I thought the older the better in pool?

[Lucky_Lew66]

getting older and pool

I agree with most of yalls points,i am always saying i cant focus for long periods of time after about 4 to 5 hours my brain is mush,i lose my and my stroke and frankly my desire. I used to win a lot of the local tournaments and now it seems i just cant quite get there,i get tired and some "C" player beats me and its frustrating...thats why as we get older we take up one pocket maybe

 

[3andstop]

lmao, yea i'm only 32.

I was 32 once, ..... No, wait, I was 32 twice. Yeah that's it.

For me, it's more than one thing, stamina, desire, focus, eye sight, are all shuffling for first place.

On the other side of the coin there is, patients, knowledge, feel, and to some degree, more confidence because of those things.


**** What's that old saying? I can't do it as good as I once did, but I can do it once as good as I ever did.

That applies to pool too I think.

 

[TATE]

And i understand that!! that makes perfect sense. bending over having a bad back, or fatigue much faster. 4-5 hours of play, not much money in pro playing.... all understandable!
But a game to 150 in straight pool. put a great 25 year old against a great 50+ player. One game. My money goes to the 50+

I think someone made a good point when they mentioned the money.
Maybe the biggest money players in pool around the world ARE actually 50+

There is an interesting thing that happens as people mature. We develop more of a capacity to recognize the consequences to our actions. I am not being sarcastic - this is a proven event in psychology. This is why I believe teens and young adults are more likely to do something impulsive than older adults.

The same capacity that balances us older people in maturity also holds us back. Sometimes recklessness is an asset. Taking excessive risk often produces better results.

I guess I'm trying to explain why I believe older people tend to be less competitive than young people.

 

[vapoolplayer]

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[Donny Lutz]

Ah, now I understand...

I say BS!! I think the care or eagerness to win dies down. i say if it was a matter of life or death, the best pool shooter in the world is about 50-55 years old

I was about to disagree with you, till I saw this post...

I had my best years between 50 and 55. But though my knowledge continues to grow, my skills have gone somewhere south...I just don't play as well at 70 as I'd like to. Fifty is not old (I was still playing volleyball at 55)!

 

[GreenFeltguy]

67 and having trouble

I'm 67 and playing 9-7 (one pocket) or the wild 8 (9-ball) worse than I played 2-3 years ago. I can't tell you how hard this is to accept, people I've been beating for over 20 years who are 10 years or so younger are now torturing me. I don't know many who are approaching 70 that are still playing their best so I guess it may be something I should accept, but haven't yet, LOL !

 

[TATE]

I'm 67 and playing 9-7 (one pocket) or the wild 8 (9-ball) worse than I played 2-3 years ago. I can't tell you how hard this is to accept, people I've been beating for over 20 years who are 10 years or so younger are now torturing me. I don't know many who are approaching 70 that are still playing their best so I guess it may be something I should accept, but haven't yet, LOL !

Even among totally healthy people, I would say that 65 - 70 years old there's going to be somewhat of a decline. There's still an older guy at Hard Times in his 70's who can take out most shortstops and a lot of pros. Frank the Barber still plays at a high level too - his hip issues slowing his break down somewhat but otherwise his game is super sharp.

Another thing is the desire and ability to practice - the energy and probably the interest declines, so an older player might not really get in the practice time to make dead stroke.

 

[book collector]

The bottom line is the ability to make the balls when you get a chance.
The more seasoned player will get the shot first most of the time, but then may miss. {Can't see, bad back, sore feet, hemi's, whatever ailments old people get}.
Also some times experience can overcome ability if there is not too huge a disparity.
Age doe's not always equate to knowledge though.
There are some very bright young players, and there are lots of old timers who have watched and tried for 50 years and have no clue what they have seen.
One pocket seems to be the game that allows shooters and thinkers the best chance for equality.
If you run into a shooter who also thinks well, you will have a long day.
I have had more than a few people tell me on occasions, they didn't like a certain stroke I had used on a ball.
I have given up telling them it was not what I had planned, but when I got to a certain spot in my follow through, it felt like someone stabbed me in the shoulder and I may have jerked. Or the sciatic nerve pain that feels like a rodeo bull gored me in the hind end.
You young people wait till you start breaking down and you will wonder how some of the old guys did it, with their bodies falling apart.
I saw my buddy George at about age 89 run almost 100 balls with his feet swollen to the size of footballs.
Guys from his era were ironmen compared to mine.
I realize I am rambling , that's another "old" thing.

 

[JoeW]

I think the most important change that I have noticed is the desire to win or give it everything you have.

When I was younger I was very competitive with myself and with others. It did not make any difference what it was, tennis, chess, research grants or just about anything else. Giving it everything you've got made life good, enjoyable and often rewarding. I was not a pool player back then. Now the quality of the game and who I am playing with matters much more than winning. If the other guy needs to win that badly, I simply don't care. I know who I am and what I can do. Now I usually play for two hours by myself for every hour I play with someone else. It just isn't about winning any more.

At my age (69) I am in pretty good shape, my stamina is about as good as ever, eye sight is actually better with cataract surgery, and I know I am as tenacious as ever as I just finished a one year complete overhaul of the house we purchased here in Florida. I gutted it, with new sub flooring, all new wall studs, ceiling rafters, all new plumbing, electrical wiring, and of course all the plaster board and finishing along with new bathrooms and a completely new kitchen. And I did every last thing myself with no help from any one except a few days here and there when friends stopped in. So ya see it is not about the physical or mental aspects as we age it is about a change in priorities. I have played for 25 years now and I love it, but on my terms and with the people I like to play with.

To every season there is a reason, turn, turn, turn.

And while it may be difficult for some of the younger ones to understand, I am having the best time of my life right now. There is no longer any reason to be anything other than who I choose to be. I never realized how driven I was by my society and the needs of others until I got here. Keep your health and look forward to getting older, it can be the best of times --- truly.

 

[CJ Wiley]

It's amazing how much the gambling mentality has changed in the past 15 years

Its very hard to say. In the US at least, as pool players get older they realize they can't make a real living and move on to something else, thus not hitting balls on a daily basis.

If a pro pool player could make a decent living, we would probably see their skill last a bit longer than we already do.

Yes, you're right about that. When you get the taste of making as much in a month as a pro player makes in a year, it's difficult to go back, especially when you figure in the time and pressure factors.

My game is better in many ways than it was 20 years ago, however, there's no incentive to play every day, back then people would gamble for 3 days straight. Now they want an 8 hour time limit and if you win (or lose) the chances are they won't play again. It's amazing how much the gambling mentality has changed in the past 15 years.....it's still difficult to believe it's really happening. I see the issue is not enough players are willing to play for 20-30 a game like before, and this is what keeps the economy of pool "pumped up".

 

[vapoolplayer]

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