losing the passion to play

Don't force yourself to play. Pool should be fun.

If you're not having fun, best to take up another hobby.

Life is too short to not enjoy your hobbies. Cheers.

pinoyincalgary said:

Hello,
I am on my pool lull at the moment. Just woke up one day and did not have any fire or interest in playing pool. .

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I've been like that for the past couple of years. It happened almost overnight. I came in high in a very tough tournament, was super happy, and then realized there wasn't much more for me to work towards without compromising the rest of life. So, I was happy to just sort of take it easy to the point of not playing at all. In fact, I was dreading going to league and I became a detriment to the team. I even got the boot off my 9-ball team!!!

But, the TAR matchups have slowly got me back going. Especially watching the best of the best matchup and play for hours and hours.

Fred <~~~ almost out of the lull

pinoyincalgary said:

Hello,
I am on my pool lull at the moment. Just woke up one day and did not have any fire or interest in playing pool. Tried to do the same routine of going to the pool hall and playing, but, after doing this for 1 week, still felt really bored. Pool is usually in my head 24/7...now, it feels that I have to force myself to go to my basement to hit a few balls.

This is not the first time that this happened to me. It was about 15 yrs ago that I had a similar experience. It took about 3yrs for me to be infected again by the pool bug.

Just wondering who else had a pool hibernation stage? I do not see it as giving up as it has been a great/big part of my life. My pool table and cues are still staying with me; they will still get their regular maintainance and check up.

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I quit stoppd playing from '94-'03. Picked up the game again for a couple of years and know have been off of it for the most part since '05 when I got married and had we had a baby. Now I have two daughters, my job, and going to school on the side. I really want to start playing again, but I just don't know if I have the time to put into it that I would need to play at the level I expect to play at.
My problem is that I would rather not play at all than play less than 20 hours a week, which I feel is the minimum amount I need to play to keep my game sharp. I hope to never again take a 10 year layoff like my last one, thats why I like coming to this board, it keeps me somewhat connected even though I am not playing at the moment.

I hear your pain. One of my biggest obstacles has been my incentive. I have had times when i didn't pick up a cue for months and got on a table and was getting out of racks in full punch. Then other times when is couldn't put a 2 ball out together due to lack of drive and had some time on the table. Its not fun. Some things I have done is start going to other halls. Just check out what is going on at other pool halls. Something might make you stir. Or starting searching for a different achievement in the game. A high run in straight pool or partner up with someone in some Chicago and hit a few other halls with an offer. You might get a rivalry going with two other players. If you're playing the same game in the same hall same same same... This might be your issue?
Just a thought...

...............

priorities change

10 years ago i could not wait until the next tournament, i was chomping at the bit all the time and went to every tournament within driving distance. then i started building cues, now it seems that i enjoy spending more time in my workshop than spending time on my pool table. chuck

Defining your goals

Neil said:

Sounds like you no longer have any goals. Without them, you are just hitting balls. And if you aren't actually having fun, or making money at it, what are you getting out of it? Pool is a difficult game. You have to get something out of it to continue. So you need to sit back and redefine your goals.

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I think that Neil is quite right.

Maybe you need to have a long hard think about exactly what it was that you used to get out of the game. If you can pin it down, then perhaps that will help you find some direction and goals that will rekindle your interest.

Bob Fancher's book "Pleasures of Small Motions" contains some good material on what motivates people to play and enjoy the game - you might find this a useful read.

Yeah, I went through a period from 99 to 05 that I just didn't want to play. I ws ranked number one here in the prefecture and was supposed to go to the All-Japan tournament but the guy that was the new head of the billiards association in my area said I couldn't go because I'm a foreigner.....imagine saying that to a black man "You can't go because you're black" it was the same type of discrinatory shit. I got so mad I couldn't see straight. I stopped playing that day and didn't hit a ball for close to 6 years. I've been back to playing regularly since about late 2005 but I still don't have any drive to join any tournaments. I don't have the patience to practice like I used to either. I just enjoy shooting pool with my friends.
MULLY

i have been playing pool for 20 years but twice i have quit for 5 years.pool will be all i want to do for years and then all of a sudden i will just quit and it seems to take 4-5 years to get me back.i recently quit again about a year ago.i might play once every couple weeks for cheap money but nothing serious like i used to do.

Denny
Doc Savage
Ham
Major Hoople
Barney Google
Umpateedle

I walked into the pool room one day in the afternoon, saw a couple rail birds, no body playing and asked my self is this the life I want to live and who I want to be? so I left knowing full well I'd come back when I had the life I wanted, that was many years ago. you gotta do what you gotta do to get what you want out of life, and do what you what you want to do when you can. do what makes you happy...

I've totally lost interest to play pool too. It started in the summer of 2003 when I took an accelerated course in TCP/IP networking at the local Technical school.

