I Used To Play Real Good....

Fast Lenny

Fast Lenny

Faster Than You...
Silver Member
is something I hear in the poolrooms it seems like every week. You will see a C player spouting off that he used to play really good or I wish I could play like I used to. I am not saying that is untrue for some of the older guys or people who might have been injured in some sort of way. I mean I was in a car accident and have a bad back, see a chiro once a week, my health is not the greatest either but I will not use any of that as a crutch. I do know that health problems can affect your game so this post is not directed at people who really suffer as I feel your pain too.

I think most of us out there with any kind of smarts will know from looking at someone whether they have game or used to have game simply by shot selection, pattern play, knowledge and position for the most part. At the moment I have a go off who has been away from the game for a few years who plays like a D player but says he used to play really good, I just cant see it since he overlooks simple safes, does not play for position where 99 out of 100 would play it.

I know I am wet behind the ears still playing in poolrooms for about 4-5 years now but it just irks me when I hear this crap, get real and just play pool. Sorry I am venting about this but if you have been playing for 30 years and are a C player it is okay as long as you love the game and are having fun but why say you used to be an A player, if you were and you got hit by a bus you would atleast be a B player! :p

I guess when I am an old man or a 30 something year old who stopped playing for awhile I will talk about how good I used to play and how I ran 200 balls and 15 racks of 9 ball and only stopped because I had a hot date with a Playmate at Wendy's. :rolleyes:
 
The older I get, the better I was...but not in pool. I was always pretty bad in pool. But I know that, so it makes it hard to hustle me. ;)
 
Some aspects of speed can be judged by the choices the player makes. You should be looking more at pattern play and overall thought process. Execution is the first thing to go, speed control being the first part of said execution.
If I get to the playing someone, I watch the choices they are making, no matter how they execute. If they are making good decisions then I look at execution. Lots of judgements can be made from that information.
For the most part people feel they "useta could" better than they did, no matter the situation. Its just ego. But you should be on the lookout for the wolf in sheeps clothing by watching the decision making process.
Chuck
 
The difference is the meaning of good. If this person played at a bar most of his life and beat just about everyone that walked in there, everyone in this bar would consider him "good"., becuase the don't know any better. With this said, we all do the same thing, in your town or city, you have players that we consider "good", but when a pro watches him play, he might say, this guy said he was good.

Thats why you gotta love this game. Whenever you think you are at the top of your game, your not up half the mountain.
 
I think most are being sincere, at least from their own perspective....

1. They are married now, or have kids, or grandkids, and they can no longer play 5 days a week like they used to....

2. Maybe they used to be a big fish in a small pond....in their previous environment (home bar), they typically were among the top talent, where now the competition is better and it seems to them like they are playing worse...

3. It could be that age has gotten the better of them and eyesight/back issues play a factor...

4. Or like you said, they were never that good, and saying that makes them feel better.....

Most people don't mean anything by it and it helps them get by......besides, I'd rather match up with someone that used to play great as opposed to the guy that states he's "hitting the ball great right now".....the first guy has a built in excuse, the second feels like he is on his game and getting the rolls.....your odds are a lot better against the guy that used to be good :D

I know for a fact I used to play better.....I used to play 4+ days a week and felt like I was a threat to run racks and run out anytime I got a shot at the table....now I play one day a week (two if I am lucky) and suck.....but Wednesday nights are fun and most people like me because I am an easy round for them :D But, on a rare night, the magic comes back, I run a few racks, and maybe scratch out just enough to make the money....and that is a good night....
 
I used to tell that lie too

LOL , Good post Lenny .I think what I was trying to say when I said that
was that I used to be a more acurate shot maker when I was 15 or so.Now
that I have actually been around some real good pool and players I know
the difference. Although when I started back about 4 years ago I said that
alot "I used to play real good " Although I did make the commondant at
Hargrave Military Academy kick a door off the hinges ......but thats another
story ...
 
I tend to file away comments like that, and then observe.

Now if, intstead, someone else says 'he used to play real good', now I have to guess how well that person plays to see how valid their opinion is...it can get tricky.

