Question for those who wear glasses or contacts while playing

I use an eye glass strap. It works with my normal glasses and holds them tight to my face. Ive used this for about 2 or 3 years now.My problem was I was always trying to look over the top of my frames.But the strap has helped me stay looking through the lenses.Its a cheap and easy fix at least in my case.
I tried contacts just couldn't get over the sticking things in my eyes.
 
I've worn contacts for 30 years. The first 20 were hard lenses, the 3 years of gas permeable and soft lenses for the last 7. A new doctor just moved me to Accuvue Advanced for astigmatism; I don't like them as much as the plain Accuvue and don't really see any better for the difference in cost. ($30 a box at Costco, Jude. Not as cheap as bulk but reasonable.)

The only time my eyes were affected by smoke and dry air was when I was wearing hard lenses. The soft lenses of today are so comfortable they give me no problems. Based on speaking to others in my league and pool rooms, I'm the exception rather than the rule. If you carry a small bottle of solution with you, it should be less of a problem.

And if you're stuck wearing glasses due to fear, do yourself a favor and try to make the switch. The improvement in your vision will be worth it. By miles!

Brian in VA
 
I also have a severe astigmatisme. I prefer the contacts to glasses any day except for really smokey environments. Bausch and Lamb has some fantastic advanced lenses for astigmatism sufferers. As someone else mentioned, systane eye drops are the shizzle.

I started wearing contacts specifically for pool but now wear them as often as I can whenever I can.
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Once in a while my eyes are just tired, and I have some rimless glasses that I wear when I play. They sit a bit higher on my forehead but are almost unnoticable unless you are trying to see them.

Good luck, jbk
 
I wear Decot HY-Wide shooting glasses. Had my eye doctor make a prescription for 3 to 12 ft and I"m happy. The glasses stay real high on my face so I can put my chin on the cue and never see the top of the glasses. www.decot.com
 
Bishop said:
My eyes are getting worse and I've tried to wear glasses while playing but I can't stand the frames cutting off my full plane of vision. I'm not going to go Kareem style either. I've also noticed glasses have affected my depth perception too. I play a good 30 or so hours a week so this hasn't been something I'm willing to compromise on.

I'm strongly considering getting contacts. I've never had them before. Can you tell you have them on? Do things look any different with them depth wise. Are they uncomfortable in a smoky invironment. I know thing will be clearer but has anyone not liked wearing contacts while playing. Thanks for any input.
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First you have to find out if your a candidate for contacts...

I can't get 20/20 with contacts...Well...I can get 20/20 but I have an astigmatism in the lens of my eyes...means I am not a candidate for lasik, they don't make (can't find) a toric lens that will fit in my right eye to correct the astigmatism...

The only thing I have going for me is that I am left eye dominant and that is the eye they can fit a toric lens into where I don't even know I have it in. I also have a lazy right eye (that can be corrected with a prism in glasses. I have a non toric lens for my right eye that makes me 20/20 in both eyes....the only problem with that is that now I have 20/20 "shadow vision" aka perfectly clear double vision. (The clearer I see, the more I notice the double vision or "shadow image")

Bottom line...I only wear contacts to play pool and just deal with the phantom image...

BTW - I have found that for me practicing with glasses helps me with my head alignment... (use the top of the frame as a level)

I see best with my glasses on, but even that changes from day to day because the lens in your eye is always moving...thus the astigmatism changes from day to day...some days I see good...some days I am blind as a bat...

Good luck...and don't quit at the first doctor...I had to go though two before I found one that could find contacts that worked best in my eyes.
 
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I originally switched from glasses to contacts for pool because of that damn frame line, and now I wear contacts all the time. It makes a world of difference to me, as I can get up to 20/20 vision with only minor irritation in smoky environments.

I'd never touch LASIK, especially since I can get up to 20/20 with contacts. The risks may be minute, but they're still there. It's interesting to note that NASA's astronaut requirements allow the use of glasses or contact lenses, but automatically disqualify anyone who has had any eye surgery, including LASIK. They're obviously not comfortable with the risks.
 
earl-strickland-08.jpg


Whoop Whooop!

