Giving up on Tournaments.......

[Fast Lenny]

I play twice weekly and dont do too badly.I do get frustrated that i do lose matches where i shouldnt and feel that its hurting my confidence level in the game and that its just not worth the headaches.I mean i can play and win 2-3 matches and then lose one and im ousted,if i win 3 out of 4 sets and lose one playing for money it dont feel so bad.I think that i have finally found out why there are cash players and tournament players,why beat 4 or 5 people to get the cash when you can beat one.I think that tournaments are good for practice and to play different players and its tough to win but im feeling burnt out from it,anyone else ever feel like this or have opinions?

 

[despotic931]

I know exactly how you feel. I shoot a weekly amature tourny down at my local room, and the week I threw my new predator to the floor was the week I decided I needed a couple of weeks off. So, I took a couple of weeks off, and it worked wonders...

 

[desert1pocket]

I only play in one tourney every other month or so, because of the reasons you listed as well as others. I prefer 1-pocket, and all the local tourneys are 9-ball. I do play in one every once in a while to help my focus, but even when I get in the money, it takes all night, and the winnings are pretty minimal. I would much rather gamble, because I have a better chance to win, don't have to wait around forever between matches, have a chance at more money, and it will often take half the time. I understand that I am risking more by gambling, but it is well worth it to me.

 

[BRKNRUN]

I play twice weekly and dont do too badly.I do get frustrated that i do lose matches where i shouldnt and feel that its hurting my confidence level in the game and that its just not worth the headaches.I mean i can play and win 2-3 matches and then lose one and im ousted,if i win 3 out of 4 sets and lose one playing for money it dont feel so bad.I think that i have finally found out why there are cash players and tournament players,why beat 4 or 5 people to get the cash when you can beat one.I think that tournaments are good for practice and to play different players and its tough to win but im feeling burnt out from it,anyone else ever feel like this or have opinions?

I don't know too many people that will pay out 10:1 on the money.
Put up $10 for a chance to win $100+ in a tournament...
Can't find too many takers for that (unless you want to play Efren straight up in 1-pocket)

The other thing is that a Gambling session seems to always be won by the player that is "on" that night.

Tournaments you can learn to grind your way through even when you not on your game.

 

[SlickRick_PCS]

Hey there Lenny. Two words: "Vince Lombardi". You know him, you love him, you better get quotes from him and apply it to your life sometime!

--- Winners never quit, quitters never win.

It's supose to be hard... because if it wasn't, then everyone else would do it.... the hard is what makes it GREAT! <---- A Leage of Their Own

 

[randyg]

No doubt it is a lot harder to gut up a tournament than to fleece a lamb....SPF=randyg

 

[buck15]

tourn

i look at it as cheap practice and table time. pool is 10 an hour here and we have 2 weekly tourn. mon handicapped and thurs open. any given day there are 50 some players. if i play all night for 20 it's cheap practice plus you can hit balls between matches if ya want. i can usually set up a time to gamble with someone but i work all day and i don't get a chance to play but 1 or 2 times a week. hard to gamble with people that play every day and like it. boils down to cheap practice time with a bonus of some cash if ya go far ( be it a little) and being out late (so ya drag ass the next day), lol. i recently played though in a 2 day tourn. with 95 players on a weekend and it was great. i felt pretty rested and freash even though i was there 10 hours each day.(took 3rd). if they have um on weekends i play, can't do nothing but hurt and i ain't hiding nothing by not playin in a tournament. everyone knows how bad i play.

 

[Rich R.]

I mean i can play and win 2-3 matches and then lose one and im ousted,if i win 3 out of 4 sets and lose one playing for money it dont feel so bad.

I think you have discovered why there is more pressure in tournaments than there is in cash games. It takes a very good player to win a tournament.

 

[StevenPWaldon]

Ditto. Hence the term "tournament tough."

Tournaments require a different mental toughness -- you can't lose those games that you shouldn't lose. In gambling, you can give up on a set if you're a little behind and focus on winning the next few sets to get back ahead. In tournaments, you can't do that because you'll be eliminated.

I've always liked both, and although I've been disappointed in myself in tournaments when I lose matches that "I shouldn't," I've never quitted on those grounds alone. Tournaments make me focus on every shot because it might be the last that is in front of me.

Besides, if you're in this game for the money in weekly tournaments, I would suggest revising your rationale for playing in them in the first place.

Cheers,

SW

I think you have discovered why there is more pressure in tournaments than there is in cash games. It takes a very good player to win a tournament.

 

[nyjoe14.1]

I don't know too many people that will pay out 10:1 on the money.
Put up $10 for a chance to win $100+ in a tournament...
Can't find too many takers for that (unless you want to play Efren straight up in 1-pocket)

The other thing is that a Gambling session seems to always be won by the player that is "on" that night.

Tournaments you can learn to grind your way through even when you not on your game.

Good point about the odds. It is next to impossible to get 10 to 1 from anyone, but playing from 7-1am or so for $100 seems to me like a lot of work for a modest payout. But it beats sitting at home right?

Also most of the local tournaments where im from are fairly short races (race to 2 in 8ball, or 3 in 9ball) so it seems that the player who is “lucky” that night will win. Where as when gamble you can make longer sets, or adjust so the better or smarter player has the best chance of winning. These little tournaments are really just like flipping a coin. And it is frustrating to lose to a weaker player because of a short set.

