I know we often touch on the subject
in some form or another
so maybe here we go again
help me with this shovel?
at my level, I think pool knowledge (or lack thereof) plays a significant part
when I shoot, sometimes I literally don't know how the cue ball is going to react
those kinds of shots I try to practice, but inevitably there's a lot I just don't know
then I think about pro players
these are players who have spent thousands and thousands of hours
playing pool and honing the requisite skills to play well
there's always an exception, of course (pool is cool that way)
but for the most part, these players know what and how to play
and again, for the most- they execute
I wonder tho, is that really the difference?
for instance in tennis
just a few points often decide the outcome of a match
in fact, a lot of times one player will win more points overall
and still lose
because the other player won the more important points
the best players win those points more often than other players
they get more opportunities
and of course there are reasons for this
physical and mental
there are a lot of stats in tennis
and it's usually not too hard to figure out
why a guy won or lost
but pool is another cookie
physical reasons matter less
but are obviously still important
I hate to keep snitching on myself
but I'm the player I know best:grin:
it used to be more, but sometimes still
I (almost) run out
but leave myself tough on the last two balls
bad leaves get progressively worse, y'know
and after doing most of the work
I dog it, and have a ruff game
the other player doesn't usually mind
anyway, bad example
let's get back to good players
it is so impressive to me
how well certain players compete
and then puzzling why others don't compete better
I mean these guys pretty much know everything, right?
better players play almost perfect a lot of the time
is it the almost part that actually decides things?
are the margins that razor-thin
good/bad rolls matter, for sure
but shane still shane, alex still alex, dennis still...you get my point
over time, these guys consistently find their way to the top
and I know these relative know-it-alls have their strengths and weaknesses
as we all do
I don't know
I guess in a thoughtful, albeit rambling (and mostly un-hip) way
I really wonder what it is that separates us
what cha thank?
in some form or another
so maybe here we go again
help me with this shovel?
at my level, I think pool knowledge (or lack thereof) plays a significant part
when I shoot, sometimes I literally don't know how the cue ball is going to react
those kinds of shots I try to practice, but inevitably there's a lot I just don't know
then I think about pro players
these are players who have spent thousands and thousands of hours
playing pool and honing the requisite skills to play well
there's always an exception, of course (pool is cool that way)
but for the most part, these players know what and how to play
and again, for the most- they execute
I wonder tho, is that really the difference?
for instance in tennis
just a few points often decide the outcome of a match
in fact, a lot of times one player will win more points overall
and still lose
because the other player won the more important points
the best players win those points more often than other players
they get more opportunities
and of course there are reasons for this
physical and mental
there are a lot of stats in tennis
and it's usually not too hard to figure out
why a guy won or lost
but pool is another cookie
physical reasons matter less
but are obviously still important
I hate to keep snitching on myself
but I'm the player I know best:grin:
it used to be more, but sometimes still
I (almost) run out
but leave myself tough on the last two balls
bad leaves get progressively worse, y'know
and after doing most of the work
I dog it, and have a ruff game
the other player doesn't usually mind
anyway, bad example
let's get back to good players
it is so impressive to me
how well certain players compete
and then puzzling why others don't compete better
I mean these guys pretty much know everything, right?
better players play almost perfect a lot of the time
is it the almost part that actually decides things?
are the margins that razor-thin
good/bad rolls matter, for sure
but shane still shane, alex still alex, dennis still...you get my point
over time, these guys consistently find their way to the top
and I know these relative know-it-alls have their strengths and weaknesses
as we all do
I don't know
I guess in a thoughtful, albeit rambling (and mostly un-hip) way
I really wonder what it is that separates us
what cha thank?
