I got destroyed last night.

XxMerlinxX

XxMerlinxX

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I got completely and utterly destroyed lastnight. And I can tell you exactly what I did wrong..... Everything. It was if I had never played pool before in my life. I was over-complicating shots, being careless, not playing confidently, not playing safe, not keeping my head down, not following through, betting more than I was comfortable with, playing too long, the list just goes on and on. Even worse is, it was embarrassing how much weight was being given up to me to begin with. And sure, I can give a few excuses as to how everything transpired, but the bottom line is that I just didn't belong on a table last night.

Hopefully there are a few people on here that have had similar experiences. So I guess my question is, how do you recover from such an epic defeat?
 
If you practice enough and are consistent then chalk it up tp a bad day. Go back up there tomorrow and beat him. Thats the best remedy for me
 
I`ve had the same thing happen to me in the past. Best thing that works for me is, I chalk it up as ''was not my day to be playing pool period''. I pack things up & head home.
Tomorrow is always another day. Thats just how I handle it. Wish you the best of luck with your game. Have a nice day.
Jeff
 
XxMerlinxX said:
Hopefully there are a few people on here that have had similar experiences. So I guess my question is, how do you recover from such an epic defeat?
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All of us have been there at one time or another. Take a deep breath, spend time with the family, go on a nice weekend vacation, then come back and play better than ever :ok:
 
Same thing happened to me in the 10-ball event in Orlando a couple of months ago, actually was talking about this very experience earlier today for some reason. Anyways, we did just about the same thing I even scratched with ball in hand and lost 0-8 with alternate breaks. But within 3-4 weeks I was playing the best I have ever played, it's all about standing back up when falling down because EVERYONE falls down.

Japanese proverb: Fall down seven times, stand up eight.
 
XxMerlinxX said:
I got completely and utterly destroyed lastnight. And I can tell you exactly what I did wrong..... Everything. It was if I had never played pool before in my life. I was over-complicating shots, being careless, not playing confidently, not playing safe, not keeping my head down, not following through, betting more than I was comfortable with, playing too long, the list just goes on and on. Even worse is, it was embarrassing how much weight was being given up to me to begin with. And sure, I can give a few excuses as to how everything transpired, but the bottom line is that I just didn't belong on a table last night.

Hopefully there are a few people on here that have had similar experiences. So I guess my question is, how do you recover from such an epic defeat?
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That's how we get better. Or at least it gives us the incentive to keep practicing.
 
the cloud

It's God's way of punishing us when we think we have this game
figured out ! Fo'getaboutit. Nobody cares about it but you.:wink:
 
Just try and learn something from it. were you shooting good before the match up? I like to figure out what and when, something got in my head to screw with my game and how to prevent it next time. on the bright side, im sure they will want to play you again.
 
I've had this night more times than I'd care to admit...it's a pretty sick feeling. Good thing is that when you break out of it, an average night of pool will feel like you won a championship, and if you play good coming out of the slump there aren't words to describe the feeling. My slumps tend to last longer than most peoples, only been playing 2 and a half years, but when they end it's a good feeling
 
Sometimes we compound our errors

XxMerlinxX said:
I got completely and utterly destroyed lastnight. And I can tell you exactly what I did wrong..... Everything. It was if I had never played pool before in my life. I was over-complicating shots, being careless, not playing confidently, not playing safe, not keeping my head down, not following through, betting more than I was comfortable with, playing too long, the list just goes on and on. Even worse is, it was embarrassing how much weight was being given up to me to begin with. And sure, I can give a few excuses as to how everything transpired, but the bottom line is that I just didn't belong on a table last night.

Hopefully there are a few people on here that have had similar experiences. So I guess my question is, how do you recover from such an epic defeat?
Click to expand...

Sometimes we compound our errors. Only a few weeks after getting my driver's license I was driving in the very old part of downtown Baton Rouge. Very narrow one way streets. Late night very little traffic but I realized I was going the wrong way down a one way street and panicked. Took the first turn, wrong way down another one way. Did it twice more and was about to go crazy!

When we do one ill thought out thing after another on a pool table it is usually for the same reason, we are in full flight mode. If we take the time to settle down and regroup we can either work our way out of the mess we are in or realize it is time to fold up shop for the night and go home. Nothing wrong with getting our butts kicked now and then and admitting it, annoying when we know we are the ones that really did the kicking!

