No, whenever I wanted my opponents to think I couldn't run three balls using my real name seemed to work just fine.
I know you were being funny but it was often just a good policy. You often did not know what terms you may leave on and it was just better to not have anyone know your name of where you were from. Back then everyone was in phone books.
If they know your name and roughly where you were from it was just a call to 411 to have someone show up on your doorstep if they wanted.
It had more to do with safety for the average scuffler then someone may recognize your name or have heard of you. Every time anyone came in the poolroom looking like they were looking to play, you know the look, someone would always go outside and check plates for out of town cars.
Today it is all different, hell someone will take a picture and post it here and in 10 minutes someone will post a whole line on them.
You really don't know how people act . I was going to a tournament years ago and you often stop here and there to maybe make a few bucks if you have time. I was in a place and won some money. A couple days latter I was at the tournament about a 100 miles from where I was a few nights earlier.
As I am about to play my match who is sitting in the stands but the whole crew from the poolroom I was in the other night. After the match I went over to them and said hello, didn't really know what else to do not knowing how they would react. The one guy says, "You seem to have improved since Wednesday". We all just laughed but it didn't have to go that way.
Even though we were not talking about much money some people can be really crazy. I had a friend shot over $5.00. he was ambushed in the parking lot. It's not the money, you are messing with peoples egos and they can react badly sometimes.