So I was playing in league (APA...I know...you can sigh if you want!) tonight, and for whatever reason I was really in the groove. We play both 8 & 9, and last session was my first. At the end of last session, I was a pretty solid three in 9-ball, and a mid-three in 8 (from my own judgment). I know it's not great, but before league I was just a casual player, have always loved the game, but now I am really into the learning aspects. My goal for this session was to be a mid-four in both. Well we are 12 out of 14 weeks in, and I have been a four in 9-ball since early in the session. And I usually win my matches (about 75%) but my team usually throws weaker fours and below at me. In eight ball I'm around 40% wins, and usually play 3s (have been winning lately). Well today was my first week as a 4 in 8-ball, played an average four, and won 3-2.
But the highlight of my night was our teams final 9-ball match. We were down 35 points to 45, so I needed at least a 15-5 win (for a tie, better wins). I was going against a woman that I have played before in 8-ball, and she kicked my arse. I was definitely having an off-night, but I knew when I played her then, she was definitely better than me (she was a 4 in eight, I was a 3 at the time). Well, my wife had just arrived at the bar (she is a doctor, and works her butt off, God bless her for showing up to support!) and was able to watch my final game. Thinking realistically, I didn't think I had a chance for the team win (better than a 15-5 match), so I was just trying to beat this woman, in a race to 31. For whatever reason, I played fantastic. I was really in the zone! I never missed anything easy, made most medium shots, and never took anything hard. The best part of the match was my safeties. Whenever I didn't have anything good, I safetied, and everyone one was pretty textbook (for my SL mind you). I must have gotten ball-in-hand 5 times (to be fair, she might have been having an off-night, b/c I think she could have gotten out more, normally). To make a short story long, I ended up winning 31 points to 10, including a 9-ball break. I took 18 (out of 20) for my team, and we won. For all you good players, it would just be another game, but for this SL 4, it was really nice
But the highlight of my night was our teams final 9-ball match. We were down 35 points to 45, so I needed at least a 15-5 win (for a tie, better wins). I was going against a woman that I have played before in 8-ball, and she kicked my arse. I was definitely having an off-night, but I knew when I played her then, she was definitely better than me (she was a 4 in eight, I was a 3 at the time). Well, my wife had just arrived at the bar (she is a doctor, and works her butt off, God bless her for showing up to support!) and was able to watch my final game. Thinking realistically, I didn't think I had a chance for the team win (better than a 15-5 match), so I was just trying to beat this woman, in a race to 31. For whatever reason, I played fantastic. I was really in the zone! I never missed anything easy, made most medium shots, and never took anything hard. The best part of the match was my safeties. Whenever I didn't have anything good, I safetied, and everyone one was pretty textbook (for my SL mind you). I must have gotten ball-in-hand 5 times (to be fair, she might have been having an off-night, b/c I think she could have gotten out more, normally). To make a short story long, I ended up winning 31 points to 10, including a 9-ball break. I took 18 (out of 20) for my team, and we won. For all you good players, it would just be another game, but for this SL 4, it was really nice