Taking the long view keeps me from dwelling on one bad performance. Like a bad shot, it is over and too late to change. I don't focus on the details of a bad outing but I do use it for fuel. The next person to play me is usually in for a rough time! Everyone struggles sometimes, it is how we handle the struggle and how we let it affect us afterwards that largely defines a competitor.

Hu
 
A slump buster is mandatory...the uglier and bigger the better....that way your subconcsious takes over and won't let you play that bad ever again. Glad I could help...
 
Being Comfortable

The key to ALL of your problems could possibly be summed-up with just one thing that you said...

...betting more than I was comfortable with...
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That right there may have been what did the number on you and could have affected every aspect of your play...

Some people don't play near as well when under a lot of presssure -- and betting more than you were comfortable with, is the easiest way to go about that IMHO.
 
I try to re-focus. I head to the gym for an extra-long workout, one that will ensure sufficient soreness in my arms, shoulders, chest, wrists, and mid-section. Then over the next several days, I play pool while I'm sore. I am always amazed how much my mind focuses on my twitching muscles to keep them stable. This re-focus keeps me down, keeps my body aligned, keeps my stance comfortable, and keeps my wrist motion continuous and consistent. It seems that, even though most of my body is sore, the muscles I use for shooting pool are fully available to me (muscle memory), and my mind forces those muscles to work in sync with each other. Once in sync, I can then better-focus on the next task...the shot itself.

There are plenty of other ways to re-focus, as others have suggested, but this one works for me pretty well.
 
Last Saturday I played some great straight pool up until the semi final that happened to get recorded on Ustream! Freakin embarrising, He caught alot of roles, seriously this is the truth. I just now went back and watched and he got a lot of roles and I missed a few shots I shoulda made. He also was making some very good shots. All this rolled together he beat me by more than 50 points!

I was getting hungry before my match and had a hotdog and fries. WRONG! I should have played hungry. Sure enough the fries would have been enough. I hate the whole thing though and was uncomfortable at the table. I will never eat during a tourney again. i will freaking starve myself.

Still finishing 3rd/4th is not so bad for a guy who doesnt get to practice any more.
 
Dont let it get to ya.

I read somewhere that a year long slump could start with nothing more than an improperly chalked tip. It went something like this: didnt chalk cue which leads to a miscue on a draw shot, start thinking you lost your draw, results in a loss of confidence, which makes you miss easier shots, start overthinking, and so on. The hard part is not letting your mind go to those places and remembering that you DO know what doing and let your muscle memory take care of the rest. Don't let one bad night start a slump that could be devastating to your game. Good luck!!
 
Get_A_Grip said:
The key to ALL of your problems could possibly be summed-up with just one thing that you said...
That right there may have been what did the number on you and could have affected every aspect of your play...
Some people don't play near as well when under a lot of presssure -- and betting more than you were comfortable with, is the easiest way to go about that IMHO.
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Definitely onto something here....betting out of your comfort zone can be disasterous....when matching up, this is one of the easiest ways to win before you even begin....IMHO, it's best to bet out of your comfort zone when you are already ahead.....then, if ya lose, it's no more than you planned to gamble in the first place....and if you win, you just increased your ceiling and comfort level....

On top of that, we all have bad nights.....but they really suck when you drop a nice piece of coin at the same time....
 
Gotta agree with perm

Big Perm said:
it's best to bet out of your comfort zone when you are already ahead.....then, if ya lose, it's no more than you planned to gamble in the first place....and if you win, you just increased your ceiling and comfort level....
QUOTE]
Gotta agree with you perm, its definitely never a safe thing to step into the ring when you're already sweating bullets. Makes you more prone to 'over analyize' small things.

Whether your comfort zone is 20 or 20k its best to stay in that realm when you're playing. I've seen guys run ten racks of six ball playing for 2-5 a game, and seen that exact same player get so tipped and miffed when the guy he was playing said let's up the bet to 25 a game, and he did and crumbled, not that big of a change but it affects your pysche and this game is more mental than physical when you reach that point.

And my slump buster is to take the destroyed nights, and go back to the basics, I run speed, pocket cuts, bank drills, just the standard rotation of drills that I do to warm up, but I make an entire day of it.



And as a side note, it NEVER EVER hurts to go find some chump and drill his teeth in to boost that confidence back to the world of "Hey I had a crappy night." and hopefully next time this game is offered to you'll be snapping your cue together and saying heads before he can even flip with the confidence to bust him. Good luck.
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