Your in a slump: shoot through it or fast?

[Maniac]

What causes a slump?

If you play frequently enough to recognize you're slumping odds are you haven't had a mechanical breakdown. Maybe if you had a physical change in your body, heavy bruise, sprain/strained something, etc.

I believe it can be traced to either less time on the table or a breakdown in focus.

Stress is a powerful thing. A new interest, got a new kayak, motorcycle, etc, takes the mind off what is at hand. There are many outside factors that can take your focus away.

Break the slump, get your focus back. First part is the desire to play. If it's not there, don't play. I've played better from watching others play. Not only pro games but the local tourney games. It builds in me a desire to play, I'm engrossed in the game, I'm visualizing shots and English, speed, the leave...my mind is in full pool mode now. Now, I want to play and my mind is woke to playing pool.

Great advice if you take playing pool super-seriously, but I'm not gonna want to focus on pool so hard that I give up the many other enjoyable endeavors life has to offer. I also LOVE fishing, hunting, target shooting, reloading ammunition, 4-wheeling, and camping. I once included bowling on that list.

I've got to spread my focus on many things...primarily on family. Pool is just an enjoyable activity for me and my wife. IMHO, many people not into pool for a money-making aspect take the game way to seriously to get a maximum return on the enjoyment it offers.

Maniac

 

[strmanglr scott]

Great advice if you take playing pool super-seriously, but I'm not gonna want to focus on pool so hard that I give up the many other enjoyable endeavors life has to offer. I also LOVE fishing, hunting, target shooting, reloading ammunition, 4-wheeling, and camping. I once included bowling on that list.

I've got to spread my focus on many things...primarily on family. Pool is just an enjoyable activity for me and my wife. IMHO, many people not into pool for a money-making aspect take the game way to seriously to get a maximum return on the enjoyment it offers.

Maniac

Oh yeah, totally get that. But when you play, as much of that other stuff you can keep out of your head the better your game will be. Live in the moment, whatever that moment brings.

I love fishing. My pool game will go down hill until about late July when it gets too hot and the rivers get real low. Trout fishing sucks at this time of year, as do many other species. Then my game will peak just as the Salmon start up and my pool game takes the back seat again.

I'll watch the pros play for about 30 minutes before I go to league. Again, just starting the engine and getting it warmed up.

 

[GoldCrown]

Take two weeks off, and then quit forever

Yep. Rather quit than give up. Seriously. Keep playing. What the heck. Sometimes it’s so bad it can only get better.

 

[evergruven]

...slow down and be aware of everything you’re doing.

now I don't always follow it but win or lose, I love this advice-

slumps suck, but can certainly be seen as an opportunity-

 

[NINEBALLART]

I take time off..Maybe 2-3 days anyway.......It gets all those thoughts out of my mine...Working thru it I am always at the table thinking this and that while shooting..My muscles don't know what to do....By taking time off I forget what I've been thinking and just go back to shooting without thinking...If you been playing awhile you already know what to do, just quit thinking about it all the time...Works for me anyway.....Don't think, relax and just shoot...

This always worked for me in bowling also...Just went back and stopped thinking and it came back naturally...

Might not work for everyone but it worked for me and thats what counts for me...

 

[Scratch85]

Play through it. Gotta learn how to let self one get out of the way of self two.


Sent from my iPhone using AzBilliards Forums

 

[Get_A_Grip]

You won't be in a slump if you play regularly and if you build a technique and form so that you can play good when completely cold.

That is one thing that I've learned recently. You want to be able to play at at least 80% of your top skill level when just getting to the table when cold.

If you want to get into a slump, the best way to do it is to not play at all for over 3 days.

This is a muscle memory game. Whether you realize it or not, if you don't hit a ball in over 3 days, your skill level is going to drop. Period. The longer you don't shoot, the more of the subtle skills are going to fade away.

 

[ghost ball]

How do you beat your slump? Everyone is different. Do you shoot through your slump? Or do you simply give your game a break and stop shooting for a couple days?

I like to change my contact lenses. :thumbup: Seeing clearerly brings whole new joy to the game.

 

[noMoreSchon]

Slumps...You will come out of it as a better player. It gives you time

to focus on somethings that you may have lapsed on. There are so

many things going on during a pool stroke, and we train one area then

train another, little things get less attention. We become so focused on the

hard parts that we forget how important the little things are. I am on a upswing

from a slump, focused on front hand/back hand...Simple things we take for granted

on every shot, and even now find myself cueing up the shot without checking

hand position. It is the little things that make champions. How many times have you

'forgotten' something you once knew? I do it more than I like to admit, knowledge

has to stay sharp to be effective, and spending time on one thing more than another

will lead to a slump, which will lead to focusing on the small aspects of the game.

