persons thought process when they are in a difficult position at the table.

Personally if its 50/50 and the last ball all I'm thinking is I'm going for it. Once I've made up my mind that I'm going for it whether its 90/10 or 10/90 then my thinking switches to "I'm potting this ball". I say that over and over in my head until I've hit the cue ball. Then I either say "knew I was going to make it" or "@$&*%@#&#". I think the most important part for me is believing im going to make the shot. If for one second I thought I was going to miss I'd never make a ball.
 
It's simple for me. If I think I can't make the shot I definitely won't, therefore I get into a safety battle.
If I know I can make the shot, I shoot it. That's the beautiful part of pool for me in that if you can imagine it you can do it.
 
If I KNOW I can make the shot, I go for the SHOT!

If it is 50/50 and I go for the shot, I make sure I CONTROL the cue ball. When you go for a grand slam and turn the object ball loose, it may go in the intended pocket, or it may end up going two or three rails into another pocket. Whatever the case, I'm going to STICK the cue ball on an end rail and as FAR as possible that I can control from the object ball.

When I am going for "iffy" shots, cue ball control is usually my main concern. If you have to turn the cue ball and the object ball loose, then you are going for a complete "Hail Mary" and that is when the luck factor comes into play. Do you feel lucky?

Sometimes I do.
 
HawaiianEye said:
If I KNOW I can make the shot, I go for the SHOT!

If it is 50/50 and I go for the shot, I make sure I CONTROL the cue ball. When you go for a grand slam and turn the object ball loose, it may go in the intended pocket, or it may end up going two or three rails into another pocket. Whatever the case, I'm going to STICK the cue ball on an end rail and as FAR as possible that I can control from the object ball.

When I am going for "iffy" shots, cue ball control is usually my main concern. If you have to turn the cue ball and the object ball loose, then you are going for a complete "Hail Mary" and that is when the luck factor comes into play. Do you feel lucky?

Sometimes I do.
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+1. I'm going for the shot and playing it just like any other shot I intend to make. I'm deciding where I'm going to leave the cb and make sure I'm not selling out to the other shooter.
 
I ran two racks in a tournament down to the 9, got bad shape on the 9 both times from hitting the ball too soft. I went for both shots, that were propbably 50%, hung up both 9 balls so the guy had 2 wins with two tap ins on the 9.

I thought about it, and I likely would have done the same thing again. If you play safe and the guy makes a bank or a nice cut, you let him take that shot. It has happened to me enough times that I tend to go for the win rather than give the other guy a chance for the win.

It's an iffy situation either way, as the guy could go for it and miss if you play a safe but end up leaving you a tough shot or he could play just as good of a return safety leaving you to once again make the decision and maybe end up in an even worse spot than you were the first time.
 
Pidge said:
US Open Final or the Thursday night bar tourney in the next town over, it doesn't matter. The person involved will feel pressure. So, you are hill/hill down to the last ball and its a 50/50 shot. What are you thinking about? Do I go for it or do I play safe? Why wont my hands stop shaking? God, I wish I didn't eat that chilli last night? Crap, I forgot to buy my wife a card for her birthday tomorrow!?

I'm always interested in another persons thought process when they are in a difficult position at the table.

Personally if its 50/50 and the last ball all I'm thinking is I'm going for it. Once I've made up my mind that I'm going for it whether its 90/10 or 10/90 then my thinking switches to "I'm potting this ball". I say that over and over in my head until I've hit the cue ball. Then I either say "knew I was going to make it" or "@$&*%@#&#". I think the most important part for me is believing im going to make the shot. If for one second I thought I was going to miss I'd never make a ball.
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I'm not sure I know what a 50/50 shot is.

Can you give us an example?
 
hang-the-9 said:
I ran two racks in a tournament down to the 9, got bad shape on the 9 both times from hitting the ball too soft. I went for both shots, that were propbably 50%, hung up both 9 balls so the guy had 2 wins with two tap ins on the 9.

