How do you prepare for a tournament
- Thread starter DelawareDogs
- Start date
Visiting the room beforehand is critical to not being sharked by a swinging door or a loud pinball or whatever. Look all around the room and find all the queer stuff so you don't get distracted while at the tourney. Know the room well enough to not be bothered by it.
I think Jeanette spoke of this in her BD column a while back.
Jeff Livingston
My biggest concern was ''table play'' and equipment conditions. Each different table/brand/set up is NEVER the same, you must first , walk up/into the shot as you would normally, pull the trigger and process your read out comparative to your table/conditions.
Because of developing this getting in your....30 min of ''me'' practice time is important on match day and match plan.
What the pros used to utilize/for warm up during the Reno yrs was, one rack a piece.
We each throw out a ball set and hit em in.
Next player does the same, often two or three racks each was sufficient.
We had practice times, some events your practice had a separate schedule from the main event.
We also did this in the practice room.
Because of developing this getting in your....30 min of ''me'' practice time is important on match day and match plan.
What the pros used to utilize/for warm up during the Reno yrs was, one rack a piece.
We each throw out a ball set and hit em in.
Next player does the same, often two or three racks each was sufficient.
We had practice times, some events your practice had a separate schedule from the main event.
We also did this in the practice room.
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Whelp, an update - I went two and out.
Very bummed out the rest of the weekend. No excuses for it, I just showed up not knowing how to play pool anymore.
The cloth was Brand spankin' new, done the night before. The balls were all clean and polished.
I missed so many easy balls, and missed position on far too many shots. It was a sad show to see.
Spent the rest of the weekend playing it off.
Very bummed out the rest of the weekend. No excuses for it, I just showed up not knowing how to play pool anymore.
The cloth was Brand spankin' new, done the night before. The balls were all clean and polished.
I missed so many easy balls, and missed position on far too many shots. It was a sad show to see.
Spent the rest of the weekend playing it off.
Your day will come, just keep working at your weakness and constantly challenge yourself mentally.
Also analyze your game and performance. Its about playing well and reducing mistakes each time. Either scratching, losing the cue ball on the break, cue ball control, shot making consistency, amd also choices made.
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You might have put too much pressure on yourself.
After all, you took the time to start a post about it which sort of signifies that you were a little nervous about it.
Everyone wants to win, but it is also about ENJOYING the competition and mingling with other players you know.
We've all gone two and out at some point in our playing lives.
Stroke it up to experience.
Thanks man. That's exactly what happened. I wasn't shaking nervous, but was definitely feeling pressured about all the time I put in, which wasn't how I normally go at it. My biggest weakness is mentally, with people watching it gets worse. With thousands on the line and all the above, it gets much worse.
the Yips?? maybe...... glad I got to see some old pals though, and I did laugh my ass off a few times.
You need to get used to this new normal before it feels normal. Give it time, you will surprise yourself soon.
Can you explain what you mean in the first part?
First big event I ever played in had new everything: cloth, balls, tables...
It was a real shock and also made me forget how to play pool.
I have no idea how an average person is supposed to prepare for that.
You are going into the tournament with a different preparation and a different mental outlook and attitude. You put in more work than usual, so you expect a better outcome.
It puts an extra pressure on you.
Similarly, if you only play weekly tournaments all the time and then you sign up for a bigger one, $100+ entry. Your game and mental space is different the pressure is different. Now, you sign up and play in 3 or 4 more bigger tournaments.
It starts to feel normal, less pressure, you know what to expect fron yourself.
Gotcha, thanks. It really is the big stuff that makes me uneasy. All the extra sets of eyes. The cash flow..... we all forget sometimes, that going into autopilot means playing WITHIN yourself, having fun. Making it fun. The more I do it, the less it will rattle me.
Yes, in my defense, we were ALL playing bad. I saw top players dog shots because of balls turning over weird. Or banks having that 'slide' that new cloth often affords. I mean, they were just done 12 hours prior.
With that being said, we were all playing on the same equipment, so the better player still wins. Or the player that can adjust the best, which clearly isn't me. (something else I need to work on)
Another thing that hasn't been discussed yet is going or preparing for a tournament to win.
Many times a player plays leagues 1/2 times a week and plays the weekly or bigger tournament 1/2 a month. They don't prepare anymore than they would for a league match for the tournaments. Win some/ lose some, no bother just happy to play.
Now that same player wants to gear up for a tournament. Not just happy to be there, they want to win!
They have put in the work, eat right, have a plan, and come game day... Cant see the pattern, can't make a straight in ball, etc.
Preparing and showing up to win only to shit the bed and go 2 and out. When you do all this work it's a different pressure. Now when you play the guy you always lose to, it IS a big deal. You feel your in the game, you can win. It takes some getting used to.
Many times a player plays leagues 1/2 times a week and plays the weekly or bigger tournament 1/2 a month. They don't prepare anymore than they would for a league match for the tournaments. Win some/ lose some, no bother just happy to play.
Now that same player wants to gear up for a tournament. Not just happy to be there, they want to win!
They have put in the work, eat right, have a plan, and come game day... Cant see the pattern, can't make a straight in ball, etc.
Preparing and showing up to win only to shit the bed and go 2 and out. When you do all this work it's a different pressure. Now when you play the guy you always lose to, it IS a big deal. You feel your in the game, you can win. It takes some getting used to.
I don't know about all that. What you describe is akin to 'peaking' on lsd. No, wait....I mean as in a physically demanding sport.
Athletes will often target a specific event to be their best at and the way that is done is by not being fatigued at that event, whole still having near 100% fitness and muscle memory.
2/3 of those things are not really relevant in pool. All that matters in pool is knowledge and muscle memory.
I'm thinking more along the lines of " Pockets are too big? You're not betting enough"
Betting small in a weekly vs. Betting big in a monthly.
And your comfort level changing based on experience or wallet respectively.
Mmmkay.
I agree comfort level is HUGE
Don't get discouraged. Ever hear the line "to get a job, you need experience, but to get experience you need a job." It's a well-known catch-22 of life. Competing at pool comes with its own catch-22: "You need to be successful to be confident, but you need to be confident to be successful."
For a given level of skill, however, I think you've already hit on the fact that there are some other, more subtle, ways to gain confidence, and that is knowing that you have prepared as well as possible. Practicing well and having good habits on tournament day will help you build confidence, which will help you, over time, compete more successfully. Needless to say, it's a process, but it seems you've gotten the ball rolling.
For a given level of skill, however, I think you've already hit on the fact that there are some other, more subtle, ways to gain confidence, and that is knowing that you have prepared as well as possible. Practicing well and having good habits on tournament day will help you build confidence, which will help you, over time, compete more successfully. Needless to say, it's a process, but it seems you've gotten the ball rolling.