Comebacks: It Ain't Over 'Til It's Over. Let's Hear them!

[john schmidt]

heres the one that made me have an ulcer

this was in 03 ,i just got done playing tony watson 8 ahead for 20 dimes and 8ahead for 40dimes.
i win both sets receive my end of what i bet and the 10percent from the railbirds.
anyway my exwife and i lived in a motorhome and left the derby classic where i played tony.

we decided to go thru hattiesburg miss to play little john macias.

we had played before a few times and i knew he could play and had a ton of gamble.

i had 14,000 on me at the time it was my life savings plus about a 10,000 dollar motorhome.

im betting all my own in this game and believe me i was in for a fight.

i gave him 11-7,12-7 3ahead for 500 and won.
then we start playing 500 a game same way and we go back and forth.
we then bump it to 800 a game and this table was a wet,dirty old cloth diamond that was tough as hell to run over 5 on, and his home table to boot.

i was thinking the whole time i cant win like this its too much weight and this table sucks.

we then start playing 1000 a game and i lose back about 3000.
little john then says bet 2000 a game.

i take the heat and say ok and my wife looks at me like are you crazy.

i go on to lose about 6000 more and im counting out another 2000 because lj needs one ball and i need 13.

now remember i had 14000 on me if lj wins this game ill have 4000 left to my name for my wife and i to live on.


she leans over to me and says please quit you cant win like this,i say i know im sorry ive dogged it honey im quiting.

just as i whisper that to her he misses a hanger to win the game.

theres now only 9balls on the table i somehow run them all, then about 30minutes later manage to win the game.

by daylight i had won my 8000 back plus his 4000 and we quit with me 4000 winner.


it was by far one of the most stressful nights of my pool career and i remember it vividly.

i have made many huge comebacks in my life but that match sticks out in my mind.

if he makes that out ball i quit 10,000 loser of my own money and could very well have ended up a fry cook or something .

 

[Bobby]

this was in 03 ,i just got done playing tony watson 8 ahead for 20 dimes and 8ahead for 40dimes.
i win both sets receive my end of what i bet and the 10percent from the railbirds.
anyway my exwife and i lived in a motorhome and left the derby classic where i played tony.

we decided to go thru hattiesburg miss to play little john macias.

we had played before a few times and i knew he could play and had a ton of gamble.

i had 14,000 on me at the time it was my life savings plus about a 10,000 dollar motorhome.

im betting all my own in this game and believe me i was in for a fight.

i gave him 11-7,12-7 3ahead for 500 and won.
then we start playing 500 a game same way and we go back and forth.
we then bump it to 800 a game and this table was a wet,dirty old cloth diamond that was tough as hell to run over 5 on, and his home table to boot.

i was thinking the whole time i cant win like this its too much weight and this table sucks.

we then start playing 1000 a game and i lose back about 3000.
little john then says bet 2000 a game.

i take the heat and say ok and my wife looks at me like are you crazy.

i go on to lose about 6000 more and im counting out another 2000 because lj needs one ball and i need 13.

now remember i had 14000 on me if lj wins this game ill have 4000 left to my name for my wife and i to live on.


she leans over to me and says please quit you cant win like this,i say i know im sorry ive dogged it honey im quiting.

just as i whisper that to her he misses a hanger to win the game.

theres now only 9balls on the table i somehow run them all, then about 30minutes later manage to win the game.

by daylight i had won my 8000 back plus his 4000 and we quit with me 4000 winner.


it was by far one of the most stressful nights of my pool career and i remember it vividly.

i have made many huge comebacks in my life but that match sticks out in my mind.

if he makes that out ball i quit 10,000 loser of my own money and could very well have ended up a fry cook or something .

Wow! That has to be the best comeback I've ever heard of! not so much the money as the situation with the tough table and you needing 13 to his one. Amazing.

 

[i4pool]

...
by daylight i had won my 8000 back plus his 4000 and we quit with me 4000 winner.


it was by far one of the most stressful nights of my pool career and i remember it vividly.

i have made many huge comebacks in my life but that match sticks out in my mind.

if he makes that out ball i quit 10,000 loser of my own money and could very well have ended up a fry cook or something .

