An 8 ball APA league player's dilemma - with a poll!!!

DO MY WIFE & I GO TO CITY CUP???

  • YES, you are part of the team, and it is your responsibility!

    Votes: 25 39.7%

  • HEll with them - get a babysitter, and enjoy some couple time!!!

    Votes: 14 22.2%

  • Your wife makes money, you stay home, and enjoy a night watching CBS on Friday!!!

    Votes: 5 7.9%

  • Have them find you a babysitter - play city cup, and quit the team afterwards!!!

    Votes: 5 7.9%

  • TOO MANY WORDS TO READ IN YOUR POST!

    Votes: 11 17.5%

  • NONE OF THE ABOVE - SEE MY REPLY!!!

    Votes: 3 4.8%
  • Total voters
    63
  • Poll closed .
Michael...There are so many things that the rest of us are not privy to with regards to your situation. Is there a "click" among the other teammates that has you on the outside looking in? I have never experienced this type of situation in pool. I'm an APA SL7, and I have taken three teams to Vegas for the Nationals the last three years. I know how to put a team together. However, my time spent in the Marine Corps found me playing baseball with inferior teammates and yet the manager kept playing "his buddies" over me and a few other new guys. So if this is the case with your situation, my advice would be to still take the high road and finish this session with this team...and, when given the chance to play make sure you show them just how much they're going to miss you when you're gone. Play to the best of your ability and kick some *ss.
 
Yep - I have made a decision

RackRunner said:
Michael...There are so many things that the rest of us are not privy to with regards to your situation. Is there a "click" among the other teammates that has you on the outside looking in? I have never experienced this type of situation in pool. I'm an APA SL7, and I have taken three teams to Vegas for the Nationals the last three years. I know how to put a team together. However, my time spent in the Marine Corps found me playing baseball with inferior teammates and yet the manager kept playing "his buddies" over me and a few other new guys. So if this is the case with your situation, my advice would be to still take the high road and finish this session with this team...and, when given the chance to play make sure you show them just how much they're going to miss you when you're gone. Play to the best of your ability and kick some *ss.
Click to expand...
Everyone has been correct. We are gonna play with them, and play our best, and hopefully we can help get them to the next level - they have never been there, but we( my wife and myself) have, and can help. Maybe I need to speak up more? Maybe City cup and Regionals will show them how important we are, since it looks as though the 4 & 5 can't make either tourney.
But I got my BCA team on the side to get back on - So I will play APA when they need me, and BCA since they want me. Therefore I get the best of both worlds - I play on 2 teams in 2 leagues, and therefore I play pool on my one and ONLY night out of the house.
But most importantly - my wife gets her Wednesday nights off, since she really needs them and doesn't want to help out anymore.

So I appreciate all of the great advice helping me figure out what is best - for my Wife, my team, and myself.

Looks as though I am city cup and Regionals bound.

Look for me at either event with plenty of cues for sale:D
Thanks again,

Michael
 
GoTulane said:
I know what I want to do, and I can make my own decision, but wanted to see other people's perspectives, and there have been some good ones that I did not consider. This is a good way to look at something from other people's perspectives without the bias, since you do not know anybody involved, and having nothing invested in my decision. But I just want truthful answers - Advice is easy to give - following that same advice yourself is sometimes difficult - What WOULD YOU DO!! No offense - Tone is hard to "READ" on the internet. So read it how you like. I do not like sitting - nobody does - but it is a fact of life.

But it takes time and money to get a babysitter, and when you lose shifts you lose more money - so that is what I am truly weighing in my decision. I am a team player, but a team is not a group. A group in itself does not necessarily constitute a team. Teams normally have members with complementary skills and generate synergy through a coordinated effort which allows each member to maximize his or her strengths and minimize his or her weaknesses. Just my thoughts.

Michael
Click to expand...

I would have decided whether or not I, or we, were going to be available for the playoffs and possibly a trip to Vegas due to work/babysitter stuff before I joined the team and would have been completely up front about it with everyone. If I wasn't sure, I'd be up front about not being sure. The work conflict stuff is a separate issue from everything else and would be the only factor in my decision.

Good luck! :)


edit - Too late, but good call.
 
Have fun!

Been there done that. Chances are you need her skills too, especially if her handicap helps to field the team. Shes' part of it too.
 
Two sides to every story.

As a former APA team Captain who has to throw players up, has anybody considered how difficult it is to play shooters who who are present for half the match?
I mean, you have to schedule your whole night around shooters like this, with respect to your family situation.

In addition, instead of complaing to us that you didn't shoot for three consecutive weeks, did you bring it up with the team? We had a situation where a shooter didn't play for three weeks, and was present from beginning to end. Know why? The captain was not keeping tabs. Not everyone puts as much thought into this stuff as you may wish.

And, last of all, as for the playoffs...It's all about winning to me. And your team has other SL6s and can only shoot one SL6 with your lineup, no? Maybe the feel he is shooting a bit stronger at the time. It happens. Maybe they are wrong. Maybe not. Teams MUST make decisions like this all the time. Taking it personal, IMO, is not being the best possible teammate you can be.

