Fargo rating progression rate

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dfreshlv

New member
As a relatively new pool player/hobbyist I’m curious as to how much one might roughly progress in Fargo rating within a year or a few years with several hours of focused practice per week and weekly league play/matches.
Obviously there are numerous factors at play but I’ve trained in a number of sports throughout my life and I am of the opinion that we have “soft caps” that we can reach with just a modicum of effort and discipline and then “hard caps” that require full commitment to the sport i,e. professionals.
If say right now I’m in the low 500 range is it realistic to think I could move up to the low 600 range in a year or two if I’m working on the right things? I’m just try to get a sense of what is achievable for an average player/person who doesn’t have the time or commitment to play pool 5 times a week or more. Any opinions are appreciated.
 
Maybe. There's also a hard cap based on physical ability.

A lot of people overestimate their ultimate/physical abilities...

I could practice basketball with the best coaches on earth for the rest of my life, but this 68 year old white boy with a 7" vertical ain't ever playing for the Nicks! 😁
 
dfreshlv said:
As a relatively new pool player/hobbyist I’m curious as to how much one might roughly progress in Fargo rating within a year or a few years with several hours of focused practice per week and weekly league play/matches.
Obviously there are numerous factors at play but I’ve trained in a number of sports throughout my life and I am of the opinion that we have “soft caps” that we can reach with just a modicum of effort and discipline and then “hard caps” that require full commitment to the sport i,e. professionals.
If say right now I’m in the low 500 range is it realistic to think I could move up to the low 600 range in a year or two if I’m working on the right things? I’m just try to get a sense of what is achievable for an average player/person who doesn’t have the time or commitment to play pool 5 times a week or more. Any opinions are appreciated.
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From what you've described, NO. League play is virtually worthless. If you're a low 500 you're better than most league players already and will learn nothing except maybe some bad habits.

Playing tournaments or matches with better players would be more helpful. But a few hours per week just won't do it. I'd say the minimum would be 15 hours per week and even then you'd need to be doing it correctly which you're unlikely to know exactly what to do.

The jump from 500 to 600 is immense for a part time player.
 
sparkle84 said:
The jump from 500 to 600 is immense for a part time player.
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This ^^^^

A buddy of mine broke 500 2 years ago. Right after that he put in his own 9' Diamond table. He told me his goal was to be at 600 in a year.

He plays league twice a week, the occasional tournament, and probably bangs them around at home an hour a day...

Now, two years later, he's at 515.
 
dfreshlv said:
... If say right now I’m in the low 500 range is it realistic to think I could move up to the low 600 range in a year or two if I’m working on the right things? I’m just try to get a sense of what is achievable for an average player/person who doesn’t have the time or commitment to play pool 5 times a week or more. Any opinions are appreciated.
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Realistic? There are a lot of individual factors. Have you gotten to 500 without ever working on your game and now you are going to work on your game? Then maybe yes. Are you going to put in at least 5 hours a week of structured practice and work on your weaknesses? Are you going to find good competition? Work on your fitness/endurance? Strength drills? Are you going to get coaching?

I agree with @sparkle84 that league play is a waste of time unless your league keeps you playing on the table in tough matches for 75% of the time you are at the venue.
 
straightline said:
Basics. Always the bottleneck.
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Definitely agree. I was fortunate enough to have a 2 hour lesson with Max Eberle a few months back and that’s mostly all we worked on was basics of my stance and stroke. I felt a little stupid to be honest as if I’ve never touched a pool cue before but I took the lesson to heart and definitely have seen improvements……I just still struggle with consistency as I need to put in more time on drills and practice to lock in better mechanics.
 
dfreshlv said:
Definitely agree. I was fortunate enough to have a 2 hour lesson with Max Eberle a few months back and that’s mostly all we worked on was basics of my stance and stroke. I felt a little stupid to be honest as if I’ve never touched a pool cue before but I took the lesson to heart and definitely have seen improvements……I just still struggle with consistency as I need to put in more time on drills and practice to lock in better mechanics.
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If you live in Vegas you are surrounded by good players, tournaments, teachers, etc.

Take advantage of all of those things and when you go to the table(practice, tournaments, lessons) go there with a goal in mind and work on them. In a year or two you will either get close to 600 or have much better idea of how to get there or if it's possible.
 
dfreshlv said:
Definitely agree. I was fortunate enough to have a 2 hour lesson with Max Eberle a few months back and that’s mostly all we worked on was basics of my stance and stroke. I felt a little stupid to be honest as if I’ve never touched a pool cue before but I took the lesson to heart and definitely have seen improvements……I just still struggle with consistency as I need to put in more time on drills and practice to lock in better mechanics.
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It's important to not get ahead of yourself as well. Some people need to learn to learn. I had to. Still learning. Still gotta crawl before you walk.
The thing about consistency - I see it as _the_ major thing in climbing the ranks. Nobody's taking the superstar outs anymore. If you just make ALL the dead outs that'll be the footing you need in tournaments. It's not that much of a task either. Requires discipline to work out the details is all.
Just remember many are already there. :ROFLMAO: Learn what you can since you gotta lump it anyway.
 
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