I practice great...but choke when it counts...
- Thread starter wild west
- Start date
im that way too , but u have to learn to let it go is all...
I'm gonna help you out with a secret for the cash play. The money is a way to keep score. Only in the beginning of gambling. The money you put up... consider it gone. Don't even think about it. Also, only play players lesser than you in the beginning. Not even people that play even with you. Just in the beginning until you get used to it.
There are guys that will drill me for $5 a game, for $200 a game need the seven. It will only come with experience.
When gambling, you have to take the guy out of his element. If he likes 9 foot tables, play on the barbox. If he's used to ten dollar sets, save up and make him bet fifty.
****Remember this. The only difference between the lower tier pros and a lot of local really good shortstops playing for $1000, is that the pro does it every other day. Same thing for the $20 dollar set. You see these every day, right. It becomes second nature. When you get this down, try the $50. Get this down, try $100. So on. So on.
Some people, and you know who you are, have the burn to win. They have the F%#$ you. F%#$ you. I won't let you win. That attitude is seen in all good players. There are also guys that just like to be seen gambling, and lose quite frequently. They don't care. They just want to be part of the scene. You need to find out early which one you are. If you're the latter, stick to playing locally and cheap. A lot of matches come down to who has the most desire.
Nothing beats time on the table and experience. So, jump in the pit and get your feet wet. You can develop the FU attitude. I promise. But, know your limitations. I don't play Johnny's speed. I am realistic about my place in the billiard community. You will too.
Good Luck, The Craw.
There are guys that will drill me for $5 a game, for $200 a game need the seven. It will only come with experience.
When gambling, you have to take the guy out of his element. If he likes 9 foot tables, play on the barbox. If he's used to ten dollar sets, save up and make him bet fifty.
****Remember this. The only difference between the lower tier pros and a lot of local really good shortstops playing for $1000, is that the pro does it every other day. Same thing for the $20 dollar set. You see these every day, right. It becomes second nature. When you get this down, try the $50. Get this down, try $100. So on. So on.
Some people, and you know who you are, have the burn to win. They have the F%#$ you. F%#$ you. I won't let you win. That attitude is seen in all good players. There are also guys that just like to be seen gambling, and lose quite frequently. They don't care. They just want to be part of the scene. You need to find out early which one you are. If you're the latter, stick to playing locally and cheap. A lot of matches come down to who has the most desire.
Nothing beats time on the table and experience. So, jump in the pit and get your feet wet. You can develop the FU attitude. I promise. But, know your limitations. I don't play Johnny's speed. I am realistic about my place in the billiard community. You will too.
Good Luck, The Craw.
I go along with everything Crawfish said above. One more thing I want to point out. A lot of players and animals that look great in practice can't compete for the money.
Take the baseball player that hits everything out of the park in batting practice but stikes out more often than not in a real game. The boxer that just about kills his sparing partners but can't get off in the real fight. A horse or Greyhound thats a champion in morning workouts and schooling races but shows none of that when put in a real race. Animals know when it's for real..they are treated different before a race than days of training.
Some people just are not meant to play for money period. Some of them do better in tournament play...but most do not. Johnnyt
Take the baseball player that hits everything out of the park in batting practice but stikes out more often than not in a real game. The boxer that just about kills his sparing partners but can't get off in the real fight. A horse or Greyhound thats a champion in morning workouts and schooling races but shows none of that when put in a real race. Animals know when it's for real..they are treated different before a race than days of training.
Some people just are not meant to play for money period. Some of them do better in tournament play...but most do not. Johnnyt
I do the exact same thing. When I practice by myself I shoot relaxed and with so much confidence. When I play a tournament or cheap set, I play like I've never held a cue before, scared
! This problem hasn't occured until the past 2 years and I don't know what all of a sudden happened to change my game like this, mentally
. The only difference I can think of is that I used to practice and play tournaments every day. Now-a-days, I work a lot more than I used to, only practice once a week (if I'm lucky) and the only tournament I play is once a month at HT's. Darn job has really interfered with my pool game...
Damn needing health benefits! 
But then again on the other side, I do have more knowledge than I used to and it's quality not quantity as far as practice time, right?
! This problem hasn't occured until the past 2 years and I don't know what all of a sudden happened to change my game like this, mentally . The only difference I can think of is that I used to practice and play tournaments every day. Now-a-days, I work a lot more than I used to, only practice once a week (if I'm lucky) and the only tournament I play is once a month at HT's. Darn job has really interfered with my pool game... Damn needing health benefits! But then again on the other side, I do have more knowledge than I used to and it's quality not quantity as far as practice time, right?
Have you tried playing faster?wild west said:
Look at the shot, decide what to do then shoot.
But, don't forget to SPF.
Often times successful poker players say that in a cash game they do not think of the chips in front of them as money...they think of them as just chips. It takes the pressure off of them so they are not thinking about the money in play. The same thing can be applied in playing pool. Dont think about the amount that you are playing for. Just try and concentrate on what you have to do to win the set. And, if you lose, oh well...you can always play another set. But set a limit. Hope this helps.
