Hours, weeks, months, years, and I’m still lousy

IM NOT FAT FELLOWS! I’m still muscular at my age, with limited flexibility from lifting heavy weights. I never said I was a A PLAYER. IM A HACK. but I have the time and money to get better. Now, I practice 3 hours a day, pretty much 7 days a week at home. Alone. i Know all of the shots: frozen balls on the rail, three railers, can draw and follow good.
Maybe I’m just not prepared to be called a baby at 3.5 years Of playing. I do know that playing alone sucks, and i am going to get out soon and play people.

You have all given me great advice. I will keep on my journey, and make some changes. As i love this game.
 

judochoke said:
Was going to make tonight my first major 9 ball tournament, but after watching the asian gentleman play, I’m not
Click to expand...
judochoke said:
IM NOT FAT FELLOWS! I’m still muscular at my age, with limited flexibility from lifting heavy weights. I never said I was a A PLAYER. IM A HACK. but I have the time and money to get better. Now, I practice 3 hours a day, pretty much 7 days a week at home. Alone. i Know all of the shots: frozen balls on the rail, three railers, can draw and follow good.
Maybe I’m just not prepared to be called a baby at 3.5 years Of playing. I do know that playing alone sucks, and i am going to get out soon and play people.

You have all given me great advice. I will keep on my journey, and make some changes. As i love this game.
Click to expand...
As long as the older Asian gentleman you saw on YouTube is not playing in the local tournament you’re considering playing in, you should be OK.
 
We do get older. I have neuropathy from chemo 7 years ago resulting in unsteady hands. My eyes need an upgrade. Sadly, not only can I not really get better, I am slowly getting worse. Practice seems to slow the decline. Still, getting older doesn't decrease the enjoyment of playing the game. I am only 58, just wore out a little early, but in short, once you are past your youth, it seems all you can really do is fight the decline.
 
mrpiper said:
We do get older. I have neuropathy from chemo 7 years ago resulting in unsteady hands. My eyes need an upgrade. Sadly, not only can I not really get better, I am slowly getting worse. Practice seems to slow the decline. Still, getting older doesn't decrease the enjoyment of playing the game. I am only 58, just wore out a little early, but in short, once you are past your youth, it seems all you can really do is fight the decline.
Click to expand...
We can all still live for those short spurts of 3-4 racks, possibly even for an entire match, when we can play like we played 40 years ago! Relish it when it happens, as it never lasts.
 
A billiard champion is always a player that wins in the practice room first. How players develop in the practice room varies based on their motivations?

Fedor Gorst is a touring pro but banned from competing in specific events. Should anyone consider him a less capable pro because of factors outside his control?
 
I will reiterate that personal lessons are the way to go. At your point in life, NOTHING will advance you faster. The clock is ticking. You and I both are not getting younger!
 
Last edited:
I think it takes both. Practicing at home and learning different shots and cue ball control. Playing competitively keeps your game sharp regardless of your skill level. One of my biggest downside is I rarely ever play competitively. I practice at home, some days I play really good and other days the motivation just isn’t there. This is where the competition comes in. It is needed to keep your game fine tuned.
 
judochoke said:
I have been playing for 3.5 years. Just play at home, practicing, haven’t played anyone in months. I do some drills, always trying to get position, trying to make the layout easy. Trying to get near my next ball. Always with position in mind. Use CTE for aiming, and my half ball hits or 30 degree shots are not my problem. I can run a lot more racks, but I’m always one or two balls away from position. Does this come with time?????? I can put the time in, as i love to play practice. Was going to make tonight my first major 9 ball tournament, but after watching the asian gentleman play, I’m not ready. If I can’t clear the table 9 time out of 10 with throwing 9 balls and spreading them out, I’m not ready.

Am i asking too much of myself???????/
Click to expand...
Throwing the balls out is not a good way to gauge yourself. Those runouts have no real obstacles. Anyways, you saw one tournament (and only one or two matches?) of this asian man. He might not do what you saw all the time. The better that you get at this game the more your realize that nobody plays good all the time....Its a rollercoaster day to day and sometimes match to match.

Go to the tournament and get some experience. Even if you are able to run those balls 9/10 times you will still lose without experience because you won't know how to manage games. This asian man is managing the game as well.

Anyways, there is a lot more to winning this game than running out with BIH all the time and you need to learn how you are weak in those areas so you can work on them too as well. You also need to learn how not to make a boneheaded decision and sellout when you are put in a tough position.
 
middleofnowhere said:
I am afraid I have to disagree. Watching pool on a two demensional TV screen does not compair to spending hours in a top action room with good players up close. The sounds, smell, feel, It is like a college education in pool.

Every good player will tell the same story of leaving their room and getting in the company of good players. Your pool game grows exponentially.
Click to expand...
Definitely. In the youtube matches you are mostly watching people play on brand new equipment. In the pool room they are playing on the peoples cloth.

You also cant get a good feel watching a video as to the layout, how fast they are hitting the ball, how smoothly they are hitting the ball, where they are hitting the ball, how the spin is reacting off the rails, etc. Its not the same at all.

Also, as eluded to before, you can actually play on the same equipment you are watching these players play on, you never can play on the tv table of a major tournament....So you have no baseline comparison as to whats actually going on.

Basically for beginners watching professional videos might be useful but once you get to a certain level I think its almost pointless compared to watching players IRL.
 
