Losing to the same player again and again...

uwate

uwate

daydreaming about pool
Silver Member
So I played in a weekly tournament last night. Played real well up until I got to play this one guy who I just can't seem to beat. This same guy has beaten me every time we have played, both in tournaments and for the cash.

I know this is a mental thing, but to me its uncanny how this goes down. Seems like when I play this guy, if I play bad, well he plays just ok and gets the win. If I play good he plays better and wins. If I play great he plays JAMUP and wins.

Anyhoo..I was just wondering if folks have overcome a similar situation and how the turning of the tide happened. I keep thinking when I do eventually beat this guy, it will happen alot easier and alot more.
 
Same problem

I have the same problem. Whenever I meet up with this guy, I try to keep my mental focus positive and look for opportunities. Hopefully some of the pros on this forum will pick this up and give us their take.
 
Ruthless said:
It's not Mario is it? :)
Click to expand...
No Mario moved to Naples. Mario and I go way back...like 1985 and we have played each other a zillion times. He sure can put that Spanglish on whitey.
 
uwate said:
So I played in a weekly tournament last night. Played real well up until I got to play this one guy who I just can't seem to beat. This same guy has beaten me every time we have played, both in tournaments and for the cash.

I know this is a mental thing, but to me its uncanny how this goes down. Seems like when I play this guy, if I play bad, well he plays just ok and gets the win. If I play good he plays better and wins. If I play great he plays JAMUP and wins.

Anyhoo..I was just wondering if folks have overcome a similar situation and how the turning of the tide happened. I keep thinking when I do eventually beat this guy, it will happen alot easier and alot more.
Click to expand...


LOL yep when I play I have become Larry nevels rack ***** lol.But then again not to many people could beat him any way.He is a member on the board now to!!! Man the guy plays awsome..
 
uwate said:
He sure can put that Spanglish on whitey.
Click to expand...

He's a good guy. I've been matched up with him several times and he's ahead a couple sets in the long haul (just don't let him give any female a ride in his vette if you want to keep her :))

If you keep losing to the same guy then you need to find a sideways gear to get. Most of the times that has happened to me the way you descibed is that I fell into the same old trap of playing their game and not my own.

If they shoot hard or fast then slow them down a little and viseversa. You need to have them start chasing your game and let you set the pace.

:)
 
Last edited:
uwate, you're right - it *is* a mental thing.

I had several guys like that, where every time I would come up against them, I'd lose - and largely because, in my head, I'd already lost.

But I've gotten better over time and gotten some more confidence in my game, to the point where I see some of these guys now and tell myself "I can get this guy now".

You've just got to get to the point where you put the past behind you, and play the guy fresh. I know, easier said than done. :)

Just this weekend was one of those moments - was playing in a Valley singles tournament (my first) and who do I get paired up with to start but a guy who I've played against in APA league the past three years - a guy who usually would beat me. It was a tough match, the last two games being complete defense battles, but I got'em. :)
 
Last edited:
When I picked up the game again, after a long hiatus, I had 3 or 4 guys I just couldn't beat, it was all mental. I knew my game however I didn't understand theirs so whenever these guys played I would watch their games from the sideline. I identified which shots each of them tended to play over others and made mental notes. It took about 6 months or so and now I beat these guys more then I lose to them, now they are the one's with the mental problem when they play me.

My suggestion is to break it down as to why you lose and they win, throw in a monkey wrench and change things up. If you are being more offensive against them then try a defensive approach. There's always a way to win, you just have to find what works against different players.

BK
 
BillyKoda has good advice.
Also...try to REALLY want it. Do all the little things as in...look at each shot, walk into the shot & set up correct, preshot routine, stay down after the shot, etc. And have some testosterone...be fierce...have your "game" face on & kinda pretend your on ESPN...everyone you know is watching. That mindset will ensure you do the correct thing every shot.;)
Way too easy to sell out & give less than 100% effort....if you think you are suppose to lose.
 
*edit* Decided not to name the player since I want to discuss his game some. Thanks everyone for your suggestions.