Amazing John... helluva comeback! That's what I call heart! Thanks for sharing. Speaking of sharing... you've shared a lot here on AZB and I for one enjoy reading about your past experiences. You ever consider writing your own book? :grin-square:

 

[SloRoller]

About 10 years ago in Dallas I played in a 9-ball tourney race to 9.

Typically, I could not hit 3 balls in a row and he was up 8-2.

For some reason he started to miss. He had several opportunities to get out but couldn't. I kept winning each game and he kept missing. By the time it was 8-8 he was so flustered he couldn't make anything. I won 9-8.

The guy was furious, he packed up his cue and left.

I had 10 people come over to me and congratulate me on the win. Apparently he was one of the best players in the area and he usually wins the tournament.

SR

 

[mjantti]

kamila khodjaeva.

Finals of the European 9ball championship girls. She: her first apearance, 13y old, her opponent: triple european championship in 8, 9 and 14-1 from germany, 18y old.

First time she played on the tv table. She was trailing 0-4 in a race to 6. She took the remaining racks and won 6-4.

I was the scorekeeper in that match. Kamila played unbelievable shots, long shots with hard pace, she even made one table length draw which many of the top male players would find difficult to shoot in such a tough match. She totally shot lights out.

My comebacks... #1. Straight pool ranking event years ago, I play a top Finnish player, race to 75, my opponent misses leading 58-12, my friend jokes from the rail "That was your last shot!" and we have a good chuckle... and I proceed to run 63-out.

#2. Two or three years ago Finnish team champs, first match 14.1 race to 75, my opponent goes up 52-1 in 3 innings, makes his first real mistake of the match and I run 74-out. During my run the other matches ended in a way that my match was the deciding one. This run was "perfect", I did't have any difficult shots nor I didn't let the cueball loose, not even once. Very satisfying...

#3. Handicapped 9-ball tournament, race to 10, I got 2 on the wire, my opponent got 6. He proceeded to go 9-2 up, missed an easy out and I quickly won 8 straight racks with him getting only three chances during those 8 racks. He dogged all of them and I won 10-9, simple but satisfying

 

[APA Gene]

My best comeback was a couple years ago playing APA 9ball. My team had won our divisionals 3 sessions in a row and in the finals for the 4th consecutive time. I was the final match with all on the line playing a 5 going to 38 & myself a 9 going to 75. He needed 1 ball & me 43. I held him to 0 taking the next 43 points with a few break & runs & good safety play. Felt great when it was over.

That is strong! You must have been on top of the world! Incredibly tough especially with no pushout and no jump cue. Non-APA players have no idea how hard that was.

 

[APA Gene]

this was in 03 ,i just got done playing tony watson 8 ahead for 20 dimes and 8ahead for 40dimes.
i win both sets receive my end of what i bet and the 10percent from the railbirds.
anyway my exwife and i lived in a motorhome and left the derby classic where i played tony.

we decided to go thru hattiesburg miss to play little john macias.

we had played before a few times and i knew he could play and had a ton of gamble.

i had 14,000 on me at the time it was my life savings plus about a 10,000 dollar motorhome.

im betting all my own in this game and believe me i was in for a fight.

i gave him 11-7,12-7 3ahead for 500 and won.
then we start playing 500 a game same way and we go back and forth.
we then bump it to 800 a game and this table was a wet,dirty old cloth diamond that was tough as hell to run over 5 on, and his home table to boot.

i was thinking the whole time i cant win like this its too much weight and this table sucks.

we then start playing 1000 a game and i lose back about 3000.
little john then says bet 2000 a game.

i take the heat and say ok and my wife looks at me like are you crazy.

i go on to lose about 6000 more and im counting out another 2000 because lj needs one ball and i need 13.

now remember i had 14000 on me if lj wins this game ill have 4000 left to my name for my wife and i to live on.


she leans over to me and says please quit you cant win like this,i say i know im sorry ive dogged it honey im quiting.

just as i whisper that to her he misses a hanger to win the game.

theres now only 9balls on the table i somehow run them all, then about 30minutes later manage to win the game.

by daylight i had won my 8000 back plus his 4000 and we quit with me 4000 winner.


it was by far one of the most stressful nights of my pool career and i remember it vividly.

i have made many huge comebacks in my life but that match sticks out in my mind.

if he makes that out ball i quit 10,000 loser of my own money and could very well have ended up a fry cook or something .