Guy Manges said:
Isn't this man saying that he is already an A player 65 years old and wants to know if he is wasting his time ?
Click to expand...
We dont know what kind of equipment he is playing on. It could be favorite for 9-ball BIH on a valley bar box or something which is definitely not an A player. Or some stock bucket GC or whatever. Also, he isnt breaking, the layouts get a lot harder when you start breaking.
 
to impress on you that 3.5 years is a baby in mastering a sport/skill
i like tennis
currently carlos alcaraz is 19 years old and the current phenom
but he started playing at age 4 so at 19
HE HAS BEEN PLAYING FOR 15 YEARS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
just sayin 😉
 
bbb said:
to impress on you that 3.5 years is a baby in mastering a sport/skill
i like tennis
currently carlos alcaraz is 19 years old and the current phenom
but he started playing at age 4 so at 19
HE HAS BEEN PLAYING FOR 15 YEARS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
just sayin 😉
Click to expand...
Another way to look at it: if you practice 6 hours a day, 7 days a week, shooting 100 balls an hour, it'll take about 5 years to accumulate 10,000 hours of practice and hit a million balls (both common estimates of how much practice it takes to get "really good").

pj
chgo
 
Patrick Johnson said:
Another way to look at it: if you practice 6 hours a day, 7 days a week, shooting 100 balls an hour, it'll take about 5 years to accumulate 10,000 hours of practice and hit a million balls (both common estimates of how much practice it takes to get "really good").

pj
chgo
Click to expand...
i always wanted to know some benchmark numbers to reach 10,000 hours and a million balls for pool.
thanks for doing the math patrick.....😍
 
judochoke said:
What is it with this game? I put the time in, i watch videos, i buy training aids, i give my heart and soul to this game. And get nothing in return? Sure, i can get lucky and run a 9 ball rack once in a while. Sure i can throw 9 balls out on the table and shoot them in rotation MOST of the time. All of the time usually with one or two small position errors. Big deal

was going to go to my local pool hall tonight for there weekly 9 ball tournament, and i happened to look on you tube, and they had some past matches, (from last week), so i watched some matches. (They live stream the weekly tournament)

and this older Asian guy, just didn’t miss. At all. He shot very easy, got position on every shot, looked like his eyes were closed. He shot very unbelievable low key, just boom, boom boom, game over. his opponent only got a shot when he played safe. he took the most easy route on every shot, perfect position each time. Little 6- 8 inch movements. I started crying a little watching him. I cant do that.

has he been playing for 30 years? Is he semi pro? What do i have to do to shoot like him? Play and practice for 20 years? I’m 65, I have to wait till I’m 85 to shoot like that?

It’s not fair. (Sorry for crying like a baby, but I was shocked at how easy a non pro made it look)
Click to expand...
I don’t care how he makes it look, it’s not figure skating. Some players make it look really hard and win, some make it look easy and lose. Don’t worry about looks if you get out more often than he does you get the cheese. Never get intimidated by a freestroker. Believe in your game.
 
I am just a little younger than you. I took off over a decade and started back recently. You know what? In spite the fact that I am older than I was 15 years ago, I am sure I could beat the younger me. I probably had more stamina, better eyesight and reflexes etc. But today, I am calmer and make more intelligent and realistic decisions on the table. Also the beer is replaced by water or a soda until I am out. I don’t rattle because in the big picture none of this matters! I am not betting my mortgage payment on a game and I won’t be sleeping in my car if I get a bad beat. If I miss and leave a shot generally the opponent will run out. Deal with it.

Heading to a tournament tonite, I know there are people that should beat me. Based on fargorate some of these guys are in the 700s which is a damn piece better than me. But you know it just does not matter. It is great to draw one of these guys!

I consider myself a student of the game (playing 50 years) and I watch pool videos and collect books. I study aiming systems and experiment. Still some young guy with talent and no fear that has been playing seriously for a year might be able to wipe me out, but maybe not. Regardless, who cares?

If you want to get better, no amount of practice in the basement will get you to the next level. If you read the league thread you will read about people dogging the big shot. Keeping your head and drilling these easy shots under pressure and getting shape will improve your game faster than the books or the Kinister tapes etc. Don’t worry about the old guy runs out effortlessly. It should be your goal to meet him further down the bracket and play your best and improve incrementally. Good luck.
 
cjl0s said:
I am just a little younger than you. I took off over a decade and started back recently. You know what? In spite the fact that I am older than I was 15 years ago, I am sure I could beat the younger me. I probably had more stamina, better eyesight and reflexes etc. But today, I am calmer and make more intelligent and realistic decisions on the table. Also the beer is replaced by water or a soda until I am out. I don’t rattle because in the big picture none of this matters! I am not betting my mortgage payment on a game and I won’t be sleeping in my car if I get a bad beat. If I miss and leave a shot generally the opponent will run out. Deal with it.

Heading to a tournament tonite, I know there are people that should beat me. Based on fargorate some of these guys are in the 700s which is a damn piece better than me. But you know it just does not matter. It is great to draw one of these guys!

I consider myself a student of the game (playing 50 years) and I watch pool videos and collect books. I study aiming systems and experiment. Still some young guy with talent and no fear that has been playing seriously for a year might be able to wipe me out, but maybe not. Regardless, who cares?

If you want to get better, no amount of practice in the basement will get you to the next level. If you read the league thread you will read about people dogging the big shot. Keeping your head and drilling these easy shots under pressure and getting shape will improve your game faster than the books or the Kinister tapes etc. Don’t worry about the old guy runs out effortlessly. It should be your goal to meet him further down the bracket and play your best and improve incrementally. Good luck.
Click to expand...

I'm in the same boat -- my older self could now easily defeat my younger self.

Cataract surgery didn't hurt and neither does being, still, relatively mobile. To me, pool is a never ending puzzle, both as a mental exercise but also as a three dimensional physical puzzle requiring you get all your body parts where they need to be to execute a repeatable stroke that will pocket the balls and make the CB behave as you expect.

Lou Figueroa
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top