-s
 
Fast Lenny said:
is something I hear in the poolrooms it seems like every week. You will see a C player spouting off that he used to play really good or I wish I could play like I used to. I am not saying that is untrue for some of the older guys or people who might have been injured in some sort of way. I mean I was in a car accident and have a bad back, see a chiro once a week, my health is not the greatest either but I will not use any of that as a crutch. I do know that health problems can affect your game so this post is not directed at people who really suffer as I feel your pain too.

I think most of us out there with any kind of smarts will know from looking at someone whether they have game or used to have game simply by shot selection, pattern play, knowledge and position for the most part. At the moment I have a go off who has been away from the game for a few years who plays like a D player but says he used to play really good, I just cant see it since he overlooks simple safes, does not play for position where 99 out of 100 would play it.

I know I am wet behind the ears still playing in poolrooms for about 4-5 years now but it just irks me when I hear this crap, get real and just play pool. Sorry I am venting about this but if you have been playing for 30 years and are a C player it is okay as long as you love the game and are having fun but why say you used to be an A player, if you were and you got hit by a bus you would atleast be a B player! :p

I guess when I am an old man or a 30 something year old who stopped playing for awhile I will talk about how good I used to play and how I ran 200 balls and 15 racks of 9 ball and only stopped because I had a hot date with a Playmate at Wendy's. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...


I used to feel that way. But now I feel like I used to play good, but now I play better. Objectively, I think my game is as good now as it has ever been. Even though I haven't been on a table in about two months.

I ran into a guy one time at a tournament when I was out of town. We got to talking about the 'good old days' and he told me that he used to run racks like nothing and consistently run out 9, 10 racks at a time on a barbox.

Turns out he used to live in the same town I did when he was this good. And I kept trying to remember who he was. But I couldn't place him because I was only thinking of the best players. Then he told me he used to play in the 'grand prix' tournaments (trophy only) and it clicked who he was. He was never that good. But I didn't bother telling him I knew him. I just played in the tournament and beat him. Then after the tournament he wanted to play some, so I got all the 2nd place money too :)

He said "Man, I wish I would have played you when I was better." I just smiled, remembering that when he was better, I tried to get him to gamble all the time and he ran like a scared duck.

I don't think he ever figured out who I was. But it was kind of a nice evening.

~rc
 
People lie, deceive and say things with no concrete to boost their confidence and to make themselves feel better. The sad thing is, they are conciously telling themselves that they use to be good, but subconciously, they know it is a lie and they suck just as bad as they use to.

Since they are living a lie and cannot deal with reality, their game would forever be stuck in one place and never move forward. In order for a person's game to move forward, you have to come into the light, realize what you are doing wrong, what you are doing right. Learn from it, better it, and try to put your best game everytime you are on the table.

You can never see the right from wrong, when you are constantly living in a delusion of lies. Making excuses and lies to make yourself feel better has little man syndrom all over it. Buck up, accept reality and in the end, even if your game is not great, you will be still be remembered as a man, not a liar.

JMHO

Chino
 
Fast Lenny said:
is something I hear in the poolrooms it seems like every week. You will see a C player spouting off that he used to play really good or I wish I could play like I used to. I am not saying that is untrue for some of the older guys or people who might have been injured in some sort of way. I mean I was in a car accident and have a bad back, see a chiro once a week, my health is not the greatest either but I will not use any of that as a crutch. I do know that health problems can affect your game so this post is not directed at people who really suffer as I feel your pain too.

I think most of us out there with any kind of smarts will know from looking at someone whether they have game or used to have game simply by shot selection, pattern play, knowledge and position for the most part. At the moment I have a go off who has been away from the game for a few years who plays like a D player but says he used to play really good, I just cant see it since he overlooks simple safes, does not play for position where 99 out of 100 would play it.

I know I am wet behind the ears still playing in poolrooms for about 4-5 years now but it just irks me when I hear this crap, get real and just play pool. Sorry I am venting about this but if you have been playing for 30 years and are a C player it is okay as long as you love the game and are having fun but why say you used to be an A player, if you were and you got hit by a bus you would atleast be a B player! :p

I guess when I am an old man or a 30 something year old who stopped playing for awhile I will talk about how good I used to play and how I ran 200 balls and 15 racks of 9 ball and only stopped because I had a hot date with a Playmate at Wendy's. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

I really cant stand when I hear anybody say that. I think it's ridiculous but amusing at the same time.

