How much can a practice partner help your game?

KoolKat9Lives

KoolKat9Lives

Taught 'em all I know
Silver Member
I'm wondering if many top players got past the "B level" in part due to having a practice partner that was also a student of the game dedicated to improving their game.

By "student of the game", I mean someone that watches, reads, searches, questions, analyzes, spends 5 hours a day on AZB ;), etc., and practices.

Or were more top players developed because of the influence of a pro or instructional mentor?
 
I think the answers you get will vary deeply with what continent it's being answered from, in the US there aren't many players that share their "secrets" so you are left to your own devices to try and achieve greatness.
 
I have had a good "practice player" & I did learn from that experience. Not many people are loaded with knowledge & willing to share it with you, so you can benefit.

I have also had a "player coach", when I played Golf & that worked well too.

Either way, my "helper" had the knowledge. "Knowledge is POWER".
 
A good practice partner, is worth their weight in gold.

I'm talking about someone that pushes you to play your best in order to beat them and offers a challenge to you every time you come to the table. I play a good friend of mine, at least a couple of times a week for several hours a day and neither one of us let's up for one minute. We're not even gambling but it prepares us and makes both of us mentally tough when we have to bear down and win a tough match.

_____________________________

http://tommcgonaglerightoncue.com
 
I am fortunate to be around a bunch of very good players like Scott Frost, Bernie Pettipiece, Jimmy Langston among many others and when you are able to watch these players it just brings your game up being around it I feel. I do have some sparring partners who I am able to play against who might be a little bit better so I can move up to the next level. :smile:
 
Unless the practice partner is John. S or some other pro that I respect I'd rather practice alone. Probably because I played only for money all my life. Johnnyt
 
My regular practice partner has been around the game at least 50 years, as have I ...

We are fairly well matched in all games: 8-Ball, 9-Ball, One Pocket, 14-1 and tend to push each other in regards to focusing on the game at hand ...

My overall game has measureably improved in the past two years, due in no small part to having a skilled, competitive practice partner ...
 
I agree with Tom.
I have a practice partner that I play with any chance I get. When playing him, If I don't bear down I don't get to shoot much at all. I have been playing with him for a few years now and my game has improved a ton. Its good quality practice and its a lot better than just slapping the balls around. We are also great friends so that makes enjoyable when there is nothing on the line. We dont gamble together, speaking for my self even if I could beat him, I'm not intrested in taking money from my good freinds. In any sport to get better you need to have a coach or mentor.
 
my practice partner

KoolKat9Lives said:
I'm wondering if many top players got past the "B level" in part due to having a practice partner that was also a student of the game dedicated to improving their game.

By "student of the game", I mean someone that watches, reads, searches, questions, analyzes, spends 5 hours a day on AZB ;), etc., and practices.

Or were more top players developed because of the influence of a pro or instructional mentor?
Click to expand...

No question that my game was pushed to a higher level when I hooked up with a pool shooting son of a gun. We raced cars together and were friends. We helped each other with our cars and when one of us needed a helper or partner in a money making project we called on the other one. I didn't have a clue he played pool at above a banger level until we stopped in a bar for a beer one afternoon. We were going to play a few games of pool and drink a few beers just to cool off after a brutal day working on eighteen wheelers on the side of the road.

As I fed the eight foot coin table a couple of guys came up asking if we wanted to play partners for a beer each. "Sure" One of them broke and Bobby ran out playing eight ball. He proceeded to break and run seven more racks before I got up. In thirteen racks I might have shot three times. Looking at all of the beer in front of me I was sitting there wondering why the hell I was filthy, greasy, and bone tired. It didn't take me long to approach Bobby with a plan "B"!

We didn't travel the country but we swung a pretty wide loop locally to keep the pigeons fresh. Bobby was a natural flake, although not with the same type of stuff he would have put Vincent to shame in that department and this was long before TCOM. Everybody knew Bobby was in a place and most folks there wanted a shot at him on the table. I was usually working doing my thing too with a much quieter style. If one or both didn't get in action we would hook up with each other to get it started. Didn't matter which of us won the money, we were splitting the dollars evenly regardless.

Bobby was clearly a little better than I was when we first started playing. Six months later there wasn't enough between us to talk about. He didn't really try to teach me anything, it was just the pressure of holding up my end of the partnership.

Hu
 
How much can a practice partner help your game

Regardless if it's Golf, Ping Pong, Tennis , Guitar or Pool you can certainly get better by being exposed to a higher skill level. It only gives you the opportunity based on your desire to learn & put into practice & apply that which you observe. Some people go to school & fail some excell !!
 
You guys all talk about how having a practice partner helped your game, but reading your comments you seem to be saying that all the benefit came from playing another serious player of your skill level or slightly better.

Did all your new learning come from watching your opponent play, or did you show each other things you knew, try out things you just read in a magazine article or book, or question each other on why you took a certain route, or played that particular pattern?

