I would have to say that tonight was probably one of the ugliest experiences I've had playing pool in the last few years. It's been more than half a day, but I'm still fuming over it.
A person that I play with quite frequently, him and I are friends. But this guy is known as a loudmouth. Off the table him and I are pretty cool, he doesn't get loud with me or anything like that. He's got alot of money, and he knows that I'm in college and don't have that much money, so we play one pocket and keep the stakes cheap. It's usually $5-10$ per game, or a race to 3 for $25.
One thing I find extremely annoying, is that he is stuck in the past about his game. He always talks about how good he used to play. I came to learn that his past is a bunch of bullcrap. People who have been around the poolhall as long as him, say that he has always played the same. He never played any better than he does now. He always goes on and on about if he was in stroke, he could beat everyone there, yadayadayada....you get the picture.
Earlier tonight I came in to practice by myself, and he was there being his usual loudmouth self with everyone else. Saying that he would bet thousands with anyone, blah blah. When a good player would inquire about that, he would ask for the stone cold nuts, of course. So I start practicing some one pocket banks and moves. He asks me to play, and I say sure, and we decide to play $10 per game 1-hole.
Before I go any further, just to give you an idea of how him and I are in skill contrast- he can't beat me in 9ball, he would probably need the 7ball. In straight pool, we've only played it twice and I beat him pretty bad both times. In big-table 8ball, he's got no chance. In one pocket, he can beat me even. He knows the game fairly well. He just doesn't have the stroke to execute. If he had a good stroke, he would probably drill me in one pocket. I'm trying hard to learn the game, but he's got alot more experience and knowledge than me in this game. The only reason I win games against him is because I can run balls. But he definately has the edge in this game.
So the first game starts, he breaks. We plays safes back and forth, I bank a ball into the stack towards my hole and leave him in a trap. He sells out and I run five. I bank a ball towards my hole and leave him in a trap again, he sells out and I run out. At this time we are having fun, keeping it friendly, and I feel like I am playing decent. He starts talking to the railbirds, saying "Oh he's playing good today, anyone wanna sidebet?" He gets two takers. One of them is a another friend of mine, and the other one is an accquaintence. The next thing I know, they are each putting $20 on me per game.
The last time side action got involved when him and I were playing, things got a little ugly between him and one of the railbirds. I was a little hesitant, because I just had a gut feeling that I was gonna end up in a serious match and there was gonna be some pressure, because I knew that whether I won or lose, the bets were gonna keep getting raised. I didn't really feel like dealing with all that at the time. The problem is this got the attention of most of the people in the room, so I didn't want to back down and spoil the action. The next game I played good again, and beat him by a score of 8-3.
Now his pride was hurt. He's in his own little world when it comes to him and one pocket. He thinks that he is some wizard of the game with infinte knowledge. Surely no mortal can defeat him at his best game. So he starts getting really loud, saying that he can't play 'his game' because the bets weren't high enough. That's always his excuse when he loses. Either the bet's not high enough, he's tired, he's too drunk, his shoulder is hurt, you name it. So they raise the sidebets to $50 per game.
Great, now I'm probably gonna be stuck in the middle of this for the next few hours. I just wanted to practice, but since his ego is hurt, he has to explain why I beat him. No matter how good I play anytime I beat him in 1-hole, ne never acknowledges it. He only points out how bad he played, and the reason why he played bad. Shit, last week I ran a beautiful 8 and out against him from nowhere. Did he say nice out? No, he said "You were lucky that ball rolled there and you got a shot there blah blah blah". I think you are getting the picture of what type of guy he is.
So the next game commences, and he starts doing his usual loudmouth routine. Talking while I'm shooting, talking SHIT while I'm shooting, twirling his cue, making loud whooping noises, etc. I get to a pretty good lead. I have 5 and he has 2, and I have a long spot shot with automatic shape on the next ball, and another ball after that. So basically I was shooting game ball. So what does he do? Right when I'm about to shoot, he says "None of you guys will bet anything worthwhile, that's why I'm stuck playing p*ssies like him". I know he's talking about me. I get up off my shot, look at him, and tell him to cool it. "I don't mind the jokes, but you're starting to cross the line" I said, while glaring at him. He laughs and says he was just kidding. I get back down to shoot, and I'm about to pull the trigger. I hear him say in a lower tone "it's okay, he's gonna miss". And wouldn't you know it, I miss the shot, kiss off a ball and scratch.
Suddenly I get this feeling of intense anger. My heart started pounding, I could feel the blood rushing to my head. I mean DAMN I haven't gotten that mad in a long time. But I managed to keep from throwing my cue at him. Meanwhile he's laughing and taunting the railbirds because he's got ball in hand and the table is wide open. He runs a few balls, then ducks. Before I shoot again, I say "Just don't say anything when I'm shooting. You got no respect." I get down, to shoot, and now he's talking to one of his friends. His back is turned towards me, and he's talking really loud. I try not to let it get to me, but I hit the ball bad, and sell out again. He runs out.
