Dealing with slow play

Cameron Smith said:
My advice get something to drink sit back and watch. You can occupy your mind by trying to predict every shot he will take and how he will set up for the next shot.
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I appreciate the advice, but I think doing this is exactly what gets me so frustrated. I see him thinking forever and making bad decisions, practice-stroking forever and then firing with a poor stroke, and it makes me angry that he's still there at the table, and even more exasperated that he's so slow. I need to just put my mind on something else, NOT watch him go through his glacier imitation, and come back to the table fresh and calm.

-Andrew
 
With league players, slow play is something to be expected. Maybe talk to your league operator and see if he/she can talk to the player since you don't want to say anything. If it were a tournament situation you could get a shot clock put on the guy.
 
It's league play and you are supposed to be able to talk to the opposing captain and correct the problem. But, that never works.

Talking to the shooter will just add even more minutes to the whole process.

Face it. Your stuck with this game as is. So mentally you have to figure out just how you are going to win this game. There are countless ways you can breakdown this particular game into a winning formula.

Play a game within the game itself.

Run the rack for him in your mind. I mean really visualize this. (Say he has 8 balls to run.) What if he misses that first shot. What would you do from that resulting position? Ok in your mind again he makes his first ball but misses the second. What would you do with that resulting position? Etc., Etc.

Doing this will keep you in the game. It's just a mind execise...one that you will be using yourself when it's your turn to shoot.

During this he will eventually have taken a shot. Is his resulting position close to where you would have put the cue ball? Sometimes I predict where I would put the cue ball ideally and I also predict just where he will actually put it just by what he's putting on the cueball (english).

That's where I then compare what the better play was. His or mine. Then I grade him. 1 point for perfect, and -1 for out of position. Of course after he misses I forget all the numbers and I will already know what I'm going to do.

Pre-shot routine like always at a slower pace (Just like someone just played a safe on you, you double check that what you are about to do doesn't led to something unexpected.) This will keep you from charging out of the gate.

I know sometimes this type concetration can wear on you, so you can stoppick or start it at anytime.
 
Combating slow play

Some things I've done over the years:

While the person is at the table trying to figure out what to do, speak load enough while talking to a team mate offering shot suggestions. From straight in stop shots, kick shots, and three rail just to name a few. Not doing it in a rude way, but maybe the other person may not see other types of shots, but may try them.

If you can't see a complete run, but can find a way to safe them reliably and constantly, they may give up early knowing that everytime they are coming to the table they are walking into a "no way out" safe.

Have the score keeper watch the table while you go get your late night dry cleaning, one article of clothing for everytime the person goes to the table.

When it's your turn, have a teammate wake you up. Go get a cup of joe, take a dump, scratch your belly a few times and while yawning say "Oh... it's my shot?"

Take side bets how long it'll take him/her to get a shot off, the closest one to the time gets the bet, if there's a tie, split the money. Rinse/Repeat.
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Really though... try and have fun, keep your head in the game, and nothing is stoping you from going over to another table (or even a table top, counter top, end of a bar) and practice your stroke while imagining balls to keep in rhythm.

Key is: Keep yourself focused, and enjoy yourself while doing so.
 
I absolutely hate slow play in leagues- If your a beginner I can understand and be more tollerable, but if you're an advanced player or purposly play slow to "shark" me I cant stand. I handle it 2 ways - if I get a chance at the table- runout OR get another beer at the bar
 
This sounds like the best advice I've heard so far about this. Next time I play this guy, I'm going to step away and find someone to converse with to avoid watching him shoot. It's watching him that annoys me so much. I should figure out how not to do that.
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-Andrew[/QUOTE]


What's worked for me is to look around the room to find the best player and watch his/her game. Make sure someone else on your team is watching for bad hits, etc.

I seem to fall into "monkey see, monkey do." If I watch a guy over analyze and miss, I tend to do the same. If I watch a guy good fundamentals, it seems to rub off.

Let him tell you when its your turn to shoot. He might get the idea that he's taking to much time. Meanwhile, you've just watched a sl9 run a rack. You get up and do the same.

BTW, this is my first post. I've lurked for months, soaking up a lot of valuable info. Everytime I thought to ask a question, I found several threads with multiple answers. This is the first time I thought I might be able to add something. I am a league player, slightly better than a banger and thank god that I will never have to make a living playing pool.
 
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I am a tournament director

I had the same problem with a guy - I sat him down and told him he needed to speed things up (many had complained). Deliberate is one thing - but I have seen a race to 2 in 8 ball with this guy last 45 minutes. Not going to let the whole tournament suffer for him. I told him if he couldnt speed up his play he wouldnt be allowed to come back.

I loved the Buddy Hall advice - play slower than him - I bet that would drive the guy NUTS!!!
 
Break out a copy of War & Peace, kick back and read, this way you won't be focused on his slow play, you won't get agitated. And if he sees the title he may get the message :D
 
Andrew Manning said:
I appreciate the advice, but I think doing this is exactly what gets me so frustrated. I see him thinking forever and making bad decisions, practice-stroking forever and then firing with a poor stroke, and it makes me angry that he's still there at the table, and even more exasperated that he's so slow. I need to just put my mind on something else, NOT watch him go through his glacier imitation, and come back to the table fresh and calm.