I get that the comaradarie between friends kept you going over the long haul, and that a friendly rivalry helped you to keep playing your very best. What I want to know is, did you just play against each other, or did you "train" together in some way? If the former, how was your experience with your partner different from just playing against people of the right ability level? If the latter, what did you do that worked best?
 
top guys often work together and feed off of each other

John Biddle said:
You guys all talk about how having a practice partner helped your game, but reading your comments you seem to be saying that all the benefit came from playing another serious player of your skill level or slightly better.

Did all your new learning come from watching your opponent play, or did you show each other things you knew, try out things you just read in a magazine article or book, or question each other on why you took a certain route, or played that particular pattern?

I get that the comaradarie between friends kept you going over the long haul, and that a friendly rivalry helped you to keep playing your very best. What I want to know is, did you just play against each other, or did you "train" together in some way? If the former, how was your experience with your partner different from just playing against people of the right ability level? If the latter, what did you do that worked best?
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John,

These days I do see some players honing each other's games in an effort for both to benefit. It can be a huge benefit to both players if they are nearly equal and equally dedicated. They are actually showing and teaching each other new things or things they have just heard about and are trying too.

With my partner there were several things honing my game. One, the wolf was really at the door, I was broke and playing to eat and pay bills. No other source of income. Amazing what that can do to your skill level! The other thing I have already mentioned, it was important to me to not be the weaker partner.

Hu
 
KoolKat9Lives said:
I'm wondering if many top players got past the "B level" in part due to having a practice partner that was also a student of the game dedicated to improving their game.

By "student of the game", I mean someone that watches, reads, searches, questions, analyzes, spends 5 hours a day on AZB ;), etc., and practices.

Or were more top players developed because of the influence of a pro or instructional mentor?
Click to expand...

A practice partner is very useful but I think they have to be at least at your skill level or better.

I think it will help your competitive game but it will only go so far. Unless you are playing with a knowledgeable person who is critiqueing your game and mechanics, it won't replace good solo practice or an instructor. Even then, the latter two are very important.

But if you spend too much time in solo practice and not enough in competition, it will be tough to play to your top speed.
 
To me there is a difference between a practice partner that's a friend and a practice partner that's competitive with you. I personally do not prefer someone who whenever you practice with them has some type of hidden agenda and always wants to bring up how they played that much better than you etc. The more interested you are in the game I think the more you will take in. I'd rather practice alone to be honest and repeatedly shoot the shots I have the most trouble with. It takes a certain type of player to really want to practice with you to help get you to the next level, I think that's what I am missing now. I used to shoot with top players day in and day out for hours at a time.
 
a fine line

mikeyfrost said:
To me there is a difference between a practice partner that's a friend and a practice partner that's competitive with you. I personally do not prefer someone who whenever you practice with them has some type of hidden agenda and always wants to bring up how they played that much better than you etc. The more interested you are in the game I think the more you will take in. I'd rather practice alone to be honest and repeatedly shoot the shots I have the most trouble with. It takes a certain type of player to really want to practice with you to help get you to the next level, I think that's what I am missing now. I used to shoot with top players day in and day out for hours at a time.
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Mike,

There is a fine line between friends that are competitive with each other and jackasses that pretend to be your friend but will hold back what you need to advance your game if it makes you more likely to beat them. I have learned that there are friends that you compete with and there are fellow competitors that are "friends" as far as it goes but it doesn't go very far. You have to know which your practice partner is. A real friend shares knowledge equally with you. The jackasses are just hoping to gain from you without giving anything back. They can be fine to practice with to keep a competitive edge but nothing they tell you can be trusted.

Hu
 
We're getting warmer

John Biddle said:
You guys all talk about how having a practice partner helped your game, but reading your comments you seem to be saying that all the benefit came from playing another serious player of your skill level or slightly better.

Did all your new learning come from watching your opponent play, or did you show each other things you knew, try out things you just read in a magazine article or book, or question each other on why you took a certain route, or played that particular pattern?

I get that the comaradarie between friends kept you going over the long haul, and that a friendly rivalry helped you to keep playing your very best. What I want to know is, did you just play against each other, or did you "train" together in some way? If the former, how was your experience with your partner different from just playing against people of the right ability level? If the latter, what did you do that worked best?
Click to expand...

Thanks John. You picked up on what I was after. Personally, I am fortunate to have regular "playing partners" whom I can't slack off against, else I like lint in my pockets and boils on my ass (we always, always play for something). It keeps my game sharp and I do learn.

BUT... Bringing new shots, ideas, etc. TO the table that were gleaned from research, matches and videos, and then tinkering & practicing these new things... Having a training partner like that would seem to me to be an accelerant that could make a huge difference. Maybe even the quantum leap difference that has been mentioned by Crawfish and others.

I guess what I am trying to get feedback on that I didn't ask very clearly upfront:

Have most excellent players achieved excellence in good part from having a good training partner? The flipside: without a strong contributing partner, have many good B players plateaued and been relegated to B status for life?


KK9 <--- Puts in too much time and expense to want to be relegated to obscurity.
 
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