Lost my interest and am bored when I play...anyone else feel like that?

mikeyfrost

mikeyfrost

Socially Aware
Silver Member
Am I the only person that just is bored with playing right now? Maybe I have lost interest or something. I’m bored when I play good instead of normally feeling some semblance of accomplishment. I forfeit out of tournaments on a regular basis without losing just cause sometime between sign up and after winning a couple matches I decide I no longer care about the outcome and just quit. I gamble with people fairly regularly and instead of baring down and focusing, I just don’t care. Sometimes I win and sometimes I lose, either way by the time I pay or get paid I don’t care. I even picked up playing one pocket to try to get my interest back up and that only lasted a good couple weeks.

Bottom line is I’m bored when I play and don’t have much interest anymore. I think I play out of routine more than genuinely wanting to go get some good practice in or match up. I like to gamble and even that isn’t making it exciting for me. I’m just not feeling it right now. I have leagues I am in and I skip them as frequently as possible because I don’t even feel like shooting so no way am I going to sit and watch others shoot. I’m competitive and don’t care about winning or losing in pool. Nothing is revving the engine.

Anybody else get like that sometime? If so, how did you get out of the funk?
 
Quit for a few weeks.. or get your @ss handed to you embarrassingly in front of important people, that always seems to do the trick.
 
The last few weeks I feel exactly the same way. There is a weekly tournament that I cash in almost every week and I just don't have the desire/drive to win matches I should. Maybe I am bored, too. But the tourney is almost a ritual on Sundays unless my wife & I have other plans. And, it's the only time I get to play on a regular basis - even though it's mostly waiting :).

It's kind of a drag and pretty disappointing but I know the feeling will go away and I'll feel like playing again. I still enjoy the being around pool, just no drive to do well at this time.

Sigh,

Dave
 
Yeah that ^^^^


Enter into an open tournament and butt heads with some top notch players could get you right about your game again.
 
Losing interest has happened to all of us to some degree and playing pool feels more like a chore than something fun. How about taking some time off to do other things?
 
I imagine many people will respond "take a break, as long as it takes". And for many, that works.

Going stale is going backwards. Maybe consider another hobby, or a home project, or taking a class - something to consume the time you'd normally use when self says "well self, may as well play some pool, nothing better to do".

But we always come back to our true love, regardless of how many times she pisses us off or bores us.
 
50calBMG said:
Losing interest has happened to all of us to some degree and playing pool feels more like a chore than something fun. How about taking some time off to do other things?
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Yeah this ^^

It's happened to me more then a few times and it won't be the last time.

If I took a couple weeks off and flew to some island in the pacific without a pool table.. I could promise you i'd be feigning for a pool stick like it was cocaine or heroin by the time I got back to the states.
 
Aging gets to you !

I am there Mikey, but i am also pushin 59 and my ambitions have diminished to a just survive state instead of over achieving.
I do not even go to the poolrooms much anymore.
Over achieving is where the killer instincts are !

How old are you ?
 
I don't know anythng about you, but there is probably something else going on in your life making pool feel less important or meaningless. This happens to me a lot. Either work or family issues make you think pool is not worth it and you don't practice hard or play hard for that matter. You start to think is this all worth it the same people, the same problems, the same stories everyday and I still comeback am I nuts.

The fact is you love the game and once everything else settles down in your life you will get back to the grind that you love. But make sure you do it on your own time don't force it and the game will become fun again.
 
You can loan me one of those cues you have while you are taking a break. I will make sure the cue doesn't get stale while you are away.

Seriously, I think many people go through that. Like most on here, the people I know just took a break. That, or you can come to the Derby. It gets me pumped up and wanting to practice.
 
I see this is common for others. I started back going to check out blues bands on the weekends(in place of nights I would normally spend at the pool hall). Going forward that's probably going to be more permanent as I have realized how much I like some good soulful Blues music, especially the amateurs.

As far as pool goes I hate taking breaks because I don't like what they do to my game. When I stop playing, I come back hot for a few days, then reality sets in and it takes a week to get back right.