I think I would have thrown up!

 

[mongoose-]

That is strong! You must have been on top of the world! Incredibly tough especially with no pushout and no jump cue. Non-APA players have no idea how hard that was.

Thanks Gene. It is definatly tough with those rules of no push out especially. You gotta have some luck on the break and not get stuck & make one. The ball a point leaves no room for error in tight matches. Guess it was just meant to be. :grin-square:

 

[i4pool]

That is strong! You must have been on top of the world! Incredibly tough especially with no pushout and no jump cue. Non-APA players have no idea how hard that was.

That was definitely a tough comeback. Nice job Mongoose! I played APA 9B for 6-7 years and know exactly how tough that is. :thumbup:

Your team must have gone crazy after pulling that off! What a feeling!

 

[crawfish]

A friend of mine, Joe, learned of the arrest of a local fella within about 45 minutes of Raleigh. He was in the "Recreational Business." He was a pretty good player and had a ton of money. They had just popped him and he was awaiting sentencing out on bail. A top player charged him about a couple of grand earlier in the week playing eight ball on the bartable.

Well, Joe picks me up and brings quite a good chunk of change. Well, we get there and the guy wants to play six ball on the duct-taped table with a mudball. $20 a game action. He came outta nowhere running out from places where you're just not supposed to get out from. I was 22 games down. Pissed. Joe pulls me aside and tells me to raise the bet to a $100 a game. Of course the guy jumps all over it. Even a railer wants a little $20 on the side. We oblige.

I'm pretty sure the numbers have been distorted over the years with this story, but I believe I won between $600-900? counting the side action. The guy just laughed and said he wouldn't need the cash where he was going. The problem came when we tried to leave after winning over $200?$160? from the "know it all" railer who thought I was laying down. He started some sh#$ over giving him his money back. Whatever. Come and get it.

 

[bakermaker]

9 Ball Races

A couple of months ago I was playing in a small pool hall near my house when I matched up with a player close to my speed. We played 9 ball races to 3 for $10 a set. I lose 4 races in a row barely getting a game in each set. I was about to quit because all I had on me was $50 and there was no ATM there. I dug down deep and concentrated on every shot I had and brought it back to even. He pulled up after that. Heck, bringing it back to even almost made me feel as though I won!!

 

[cincyman]

This one did not involve me but one of my good friends at the time, and many on here can attest to this happening.
On Tuesday nights at the pool hall i used to play at, there was a handicap nineball tourny. This tourny filled up at 32 players a week and payed decent for a weekly tourny.
To know this place you would understand its not your typical pool hall(e.g. lots of younger kids and distraction).
Well my friend has the mental capacity of a squirel and cannot block anything out and always has an excuse. The tourny is handicaped 3 to 8 which is the amount of games you must win.
My friend is probably a 7 and was in APA but in thi tourny he was a 4 which is an outrage, but he could never win because of his mental state.

He playing a guy thats a 7 and should be a 4. My friend is up 3 to 0 and hangs the case nineball. Gives it to him and racks. Snap nine in the bottom left corner 3-2. Rack, Snap nineball bottom left corner;3-3, rack Snap nineball bottom left corner 3-4 and yes you guessed it 6 IN A ROW.

My buddy is bad racking the last few on purpose and its still going in. There were about 20 people watching and the tourny director thought it might be a world record so all that witnesses it had to sign a paper and sent it in, to find out it was not a record.

