Handling the chair
- Thread starter Tin Man
- Start date
I try not to worry too much about what my opponent is doing at the table; I'm more of an interested spectator. I can't affect anything by getting upset at the rolls he's getting, or how well he's playing, so why waste the energy?
When he misses, I flip the "on switch".
When he misses, I flip the "on switch".
I'm just waiting for the next shot, I try not to watch them or what they are doing. Or I will watch the balls roll and try to figure out where they hit the rails or where they will stop to try and keep "warm", but definitely won't think about his/her shot selection, patterns or anything about their game.
tread2004
New member
I sit there quietly in own world. Of course I watch the table to make sure I'm not getting screwed. But, I mostly listen for the balls to hit the pockets. I never hold my cue when I sit in the chair. I feel that it brings added tension that I just don't need. I also tell myself if my opponent misses or makes a mistake he is going to lose. When I played team 8 ball, that attitude was contagious and help win us some matches when we were way behind.
I'd rather be shooting but while in the chair if I made a mistake I'm adding notes to my note book while watching for fouls. Notes, something simple like stay down or S.P.F. I'm also sizing up my opponent to see if he or she's human. By that I mean if he or she misses I take some comfort in knowing I'm not playing a world beater and have a good chance to win. It's also a good time to see if they have a solid fundamentals and how they hold up under pressure. I assume they're doing the same when I'm at the table. I also realize I have zero control while my opponent is at the table so I'm paying attention but also relaxing.
I've explained to my partners I don't want to be talked to during match play. If it's a short comment about pool fine. I'm not there to socialize during the games, I'm there to play and keep my focus on pool. After the games are over we can talk about fishing or whatever you want.
I've explained to my partners I don't want to be talked to during match play. If it's a short comment about pool fine. I'm not there to socialize during the games, I'm there to play and keep my focus on pool. After the games are over we can talk about fishing or whatever you want.
I watch my opponent and mentally cheer them on. In my head, I want them to play well.
If they do run out, well, that is what I was expecting. I won't be devastated over it. If they miss, I'm in shock. Wow, maybe this guy isn't as good as I thought. Maybe I can win this match.
I like to go into a match thinking. "This guy is good. He is going to break and run out. He is going to play some great safeties. I can still outrun it." When you are expecting it, it's much easier to deal with.
I don't know what the correct answer is. Hoping your opponent misses or scratches is mental bear trap. I do know that.
You just sit there getting more frustrated with every run out your opponent makes. If you aren't ahead, you are going to be miserable in every match. At least, that is how it was for me.
My $.02,
matta
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I used to be of the belief that keeping an eye on what your opponent is doing is a good way to stay in the match and to use that time to study the table to plan your run out for when it's your turn on the table. However, over the years, I also noticed that I would plan my pattern according to the layout only to be slightly sharked when I'd get my shot at the table only to find that the layout had changed as a result of my opponent moved crap around.
Now, more than often, I like to clear my mind of any and everything, and come to the table with a clean slate mentally.
Obviously, I look for how balls were missed, banked, rolled, or whatever to try to get a grip of how the table might have 'habits' that I should be aware of, but in general...............I watch, but don't pay serious attention.
dave
Now, more than often, I like to clear my mind of any and everything, and come to the table with a clean slate mentally.
Obviously, I look for how balls were missed, banked, rolled, or whatever to try to get a grip of how the table might have 'habits' that I should be aware of, but in general...............I watch, but don't pay serious attention.
dave
this is something i'm trying to work on but...ideally i want to keep my eyes on the table and that's it. when i glance up from the table and start looking around, that creates an opportunity for my mind to wander and start thinking about other $hit. if i can avoid that, i'll be much better off. i dont necessarily need to be thinking about what's going on with the layout of the table while staring it down or what my opponent is doing, i just need to avoid my eyes and mind wandering elsewhere.
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I look
I watch to see if they are making mistakes or just getting lucky on position. I can learn alot to see if they are playing the shots correctly or just gettting all the rolls (if they are I know that wont last).
Secondly, if they shoot dumb shots or look like they are avoiding shots. Examples would be one of my teachers (Christie Dickerson) would avoid a combination shot at all costs. So obviously, if I would leave her a shot it would be a combination.
I had lasik surgery and I can thin cut a ball better than almost anyone. (The shot I shoot better than almost anyone...) I have seen guys shoot great shots down a rail or bank excellent. If they show that shot, that is the LAST time I will leave that for them.
