Why we choke under pressure and how to avoid it. TEDTalk

strmanglr scott

All about Focus
Silver Member
I read that book a long time ago when I was playing golf all the time, great book.

My nerves really used to get the best of me.

Can't really describe how I got through so much of that. The game to me is now me vs me. No different than if I were in my room playing against myself.

I focus more on the feel of the cue and the stroke. Thinking about that I think brings more muscle memory to the surface and pushes out all the mental garbage. This is the shot, this is my leave, the stroke that gets me there feels like this. Make a couple practice strokes and focus on the contact point. The only thing that's in my mind during the stroke is that point. Most of the time I miss it's because that last bit of focus broke down.

Did it this last night at league. Saw my run out, set up on the first ball, dropped my focus on that point, thought about the rest of the balls I would be making and chunked a super easy shot. Doh! That table went from an easy out to me losing.
 

L I F D 1

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
It's not a Choke, it's anxiety, High Anxiety exactly what it is.
It's what Willie Mosconi expierenced that night he missed.

Tightness in chest, difficult breathing smoothly.
It possibly could kill you, it's large part of having what accompanys an aneurysm.
 

Franky4Eyes

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
It's not a Choke, it's anxiety, High Anxiety exactly what it is.
It's what Willie Mosconi expierenced that night he missed.

Tightness in chest, difficult breathing smoothly.
It possibly could kill you, it's large part of having what accompanys an aneurysm.

Jeez. Just reading this made me feel tense.
Lol.
 

336Robin

Multiverse Operative
Silver Member
I focus on each aspect of my game individually, so that when its time to
execute I've practiced it and the environmental aspects don't exist. All I have to do is
remember what I know to do that works. Each part individually creates a better overall
whole that you can perform with much less thought.
 
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Franky4Eyes

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I focus on each aspect of my game individually, so that when its time to
execute I've practiced it and the environment aspects don't exist. All I have to do is
remember what I know to do that works. Each part individually creates a better overall
whole that you can perform with much less thought.

Excellent response and great thought process.
This made me feel more at ease versus the cloud of impending doom scenario.
 
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DynoDan

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Every kid that starts gambling at pool experiences the ‘buck fever’ choke. Much like ‘stage fright’ (unless you’re betting WAY more than you can afford to lose), you eventually get over it. Musicians/actors usually learn that a bad performance isn’t always the end of the world, and gamblers figure out that they can probably get more money if they lose their bankroll.
 

Paul Schofield

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Watched the video. Heady new age stuff, mostly not applicable to pool. This is: How To Train To Operate "In The Zone". If you are in "The Zone", you won't choke. Here is the question: You are at the table, under pressure, and you are NOT, and have been unable to get "In The Zone." Now what? Do you know what to do?
 

DynoDan

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Every kid that starts gambling at pool experiences the ‘buck fever’ choke.

FYI: For the uninitiated, “buck fever”: You are a 14 yr. old donating (for over an hour) your entire month’s allowance in a 7-handed 9 ball ring game with a bunch of adults, without even a glimpse of any money ball, when suddenly the player ahead of you misses the 9 and leaves a near hanger. You then step up (with visions of all that silver being tossed on the table dancing in your head) and look down the barrel at a ‘cinch’. You then proceed to dog it, and it bobbles in the jaws. THAT is ‘buck fever’!!
 

336Robin

Multiverse Operative
Silver Member
Watched the video. Heady new age stuff, mostly not applicable to pool. This is: How To Train To Operate "In The Zone". If you are in "The Zone", you won't choke. Here is the question: You are at the table, under pressure, and you are NOT, and have been unable to get "In The Zone." Now what? Do you know what to do?

Speaking for myself. If I start out cold I go back to the basics, make sure my
fundamentals are sound and pot some balls, get some shape nothing fancy about it.
Take what the table gives. In awhile I'll feel more grounded and can use more shot
pressure and spin techniques to get perfect but I stop it short of screwing anything up
for speed control. I keep my mind on the reasonable, executable needs for the next
shot and then I feel it coming back in where those decisions are automatic and are the
right decisions to start with. I cruise in this atmosphere making sure not to do
something crazy to put an end to it. Sometimes you have to control your urges to get
perfect because you're not superman. At least not yet.
 

RichSchultz

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Speaking for myself. If I start out cold I go back to the basics, make sure my
fundamentals are sound and pot some balls, get some shape nothing fancy about it.
Take what the table gives. In awhile I'll feel more grounded and can use more shot
pressure and spin techniques to get perfect but I stop it short of screwing anything up
for speed control. I keep my mind on the reasonable, executable needs for the next
shot and then I feel it coming back in where those decisions are automatic and are the
right decisions to start with. I cruise in this atmosphere making sure not to do
something crazy to put an end to it. Sometimes you have to control your urges to get
perfect because you're not superman. At least not yet.
Bingo....this. Summed up perfectly.
 

JustPlay

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I used to have on cassette tape, Pool the Players Way, by Wade Crane. Excellent. Havent been able to find it since 1990.
 

hurricane145

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I think it does apply. Thought kills action. But I think "The Inner Game of Tennis" is a better way to see this.

I bought that book back in the mid eighties. I was surprised to see it being mentioned.
Another good book on sport psychology is "The Pursuit of Excellence" By Terry Orlick.
 

Maniac

2manyQ's
Silver Member
Me, too.

I go to button my shirt this morning and the button falls off.

I grab my pool cue and the tip falls off.


I'm afraid to go to the bathroom!



Jeff Livingston

Sounds like something Rodney Daingerfield would say. ;):thumbup:

I've heard the book "The Inner Game of Tennis" mentioned so many times over the years that now I simply must read it.

Maniac
 

chefjeff

If not now...
Silver Member
Sounds like something Rodney Daingerfield would say. ;):thumbup:

I've heard the book "The Inner Game of Tennis" mentioned so many times over the years that now I simply must read it.

Maniac

I tell ya, I get no respect...for stealing Rodney's jokes.

Read the book...it can help if your head is in the proper place to accept the advice in it.



Jeff Livingston
 

donuteric

always a newbie
Silver Member
While practicing exams under stress might improve test scores, I believe simulating tense-like match situations during practice isn't the most effective approach. Instead, taking relax-like environments during practice to competitive matches will be more consistent for longer period of time. I believe a genuine acknowledgement of constant learning can help one stay calm during matches. The video talked about how we can feel stressed during a job interview, but an interview is just a meeting during which both parties are trying to learn from each other. I'm learning if a company is the right fit for me, and that desire to learn helps me focus and forget the illusion that I'm constantly being judged.
 
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