The sterling play of Nick Varner and Allen Hopkins didn't surprise me. These guys are and have always been champions. It was the great play of Stan that really got my attention, especially his stunning victory over Donnie Mills. I am very much aware that pool, like golf, can be played at a very high level at what was once considered an advanced age. I am reminded that Onifrio Lauri actually won a major 9-Ball tournament held at Weenie Beenie's room (Jack 'n Jill Billiards) in the late 60's when he was 69 years old. Almost all the top players were there!
I want to share something with all the old timers on here, that I discovered in an antique store (fitting) many years ago. It's on old parchment paper and mounted in an old wood frame (also fitting). The parchment has wrinkled with age, but the message is very clear. It goes like this,
"HOW TO STAY YOUNG"
Youth is not a time of life, it is a state of mind. Nobody grows old by merely living a number of years; people grow old by deserting their ideals. Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul. Worry, doubt, self-distrust, fear and despair; these are the long, long years that bow the head and and turn the growing spirit back to dust. Whether seventy or sixteen there is in every being's heart the love of wonder, the sweet amazement at the stars and star-like things and thoughts; the undaunted challenge of events, the unfailing childlike appetite for what's next, and the joy and the game of life. You are as young as your faith, as old as your doubt, as young as your self confidence, as old as your fear, as young as your hope, as old as your despair.
Author unknown
I felt this was an appropriate time to share this pearl of wisdom. :smile: