Cannabis as a performance enhancer.

Gerry said:
J.
While I agree with most of your post about the difficulty of controlling the buzz level, you might be WAY off on the amount of Pros playing on "something". I never knew it myself before getting to hang with people "in the know" so to speak. I was real surprised, and not so surprised by who did what, and NO I would never post names no matter who or what I know. But here's a short list of what I was told were some of the favorites...

Alcohol
Pot
Amphetamines
Pain killers...also mixed with Cocaine:eek:
Anti-depressants

and on and on.....but by no means was I lead to believe it was a majority of the Pro's. The link I found was almost EVERY one of the players I was told about had extensive road time. I think the pressure of making a buck on the road might become overwhelming for some.

I guess the problem is if you find you play great (insert action here) you are going to want to repeat that action next time. That action might be getting enough sleep, taking drugs, drinking coffee, staying up all night, running or working out before a match....etc. IMO the problem with drugs is controlling the buzz level, and the fact that the more you do, the more you NEED to do to get the wanted result.

Me?....I have played high, drunk, speeding, none of which worked out very well. Like Grady said in one of his vids, In his career He can count on one hand the amount of times he was beat by someone who was "on" something.

Gerry
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I agree that there is alot that I don't know about many of the top players.

I only spoke of the 3 I know well enough to make the statement about. I also agree this game can be a harsh mistress when it comes to the pressures of the road. I am sure we all know or knew the one guy who could play lights out if his chemistry was right. It just always seems to end bad one way or another.

I can definitley see the short term benifits of amphetemines for long sessions, but once again it will get you in the end, one way or another.

I know people who have to have X substance everyday to feel right, these "successful" people who own homes and hold jobs, who can " quit when they want" never want to, and each time I talk with them, one way or another the substance comes up.

I guess it's just me but I have always felt someone who needs a recreational drug just to function normally is weak. I know everyone has there reasons but has being high, FOR YEARS, ever really helped anyone? Let alone competing in a mentaly and physically challenging game.

My free opinion and worth what ya paid for it.
 
A Couple of Points to Make

As far as staying high for years is concerned, I would have to say that people who do this are self medicating to address an underlying problem. Not much different from the folks who live on prozac or aderal or rittalin, or zanax. The difference is that they are doing it undiagnosed and unsupervised. Is this a bad thing? If it has a negative impact then I'd say yes.

I'd equate the chronic pot head to a cigarette smoker. They are both smoking for an effect, which is different than the effect the same smoke will have on an occasional or non smoker. Don't think so? Smoke a cigarette if you're a non smoker, inhale it (if you can) and tell me you aren't effected by it. Then ask a smoker if they are effected by the cigarette, and they'll tell you no. It's the same with pot. If you aren't a chronic smoker then the effect of the drug will be much more dramatic, and therefore will impact your game to a higher degree... Incidentally it is impossible to remain high 24/7 it just can't be done for long periods. High becomes "normal" and straight become "abnormal".

If you don't know how strong your pot is I'd advise against doing anything that demands any kind of focus until you have sampled it and know how you will react. If it doesn't glue you to the couch, then I say go shoot some pool and have some fun.

Oh and Purd....no worries, I got a few of those tips laying around for emergencies....:D

McCue Banger McCue
 
I smoked pot virtually every day for 20 years including BC bud (for the last 10) which is amongst the most potent pot in the world.Now I'm 6 years clean/sober from all substances and feel soooooo much better about life in all facets of it.

The six year clean Recoveryjones could give the stoned out pot head addict Jones at least a ball and a half.

We have some pot heads that go out for a toke and play and here's what I find:

They can often play really well for the first 20 minutes, however, soon after their performance deteriorates.I also notice that the fantasy induced defects of perfectionism and the subsequent whining intensifies as things don't go their way.Pot smokers seem to whine about things more than everyone else.

Smoking a joint can make an ordinary club match seem like your in a World Pool Championship fantasy,however reality eventually kicks in.Pot may help the odd 1 in 20 to shoot better, however, for the majority I think it really harms their game.
RJ
 
Too many variables with pot. Amount ingested, length of high, anything else consumed during the high, THC connectivity in the brain is different every time.

Unless you measure out specific amounts and how long the high lasts. ECT. ECT. You'll get varying results unless you take it from a scientific standpoint. (Sorta takes the fun out of getting high.)

Example: You take 3 hits from the pipe and I'm good for 2.45 hrs. Then one more hit for the next 45 minutes. But that edge wavers give or take 10 minutes so you take one more hit for the next 45 minutes. Repeat as neccessary.

Your putting to much faith in yourself to follow strictly to a schedule, to an amount, and it's effect on your brain to give the same results every time.

Rely on yourself.
 
Secaucus Fats said:
I'd like to hear from pool players who consume marijuana regarding their opinions on it's worth as a performance enhancing agent.

I have found that in dosages sufficient to create a buzz of low to medium intensity and without any alcohol added to the mix..marijuana can, for me, create a link to dead punch. I also believe my eyesight and hand to eye coordination are much improved.

There are quite a number of other substances legal and illegal which have been used by many, including some of the greatest names in our chosen sport. (By the way, pool is not unique in this respect..golf comes immediately to mind.) However, I would like if possible to discuss cannabis only.
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I think you're freakin high. :p


Eric
 
Purdman said:
What I have found is this, deep inside all of us, we know there is someone we were meant to be. And we can feel when we are becoming that person. The reverse is also true, we know when something's is off and we're not the person we we're meant to be.
Purdman:cool:
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Tap tap tap!
 
> Pot shoots my concentration level thru the roof for hours on end,but my vision goes to shit,so it doesn't work for me. However,I smoked a thumb-sized joint of some mid-grade with one of the best players in the world and watched him go right back into the building and start a 10k set,winning in just over an hour,so it must have worked for him. Tommy D.
 
I'll take all the breaks I can get...

In absolutely every tournament I play in there are guys and girls who sneak out to smoke a j or two. I, myself, never partake and am happy to see my potential opponents fogging their minds. Regardless of what they tell themselves, unless they suffer from a severe stress disorder that's miraculously lessened when they get high, pot can't make them play better. It can only mislead them into thinking they're playing better.

A veteran of the 60's, I've dabbled with every drug known to man and I took them for a variety of reasons; I have even paid and am still paying long term consequences for my drug use. But, that doesn't color my response. It's simple - I learned long ago that if I want to perform my best at anything I had better keep a clear mind.
 
Secaucus Fats said:
I'd like to hear from pool players who consume marijuana regarding their opinions on it's worth as a performance enhancing agent.

I have found that in dosages sufficient to create a buzz of low to medium intensity and without any alcohol added to the mix..marijuana can, for me, create a link to dead punch. I also believe my eyesight and hand to eye coordination are much improved.

There are quite a number of other substances legal and illegal which have been used by many, including some of the greatest names in our chosen sport. (By the way, pool is not unique in this respect..golf comes immediately to mind.) However, I would like if possible to discuss cannabis only.
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For safety sake do not try to prove your experiment with marijuana in the State of Nevada, as they have very strict unforgiving law regarding drug usage, drug procession, and drug dealing.

A conviction on any or all will get you an extended vacation in a Nevada State Correctional Facility.
 
Lol!

pharaoh68 said:
While I have to admit, I have been known to partake from time to time (and by that I mean every day), I still laugh at those who feel a need to preach the positive affects of what is still essentially a narcotic.

And in response to the actualy question, all I can say is, if you shoot better when you're stoned, then you're obviously smoking crap!
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Me feelings also on this subject! I was at a time one of those that thought that it helped! but now that I no longer do play under the influence my game has increased at a much faster rate since IMO! now I am cognizant :D of what I am doing and able to appreciate and analyze my mistakes and better improve upon them! just my two cents :)

My analogy of this idea of weed making you play better is synonymous with the alcoholics belief that he is able to function and drive adequately with totally complete confidence after several drinks:confused:
 
1 hole on a 9 ft. table- makes me worse
8 ball on a bar table-that plus a few beers & I'm
in the zone.
Usually however I don't do it. Have to be in a comfort zone.
Maybe after I retire this year.
 
I want to thank all for their responses.

I don't view pot as a dangerous or addictive substance, in fact it's the safest psycho active substance around and far less harmful than alcohol.

I know lots of people who like to have a beer or a drink or two before they play. And we all know that there are some people who actually play very well when drunk.

I'm not aspiring to become a pro, I have no desire to play in regional tours and if truth be known I'm getting bored with league play. What I enjoy the most is playing matches against good players, whether it's on a 9 ft table or a barbox.

I'm not advocating the use of cannabis, or any other substance for that matter. For me a few good tokes and I'm good to go. For others, it may seriously interfere with their ability to play well. Different strokes for different folks.

The history of the game is full of champions and legends who used and abused any number of substances. Alcohol, speed, downers, pot you name it. Now again- I'm not advocating any of the above. But of all of those things, cannabis is the safest and least harmful.

I do find it amusing when some folks chastise others for smoking weed while enjoying their third Irish Car Bomb after having polished off a few pints of beer, or whatever else it is they think they need.