I thought about it, and I likely would have done the same thing again. If you play safe and the guy makes a bank or a nice cut, you let him take that shot. It has happened to me enough times that I tend to go for the win rather than give the other guy a chance for the win.

It's an iffy situation either way, as the guy could go for it and miss if you play a safe but end up leaving you a tough shot or he could play just as good of a return safety leaving you to once again make the decision and maybe end up in an even worse spot than you were the first time.
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That's exactly my way of thinking. If its 50/50 I don't want to either miss and leave a hanger so I shoot them firm and get the cue ball at the opposite end of the table glued to a cushion if I can. Also my thinking is that if I miss, and don't leave it, I'm generally going to have a longer trickier shot so take what I've got and listen for it to drop.
 
Cornerman said:
I'm not sure I know what a 50/50 shot is.

Can you give us an example?
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I can't give you an example...it depends on the player. Its a shot you make just as many times as you miss. This could be a short straight in for some players, a long straight in for others and a thin long shot for some of the better players.
 
Whether it's an iffy shot in a hill-hill match or my first time to the table faced with a simple stop-shot, when I'm under pressure I think "good fundamentals."

If I focus on my fundamentals (a) I'm not thinking about other things like missing or losing, (b) I'm giving the shot the best chance of being successful and (c) I can walk away from the table calmly knowing that I gave the shot the best chance for success.

I also take a second to consciously acknowledge that my adrenaline is pumping and I think to myself, "this is fun."
 
I need more information. What are the odds I will execute a perfect safety? If I execute the safety what are my opponents odds of making the shot or executing a perfect safety back at me.

I would also go by how I am feeling at that moment. If I feel like I can't miss I am shooting. If I am having an off day maybe I play the safe. But I do agree once I dedicate myself to shooting the shot I am 100% focused on making it and think about nothing else.
 
krupa said:
Whether it's an iffy shot in a hill-hill match or my first time to the table faced with a simple stop-shot, when I'm under pressure I think "good fundamentals."
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That's more in line where I am, too. Unfortunately, thinking and doing are two unrelated items in my Universe.

Freddie
 
On the occasions I got the shakes, where nerves overcome me, the game is already losr.... if I manage to win by fluke or opponent being equally or more so nevous, then it's little compensation.

Your potential is never reached when you're not enjoying the challenge. Getting into that mentality is probably the greatest challenge in playing. Skills can be gained via practice.... getting one's head in the right place in competition is a far more difficult thing to accomplish for most. My best advice is to learn how to practice great and play in heaps of events where you have to deal with nerves, until you start getting used to it.... or, find some mental wizard, which I doubt exists.
 
im probably going for it but thinking about where to leave the CB in case I miss.
 
What's more important is what you believe at the moment.

Have you spent the time visualizing yourself remaining composed and focused in the moments that seperate the men from the boys? Do you see yourself as someone who is mentally tough and able to excell in these moments? If you do then its easy to say to yourself "here it is" "the moment that I knew was coming" "this is my moment to shine again" and you actually believe that the pressure is going to bring out the best in you.
 
Nerves either make or break you. I couldn't play if I didn't have the nervous feeling in my stomach. I think I thrive off it. Adrenaline? I dunno what it is but it makes me play much better.
 
I need a little adrenalin to compete

Without a little adrenalin I don't compete well even if what is demanded is precision. I took beta blockers for years for high blood pressure. Left me flat footed and it was very hard to compete.

I'll lock into one thing before going into action. Usually no matter what I am doing "smooth" works. Gonna bring my hands from over shoulder high, pluck a pistol out of a holster and shot five steel plates in two and a half seconds, ain't worried about fast, smooth is faster. Going to shoot head rail to foot rail and touch the edge of a ball to pocket it? Speed and accuracy will be there if I'm smooth. Twelve laps with ten faster cars on my back bumper or alongside me? Smooth will get me there!

If given a choice of when to start like a pool shot I won't start until I stop thinking anything at all, including smooth. If I can't shut down the verbal chatter in my mind I'll overwhelm it by focusing on smooth.