Now he knows that he's got in my head. I'm so angry that I can barely hold my cue steady. The thing about me is that I am the quiet and reserved type, especially when playing pool. I play like a gentleman, try to be a good sport, and I always try not to distract someone when they are shooting, etc. I'm also not the violent type. I'm pretty good at controlling my temper. If and when I get emotional, I just take a break and calm down. So I go to the bathroom and wash my hands, and then I take a break and try to relax. One of the guys who was sidebetting on me walks up to me, and starts telling me that I need to block all that stuff out and just play my game. I tell him that I can usually deal with noise and distractions, but when he was talking about me and called me a p*ssy, that just pissed me off beyond belief. I'm sitting at the other end of the room, and I cant decide if I want to keep playing. I get a phone call and go outside. I come back in, and the person who was betting on me had a talk with my opponent. He told him that I was complaining about him sharking me, and insults, etc.
Now here is the kicker. He comes up to me and talks to me, and tries to start lecturing me on certain shots that I did wrong in the game we just played! (he thinks that he is teaching me the game when he plays against me). I tell him that I know what I did wrong on the shots, and then I say "But I can't execute a shot if YOU get me pissed off to the point where I can barely hold my f***ing cue!!!" I point out to him how rude that he was being. I agree that I'll keep playing if he stops acting like that. I tell him "Look, all I want from you is the same respect that I show you". Then he tells me how weak mentally I am, and that it's just a game, and that I'm only betting $10. I bring up the fact that even though I'm barely betting anything, OTHER PEOPLE ARE, and they are betting on me. I don't want to end up losing their money because my opponents antics got in my head and I dog it or something.
So we agree to keep playing, and he gives me the impression that he will stop with the antics. The next game I regain my focus, and I get a huge lead, up 5-1 in ball count. My opponent does have me in a pretty good trap, however. I play a defensive shot, but leave him an easy bank. If he makes it, he will get alot of balls. He dogs the bank, and loses the cueball, and leaves me an easy 3-ball run. As I'm approaching the table, he says "I dogged it. But at least I'm not crying!" gesturing towards me. Now the thought of violence crosses my mind. Just then I get this image, of me getting in a fistfight over a stupid friggin game. I let the urge subside, I look at my opponent, and say "**** you. This is the last time we play". I run the remaining balls and unscrew.
He left and didn't say a word, even as he payed me and the sidebettors. It's sad that such a small amount of money, and such a huge ego, can ruin a friendship. Usually by this time I'm pretty calm about something that pissed me off hours ago. But right now I feel like I should have punched him.
A person that I play with quite frequently, him and I are friends. But this guy is known as a loudmouth. Off the table him and I are pretty cool, he doesn't get loud with me or anything like that. He's got alot of money, and he knows that I'm in college and don't have that much money, so we play one pocket and keep the stakes cheap. It's usually $5-10$ per game, or a race to 3 for $25.
One thing I find extremely annoying, is that he is stuck in the past about his game. He always talks about how good he used to play. I came to learn that his past is a bunch of bullcrap. People who have been around the poolhall as long as him, say that he has always played the same. He never played any better than he does now. He always goes on and on about if he was in stroke, he could beat everyone there, yadayadayada....you get the picture.
Earlier tonight I came in to practice by myself, and he was there being his usual loudmouth self with everyone else. Saying that he would bet thousands with anyone, blah blah. When a good player would inquire about that, he would ask for the stone cold nuts, of course. So I start practicing some one pocket banks and moves. He asks me to play, and I say sure, and we decide to play $10 per game 1-hole.
Before I go any further, just to give you an idea of how him and I are in skill contrast- he can't beat me in 9ball, he would probably need the 7ball. In straight pool, we've only played it twice and I beat him pretty bad both times. In big-table 8ball, he's got no chance. In one pocket, he can beat me even. He knows the game fairly well. He just doesn't have the stroke to execute. If he had a good stroke, he would probably drill me in one pocket. I'm trying hard to learn the game, but he's got alot more experience and knowledge than me in this game. The only reason I win games against him is because I can run balls. But he definately has the edge in this game.
So the first game starts, he breaks. We plays safes back and forth, I bank a ball into the stack towards my hole and leave him in a trap. He sells out and I run five. I bank a ball towards my hole and leave him in a trap again, he sells out and I run out. At this time we are having fun, keeping it friendly, and I feel like I am playing decent. He starts talking to the railbirds, saying "Oh he's playing good today, anyone wanna sidebet?" He gets two takers. One of them is a another friend of mine, and the other one is an accquaintence. The next thing I know, they are each putting $20 on me per game.
The last time side action got involved when him and I were playing, things got a little ugly between him and one of the railbirds. I was a little hesitant, because I just had a gut feeling that I was gonna end up in a serious match and there was gonna be some pressure, because I knew that whether I won or lose, the bets were gonna keep getting raised. I didn't really feel like dealing with all that at the time. The problem is this got the attention of most of the people in the room, so I didn't want to back down and spoil the action. The next game I played good again, and beat him by a score of 8-3.
