Question for all the league players

2

219Dave

Pool is my therapy
Silver Member
Do you guys feel happy/proud when you move up a level in your handicapped league, because it's a sign that you are improving and your practice and hard work is paying off?

or

Are you bummed when you move up because your new handicap level will make it harder for you to win?

Just wondering. And please, I don't want this to turn into another "APA sucks" or "leagues suck" thread.
 
The league I play in currently has no handicap system. However, I used to play in one back in Ypsilanti, Michigan and I was proud of myself when I moved up. The only thing that bothered me was when people would deliberately lose in order to maintain a lower handicap
 
some of us actually are trying to get better. It really sucks that people out there find it important to belittle players who enjoy leagues. APA and the rest of the leagues serve their purpose. Non league players who feel otherwise are shortsighted and foolish. Leagues actually bring in persons who would never have ever started playing pool otherwise.
 
you can move up?!

:o

Seriously though, the 8ball league I play in is competitive regardless of your rank. There are 2 8's and a half dozen 7's (race to your handicap), and to give you an idea, our captain was a 7 in APA 8ball, and he's a 4 in our league (lowest handicap is a 3 - equivalent to an APA 5(ish) ). One of the 8's is easily capable of putting 8 on ya, but it's loser breaks in our league (to try to even things out). Oops, to try to keep to your question - sure, moving up is a sign of improvement, and you should be proud of that achievement. :cool:
 
i just spent an entire session trying to play my best and move up and it has payed off. i started this new session last week, and was moved up in both 8 and 9 ball. at first i was like, oh crap! i have to win more games/make more points now. after thinking about it i am happy i showed enough improvement over 11 weeks to move. i now have my sights set on the next skill level and wont be satisfied until i reach my full potential, whatever that may be for a 50 something who didnt start learning till about a year and a half ago.

Mike
 
I've been playing in league for about 6 months (getting near the end of my second session), and I have moved up one level in both 8 & 9. It makes me happy, b/c I have been consistently winning, even after moving up! I think that playing more intelligent pool has helped, not to mention that I have stopped drinking!! I think with my current skill set I could move up another level, but that's about it... without adding something to my game... which I am more than willing to do :)

edit: initially I was nervous to move up... not sure if I could hang... but so far, so good
 
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both kinda. I am tough on myself so I see my mistakes which are many. This makes me feel as though I am not getting that much better. I win more games maybe. But its still hard to gauge by my league play. Last night my apa team played. I won both 8 and 9 ball matches. My 9 ball was close and was played against a guy I have played enough to know his true speed, we are both 4's. My 8 ball match was against a guy who is an SL8 at 9 ball and a SL6 at 8 ball. He just beat my SL7 at 9 ball. This guy plays damn good. Yet in our 8 ball match I got the points. Take note I did not say I beat him. I needed 3 he needed 5 it ended 3-1 me. I did not run a rack or have some stellar play. Yet my record will show I beat SL6 and this will work against me, and I fear going up in SL when my skills have not actually improved.

So yes I am happy when I go up a SL and deserve it.
 
Generally, yes... I'm very proud when I move up. I want to be the best shooter I can be and my ultimate goal is to be the best shooter in the league. I think everyone should strive for that because that is good sportsmanship and having a little pride in yourself.

But, sometimes I feel a little dumbfounded when my rank changes because sometimes, it makes no sense. Like one time, I went from a 4 to a 5 after having a loosing season. I wend something like 5 for 11. But then, I went undefeated another season and crushed everyone... and only went from a 4 to a 5 the whole season (different league and format). Now, I'm a 6 in some leagues and I've maxed out in others. Not much room to go up so I guess I'll let you know if I feel disappointed when I go down! :smile:

Greg
 
TimmyB80 said:
I've been playing in league for about 6 months (getting near the end of my second session), and I have moved up one level in both 8 & 9. It makes me happy, b/c I have been consistently winning, even after moving up! I think that playing more intelligent pool has helped, not to mention that I have stopped drinking!! I think with my current skill set I could move up another level, but that's about it... without adding something to my game... which I am more than willing to do :)

edit: initially I was nervous to move up... not sure if I could hang... but so far, so good
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It's amazing how much better we can play when we don't drink. I shoot in a traveling bar league now and it's all about drinking for the most part. Makes it hard to shoot by the end of the night. But, I think I am going to go back to saying no to the libations until the end of the night. My games have been suffering a little.


Good luck and though it takes time... you'll climb the ladder.

Greg
 
I feel vindicated that the work I put in on the practice table has paid off.
Handicap really doesn't matter to me (ecept as a captain managing a 23 rule team) it's just a number on paper.

It's most satisfying to win without the need for a handicap. If I get my four games before an opponenet gets their number, or four games if they are higher ranked, then I feel satisfied. If I win through the benefit of the handicap it isn't nearly as satisfying.

:cool:
 
My Team Captain asked that exact question last Thursday, wasn't I kinda piss*d that I was not yet a 7?

