How do you spot a hustler?

Chokeinator · 2003-10-04T15:55:50+00:00

I've been practicing a ton on my pool table at home so last night I told my wife I was gonna drop by the pool room and guage my game against a few locals. So I went kind of early and am watching these two guys play, ones a young kid and the other is an older guy about 40ish. It was still kinda early and they were the only people playing. So I am sitting at the bar nearby and the older guy starts making small talk with me. He's kind of coaching the younger kid. I'm not out looking for a money game as I only have 20 bucks on me and 10 bucks of that I am saving for a tournament later this week. So the guy makes a few comments like "I'm just messing around I could take all you guys money if I wanted." I just kinda nod my head and don't say anything as I'm a nice guy and don't really rate my game that highly. So the guy asks me if people play for money around here. I tell him yeah there are a few people that probably would, and that I would if I wasn't so broke. So a few minutes later he says "I'll play one handed for 10 bucks." So I think about it a minute and clarify the rules. He plays one handed, I can use both hands, 8-ball, BCA rules. I stop and think about it a minute as I don't want to blow my tournament money for next week but figure if I lose I probably won't stand a chance in the tournament anyhow. Then when we go up to the table he gives me the break too. He's never seen me shoot. So the guy is actually really good one handed, he's making some nice runs one handed no less, so I start concentrating on leaving the cueball in the middle of the table as he is using the rails as a bridge. This causes him to miss an object ball giving me ball in hand and I run out 4 balls for the win. So he wants to do it again, same rules. I'm playing on his money now so I'm like sure. He plays a lot better this second game and ends up with one ball and the eight on the table before I am able to apply my cueball center strategy. I actually had to play a safety at one point to shut down his short game. Once I get him long on his object ball which is against an end rail, and get the cue ball center table he seems to be having real problems, he eventually sets me up for the eight ball and I win again. So I have 20 bucks. The guy then asks me to play again and raises the stakes to 20, I politely decline saying that my wife is expecting me, I shake the guys hand, thank him for the games and leave. So I go home and tell my wife about it and she thinks the guy was hustling me, (my wife has been known to hustle occasionally)maybe he was maybe he wasn't. If he was I think I left in the middle of his hustle. How does that usually work? I would think it only works against people willing to lose as A) I wasn't looking for a money game, and B) Once I was up I wasn't willing to go negative, meaning the most he could of got from me at any point after the initial game is his money back. If he had won the first game I would have payed my 10 bucks, thanked him for the game, and left. I'm no pool pro but I like to think I'm good enough that you should at least play two handed, was it unethical of me to plan my strategy off his handicap? I had a friend once that was a lot better than me at pool but he had a really big ego, so one night I made a bunch of side bets with him that he wouldn't win a rotational game with about 4 people playing. I figured I had a 75% chance of winning everytime because the bet was always that he wouldn't win. With 4 people he only had a 25% chance of winning or at least that's how I looked at it. After I won about 60 bucks I felt kinda bad and considered taking some less favorable bets to let him win a little of his money back, thats when an older friend told me not to do it, he said "He'd take your money with no remorse." I thought about it a little and they older guy was right, the guy had taken money from me before though never that much. Now I am willing to lose a little money against a good player, emphasis on a little. When I find a really good player I'll set a limit on how much I am willing to lose, and consider it pool lessons. I played a guy one time that was a road player and he was one of those guys that would take on all comers, you really have to respect somebody with that much faith in their game. I lost a few dollars to him and as we were friendly he let me hang out awhile and observe. I watched some kid come up to him, challenge him to a game of 8-ball at 2 bucks a ball, the kid gave him the break, so the guy gets up to the table runs out and wins and the kid has every ball left on the table and never got to shoot. The kid then asks the guy to play another for fun. So the road player says " I don't go to your job and ask you to work for free." The guy was really good but he was the type that would only play if something was at stake, I don't think the amount really mattered. I talked to the guy awhile and he seemed really cool, but I think what I picked up from him is that you take whatever you can get in terms of advantage. So theres no real point other than what are some common hustles to watch out for? How do you guys know if you are being hustled or the guy is just a drunk with more money than common sense? I know for a fact there are alot of people that are willing to gamble that really aren't that good, but then you get those guys that are. My personal opinion at this point is A) You don't have to be good at pool to win money at pool and B) Only those willing to get hustled will get hustled. For instance I think the one handed guy could beat me with two hands and my friend with the big ego could beat me as well, yet I walked away with both of their money. Also not having a big ego it doesn't bother me to lose a little because I'm not willing to lose past a comfort limit, in a way I feel like that makes me kind of hustle proof. My wife thinks the one handed guy will see me as a future mark, maybe she's right. I hope not.