Ken
I watch to see if they are making mistakes or just getting lucky on position. I can learn alot to see if they are playing the shots correctly or just gettting all the rolls (if they are I know that wont last).
Secondly, if they shoot dumb shots or look like they are avoiding shots. Examples would be one of my teachers (Christie Dickerson) would avoid a combination shot at all costs. So obviously, if I would leave her a shot it would be a combination.
I had lasik surgery and I can thin cut a ball better than almost anyone. (The shot I shoot better than almost anyone...) I have seen guys shoot great shots down a rail or bank excellent. If they show that shot, that is the LAST time I will leave that for them.
Ken
You just have to learn to relax.
I played in a 14.1 tournament in Germany, many years ago. It was the finals and there were maybe a hundred people watching. We're going to 150 and right about 100, I blow a break shot. I mean, I really massacre it -- balls spread wide, wide open -- and I thought, well that's it.
There was a padded bench a few feet from the table and I just went over and sat down on the edge, pretty disgusted with myself. And then, for reasons still unclear to me today, I kinda just turned sideways and laid down on the bench. It was actually pretty comfortable.
So now the other guy is at the table, and I'm just laying there. The bench is just far enough away, and there are enough people watching and standing in the way, that he can't see me from the table. He starts to shoot, but from what people told me afterwards, he kept trying to see me. Sort of like: Is he OK? What's going on? Why is he laying down? Is he watching me run all these loose balls. And I'm laying there motionless, holding my cue upright at my side, sort of like some fallen warrior type statue, with my eyes closed, just listening to the sound of him hitting the balls, and the balls hitting the pockets.
And then I hear him hit a ball, and there's no second sound of the ball hitting the pocket! And then I hear the sound of fabric rustling: butts shifting on seats, as everyone in the stands turns to look at me.
My eyes pop open I walk over to the table and they're still wide open and I run something like a 55 or 57 to run out.
So like I said, you just have to learn to relax
Lou Figueroa
I'll look for weaknesses and incorporate that in to my roll out and saftey play.
You should berate yourself for missing that last shot.
You should have lots of self-talk complaining about your rotten luck.
You should wish real hard that your opponent misses on his next shot. As he continues to make subsequent shots, wish even harder that he misses.
You should curse the pool Gods because you know you are at their mercy. It's been that way all your life.
You should think about how slow your opponent is playing and curse his snail pace.
You should sit in your chair with focused attention on everything he is doing and be concerned if you are ever going to get another shot.
You should fidget back and forth in your chair and become more anxious by the second.
You should think about the fight that you had with your other half before you came to the tournament and realize that you shouldn't have come in the first place because when you get back home, you know you will have hell to pay.
You should think about the boisterous fans and how they made you miss.
You should think about your rotten opponent who sharked you while you were shooting and at the table, when he raised his towel, rubbing it up and down on his cue shaft at light-speed as if he was trying to burnish the wood with the soft cotton fabric.
You should be thinking about your rotten opponent who was talking while you were at the table and remember to give him lots of dirty looks and mean thoughts.
You could also throw in a couple of lame warnings to your opponent for sharking you.
Remember that this match identifies who you are and that a loss will mean that your entire personna will be knocked down a notch or two.
Remember that it is all about the money and that you have to win this tournament, let alone the match.
You should also tell yourself that you couldn't play worse.
Remember that you have a bulleyes painted on your butt and everyone is out to beat you or at least take a couple of shots at you.
Remember to do shallow breathing and think lots of negative thoughts.
Don't forget to think about how little time you prepared for this tournament and this match and curse yourself for being such a lazy lout.
Yeah, that ought to help.
JoeyA
You should have lots of self-talk complaining about your rotten luck.
You should wish real hard that your opponent misses on his next shot. As he continues to make subsequent shots, wish even harder that he misses.
You should curse the pool Gods because you know you are at their mercy. It's been that way all your life.
You should think about how slow your opponent is playing and curse his snail pace.
You should sit in your chair with focused attention on everything he is doing and be concerned if you are ever going to get another shot.
You should fidget back and forth in your chair and become more anxious by the second.
You should think about the fight that you had with your other half before you came to the tournament and realize that you shouldn't have come in the first place because when you get back home, you know you will have hell to pay.
You should think about the boisterous fans and how they made you miss.
You should think about your rotten opponent who sharked you while you were shooting and at the table, when he raised his towel, rubbing it up and down on his cue shaft at light-speed as if he was trying to burnish the wood with the soft cotton fabric.