-Andrew
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If your not watching you can't notice subtle fouls like double hits. I know this is in the realm of league play but, if you ever wan't to make the transition to a tournament player you have to find a way to get beyond this.
In a tournament you can't just leave whenever your opponent is at the table, and not every tournament has shot clocks. But even if you could, you would take yourself out of the game everytime you do. You may be less pissed but you won't have your game face on. You have to get beyond the notion that his successes in the game is an afront to your very existence. Obviously, if he is pocketing balls he is doing something right.
 
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slow play

Play him safe about 50 times in a row, then he will be the frusterated one. He might even unscrew his cue and leave. If nothing else it will certainly send message.
 
The suggestions about reading a newspaper really work. Just look up when he is ready to shoot to see if it is a good shot. You can relax easier when you are thinking about something else but if you concentrate on his slow play it takes away form your being able to relax when it is your shot. This is really worth a try. Let us know if it works for you also.
 
I used to make the mistake, when frustrated by my opponent's slow play, to rush my shot when it was my turn. Even if you are a fast player, take your time at the beginning of your run, look carefully at the table and increase gradually your pace until you reach your normal speed. But no hurry in your first shots. Just my 0.02. :)
 
This thread has yielded a lot of really excellent advice. Although well-intentioned, I don't like the advice involving me concentrating on his run, even if only to do mental exercises involving shots he's faced with. Concentrating on his run was what got me so frustrated in the first place.

I like the idea about finding a way to get my mind off the game in between turns at the table, and not watch him if possible, although someone pointed out that this wouldn't be feasible unless there's a ref or teammate to watch for fouls.

And I really like the idea of playing my safest, most conservative strategy against him. In 8-ball especially (which is what I play), if you've got more than 4 of your balls on the table, it's usually easy not to give the other guy a makeable shot. Instead of being frustrated and careless and giving my opponent opportunities, I could have reversed the roles in that situation.

Thanks for all the tips, and welcome to posting, Tommy Tube Sock. That was very insightful for a first post.

-Andrew
 
han said:
Play even slower. :)
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The problem with this is there are many more people involved than just the two players at the table. People have jobs and most league players want to get home before midnight, at least!

The league has rules about slow play, I bet....Make him follow the rules, period. When he goes over the time limit, call him on it. If he does it again, call him on it. Always call him on it. He won't like you for making him play by the rules (few do), but then he shouldn't be playing in a league with slow-play rules, if he can't handle it.

Been there, done that, fought about it, won,

Jeff Livingston
 
Once I miss I typically zone out. While they're shooting I'll concentrate not on my shooting, but theirs. I'll pay attention to what english they're using and how they're aiming. While I'm doing that I figure in that if they miss the CB may be in this area to where I figure out how I am going to shoot if this happens before the shot is ever taken.

Slow play is just part of the game. The effects of it are much more mental (frustration) than physical (coming to the table cold).

I suggest concentrating on how you are going to shoot your game if he misses (guessing where the CB will be) rather than concentrating on how long it is taking him/her to take a shot.
 
Andrew Manning said:
I'm looking for advice on how to keep slow play from throwing me off my game. I played a guy in my league last week who is absolutely glacial on the pool table. He looks at the shot forever even when there are very few decisions he could possibly be making about how to shoot it, he lines up on the object ball with his cue to find the contact point, and looks at that for a long time, and then finally lines up on the cue ball, only to take about 58 practice strokes.

Thing is, after all those signs that he has absolutely no confidence in his decisions, his aim, his alignment, or his stroke, he shoots pretty accurately, and plays position decently for shots with easy position. So he's likely to run 4 or 5 balls at a time at this pace, and so every time I let him to the table, by the time I get back I've forgotten what day it is, much less my shooting rhythm.

Not only does it destroy my rhythm and take me out of stroke, but it exasperates me to no end while I'm sitting and watching, meaning when I do get to the table, I'm playing frustrated, and missing easy shots because of it. Furthermore, I can't find my natural speed anymore, and I end up shooting way too fast as if to compensate for his slowness.

Now this guy is an extremely nice guy, and I'd feel bad if I told him to speed up, since he's just trying to play his best game, and since I generally shoot better than him, it would seem like I was just picking on him. But I lost the match even though anyone in the league would say I'm the far stronger player, because I beat myself mentally. What do you recommend I do to stay calm and play my game when the other player is that slow?

-Andrew
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Slow play bothers me also and it makes me wonder sometimes if the slow player isn't doing it on purpose to try to get an advantage. The best way i've found to deal with it is to not watch the slow player any more than you have to. Think about something else while they are taking forever to shoot and when your turn comes take advantage of it and if you can't get out do your best to lock them up.

James
 
chefjeff said:
The problem with this is there are many more people involved than just the two players at the table. People have jobs and most league players want to get home before midnight, at least!




The league has rules about slow play, I bet....Make him follow the rules, period. When he goes over the time limit, call him on it. If he does it again, call him on it. Always call him on it. He won't like you for making him play by the rules (few do), but then he shouldn't be playing in a league with slow-play rules, if he can't handle it.

Been there, done that, fought about it, won,

Jeff Livingston
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APa has a rule against slow play!
look it up on website also under FAQ !
 
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