We were both pretty wore out. Zack from no sleep and me from just being me. Diabetic and 60.
Zack was at this point that no player should be at. he had absolutely no thing left in the tank.
As he was playing he was just going through the motions. The effort was sporatic at best. The heart was there but the mind and body were not.
His young eyes were now bloodshot and all the bounce in his step was gone. It's hard when a player is at this point to say uncle but as you get more seasoning and have been through it for years it's easier to pull up the horses and play another day.
If your losing you can quit and if your ahead you can quit. You can always continue this contest tomorrow or the next day.
And when I tell a player that I need to quit myself it's also about health. I could have a stroke or a heat attack being diabetes. There is no pool game in the world worth that.
if the player puts up a big stink or even tries to get tough i tell them lets post up some money and come back tomorrow night.
It will take Zack a day or two to recover from this meaningless matchup.
he again was drinking those darn energy drinks that he thinks help him play. That spike in your mind is only temporary. I need to convince him somehow that they serve no benefit at all.
For myself I'm hoping I'm done with this lung thing and the smoke. I couldn't breath for about 3 hours when layed down to sleep. it was like I had sand in my lungs and a tickle that forced me to cough.
It kind of scared me because it just kept on and kept on. I had to sleep.
I hope there is nothing permanent going on with my lungs. Only time will tell. But for now I will stay away from any and all cigerrette smoke.
that is what created this problem in my lungs and hopefully being out of the second hand smoke will cure it.
For Zack and myself it's back to having some fun. Only there won't be much action for Zack today. he has another lesson to learn. It's called the day after play on no sleep drinking energy drinks and depleting your body to the point of being total exausted.
you need to recover for a day. I know at 23 you don't think so and feel pretty invincible but being through this many time in my life i know better.
I call it getting grounded. getting your mind level again and your body back in a good functioning manner.
It will be tough for him I know and maybe I'll still have him play but it's back to the cheaper sets for a day or 2.
Tonight I will step up to the plate. That's the nice thing about having us both there.
And I have been getting some nice offers to play.
2 men a van and the road..............
Sounds like it's time to come home!
if you are on the road and 23 years old you should be able
to play most days on 5 hours of sleep.
Lack of sleep is an excuse! The road isn't interested in what is making you play bad tonight! Just go out and do it!
Do you want the money or not? If you want the money, find a way to win! Do you think you will find someone that will just hand it to you?
This is the manner in which Zach should be taught.
What Kind of cue?
Gene bring the crew to Indianapolis. Plenty of action at Brickyard and no smoking.
If you watch most pros play they don't have any type of conversation going on. Their focus is totally on what they are doing.
I watch Zach talking to someone and getting up and shooting without doing what he needs to do to make the shot and get the shape he needs.
Any break from a routine that works very well is disaster when we shoot a shot. Especially in a pressure situation.
If your mind is someplace else it isn't focused on the task at hand.
I've watched this kid play now for about a month on the road.
When he sticks to business and focuses on the game he plays pretty good.
When he is in the conversation mode between turns he gets up and just doesn't get it done more often.
In the poolhall there are many distractions. But the biggest one you can totally avoid is yourself.
Cut this one out and your already way ahead of the game.
What, is Zach preparing to become the Princess of Pool? What does it matter if he likes the taste? He is crossing the country to make money, not live the life of Lindsay Lohan.
Each day he ends up losing money, he doesn't get to eat for the next 24 hours. Now you will start seeing some improvements. Withdrawal headaches? How can you ever expect him to succeed if he is bothered by every slight pain of the body? If you continue on this path he will always have an excuse! Oh, I was a little tired. My drink didn't taste good enough. I was too hungry. The road isn't interested in your excuses!
Chris you're kind of brutal man. Sounds like you're on the kung-fu method of getting better and tougher which is to say you have to endure pain and hardship....
There are a few books out there on what it takes to become great and while desire is a key factor it's not the overriding one. The overriding one is deep practice. Desire is what separates the really great from the just great. Desire is what makes them work harder than others in their field. But just to be in the field requires a certain amount of foundation and structured practice.
This is what Gene is trying to teach Zach I think. The way I see it this is not a throw the kid in the pool and swim or drown type deal. This is an incremental lesson in how to think deeper about all the choices one faces while trying to make a living as a traveling pool player.
I don't know if Gene's methods and thinking is all correct but I enjoy the running blog of his thoughts about the choices being made and what he sees as the consequences. The interesting part will be to see what happens in the coming month. Has Zach learned the lessons, is he ready to be more disciplined in his approach? Will he pace himself better?
Indy is on the way East =) I think Derby is trying to steer you there.....
On the topic of "chit-chat" vs "shut up and shoot", I'm a big fan of the latter.
Chatting might reduce your nerves... but then again, so does a slow backrub from a pretty girl. Try shooting good pool while fading that kind of distraction.
Besides the potential loss of focus, and the fact that you might cross the line between "relaxed" and "casual"... there's another thing to consider.
Intimidation can play a big role in the outcome of any serious match. A quiet and serious player who shoots like he's jaded by the routine of hundred dollar racks... can really dig some screws into the opponent's brain. Having the right demeanor can really bring out the dog in your opponent.
Rather than handle nerves by acting like he's having fun, I think a player should handle it like he's bored and this is too easy.