All that said, teams are constantly evolving, changing, adding and subtracting players. Part of league play. Try to enjoy, and make sure you are being the best teammate you can be. You MUST be doing something correct if you are wanted by other teams. Good luck and have fun. I wish I was a SL6! I need to improve my game.
 
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Is this the APA or UPA? I also play APA, I'm also ranked a 6. I told my team captain, I have kids and I will show up as soon as there in bed, secondly if you don't plan to play me let me know ahead of time so I don't have to show. I would think that your team could be more flexible if not I sure there's alot of teams that can use a six.
 
Advice

Play in a BCA league where you don't have to contend with the '23' team handicap rule.
 
Decision

Since they didn't need you until they didn't have a choice, i'd pass on playing with this team and it sounds like they need your wife more than they need you because of the handicaps. I'd tell the team captain your situation and the hardship it would put you in to play and let him know that you also have a good reason for not being there. I would let the way they've treated you be my reason for quitting this team and tell the captain of the team why you are leaving. Pick out one of the 3 other teams that you'd like to play on and go for it and hopefully they will appreciate you being part of the team. I don't think that you have a responsibility to play with this team after the way they've treated you.

James
 
Snapshot9 said:
Play in a BCA league where you don't have to contend with the '23' team handicap rule.
Click to expand...

Agreed.....it's the apa system that makes these stupid things happen, not the people within the system....The captains are trying to win within the rules...this ALWAYS means crazy crap happens.

VNEA or BCA don't have these types of major problems because their system is different. You'll be home a winner by 10:30 and sleeping like a baby.

Jeff Livingston
 
chefjeff said:
Agreed.....it's the apa system that makes these stupid things happen, not the people within the system....The captains are trying to win within the rules...this ALWAYS means crazy crap happens.

VNEA or BCA don't have these types of major problems because their system is different. You'll be home a winner by 10:30 and sleeping like a baby.

Jeff Livingston
Click to expand...

I hear that. 23 rule?

I thought the APA's Equalizer handicap system was supposed to take hold of that. By them, it should not matter if you play a SL2 vs. SL7 all day long; both should have a 50/50 chance of winning. Or a SL4 vs. SL2. Or whatever. If that's the case, why have such a low cap?

I guess they want to promote growth within the league, an have a mix of high and low SL shooter. They do a good job with this, I guess.
 
The team captains job is to give his team the best shot at winning so you have to give him the benifit of doubt that he did what he thought was best for the team. If you have a problem with his decisions then take it up with him 1 on 1. No one would expect you too play another session if you feel unapreciated. I would play in the City tournament if I were in your shoes.

The big issue as others have said is the APA's 23 rule. Its not good for captains, its not good for players, its not good for teams, its not good for pool. Its only good for the APA's bank account.

I wish there were more BCA leagues in my area. It might be time to start one.

Courtney
Weak SL7
 
I have been the captain of an APA team for many years now. During the normal season I always try to get my players a fairly equal amount of table time, but once we enter the play-offs I make it clear to everyone that all bets are off, and I play the players that can take us across the finish line. I play as a strong 6, and once sat myself the entire LTC tournament because I had a strong 5 & 7, and it was just better for the team to play them instead. My advice is not to take it personally, but your captain should have made it clear that during play-offs it's all about business.
 
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Do what you feel is best for you and you wife? I wouldnt alter my schedule for this. if you were there 3 weeks in a row and he never gave you a reason for not playing, and you made adjustments for him.
You do what you can, if its not a hastle to go, then go.
If there is a conflict, then tell your captain no. If the other teammates
cant make it, why should you?
 
Thunderball said:
I agree.

Back to the point...show up,be gracious and play your best.Then move on and be honest about your intentions.
Click to expand...

Yup. Best advice.
 
My advise. Give up APA and go to the APL. I used to play in APA, but left for APL. I play on 3 teams in 3 different APL leagues. For the session ending this past Feb. all 3 of my teams qualified to go to the regional (cities) tournament. 2 of my teams finished in 1st and 2nd place and my 3rd team just missed 4th. We won $6800 for 1st and 2nd, a trip to Vegas, plus nice trophies. Not bad for a weekend. Unlike APA with only 1 city tournament a year and 1 trip to Vegas, APL has 3 cities a year, + nice $ ($10k), plus 6 trips to Vegas. Here is a link to the league.
http://amateurpoolleague.com/
Here is the 1st place team winning pic. I'm on the left in a white Super Billiards Expo T shirt.
http://amateurpoolleague.com/photogallery/photo00000041/2-8-08 end of session 1.JPG
Charlie
 
Gregg said:
I hear that. 23 rule?

I thought the APA's Equalizer handicap system was supposed to take hold of that. By them, it should not matter if you play a SL2 vs. SL7 all day long; both should have a 50/50 chance of winning. Or a SL4 vs. SL2. Or whatever. If that's the case, why have such a low cap?

I guess they want to promote growth within the league, an have a mix of high and low SL shooter. They do a good job with this, I guess.
Click to expand...

Yes, they're the best----BY FAR!!!!!!!!---- at getting new people INTO pool....but then.....:eek: :eek: :eek:

That's why, when players are having trouble with apa's rules, I recommend that player goes to a league of a higher order, so to speak. That opens another slot for a newbie to fill and the process can be repeated making more better players, a good thing, imho.

Jeff Livingston
 
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