You should be thinking about your rotten opponent who was talking while you were at the table and remember to give him lots of dirty looks and mean thoughts.
You could also throw in a couple of lame warnings to your opponent for sharking you.
Remember that this match identifies who you are and that a loss will mean that your entire personna will be knocked down a notch or two.
Remember that it is all about the money and that you have to win this tournament, let alone the match.
You should also tell yourself that you couldn't play worse.
Remember that you have a bulleyes painted on your butt and everyone is out to beat you or at least take a couple of shots at you.
Remember to do shallow breathing and think lots of negative thoughts.
Don't forget to think about how little time you prepared for this tournament and this match and curse yourself for being such a lazy lout.
Yeah, that ought to help.
JoeyA
all I have to say about this is... Watch Ralph Souquet at any tournament to observe the most steadfast concentration I have Ever seen from a man in a chair!
I watched him in Vegas at the World Pool Masters and whenever he was sitting in his chair, he would just zone into a spot on the floor a few feet in front of him. My friend says he does this all the time to stay focused and it seems to work.
Sometimes hes so focused that he doesnt even realize when its his turn.
Very interesting to watch...and very intense as well!!
I watched him in Vegas at the World Pool Masters and whenever he was sitting in his chair, he would just zone into a spot on the floor a few feet in front of him. My friend says he does this all the time to stay focused and it seems to work.
Sometimes hes so focused that he doesnt even realize when its his turn.
Very interesting to watch...and very intense as well!!
This is a great question. You have to have your little 'space' set up, an ideal distance to WATCH what's going on. I'm not talking stare down, but even if it's an opponent ya know, it does make a difference to recognize the "flow" of the match. You have to be able to counter runs, rolls, people all over, sloppy play, etc., and you can only do that by being prepared b4 ya get to the table. IMO
Very good topic. I've had a tendency to get impatient, especially at a slow playing opponent. I got a lesson in "the art of the chair" while attending the Predator 10 Ball event in Vegas. There were several pros that played very slow and it was interesting to watch the other player in the match. They all pretty much just sat there patiently, occasionally wandering the eye at the crowd or one of the other matches going on. It taught me something.
I asked one player that had been up against a particularly slow player how he handled sitting there for 10 minutes to watch his opponent run 3 balls and he told me he just accepts the fact he didn't have to sit there for that long because his opponent was slow, he had to sit there because he missed when his opponent was the one sitting in the chair.
A little acceptance goes a long way. As Fast Eddie said to Fats, "I'm shooting Fatman. When I miss, you can shoot."
I asked one player that had been up against a particularly slow player how he handled sitting there for 10 minutes to watch his opponent run 3 balls and he told me he just accepts the fact he didn't have to sit there for that long because his opponent was slow, he had to sit there because he missed when his opponent was the one sitting in the chair.
A little acceptance goes a long way. As Fast Eddie said to Fats, "I'm shooting Fatman. When I miss, you can shoot."
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I watch my opponent and try to figure out what I would do if I was the one at the table. I try not to root against them or hope they miss, because all that does is build anxiety.
If they miss a ball and leave me hooked, in all honesty I'm just glad to get back to the table. It's better to have a 10% chance of winning than zero percent.
If they miss a ball and leave me hooked, in all honesty I'm just glad to get back to the table. It's better to have a 10% chance of winning than zero percent.
I don't personally know you, but according to Jay, your everything an opponent could dream of....:wink:
It's like your the perfect date/point/set/match.
Pay attention to the match at all times! Even when you're sitting in your chair, you are IN the match. You don't want to miss it if your opponent fouls or moves a ball. Snooze you lose!
And I agree that I want to see what my opponent is doing, good and bad. I'm making mental notes on his game while he's shooting, looking for his strengths and his weaknesses. Jimmy Rempe used to always sit on the edge of his chair, like he was ready to spring if his opponent messed up. He could be intimidating sitting in his chair.
And then there's Lassiter. He would doze off while you're shooting, totally unconcerned with what you were doing. If you missed, he would slowly rise from the chair, dust himself off and BURY YOU!
And I agree that I want to see what my opponent is doing, good and bad. I'm making mental notes on his game while he's shooting, looking for his strengths and his weaknesses. Jimmy Rempe used to always sit on the edge of his chair, like he was ready to spring if his opponent messed up. He could be intimidating sitting in his chair.
And then there's Lassiter. He would doze off while you're shooting, totally unconcerned with what you were doing. If you missed, he would slowly rise from the chair, dust himself off and BURY YOU!