 

[Stones]

Playing in weekly tourneys is more of a social thing with me. I get to see friends or acquaintances that I normally don't get to see during the rest of the week.
Between matches we all have to great time just BS'ing, telling war stories, jokes and the latest "pool world" gossip such as the DCC this week.

Even if I don't hit the money, I still have a great time with good people.

I went to a tourney this evening and didn't even play because of recent minor surgery on my back (My family hid my cues from me so I wouldn't be tempted to play. They KNOW me too well). Just helped run it as they just hired a newbie manager who hasn't run many.

Can't just be there for the money. I have friends who have played in these touneys for years and never hit the money and yet, they show up every week like clockwork.

 

[Snapshot9]

Tournaments

Play in the tournaments that are worth it. I mean if they don't pay good, why bother? We have 2 weekly tournaments here at 2 different places, $10 tournaments, and they pay good. At Southrock the last 2 weeks, it payed $180 and $150 for 1st. (200% payback). Even when there are just 8 players, it pays a $100.

Evidently, Lennie, you are just playing and not figuring out why you got beat.
Sometimes you might be off some, sometimes the other player might outsmart you, etc.. Figure out what the problem is, and work on 'curing' it. You can not continue making the same mistakes and expect to win. Your mistakes are your weak points, and areas you need to work on.

Play smarter, not harder.

 

[JAM]

I think tournaments add a great deal of pressure to one's game, more so than action. At least with action, if you do lose, you can maybe negotiate another chance to beat your opponnent a second, third, or fourth set.

Pro tournaments today, because the expenses usually exceed the payouts, is a very tough racket. Whenever I attend any pool event, I look at it as a pool vacation. I do not go to the event thinking about making money. In most tournaments, usually double elimination, you got two shots at the cheese.

For me personally, when I used to compete in tournaments and/or league play, I did it for the recreational value; to have some fun, if you will. I think the majority pool players in the States play pool for recreation.

If you are not a pro player, then I think having fun when playing pool is key. If you're not having fun, then maybe it's time to take a hiatus. However, if you keep striving to raise your game to the next level, there will be one day that you find yourself in the winner's circle. After the first great win, there will be others that follow.

Once you acquire the mechanical skills of pool, the fundamentals, it is then important to work on confidence. The power of positive thinking does go a long way in the wonderful world of pocket billiards. JMHO, FWIW!

JAM

 

[ironman]

I think you have discovered why there is more pressure in tournaments than there is in cash games. It takes a very good player to win a tournament.

Bet more, the pressure will mount.

 

[ironman]

No doubt it is a lot harder to gut up a tournament than to fleece a lamb....SPF=randyg

Step out of the comfort zone and challenge yourself and it won't feel like fleecing a Lamb.

 

[JAM]

Step out of the comfort zone and challenge yourself and it won't feel like fleecing a Lamb.

Ah, so true. It's what separates the lions from the lambs is what I've been told!

Some pool players seem to thrive in high-pressure games of stake, the higher, the better. Others fold like a cheap lawn chair, as OldHasBeen would say!

Tournament play can bring the best out in many a player, but it sucks when you're playing your best game and you're benched because the winner-rack format allows your opponent to run a 6-pack in a race to 9, as one example!

I won't get started on my racking rant, but I feel very strongly that 9-ball is too much a game of luck, more so than a game of skill. In a tournament setting, you only get two shots at the winner's circle.

It is an interesting comparison, the game strength of the tournament soldier vs. the action player. Of course, there are some very well-known players who do well in both arenas. Those are the ones you gotta watch out for!

JAM

 

[Johnnyt]

I agree that 9-ball has too much luck in it to determine the best player. We need to go back to straight pool and be damn with TV.

As far the 9-ball racking goes…that’s just another negative of a long list of negatives for pool. Johnnyt

 

[JAM]

I agree that 9-ball has too much luck in it to determine the best player. We need to go back to straight pool and be damn with TV.

As far the 9-ball racking goes…that’s just another negative of a long list of negatives for pool. Johnnyt

Hear, hear, and tap, tap, tap. Those in the know, who compete on the tournament trail on a regular basis, are well aware who the BEST rack mechanics are. It's a joke in 9-ball, especially when you see these rack mechanics whining and crying at every rack encounter. They think everybody is doing to them, what they're doing to everybody else.

JAM

 

[Rich R.]

I think you have discovered why there is more pressure in tournaments than there is in cash games. It takes a very good player to win a tournament.

Bet more, the pressure will mount.

Unless you are betting the last dollar in your pocket, you still have another chance. That is not the case in a tournament. Assuming a double elimination tournament, you can only lose twice, regardless of how much cash is in your pocket.

 

[VIProfessor]

I'm always slightly confused when I hear people complain that the winner breaks format allows the opponent to run packages. Of course, it allows you to run packages too! IMHO, that's part of what makes nine-ball so pressure-packed and exciting. As long as you can get another chance at the table you have a chance to win, and a match is never over until it's over, so you've got to come with the goods on every shot.

What really confuses me about this complaint is this: doesn't straight pool allow you to run 150 or 200 and out? Furthermore, is this not a more likely occurence than somebody running out the set in nine-ball? Long runs are part of the game, and I don't think that should be altered.