When I got the course outline and realized the class would be going through a 635 page book in 8 weeks, I knew I had to change around a few things. Firstly, no more pool practice at night. I had to review/pre-view up to 5 chapters a week, including making notes. No more weeknight sailing because I just couldn't spare the time.

I got through it - even got an A, but after it was over, I just never retreated to my basement to practice for the rest of the summer. Summer turned to fall, then winter, and now, summer of 2008, I can count on my one hand how many times I went downstairs to practice where I used to spend 2-3 hours of drills from Joe Tucker's drill book.

Then, running the JPNEWT tour started draining me and I wasn't looking forward to leaving home and all the before and after work, since I was doing this on my own for 6 years. Don't get me wrong, the girls were great and never disappointed me with their sportswomanship and competitiveness. My best moments were when I'd get "cold-called" for an event at a new poolroom.

But now, since I've turned the tour over to a new TC, I find no motivation to even go out and play. I guess the first thing that turned me off for good was the use of tournament software that doesn't use the bye spacing that I, as well as all other TCs before me, have used since the inception of the tour. I got screwed out of a first-round bye in the last tournament I played, and no one can really witness the draw.

Whatever. I'll still go out and hit a few with my friends at Tacony when they're in town, but I'm just not into it when 10/16 years ago, it was all I could breath in. Heck, I'd play hooky from work to spend a few hours at the ph.

Hopefully, the bug will return.

Barbara

Here are 2 suggestions for you:

1. Take a break. Making yourself do something you don't want to do is NOT going to make you want to do it. Just take a break and do other things.

2. When you finally do get the itch again, or at least don't have the, "I really don't want to play today" feeling, try this:

Do a little warm up to get back in stroke. Then, set up a shot that you had trouble with in the past, and work on just that one shot. By doing that you are challenging yourself to get focused, and allowing yourself to have a very short and fun session. In a way it's almost like a mini-workout that's designed to get the blood flowing without making you feel sore the next day. Don't spend a lot of time on the shot, and quit WHILE you still feel like playing. This will build the itch to come back even more.

The more fun you have when you get back, the more you'll want to play.

Good Advise from ...

Dakota Cues said:

Here are 2 suggestions for you:

1. Take a break. Making yourself do something you don't want to do is NOT going to make you want to do it. Just take a break and do other things.

2. When you finally do get the itch again, or at least don't have the, "I really don't want to play today" feeling, try this:

Do a little warm up to get back in stroke. Then, set up a shot that you had trouble with in the past, and work on just that one shot. By doing that you are challenging yourself to get focused, and allowing yourself to have a very short and fun session. In a way it's almost like a mini-workout that's designed to get the blood flowing without making you feel sore the next day. Don't spend a lot of time on the shot, and quit WHILE you still feel like playing. This will build the itch to come back even more.

The more fun you have when you get back, the more you'll want to play.

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One's desire is the strongest motivator and without it nothing much can be accomplished.

Regards,
Hal

Pool.....NO !!

Golf......YES!!

I used to golf 2 to 3 times a week, hit the driving range a few times a week.

Got pretty good. Life took over and stopped playing. Did not miss it.

Went to Hawaii about a year and a half ago and went golfing there. Fell in love with it all over again. Bought new clubs, hit the driving range again, started playing again.

Played for a few months and then one day while later, I realized that I hadn't been to the driving range or course for a couple of months. Proabably three months went by and I didn't even realize that I hadn't gone!!! Haven't played since.

I have never had that with pool.

Good luck finding the passion again.

Russ....

Pool.....NO !!

Golf......YES!!

I used to golf 2 to 3 times a week, hit the driving range a few times a week.

Got pretty good. Life took over and stopped playing. Did not miss it.

Went to Hawaii about a year and a half ago and went golfing there. Fell in love with it all over again. Bought new clubs, hit the driving range again, started playing again.

Played for a few months and then one day while later, I realized that I hadn't been to the driving range or course for a couple of months. Proabably three months went by and I didn't even realize that I hadn't gone!!! Haven't played since.

I have never had that with pool.

Good luck finding the passion again.

Russ....

Goals breed desire.

For the ones in this thread that don't have the love/hate thing with pool anymore, maybe it's a good thing. Peoples lives change, much better job, but more hours work, mairrage, kids, all kinds of new payments (house, car, credit cards),new responsibilities.

Getting out to play pool is not the end of the world. I loved the game as much as anyone and when I couldn't play anymore I was angry for a few months and then went on to do other things.

All I'm saying is if you don't need it, it's probably not the best way to spend your time anyhow. Johnnyt

I too am experiencing a loss of passion for pool. I've been playing full-time on the WPBA since 2000, and just gave notice to the WPBA office that I am taking the rest of the year off (this means missing the last three events of the year).

I guess I got pretty burnt out as well, and am now just enjoying the other things in life that I neglected due to pool. I do plan, however, on playing full-time in 2009 on tour. I just hope that I am able to regain my passion and excitement for playing in the meantime.

Like everyone else has suggested, go out and enjoy yourself! :smile:

Alice Rim