All I know is when I'm about 55 I bet I play the same as I do now or better.
 
I can tell by their ball patterns and shot selections that they were never any good. You might forget how to aim by feel or see to well but you never forget good strategy.
 
sixpack said:
He was never that good. But I didn't bother telling him I knew him. I just played in the tournament and beat him. Then after the tournament he wanted to play some, so I got all the 2nd place money too :)

He said "Man, I wish I would have played you when I was better." I just smiled, remembering that when he was better, I tried to get him to gamble all the time and he ran like a scared duck.

I don't think he ever figured out who I was. But it was kind of a nice evening.

~rc
Click to expand...

So, does he play "as good" now as he did back then? Better? Worse?


Eric
 
I used to be a really good player, but now....

I used to be a really good player, but my eyesight has gone into the toilet, now I have 20/30 and 20/40 instead of instead of 20/15 so now my game is much better.....


hmmm.... It might be that experience makes you a better player not a lesser player....


Jaden
 
The question in my mind....

why does it matter?

If they're a liar, then they're a liar.... whatever.

If they were good, and have lost it... then they are mourning the loss, and miss playing at that sweet level............... just listen and enjoy the stories, or not.

If they weren't that good, but genuinely think they were, why burst their bubble?...............

It's usually the younger guys who take offense ..... when you add a couple or a few decades onto your life you realize that 'live and let live' is a lot more pleasant way to go than having to prove yourself to everyone all the time.

The word ego, with all it's bad connotations isn't really a bad word. It's how we define who we are, and what we think makes us what we are... there's really no need to take someones away to add to your own.

Going to the pool hall to me always meant hearing stories anyway. Isn't that part of the 'best of it'? I can almost guarantee that it is possible to lose a major part of your skills in anything over time. Anyone who has lived a while and been good at anything knows it takes constant hard work, and effort to keep things at a high level, and that it can be lost in a seeming instant. I KNOW!!!! I am a D player who used to be a good C player!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Damnit! :wink:

td
 
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As I have moved up in years, my eyes aren't as sharp as they once were, and my hands aren't as steady. But, on the plus side, I continue to learn more every time I play. The knowledge and experience can help offset some physical deficiencies. I have beaten some younger players who were better shotmakers than I. I don't try to out-shoot them, I try to out-play them.

I probably have a better winning percentage now than I did 10 years ago.
Now, if I could just see the damn balls....:grin:

Steve
 
The guys playing like a C player and telling you they used to be good aren't the ones to watch out for. The guys playing like a C player and trying to convince you that's the best they can play are the ones to keep an eye on.

Al, just a barely C player.
 
Big Perm said:
I think most are being sincere, at least from their own perspective....

1. They are married now, or have kids, or grandkids, and they can no longer play 5 days a week like they used to....

2. Maybe they used to be a big fish in a small pond....in their previous environment (home bar), they typically were among the top talent, where now the competition is better and it seems to them like they are playing worse...

3. It could be that age has gotten the better of them and eyesight/back issues play a factor...

4. Or like you said, they were never that good, and saying that makes them feel better.....

Most people don't mean anything by it and it helps them get by......besides, I'd rather match up with someone that used to play great as opposed to the guy that states he's "hitting the ball great right now".....the first guy has a built in excuse, the second feels like he is on his game and getting the rolls.....your odds are a lot better against the guy that used to be good :D

I know for a fact I used to play better.....I used to play 4+ days a week and felt like I was a threat to run racks and run out anytime I got a shot at the table....now I play one day a week (two if I am lucky) and suck.....but Wednesday nights are fun and most people like me because I am an easy round for them :D But, on a rare night, the magic comes back, I run a few racks, and maybe scratch out just enough to make the money....and that is a good night....
Click to expand...

I hear ya brother....before the MONSTER 2 1/2 year old boy came along; I used to play golf OK. :p ;)
 
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