But, needless to say my friends mind was never the same LOL

And it went in the same pocket everytime:thumbup:

 

[paksat]

this was in 03 ,i just got done playing tony watson 8 ahead for 20 dimes and 8ahead for 40dimes.
i win both sets receive my end of what i bet and the 10percent from the railbirds.
anyway my exwife and i lived in a motorhome and left the derby classic where i played tony.

we decided to go thru hattiesburg miss to play little john macias.

we had played before a few times and i knew he could play and had a ton of gamble.

i had 14,000 on me at the time it was my life savings plus about a 10,000 dollar motorhome.

im betting all my own in this game and believe me i was in for a fight.

i gave him 11-7,12-7 3ahead for 500 and won.
then we start playing 500 a game same way and we go back and forth.
we then bump it to 800 a game and this table was a wet,dirty old cloth diamond that was tough as hell to run over 5 on, and his home table to boot.

i was thinking the whole time i cant win like this its too much weight and this table sucks.

we then start playing 1000 a game and i lose back about 3000.
little john then says bet 2000 a game.

i take the heat and say ok and my wife looks at me like are you crazy.

i go on to lose about 6000 more and im counting out another 2000 because lj needs one ball and i need 13.

now remember i had 14000 on me if lj wins this game ill have 4000 left to my name for my wife and i to live on.


she leans over to me and says please quit you cant win like this,i say i know im sorry ive dogged it honey im quiting.

just as i whisper that to her he misses a hanger to win the game.

theres now only 9balls on the table i somehow run them all, then about 30minutes later manage to win the game.

by daylight i had won my 8000 back plus his 4000 and we quit with me 4000 winner.


it was by far one of the most stressful nights of my pool career and i remember it vividly.

i have made many huge comebacks in my life but that match sticks out in my mind.

if he makes that out ball i quit 10,000 loser of my own money and could very well have ended up a fry cook or something .

Hate to bump old threads ( isn't really old but yeh ) but that is just amazing.

 

[JasonCrugar]

My all time best was against a hustler named Billy Ray. He came to my poolroom in the early 70's and got me down playing a Race To Eleven for $200. I was down 9-2 and he was strutting around like a peacock. I started running out rack after rack and caught him at 10. In the last rack I had a difficult run out and had to shoot a long cut shot on the nine. I KNEW I was going to make that ball! I beat him 11-10 and he snapped his cue in frustration and stormed out of there.

Billy Ray disappeared from the pool scene for many years and re-emerged a couple of years ago. Kind of pulled a Rafael Martinez disappearing act on us.

you aren't talking about billy ray sudan are you lmao??? if it's the same guy good job!!! if not good job!!!! that guy is one of a kind :angry:

 

[DeadPoked]

I've had a lot of come from behind victories because that's just the way I've always been.

Recently I lost a 500 set to Josh Roberts getting a spot and then played his backer giving about the same spot 7-ahead for another 500 betting my own. The set with Josh wasn't even close. He tortured me 13-3. The backer gets on the hill and breaks in his money ball and scratches. I get down to the 8 & 9 which were both frozen to the end rail so that I have to go up and down table for shape on the 9. I hit the ball a little thin and the cueball went on the wrong side of the 9 and missed the corner pocket by an inch. I come back and in about 1 1/2 hours and I win the set. So I came one scratch away from being 1K stuck and then 1 inch away from giving away the set. I was pretty fortunate to get that opportunity to come back, BUT when the opportunity presented itself I took advantage of it.

 

[Complex13]

This years Iowa Valley state tournament I played in the open 9 ball tournament. It was my first time playing a big 9 ball tournament so I didn't anticipate doing well or anything. I just wanted to play.

My first opponent got me down 3-0 real quick in race to 4. He was on fire and was making everything, even his jump shots. I was thinking to myself, wow, what a draw here with this guy. I've got my hands full. I wasn't upset at all and I was even laughing a bit at the situation.

So the fourth game the guy runs down to the 7. He has basically 3 stop shots to win the set 4-0. He had been shooting quick the whole set but he paused a bit for the 7 and then missed it giving me the easy out. I had a good run on the next game and got it to 3-2. I can't really explain it but I think he panicked a bit the last two games. He tried a bunch of caroms for early nines when he could have just finished out. He missed the caroms and I finished out the last two games to win 4-3.