Billy Koda, breaking down my opponents game is tough. This is the way I see my opponents game:
-He is a tremendous one pocket player. In line with 1P, he banks extremely well, plays really strong position and kicks excellent. I say in all three categories he outplays me. All of these contribute to this guy usually outplaying me in the safety dept. Yesterday I tried to get him on three foul twice and one time he kicked two rails with inside english to shorten it up (read: HARD shot) to get out of it and the other time he kicked in two balls in a row and ran out. :-/
-His break is average with pretty good cueball control. I get the edge in this dept.
-He is a good shotmaker but I give the edge to me.
-His game doesnt break down under pressure as much as mine.
-All that said, I am suppose to win some. Our handicap in the weekly rated tournament is 11 versus 10, with my opponent being the 11 and me being a 10. The number designating the race in nineball.

The matches I've lost to him have mostly gone a few different ways:
He plays suffocating defense to protect against leaving me a makeable shot.
His concentration level seems to rise in tandem with mine.
I suffer from more breakdowns in concentration than him.
 
Last edited:
uwate said:
So I played in a weekly tournament last night. Played real well up until I got to play this one guy who I just can't seem to beat. This same guy has beaten me every time we have played, both in tournaments and for the cash.

I know this is a mental thing, but to me its uncanny how this goes down. Seems like when I play this guy, if I play bad, well he plays just ok and gets the win. If I play good he plays better and wins. If I play great he plays JAMUP and wins.

Anyhoo..I was just wondering if folks have overcome a similar situation and how the turning of the tide happened. I keep thinking when I do eventually beat this guy, it will happen alot easier and alot more.
Click to expand...


Buddy Hall suffered with this problem when he was on the road.
A guy by name `Buttermilk`` kept beating Buddy every time they played.``Buttermilk`` had Buddy`s number.
`Buttermilk` Brown is diceased years ago (as I was told by Buddy)
 
Nothing motivates me more than a good friendly nemesis.

Makes you hungry to practice, work, and improve like nothing else.
 
I used to play a retired bookie quite a bit. 9 ball, with me giving up the wild 8. Seemed like every rack I was leaving him the 8 or the 9. I just could not beat the guy and finally stopped playing him. We didn't play for about two years. I walked in one afternoon and he came up and asked me to play. {he did this every day, for two years} I said "Get your stick." He literally RAN to his locker to get this cue. That day I left him one 8 ball in a race to seven. He never asked me to play again, right up to the day he died. He had a heart attack while playing some guy 9 ball.
A friend of mine had the same kind of problem playing one of the better local players in tournaments. He probably played the 8 ball under the guy he couldn't beat, but that doesn't mean much in tournament play. I don't think my friend ever beat that particular player in tournament 9 ball or Straight pool. On any given day, he could beat just about anyone else, but not this guy. Happens to a lot of people and sometimes ya just can't figure it out, even if you analyse the hell out of it.
 
This happens a lot in every sport for various reasons. He probably be you early on because he could simply outplay you. Now, you have it in your head. You have to clear yourself mentally and tell yourself that you can beat him. Make it a goal...a priority. This will give your something to shoot for.

There are other ways of looking at this situation. Without knowing all the ins and outs, however, it is impossible to give a perfect rebutle to the questions. Things you must think about:

1. Can I realistically beat this player?
2. What can I do DIFFERENTLY to beat this player?
3. Why does this player ALWAYS play just a bit better than I do?
4. Is he/she trying to trap me?
5. Am I really playing as well as I can play?
 
Pushout said:
He never asked me to play again, right up to the day he died. He had a heart attack while playing some guy 9 ball.
Click to expand...

At least he went out doing something he enjoyed :/
 
Week before last I found out I was playing my nemesis at a local tournament. I pumped myself up to win, just telling myself that tonight was the night and he was going down. Beat him two straight after never having won a game from him before. Positive mental attitude!
 
beating your opponent

You need your own game plan first of all. You need to get your own preshot routine and never move from that. You will build consistancy with that. Approach the table the same everytime. SOme players count strokes, chalking your cue, etc. Just do the same thing everytime you shoot. Most players get "caught up" with their opponents pace. Stick with your own. COme up with a comfort zone in your own pace of play. Focus on YOUR game. This should help. Next, if you play alot with or around the player that always seem to "get ya" then you really need to watch him and learn his strong points and his weak points. If they play fast...slow down your game a little and think more about what you are doing and make sure its perfect. Good safeties will help get them out of rythem. The biggest part of pool is the mental game. If you like to read there is a book perfect for the mental game and routine. Its called "the inner game of tennis". Its about tennis but it really can relate to pool also. Good Luck....Larry Nevel
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top