In 2009...

[Bob Callahan]

...I posted this. Figured it was time for a repeat since they all seem to still be true 12 years later:

After 17 (+ or - 1) years away from pool, I'm pleased (sad?) to notice, since I've come back, that some things haven't changed much. Therefore, I offer a handful of "truths" in pool (feel free to add to the list):

• There will always be players who hate the latest change in pool equipment with a passion, and players who will embrace it with loving arms.
• There will always be some old guy with a one-piece house stick he's been sanding down for 20 years and swears it's the greatest cue ever made.
• There will always be some guy with the latest hi-tech cue who swears it's the greatest cue ever made.
• Watch out for old guys--they have a lot more experience in the specialized kind of lying it takes to make a game than you do.*
• The hardest shot for you is the one you just missed.
• There will always, in every town, be a 16-year-old kid who can beat anybody.
• There will always, in every town, be a shortstop who everyone agrees can, "beat the pros".
• There will always be some poor sucker who will fall for the old "I'll give you 4 balls after the break"-hustle in 8-ball.
• There will always--if you live long enough--be a cue you wish you'd never let go of.
• There will always--no matter how impossible the shot seems--be someone who can make it.
• You can't beat the carnival trick with three balls and a golf tee in the middle.
• On eFlea, "Straight" means "Not very crooked", "New" means "It was when I bought it", "Rare" means "Nobody has ever heard of it".
• Never gamble with someone who says they'll play you with one shoe off.
• There will always be people who complain about equipment. They are either nits or sharks.
• The hardest break is not necessarily the best break.
• "Pool hustler" is a synonym for "sociopath". [See: http://www.mcafee.cc/Bin/sb.html]
• One pocket is an addiction.
• If you have a pet peeve, quit feeding it, and it'll go away.
• Unless you saw them playing on TV or in a video, you can always beat the guys who come in with a case full of sticks.
• "I haven't played much lately", means "Less than all day, every day".
• Bank systems don't work, and are designed to help you shark yourself.
• Make every easy shot. Make every shot easy.
• There will always be players who say a light break cue is best.
• There will always be players who say a heavy break cue is best.
• There will always be a new "best" aiming system.
• There will always be players who swear that you get more action on the cue ball with a flip of the wrist or some other such thing.
• There will always be players who swear they can do anything you can do, but with a "perfect" pendulum stroke.
• It's you--not the stick.
• No one was ever the "best" pool player.
• You almost always lose because you missed an easy shot--not a hard one.
• Don't play anyone with a new cue until the newness wears off, and they play just as badly as they did before.
• It's a lot easier and more pleasant to just give your money to someone who asks you to play 10-ball sting.
• There will always be "science guys" who analyze the game to death.
• There will always be "feelie guys" who swear it's an art, not a science.

If any of what you read here offends you, I'm sorry...it was all typed in fun, and no characterization was intended to resemble any persons alive or dead. It's a work of fiction. Heck, I don't even claim it's original fiction, since I've probably heard most of them at least once, at 3 A.M., in some godforsaken pool room in the middle of nowhere....

*This one is personal--he's almost 80, and beat me 3-0 in bank with a whittled-down house stick....

 

[justnum]

People keep bring up the past, its like a marriage that should've ended decades ago.

Any new ideas on how to promote or introduce the game. The forum has been pretty critical of my garbage posts.

So I defer to the "experts?"

Enough blame game mentality. COVID rocked the industry, when is the recovery going to get started.

The post COVID Billiard Era with both live and streaming events. Or is it the Matchroom/Predator era of billiards?

 

[Fatboy]

……somethings never change………….

ain’t it great?

thx for the re-post,
Fatboy

 

[docgpmiller]

Very enjoyable read. So many "truths"
Ball-in-Hand - What? - where did you come up with that? Rule book - what Rule book - BCA - What's BCA Never heard of it!

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk

 

[pt109]

History. Those who are ignorant of the fact that Harold lost to William will not understand English speaking culture. Those who are unaware of Mingaud’s contribution to billiards should have to play with a mace.

 

[CocoboloCowboy]

People keep bring up the past, its like a marriage that should've ended decades ago.

Any new ideas on how to promote or introduce the game. The forum has been pretty critical of my garbage posts.

So I defer to the "experts?"

Enough blame game mentality. COVID rocked the industry, when is the recovery going to get started.

The post COVID Billiard Era with both live and streaming events. Or is it the Matchroom/Predator era of billiards?

History or Past is something that must be studied to not make same mistakes.

Why do the same thing that only lead to failure?

 

[Black-Balled]

 

[ShootingArts]

History. Those who are ignorant of the fact that Harold lost to William will not understand English speaking culture. Those who are unaware of Mingaud’s contribution to billiards should have to play with a mace.

I will gladly play with a mace, if we play on the ground!

Speaking of maces, I am in need of a jointed one to carry around in my cue case. Strikes me as a possible cure for cellphonitis!

Hu