That was a great feeling to come back and get that set. I didn't win the tournament or anything but I was on cloud 9 the rest of the day!

The same tournament a few years ago I played the open 8 ball tournament and won 7 or 8 matches in a row on the losers side. It was a race to 2 on the loser's and every match on the loser's side I lost the first game. It was amazing how many times my opponent's had the game ball to knock me out and they just choked.

 

[satman]

I have 2 that stick out

So last night I'm playing in this local 9B tourny and get matched up with a guy who I have to give 1 on the wire - race to 7. I find myself struggling to get a into a groove and my opponent is shooting pretty solid. Well, it gets to 3-1 him, then 4-2 him, then 6-2 him. Now he's on the hill.

He misses a shot and I decide to settle myself down by taking a restroom break (I probably should have taken it sooner). I washed my hands and my face then stared myself down in the mirror telling myself "it's not over!". I came back to win the set! It wasn't the prettiest comeback but it felt good nonetheless.

Let's hear your comeback stories and what factor(s) were key in shifting the momentum your way.

Race to 9, loser breaks, 9 ball. I was playing a friend of mine in a tourney. He had me stuck 8-1. He was running out, missed a easy 6 ball. I run out. He starts breaking streak of 7 consecutive breaks without making a ball. I run out a couple, let him kick at a ball maybe twice the rest of the set. Winning the match 9-8...

My favorite comeback though, is being on my couch with the flu for 2 days straight and can barely move. Get up on Saturday, drive 2 hours to a 9 ball tourney, race to 7, winner breaks. Win the flip my first match and run the set out. I consider this my comeback from the edge of dead.

 

[Big Perm]

College, in my worst rut ever.....hadn't had any action in weeks, couldn't get the stink off me.....couldn't play well nor get in the game to save my life....

My roommate is working it.....he's got a fish on the line, and he's playing way above his speed.....somehow, I caught an extra gear.....like Paul Newman at the end of TCOM, I was back.....basically, eating out of my hands, I didn't even have to work at it....so smooth....

Score...

She was 5 foot, 3 inches, 110 pounds with the weight in all the right places....nothing really long term came of it, but one hell of a night.....and we did our magic on a pool table, so the story is kinda on topic After that, the playa was back, no dry spells for a long time...

On the downside, my roommate was pissed, things were kinda uneasy for a couple of weeks.....I was actually partying on the other end of the bar and didn't know he had been working it until he told me the next day, I felt bad, but then again nobody is perfect

 

[JasonCrugar]

greatest comeback i was a part of

my buddy and i were playing a handicapped scotch tourny. we blasted our way to the hot seat match with an all offense approach. our opponents for the hammer went to max 9 and we went to 8. they win rack 1. we win rack 2. they proceed to win 7 IN A ROW, and are up 8 -1. my partner actually asked me to concede the match and get ready for the 3rd place match. i almost slapped the goofy bastard. i told him BAR BOX 9 ball we arent out til the last 9 falls!!! our next shot i fire a crazy carom and drill the 9 in the side. back to back 9 balls on the break and he is starting to believe again. all of the sudden rolls are going our way and they have hit the wall. and as fate would have it we got it hill hill and the whole bar is watching and cheering. they ran to the 7 and choked big time. we run the last 3 and win the set and beat them in finals hill hill and win the tourny. all i can say is good job dana we freakin earned that one.

 

[Gerry]

I went out on a mini road trip years back when i was playing good 14.1. I matched up even with a guy I should lose to, playing $1 per ball going to 125 points. first game I lose 85 to 125 with me running 70 near the end to save some bucks....next game I'm down 42 to -1....he played safe. I played safe and during the shot my tip popped off my Black Boar...thanx Tony! ...j/k....with no other choice I screwed together my trusty Cuetec Earl model jump break. I was 2 in the hole and started running balls.....127 later I was out with my high run and a priceless look on the dudes face!.....he quit after that:thumbup:

I just wish I could have kept going....to this day it is my high run.

yes, I still have that Earl J/B in my case to this day!

G.