pool and families

matthew

matthew

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Well there has been a recent development in my life. I'm gonna be a father. So I was wondering, those of you with kids. How do they affect your pool game? Do you play less? etcetera.

I was told I'm gonna have to make sacrifices. I hope I don't have to drop pool. That probably sounds selfish and maybe it is. Although on the plus side. When my child is old enough. I can teach him/her to play.
 
Congratulations on the news.

You can bet that you'll need to spend alot more nights at home taking core of Mom and Child, or you'll be in the doghouse real quick. My daughter is three now and likes to swat at balls with a shorty, which never lasts too long. We play pass on my table, throwing the balls back and forth to each other which is fun, it is slowly acclimating her to the table. I know she wont really be able to play and show any interest for a few years, so we just have fun for now.
Do you have your own table? I think that is the real question. If not, get one cause you'll be spending alot more time at home...
 
Last edited:
HA HA Mathew if you are used to spending a lot of time in the pool room you are in for a big surprise. I have not played serious pool since the birth of my first daughter 8 years ago. It will pretty much change your prespectives on life. I now have 2 daughters 8 and 5 who have watched me play a few times and now want a pool table so I have talked the wife into closing in the garage and buying a table. yippeee! I hope to teach them how to play and enjoy the game as much as I did growing up. On a funny note I was showing them how to hit balls the other day and my youngest can actually outshoot the older one by placing the cue stick over her shoulder and stabbing at it like throwing a spear. HA HA
 
I too am soon to be a first time Dad. Good luck to us!!

We are trying to get the basement finished (in 90 days or less!) and I already have a 4 1/2x9. I am hoping that I can make time to play in my own house, or else I'll have the world's biggest laundry table!!

-Pigg
 
Congratulations! I have a tough time with just my wife, never mind a child. If you can invest in your own table that would be good idea. You can probably still manage to play a couple of times a week even though you have a new born. Good luck!
 
My wife and I are both poolplayers and we just had our firstborn in October. It's definitely impacted how much we are able to get out together and play. We live in a two bedroom apartment and had the second room set up as a gameroom, well I had to push the table against the wall as that's now the baby's room until we get a larger place but I still use it to practice as I can pretty much get to two sides. I still practice on the table quite frequently mainly just working on particular shots, I was joking with my wife that our daughter is going to wonder why she feels so comfortable in poolhalls when she gets older.

My solution to balancing my family and pool was to sign up for a leauge. I captain a team and tuesday night is my night to get to play pool. This last week I even went a step further and invited my wife to come as a sub for my team and got a baby sitter for the evening, we both had a great time and even though everyone on my team showed up and she didn't get to play with us we are pretty well known locally and she had no problem staying occupied at a nearby table while my team battled it out on the other side of the room.

Before the match we played each other warming up and afterwards we stayed about an extra hour just playing. My wife is an exceptional player and has as much passion for the game as myself, if not more. If one of my med-low skill guys decides he doesn't want to play anymore I feel sorry for the rest of the leauge because we've got better players on the bench right now than on the actual team.

Anyway so the cliff notes are:
Joined a leauge and get at least one night a week devoted to pool.
Wife loves pool too so I include her in my night by hiring a babysitter.
Have a table at home but it was actually a casualty of parenthood.
Still have the table and am actively seeking a larger place to live in the hopes of reviving the table.
 
Thanks alot. I'm gonna try and stay with pool to some degree. I'll probably stop going to the pool halls the first year or two. That's a given anyway. Maybe my child will finally force me to mature, which will have a positive effect upon my game.

Who know's if its a boy, maybe she'll allow me to him Willie Mosconi Wagner. or Jersey Red Wagner.
 
Anyway... Bob was in stroke before kids and marriage. He lived pool. Now he rarely plays, although it is contributed to his ever growing age.

How you make the time for you and your family is completely up to you. There will be many different issues that arise with kids and who knows you might get into different sports now.

Good luck, children are awesome, but grandchildren are the bomb!
 
No children yet here, but we are trying! Quite possibly the scariest thing I have ever confessed. I have accomplished many things in life, but creation of your own is something sacred and just amazing, at least to me.

Still in yet, I think it is important, and even healthy, for BOTH you and your wife to maintain an active life. Granted, going to the bars and whatnot will have to come to a halt, but perhaps joining a league where you get 1 evening out a week is a good idea.

Personally I want to be the best father in the world, when my time comes and I want my wife to be the best mother. I think that is achieved through hard work & dedication to your children, but also by making time for YOU and YOUR SPOUSE doing things you enjoy. Having a little fun and enjoyment in life brings out the best in most of us. Don't cheat yourself or child by giving up everything you like to do, just learn how to better schedule and compromise on issues.

And by the way, good luck!! I don't know if your child was planned or not, but for me, that is scary either way.
 
Yeah, fatherhood is really scary. I have to finally be responsible for something other than myself. I think I'll play pool and do other stuff but it will all be in moderation.
 
Family should come first above all else in your life. You are bringing another human being into this world and you are now responsible for it until the day you die. I have 4 children and they are my life.
 
matthew said:
.... So I was wondering, those of you with kids. How do they affect your pool game? Do you play less? etcetera...
Click to expand...

I didn't really get serious about pool until my kids were grown so I can't address your question directly. However I think; given the homework, soccer, baseball, basketball, school plays, taxi driving, family gatherings that become compulsory rather than voluntary, student teacher conferences, FAMILY vacations, pampering of a tired wife, earning extra money, etc.; I would have been pretty hard pressed to find time for pool. I got to pick up a stick maybe 3 times a year during all that time and I don't regret a minute of those years. Having children was the best thing that ever happened to me.
Good luck with little Willie or Allison.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top