Worst thing in the world is focusing on what you don't want to do, "avoid the scratch." Focusing in detail on what you want to do is almost as bad, "hit the cue ball with high outside and I want the cue ball to stop right there and the object ball to go in the left edge of the pocket. Too much detail! You decided all of that already, forget about it! Best to have an empty mind but if you can't achieve that focus on what you are doing at the exact moment, the reason I use "smooth." Smooth back stroke, smooth transition, smooth final stroke, that will get the cheese!

Hu
 
If last ball is reasonable shot i always go for it. If i can't make it, i deserve to lose. It's that simple. And you will not second guess yourself after you take that attitude.

Also bonuses and odds is my side..
I can fluke winning ball. I can get a lucky safety. Even if i leave a decent shot to opponent he can dog it also.
So safety have to be should be perfect always and i still probably lose 1 to 6 times.

But mentally prepared attitude is most important thing for me. I have to execute even if I'm nervous if i wanna be consistent winner.
 
I factor in the safety-element when evaluating a "50/50" opportunity.

Pidge said:
US Open Final or the Thursday night bar tourney in the next town over, it doesn't matter. The person involved will feel pressure. So, you are hill/hill down to the last ball and its a 50/50 shot. What are you thinking about? Do I go for it or do I play safe? Why wont my hands stop shaking? God, I wish I didn't eat that chilli last night? Crap, I forgot to buy my wife a card for her birthday tomorrow!?

I'm always interested in another persons thought process when they are in a difficult position at the table.

Personally if its 50/50 and the last ball all I'm thinking is I'm going for it. Once I've made up my mind that I'm going for it whether its 90/10 or 10/90 then my thinking switches to "I'm potting this ball". I say that over and over in my head until I've hit the cue ball. Then I either say "knew I was going to make it" or "@$&*%@#&#". I think the most important part for me is believing im going to make the shot. If for one second I thought I was going to miss I'd never make a ball.
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It depends on the 50/50 shot. Sometimes it's best to go for the shot, and also have a safety-element. Even if you cut a ball from the middle of the table, it's best to play the cue ball to the end rail.

I factor in the safety-element when evaluating a "50/50" opportunity. If there's no safety chance at all I will many times choose to play safe.

Betting the game on a "coin flip" is not something I'd recommend, unless the odds can be improved with an added defensive component.
 
Many will tell you to focus chiefly on making your best strokes. For me, that's not even close to good enough. Nerves, poor decisions and poor strokes are all the enemy, and are hard to avoid under pressure.

Here's the approach:

Nerves: I've succeeded before in this situation so I can succeed again if I give it my all and stick to my usual playing rhythm.

Procedurally (decisions): I will stick to my normal procedure of selecting stroke, direction and speed and will make all my decisions standing up.

Procedurally (shot execution): I will focus on maintaining my mechanics to attain to the stroke, direction and speed I selected.

I think that people have a habit of overlooking the decision making part of dealing with pressure.
 
Pidge said:
US Open Final or the Thursday night bar tourney in the next town over, it doesn't matter. The person involved will feel pressure. So, you are hill/hill down to the last ball and its a 50/50 shot. What are you thinking about? Do I go for it or do I play safe? Why wont my hands stop shaking? God, I wish I didn't eat that chilli last night? Crap, I forgot to buy my wife a card for her birthday tomorrow!?

I'm always interested in another persons thought process when they are in a difficult position at the table.

Personally if its 50/50 and the last ball all I'm thinking is I'm going for it. Once I've made up my mind that I'm going for it whether its 90/10 or 10/90 then my thinking switches to "I'm potting this ball". I say that over and over in my head until I've hit the cue ball. Then I either say "knew I was going to make it" or "@$&*%@#&#". I think the most important part for me is believing im going to make the shot. If for one second I thought I was going to miss I'd never make a ball.
Click to expand...

I want to say I'd go for the shot, but first I'd have to know what the successful safety % looked like.

As far as what I'm thinking, as little as humanly possible.
 
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