There is a big Open tournament coming up soon in Olathe that I am going to make it a point to attend. I would love to go to the Derby but that's not in the cards. There's also that tourney in Tulsa that will be pretty crazy.

I appreciate all the input though and this thread might serve to help us all out a bit. Let's me know we all go through the same ish.
 
oldzilla said:
I am there Mikey, but i am also pushin 59 and my ambitions have diminished to a just survive state instead of over achieving.
I do not even go to the poolrooms much anymore.
Over achieving is where the killer instincts are !

How old are you ?
Click to expand...

27 years old, I do find enjoyment in having that killer instinct. That's a switch I hit like Hawk in Over the Top when he turns his hat backwards. I need something to highly motivate me for me to go there.
 
mikeyfrost said:
Am I the only person that just is bored with playing right now? Maybe I have lost interest or something. I’m bored when I play good instead of normally feeling some semblance of accomplishment. I forfeit out of tournaments on a regular basis without losing just cause sometime between sign up and after winning a couple matches I decide I no longer care about the outcome and just quit. I gamble with people fairly regularly and instead of baring down and focusing, I just don’t care. Sometimes I win and sometimes I lose, either way by the time I pay or get paid I don’t care. I even picked up playing one pocket to try to get my interest back up and that only lasted a good couple weeks.

Bottom line is I’m bored when I play and don’t have much interest anymore. I think I play out of routine more than genuinely wanting to go get some good practice in or match up. I like to gamble and even that isn’t making it exciting for me. I’m just not feeling it right now. I have leagues I am in and I skip them as frequently as possible because I don’t even feel like shooting so no way am I going to sit and watch others shoot. I’m competitive and don’t care about winning or losing in pool. Nothing is revving the engine.

Anybody else get like that sometime? If so, how did you get out of the funk?
Click to expand...

The first part of your post I can't really identify with because I have not yet gambled on a game of pool and haven't played in a tournament in months. But the last part, the part about leagues I can indentify with almost to a T. I've gone to league nights not really even wanting to be there but end up having to shoot because we didn't field a full team and I had to play. I'd get a couple of games into a match and then just totally give up mentally on it, finish the match by just going through the motions. In the last eight weeks of APA 8-ball league, I had four DNP's and four losses. In the last eight weeks of APA 9-ball league, I had four DNP's and a record of 1 win and 3 losses. So I guess it was about 8 weeks or so ago that I just lost interest altogether. I am sitting out the next sessions in both APA 8 and 9-ball leagues and it is still up in the air about my BCA 8-ball league. I'd lay off shooting pool altogether for a while but it is hard to do when you have a home table. I can't hardly walk by it without the irresistible urge to pop a few balls around when time allows it (and believe you me, I'm retired and time DOES allow it).

I hope you (and me and anyone else for that matter) get yourself out of that funk and start enjoying the game/competition again. It's a shame to feel so much nothing about something you held so near and dear to your heart such a short time ago. Good luck my friend!!!

FWIW, let me add/edit something to this post. I have other hobbies. I fish (own a Bass boat), shoot/hunt/reload, ride motorcycles (own two) aside from shooting pool. I have just recently begun to resume my reloading hobby and am awaiting springtime so I can ride motorcycles and fish more. I seemed to have put the other hobbies aside whenever the pool bug bit me. I LOVE doing these other things. Maybe my recent animosity towards pool has been brought on by the feeling that pool has interfered with the other things in my life that I enjoy. I don't know, I'm no psycotherapist. It'll work itself out eventually. It always does. Sorry to ramble.

Maniac
 
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A decline in interest can be caused by a number of things. Look around the poolhall. Is it the game itself? Tired of the same old same old? Too much drama? Drinking too much?
Sometimes, in your own best interest, the inner self tells the outer self it's time for a break.
It's healthy, and it happens to a lot of folks.
Take some time off and do something else for awhile. You'll come back when you want to. :smile:
 