My reply sort of threw him a bit, I told him, I really didn't care what H'Cap I was and not just because I have only been playing 5 months. It's that every time I go out there and play, I don't try to play to my H'Cap. I try to win every rack in every match, I want to win either 5-0 or 6-0 it doesn't matter. I know that's not realistic, but that's what I try to do, that's how I prepare.
 
I agree with 8up. The answer is "both".

I want to go up, when I deserve to go up. And I want that to happen as quickly as I can manage to improve enough to justify it. When I started this current session last June, I set myself a goal of moving up by next summer, 2011. Then I proceeded to go and win 8 out of 9 this session, so I wonder if I'll go up sometime soon... and wonder still if I'm really at that level yet, given the skills of those who I beat. I did beat a few people with higher handicaps that I, but of course I also beat a few with lower handicaps, too. Oh well, not gonna worry about it, whatever happens, happens.

The short of it is that this particular League player does want to go up in handicap, so long as my game warrants it.
 
Absolutly! I am trying to get myself moved up to an 8 in nine ball. I want to improve every time out.

As far as "sandbaggers" go, I love to play them. Anyone that dumps a game on purpose does not have the spine to win when the pressure is on. Improve your game and you never have to worry about "sandbaggers".

Bob
 
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It's a two way street for me. Of course, I'm usually glad to move up and does show some improvement, but not always. For example, I am going to beat APA 3's nearly every time barring I scratch on the 8 or something. If I played them every week my winning percentage would be so high I would move up but possible not be any better. However, I don't play all 3's so this isn't the case for me, but can happen.

On the other side, I'm usually a little bummed for the team as we have to work that much harder now to get the W. Moving up always motivated me though. When I moved up, I tell myself, "ok I'm now the worst at this skill level since just being moved up, time to hit the practice table and get up to speed."
 
When I used to play in league, I was definitely happy and proud to move up a level. But it did become a problem for my team when I became a 7, due to the APA "23 rule". So due to that, I was also bummed. But really only because it was harder for my team to play me, and not because the races got tougher.

-Andrew
 
I am proud to move up and even though each time I was moved up, I felt I wasn't ready to be ranked at that level yet. I was always determined to improve and and always grew into that SL. I have a goal to make SL7 by my 50th birthday in October, I have been playing APA since July of last year, started as an SL4, lost my first 3 matches & dropped to an SL3, it was a humbling experience. I have always tried to play my best and win every game I play, it seems like the people I play try to win as well, but many of them are rated far lower than the way they actually play.
I don't like politics and I don't like sandbagging, there is a team in our league that is currently in 1st place and 7 out of 8 members are ranked SL4 or lower, but the SL4 I played was more like an SL6.
When an SL4 beats an SL6 3-4, why doesn't he get moved up to make the race fairer?
If all of thier players are winning so often, how can they still maintain thier lower SLs throughout an entire 15-18 match session?
Do people sandbag one session so they can win the next session?
I don't study how to cheat the system like some players/teams do, I just want to understand how they get away with it.
 
Antfarm said:
It's amazing how much better we can play when we don't drink. I shoot in a traveling bar league now and it's all about drinking for the most part. Makes it hard to shoot by the end of the night. But, I think I am going to go back to saying no to the libations until the end of the night. My games have been suffering a little.


Good luck and though it takes time... you'll climb the ladder.

Greg
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Yeah I think not drinking helps a lot! One of my friends swears up and down that he is better when he is drunk (which I hear all the time from random people), but to me that is absurd. In the past I've had a shot to help calm my nerves, but lately I've decided to take up breathing instead, lol. And I also sit down when my opponent shoots, which also tends to relax me. I think at where I am in the game, the mental aspect is getting more crucial. Because of this, I try and take my time (consistent pre-shot routine), especially after shooting an easy shot after making a hard one. I also play many more safes than I used to, and have gotten better at them.

I started off as an SL3 in APA (8&9), am now I solid 4, and think that by next season I should be a 5, with my current game. My wife and I are moving in a year (from my home state of Michigan, to hers, Indiana) and are gonna be buying a house. One of the pre-reqs is a finished basement with plenty of room for a table :)
 
I was proud when I got moved to a 9 handicap in APA 9 Ball. Later on, when my handicap started severely limiting my teams options on who could play I had to leave the team. This opened up some handicap growth potential for the other players. The whole thing is pretty sad when you consider that a player gets punished by playing their best, getting better and then have their handicap increased till the point of preventing the team from competing. Still proud of the handicap though...
 
IbeAnEngineer said:
I was proud when I got moved to a 9 handicap in APA 9 Ball. Later on, when my handicap started severely limiting my teams options on who could play I had to leave the team. This opened up some handicap growth potential for the other players. The whole thing is pretty sad when you consider that a player gets punished by playing their best, getting better and then have their handicap increased till the point of preventing the team from competing. Still proud of the handicap though...
Click to expand...

Great point, as we hear all the time! Because of this, I think I'm going to change to a non-handicapped league when I reach this type of level (maybe SL7 or above, if it ever happens!)
 
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