 

[hotelyorba]

A slump can be your best learning experience.....
...what you thought was right has some flaws....
...solitary practise will take you to the next level...
..don’t just hit balls, waiting for the osmosis to get you through it...
...slow down and be aware of everything you’re doing.

Years ago I got really frustrated when I hit a slump (not saying it is not frustrating anymore btw) but then I started doing exactly what you describe here.

Now, I've grown to really like the constant tweaking and fiddling on all the details of my game. I believe it's a good approach for constant improvement, although it has a downside too: I never settle on a routine and just start playing with confidence. I'm always looking for details that need work that I can focus on.

It's like I'm a car that's being constantly tuned, it could be a thing of beauty and power if it was ever done but instead it's in a perpetual state of having important parts being unscrewed.

One day I'll be done, and then... you just wait and see!! I'll be too old to play. :thumbup:

 

[hotelyorba]

What causes a slump?

If you play frequently enough to recognize you're slumping odds are you haven't had a mechanical breakdown. Maybe if you had a physical change in your body, heavy bruise, sprain/strained something, etc.

I believe it can be traced to either less time on the table or a breakdown in focus.

I strongly believe a slump is caused by loss of confidence, for whatever reason. Suddenly you're doubting everything you're trying to do with that cueball. For me, it can happen when I try to play with sore muscles, which prevents me from moving naturally which in turn has its effect on my cue alignment, stance and/or stroke. Then I get a little frustrated, and suddenly I forgot how I always stand and shoot and that's my confidence out the door.

So then the process starts again of re-examining what I'm doing, trying to remember what I do when the stroke works and gradually building up my form from there. I'm getting better and better at that process, my last slump lasted for just one week. I remember 6-month-slumps, so this approach works for me!

 

[Icon of Sin]

I strongly believe a slump is caused by loss of confidence, for whatever reason. Suddenly you're doubting everything you're trying to do with that cueball. For me, it can happen when I try to play with sore muscles, which prevents me from moving naturally which in turn has its effect on my cue alignment, stance and/or stroke. Then I get a little frustrated, and suddenly I forgot how I always stand and shoot and that's my confidence out the door.

So then the process starts again of re-examining what I'm doing, trying to remember what I do when the stroke works and gradually building up my form from there. I'm getting better and better at that process, my last slump lasted for just one week. I remember 6-month-slumps, so this approach works for me!

The loss of confidence is a big factor for me. I feel it's the largest contributor to slumps I have been in.

 

[Dan_B]

this slump thing looks to be contagious, so, there's not a pill?

the "or fast"? do you mean like in, diet?

I've got issues too,
a wobble maybe,
missing the target,
just by a little.
Don't want to slow down,
cus, if there were a clock,
I'd be late, so, @ 6:30
I gotta go with what I got,
opponent is 3 weeks out,
from a dbl. bypass,
I might have a chance,
A buck and a half,
markets down cryptos up,
I got this...

...well, came from behind to get within 3 points 75 -78
and only 1 yellow ball down going into the 8th,
then lost the mojo, final 85 - 105, couldn't score a yellow,
lost both...

 

[lfigueroa]

How do you beat your slump? Everyone is different. Do you shoot through your slump? Or do you simply give your game a break and stop shooting for a couple days?

I think what's important is to realize that "the slump" means you've changed something in your setup and are no longer stroking accurately.

From the chair to the table, to descending into shooting position, to stroking the ball involves a complex series of body part placements and motions. If any of them are off a bit the result will show up in how the balls behave.

So the solution is introspection.

Setup a moderately difficult shot that you would normally execute well and shoot it repeatedly, each time paying attention to how you get into shooting position and stroke the ball. Start off with your "slump setup" and shoot the shot. IOWs, intentionally allow yourself to miss but watch for what your body is doing in your approach to the table and the results you're getting.

Then attempt to alter your setup to improve your result. You'll see that small variations manifest themselves in different results on the table. From there it's a matter of seeing if what you think works better actually does with different shots. Then wash, rinse, and repeat. I think any change you make should end up feeling natural. Don't go for something that feels weird but gives you good results because that'll break down under the heat.

As to the confidence thing, my experience is that if I'm shooting well I have all the confidence in the world because I know how accurately I can strike the ball and that I can reliably expect to get the results I anticipate. It's when I'm playing poorly that the loss of confidence follows because I know a nightmare result is waiting for me my next shot.