Maniac said:
The first part of your post I can't really identify with because I have not yet gambled on a game of pool and haven't played in a tournament in months. But the last part, the part about leagues I can indentify with almost to a T. I've gone to league nights not really even wanting to be there but end up having to shoot because we didn't field a full team and I had to play. I'd get a couple of games into a match and then just totally give up mentally on it, finish the match by just going through the motions. In the last eight weeks of APA 8-ball league, I had four DNP's and four losses. In the last eight weeks of APA 9-ball league, I had four DNP's and a record of 1 win and 3 losses. So I guess it was about 8 weeks or so ago that I just lost interest altogether. I am sitting out the next sessions in both APA 8 and 9-ball leagues and it is still up in the air about my BCA 8-ball league. I'd lay off shooting pool altogether for a while but it is hard to do when you have a home table. I can't hardly walk by it without the irresistible urge to pop a few balls around when time allows it (and believe you me, I'm retired and time DOES allow it).

I hope you (and me and anyone else for that matter) get yourself out of that funk and start enjoying the game/competition again. It's a shame to feel so much nothing about something you held so near and dear to your heart such a short time ago. Good luck my friend!!!

Maniac
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Believe me I know that feeling well. Thanks for the post, I can certainly relate to it.
 
Suggestion

When I went through that same experience, one thing that really helped me was reading. Pick up some interesting pool books. Either instructional, or just a good read. It will bring a new freshness to your outlook, and you will always learn something in the process!

I highly recommend "Playing off the Rail" by David McCumber, "99 Critical Shots in Pool" by Ray Martin, and a good book about the mental side of the game that you might find helpful is "Pleasures of Small Motions" by Bob Fancher.

Give it a try, I'll bet you will soon want to get back to the table with a revived interest. Good luck!
 
txcuemaster said:
When I went through that same experience, one thing that really helped me was reading. Pick up some interesting pool books. Either instructional, or just a good read. It will bring a new freshness to your outlook, and you will always learn something in the process!

I highly recommend "Playing off the Rail" by David McCumber, "99 Critical Shots in Pool" by Ray Martin, and a good book about the mental side of the game that you might find helpful is "Pleasures of Small Motions" by Bob Fancher.

Give it a try, I'll bet you will soon want to get back to the table with a revived interest. Good luck!
Click to expand...

I actually have one of those books and have never opened it. Maybe it's time. Thanks for the post.
 
Spice it up.. learn a new game. Make a new pool friend.
Change up your routine.

Search out a new Pool Hall.

Learn how to teach the game.

Mentor a C player.

Help the TD run the tournament.

Involve yourself with the pool tournament.

Start a ladder tournament

Report the results of the tournaments around your area to AZ billiards.

Invite a friend that doesn't know anything about pool to watch you play in a tournament. Or, just take him/her to the tournament, have a few drinks and discuss the 'ins and outs' of running and playing in a tournament.

Do something different, learn more about what you are doing. Or teach someone how.

Become a student
 
Tom In Cincy said:
Spice it up.. learn a new game. Make a new pool friend.
Change up your routine.

Search out a new Pool Hall.

Learn how to teach the game.

Mentor a C player.

Help the TD run the tournament.

Involve yourself with the pool tournament.

Start a ladder tournament

Report the results of the tournaments around your area to AZ billiards.

Invite a friend that doesn't know anything about pool to watch you play in a tournament. Or, just take him/her to the tournament, have a few drinks and discuss the 'ins and outs' of running and playing in a tournament.

Do something different, learn more about what you are doing. Or teach someone how.

Become a student
Click to expand...

Good stuff Tom. I have no clue what a ladder tournament is but that sounds like a change of pace. In this area people aren't receptive of new ideas and new tournaments. We have a $15 weekly tournament that pays $150 for 1st place. People here think its the greatest thing ever because they add like $4k to a year end tournament. Hello it's our own money they are adding so who cares. It's like being really happy about a tax refund. I had a bigger entry, much bigger money tourney going and it got shot down.

All I'm saying is that it is not worth the effort to change the status quo. If I had to paint a picture of the pool scene, nothing about it would scream Des Moines. There are so many players at various watering holes that stay away from the pool halls for so many reasons. I know why and I agree with them. Not every player aspires to be a champion, but some do. However no one wants to be a sucker. The majority of what we have here is set up for suckers.
 
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