Southpaw
Southpaw
action is something you have get used to, even after years playing you can get a bit rusty when you get into action after a lay-off. nobody is immune to it, when I first started playing for $$$ I loved it and still do. It took me a while to get into $100 action I had to grow into it, some guys grow into it faster than other guys, some cant ever get there. I know one guy who plays super strong, like Scott frost strong but for $1000/set he cant play, who knows why?
Other guys cant play unless they have $$$ on it, i'm in that group, I played Jay the other night for 30 minutes we wernt betting and it never got serious, so we started playing for $5/game 4 1/2 hours later i was 14 games loser, should have been 8 games. But soon as the games meant something the whole vibe changed for both of us, were money players. I cant make a ball in a tournment. Right now since I havent played in $1000 action in along time, it would be a bad idea to go out and bet that high, I got to get into the "Action" groove, starting at $100 and in 2 weeks of action i'd be ready for some dime action, and then more later, its a progressive thing for me.
Other guys cant play unless they have $$$ on it, i'm in that group, I played Jay the other night for 30 minutes we wernt betting and it never got serious, so we started playing for $5/game 4 1/2 hours later i was 14 games loser, should have been 8 games. But soon as the games meant something the whole vibe changed for both of us, were money players. I cant make a ball in a tournment. Right now since I havent played in $1000 action in along time, it would be a bad idea to go out and bet that high, I got to get into the "Action" groove, starting at $100 and in 2 weeks of action i'd be ready for some dime action, and then more later, its a progressive thing for me.
maybe you're trying to hard and worrying too much
If I am matching up with someone that I know can't match my good game, then I tell them straight up that I take a while to warm up and will probably lose the first couple sets. They like hearing that and think they are going to have a field day and ready to up the bet after they win the first set. By my just accepting that I am possibly going to be down a set or two until I find my pace lets me calm myself quickly so as to not worry about the outcome of the first or second set, and concentrate on getting to my speed. Once there, I up the bet to gain the lost ground from the previous loss(es). If something is handicapping me and I am not improving substantially by set 3, I accept my losses and walk knowing I am having an off day. I am not a pro or a am-pro so I am allowed to have an off day. However, more times than not, if I took on the challenge, it was because I knew their speed and they can't beat me on their best day when I am playing my normal speed. Calm yourself about the gamble early on. It is all in the heartbeat.
If I am matching up with someone that I know can't match my good game, then I tell them straight up that I take a while to warm up and will probably lose the first couple sets. They like hearing that and think they are going to have a field day and ready to up the bet after they win the first set. By my just accepting that I am possibly going to be down a set or two until I find my pace lets me calm myself quickly so as to not worry about the outcome of the first or second set, and concentrate on getting to my speed. Once there, I up the bet to gain the lost ground from the previous loss(es). If something is handicapping me and I am not improving substantially by set 3, I accept my losses and walk knowing I am having an off day. I am not a pro or a am-pro so I am allowed to have an off day. However, more times than not, if I took on the challenge, it was because I knew their speed and they can't beat me on their best day when I am playing my normal speed. Calm yourself about the gamble early on. It is all in the heartbeat.
Join the club! For me, it's not the money because I never gamble for more than chump change (which is a figure that is different for different people).
What I care about is WINNING MATCHES...not winning money. So #1, don't gamble for more than what you consider to be chump change.
But my guess is that you choke up as much in a weekly tournament as a gambling game. We all do.
What I've found to be EXTREMELY helpful is to develop a list of CORE fundamentals based on my practice rounds.
For me they are:
1. Warm up stroke = SLOW back stroke and SMOOTHLY accelerating forward stroke.
2. Allison Fisher pause on the final backstroke followed by a SMOOTHLY accelerating forward stroke...which requires a SUPER SLOW initial inch or two on the forward stroke.
3. FROZEN IN CONCRETE body during the forward stroke...holding that position until the OB drops.
Of course there are MANY other essential set up fundamentals but you have to avoid sensory overload while actually playing. So, I do all the things I've been taught to do in preparing to shoot but when I get over the shot, I think about the Key Three so AT LEAST I'm not thinking about MISSING...and don't kid yourself...we ALL have that thought just before pulling the trigger...and all too often we are correct!
Other than that, I think all champions TOTALLY COMMIT to the ONE shot they are shooting.
Regards,
jim
What I care about is WINNING MATCHES...not winning money. So #1, don't gamble for more than what you consider to be chump change.
But my guess is that you choke up as much in a weekly tournament as a gambling game. We all do.
What I've found to be EXTREMELY helpful is to develop a list of CORE fundamentals based on my practice rounds.
For me they are:
1. Warm up stroke = SLOW back stroke and SMOOTHLY accelerating forward stroke.
2. Allison Fisher pause on the final backstroke followed by a SMOOTHLY accelerating forward stroke...which requires a SUPER SLOW initial inch or two on the forward stroke.
3. FROZEN IN CONCRETE body during the forward stroke...holding that position until the OB drops.
Of course there are MANY other essential set up fundamentals but you have to avoid sensory overload while actually playing. So, I do all the things I've been taught to do in preparing to shoot but when I get over the shot, I think about the Key Three so AT LEAST I'm not thinking about MISSING...and don't kid yourself...we ALL have that thought just before pulling the trigger...and all too often we are correct!
Other than that, I think all champions TOTALLY COMMIT to the ONE shot they are shooting.
Regards,
jim