Lou Figueroa

 

[Snooker Theory]

I think what's important is to realize that "the slump" means you've changed something in your setup and are no longer stroking accurately.

From the chair to the table, to descending into shooting position, to stroking the ball involves a complex series of body part placements and motions. If any of them are off a bit the result will show up in how the balls behave.

So the solution is introspection.

Setup a moderately difficult shot that you would normally execute well and shoot it repeatedly, each time paying attention to how you get into shooting position and stroke the ball. Start off with your "slump setup" and shoot the shot. IOWs, intentionally allow yourself to miss but watch for what your body is doing in your approach to the table and the results you're getting.

Then attempt to alter your setup to improve your result. You'll see that small variations manifest themselves in different results on the table. From there it's a matter of seeing if what you think works better actually does with different shots. Then wash, rinse, and repeat. I think any change you make should end up feeling natural. Don't go for something that feels weird but gives you good results because that'll break down under the heat.

As to the confidence thing, my experience is that if I'm shooting well I have all the confidence in the world because I know how accurately I can strike the ball and that I can reliably expect to get the results I anticipate. It's when I'm playing poorly that the loss of confidence follows because I know a nightmare result is waiting for me my next shot.

Lou Figueroa

Damn, great post Lou!

 

[Black-Balled]

For me...I gotta disagree.

I have gone through periods where I play no tournaments for 6+months, but Ive played at home for much of the break.

Upon return to tournament, I discovered how crucial- and missing- the tourney-tough mental side is.

I don't think there is any way to replicate a competitive scenario, other that being in the ring regularly and for me, I'd say without the tourney-tough perspective, drop in play level is huge...even if I was 'in stroke' the days before.

You won't be in a slump if you play regularly and if you build a technique and form so that you can play good when completely cold.

That is one thing that I've learned recently. You want to be able to play at at least 80% of your top skill level when just getting to the table when cold.

If you want to get into a slump, the best way to do it is to not play at all for over 3 days.

This is a muscle memory game. Whether you realize it or not, if you don't hit a ball in over 3 days, your skill level is going to drop. Period. The longer you don't shoot, the more of the subtle skills are going to fade away.

 

[NINEBALLART]

If you don't drive a car for 3 days do you forget how to drive??? No..Muscle memory and experience driving is always there....If it was only muscle memory then how come your in a slump?? The muscle memory is still there but your thinking about too many things that you may be doing wrong.....Get those out of your head for a few days and then go back and muscle memory kicks in again...At least it does for me...Everyone has their own way of dealing with slumps...Like I said, this works for me and it did in bowling also...I had four 300 games and carried over a 200 average for over 25 years and I did this in bowling also...But you have to find out what works for you...

 

[Get_A_Grip]

If you don't drive a car for 3 days do you forget how to drive??? No..Muscle memory and experience driving is always there....If it was only muscle memory then how come your in a slump?? The muscle memory is still there but your thinking about too many things that you may be doing wrong.....Get those out of your head for a few days and then go back and muscle memory kicks in again...At least it does for me...Everyone has their own way of dealing with slumps...Like I said, this works for me and it did in bowling also...I had four 300 games and carried over a 200 average for over 25 years and I did this in bowling also...But you have to find out what works for you...

Pool at a high level is about doing very subtle things well. Just making the shot is not good enough. Applying just the right tough of English to break out a cluster may be necessary. So yes, if you don't play regularly, these subtle skills will deteriorate.

The mental side of the game is yet another thing, but I was talking about the muscle memory physical aspects of a slump.



_______

 

[Black-Balled]

Pool at a high level is about doing very subtle things well. Just making the shot is not good enough. Applying just the right tough of English to break out a cluster may be necessary. So yes, if you don't play regularly, these subtle skills will deteriorate.

The mental side of the game is yet another thing, but I was talking about the muscle memory physical aspects of a slump.



_______

Truth. Doing something at 70% proficiency vs 90% results in a big disparity

 

[deanoc]

slump my fanny
this is the real you


get over those postive self affirmation

you are lying to yourself

thisis the best you will ever play

expect to get worse

pay no attention to these zealots who tell you to cheer up
a slump is never a good time to examine anything but your head fpr playing pool

all those memories of good play in the past are false memories
you never were any good
you know it deep down and the rest of us always knew

the reason you never bet high was because you were afraid of dogging your brains out

fear of losing was bad
but you were afraid of looking bad

how sick can you get

give up the game while you can
a slump is a great time for quitting

look in the mirror,is that a guy you would bet $500 pr game on
no
that man is a dog with a dream

ask the little lady to take you back
promise to do right,you worthless pool wannabe