Now his pride was hurt. He's in his own little world when it comes to him and one pocket. He thinks that he is some wizard of the game with infinte knowledge. Surely no mortal can defeat him at his best game. So he starts getting really loud, saying that he can't play 'his game' because the bets weren't high enough. That's always his excuse when he loses. Either the bet's not high enough, he's tired, he's too drunk, his shoulder is hurt, you name it. So they raise the sidebets to $50 per game.
Great, now I'm probably gonna be stuck in the middle of this for the next few hours. I just wanted to practice, but since his ego is hurt, he has to explain why I beat him. No matter how good I play anytime I beat him in 1-hole, ne never acknowledges it. He only points out how bad he played, and the reason why he played bad. Shit, last week I ran a beautiful 8 and out against him from nowhere. Did he say nice out? No, he said "You were lucky that ball rolled there and you got a shot there blah blah blah". I think you are getting the picture of what type of guy he is.
So the next game commences, and he starts doing his usual loudmouth routine. Talking while I'm shooting, talking SHIT while I'm shooting, twirling his cue, making loud whooping noises, etc. I get to a pretty good lead. I have 5 and he has 2, and I have a long spot shot with automatic shape on the next ball, and another ball after that. So basically I was shooting game ball. So what does he do? Right when I'm about to shoot, he says "None of you guys will bet anything worthwhile, that's why I'm stuck playing p*ssies like him". I know he's talking about me. I get up off my shot, look at him, and tell him to cool it. "I don't mind the jokes, but you're starting to cross the line" I said, while glaring at him. He laughs and says he was just kidding. I get back down to shoot, and I'm about to pull the trigger. I hear him say in a lower tone "it's okay, he's gonna miss". And wouldn't you know it, I miss the shot, kiss off a ball and scratch.
Suddenly I get this feeling of intense anger. My heart started pounding, I could feel the blood rushing to my head. I mean DAMN I haven't gotten that mad in a long time. But I managed to keep from throwing my cue at him. Meanwhile he's laughing and taunting the railbirds because he's got ball in hand and the table is wide open. He runs a few balls, then ducks. Before I shoot again, I say "Just don't say anything when I'm shooting. You got no respect." I get down, to shoot, and now he's talking to one of his friends. His back is turned towards me, and he's talking really loud. I try not to let it get to me, but I hit the ball bad, and sell out again. He runs out.
Now he knows that he's got in my head. I'm so angry that I can barely hold my cue steady. The thing about me is that I am the quiet and reserved type, especially when playing pool. I play like a gentleman, try to be a good sport, and I always try not to distract someone when they are shooting, etc. I'm also not the violent type. I'm pretty good at controlling my temper. If and when I get emotional, I just take a break and calm down. So I go to the bathroom and wash my hands, and then I take a break and try to relax. One of the guys who was sidebetting on me walks up to me, and starts telling me that I need to block all that stuff out and just play my game. I tell him that I can usually deal with noise and distractions, but when he was talking about me and called me a p*ssy, that just pissed me off beyond belief. I'm sitting at the other end of the room, and I cant decide if I want to keep playing. I get a phone call and go outside. I come back in, and the person who was betting on me had a talk with my opponent. He told him that I was complaining about him sharking me, and insults, etc.
Now here is the kicker. He comes up to me and talks to me, and tries to start lecturing me on certain shots that I did wrong in the game we just played! (he thinks that he is teaching me the game when he plays against me). I tell him that I know what I did wrong on the shots, and then I say "But I can't execute a shot if YOU get me pissed off to the point where I can barely hold my f***ing cue!!!" I point out to him how rude that he was being. I agree that I'll keep playing if he stops acting like that. I tell him "Look, all I want from you is the same respect that I show you". Then he tells me how weak mentally I am, and that it's just a game, and that I'm only betting $10. I bring up the fact that even though I'm barely betting anything, OTHER PEOPLE ARE, and they are betting on me. I don't want to end up losing their money because my opponents antics got in my head and I dog it or something.
So we agree to keep playing, and he gives me the impression that he will stop with the antics. The next game I regain my focus, and I get a huge lead, up 5-1 in ball count. My opponent does have me in a pretty good trap, however. I play a defensive shot, but leave him an easy bank. If he makes it, he will get alot of balls. He dogs the bank, and loses the cueball, and leaves me an easy 3-ball run. As I'm approaching the table, he says "I dogged it. But at least I'm not crying!" gesturing towards me. Now the thought of violence crosses my mind. Just then I get this image, of me getting in a fistfight over a stupid friggin game. I let the urge subside, I look at my opponent, and say "**** you. This is the last time we play". I run the remaining balls and unscrew.
He left and didn't say a word, even as he payed me and the sidebettors. It's sad that such a small amount of money, and such a huge ego, can ruin a friendship. Usually by this time I'm pretty calm about something that pissed me off hours ago. But right now I feel like I should have punched him.