You betcha I smoke on occasion and I'll have a goofy grin on my face while I run the table. Afterwards, I'll go home and sleep well. I'll get up on time, and I won't be nursing any form of a hangover. If that makes me an undesirable element then so be it. :cool:
 
I guess the question is: If you're a pot head does smoking weed have a negative effect on your game? My answer would have to be no..... Performance enhancer? no as well. Now alcohol in excess messes my game up fast. I'm un effected for a couple of drinks, then the motor skills start to go. I can see the shot but I start hitting off. On Friday night I'll stick it out until I start getting creamed by guys I can beat sober, then I quit...

Kieth McCready stated on the first KOH show that he'd like to have a couple beers before the match to loosen up. A couple beers or drinks do have that effect, but anymore than that and it's downhill for me...

McCue Banger McCue
 
Secaucus Fats said:
I want to thank all for their responses.

I don't view pot as a dangerous or addictive substance, in fact it's the safest psycho active substance around and far less harmful than alcohol.

...
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Which is not to say it is harmless.
I wished I'd never smoked pot, I also wish I'd never had a drink, partook of various other illegal substances, or smoked a cigarette. That, however, is all water under the bridge, and I don't do any of them now and am glad I don't.
The next best thing to have never taken any of these various substances into your body is to no longer do it. Incidentally, I don't think pot should be illegal, just that people should choose to not do it.
BTW, I'm not interested in entering a debate on this topic, just stating my opinion.

Edit: In regards to the original topic... I don't think any foreign substance helps your play, though a moderate amount doesn't hurt it. You can't trust people's memories in regards to this type of thing. Like gambling, they remember when they win and kinda forget when they loss. I pretty confident that a scientific, double blind study would demostrate that foreign substances (with the possible exception of speed during very long sessions) are counter productive. Maybe this is a good topic for the "Myth Busters" TV show. lol.
 
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Secaucus Fats said:
I'd like to hear from pool players who consume marijuana regarding their opinions on it's worth as a performance enhancing agent.

I have found that in dosages sufficient to create a buzz of low to medium intensity and without any alcohol added to the mix..marijuana can, for me, create a link to dead punch. I also believe my eyesight and hand to eye coordination are much improved.

There are quite a number of other substances legal and illegal which have been used by many, including some of the greatest names in our chosen sport. (By the way, pool is not unique in this respect..golf comes immediately to mind.) However, I would like if possible to discuss cannabis only.
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Not saying it proudly but I probably smoked your body weight in pot in my life. I quit burnin' a few yrs back with a cameo apperance at the bong on occassion. It never, not ONCE helped me find my zone at the pool table, it only helped me find my way to the candy machine. BUT...to defend what your really asking, burnin' before picking up my guitar made creative practice more intense and playing live in front of an audience was much easier too. Whatever works for ya I say!!
 
Secaucus Fats said:
I want to thank all for their responses.

I don't view pot as a dangerous or addictive substance, in fact it's the safest psycho active substance around and far less harmful than alcohol.

I know lots of people who like to have a beer or a drink or two before they play. And we all know that there are some people who actually play very well when drunk.

I'm not aspiring to become a pro, I have no desire to play in regional tours and if truth be known I'm getting bored with league play. What I enjoy the most is playing matches against good players, whether it's on a 9 ft table or a barbox.

I'm not advocating the use of cannabis, or any other substance for that matter. For me a few good tokes and I'm good to go. For others, it may seriously interfere with their ability to play well. Different strokes for different folks.

The history of the game is full of champions and legends who used and abused any number of substances. Alcohol, speed, downers, pot you name it. Now again- I'm not advocating any of the above. But of all of those things, cannabis is the safest and least harmful.

I do find it amusing when some folks chastise others for smoking weed while enjoying their third Irish Car Bomb after having polished off a few pints of beer, or whatever else it is they think they need.

You betcha I smoke on occasion and I'll have a goofy grin on my face while I run the table. Afterwards, I'll go home and sleep well. I'll get up on time, and I won't be nursing any form of a hangover. If that makes me an undesirable element then so be it. :cool:
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Once again FATS, we agree!!! Well said my friend!
Purdman:D
 
recoveryjones said:
They can often play really well for the first 20 minutes, however, soon after their performance deteriorates.I also notice that the fantasy induced defects of perfectionism and the subsequent whining intensifies as things don't go their way.Pot smokers seem to whine about things more than everyone else.

Boy, this quote Recov, sounds just like a pro player hummmmmmmmmm wonder who duplicates these actions, tho I love the way _he plays.
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