Yeeeeaaa Duuuuude!
 
Contacts, eye-dropper filled with saline, and you're good to go.

-Roger (can't imagine playing pool with glasses on...)
 
I can relate to your situation :(. I have taken it one step further from not wearing contact lenses and I don't wear glasses either!!! I play pool many years now without having a good vision. Lately, though I am thinking of trying contact lenses. I was playing pretty good lately and my game the last few days just disappeared. I can't figure why, except that the last few days was raining here. You might find that strange, but when it rains it impairs your vision. I remember this form school. I remember that when was raining I couldn't see in the blackboard. That is actually how I discovered that my vision wasn't good.

The thing that holds me back is the time that I will probably be losing trying to fit them in and out. My girlfriend told me that at the start it takes really long and I don't have that extra amount of time to spend every day :mad: .
 
Bishop said:
My eyes are getting worse and I've tried to wear glasses while playing but I can't stand the frames cutting off my full plane of vision. I'm not going to go Kareem style either. I've also noticed glasses have affected my depth perception too. I play a good 30 or so hours a week so this hasn't been something I'm willing to compromise on.

I'm strongly considering getting contacts. I've never had them before. Can you tell you have them on? Do things look any different with them depth wise. Are they uncomfortable in a smoky invironment. I know thing will be clearer but has anyone not liked wearing contacts while playing. Thanks for any input.
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The quality of vision with contacts is great. If you have astigmatism, then the quality may not be as great, but still very good (astigmatism contacts are weighted so that they align correctly on your cornea).

As far as being comfortable with them, it totaly depends on you. I cannot wear them, i've tried just about every brand and type to no avail. I've even tried the hard gas permiable lenses.

I know players that can wear them with no problem, i even know one waitress that wears them all day in a pool hall & never has a problem.

But if you're gonna try them, think about the daily disposable ones. They were the most comfortable of all the ones i tried.

The frustration you're describing, plus not being able to wear contacts is why i just had LASIK surgery on friday.:D
 
Like Jude ...

Jude Rosenstock said:
Contact Lens comfort depends primarily on type of lens. I started with Rigid Gas Permiable Lenses (RGPs) which are hard-lenses best suited for correcting an astigmatism. Like glasses, you can always feel them but most of the time, you don't think about it. Now, I'm using soft-lenses that are also designed specifically for correcting astigmatism and they are far more comfortable. The only way I know they're on is if I can actually see or not. It is a very natural experience.

Depth perception is not affected at all. In fact, when you wear glasses, your eye is focusing on an image-correction that occurs an inch away from your eye. With contacts, the correction occurs on the eye so perception should be identical to someone with perfect vision.

Both hard and soft lenses will eventually yield dry-eyes. Even though RGPs are less prone to dryness caused by cigarette smoke, other elements in the air can cause extreme discomfort. Most lens discomfort experienced by soft-lens users is usually attributed to the lens age more than anything else. If the lenses are not new, cigarette smoke will be more bothersome.


Bottom line, I don't play without my contact lenses.
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I wore hard contacts for 38 years, have astigmatism front and back of my eyes, corneal scarring, and just in December went to soft contacts. The best eyesight I had with hard lenses was 20/40. With the monthly soft ones now, I can see 20/25. This may not sound like much improvement, but to me, it is a big improvement. I can see now where they were gray areas before for aiming.

I have shot 3 times with glasses, and they were, by far, the worst for trying to play. Messed my game all up. The new soft lenses are the most comfortable, and I notice only a slight dryness, usually around 12:30 or 1:00 in the morning when out playing for the evening. I carry a small bottle of solution with me to oil my eyes when I need it. Regular solution geared for soft contacts is much better than Visine or something like that.

When you get used to contacts, depth perception is better, I think, than glasses. Contacts slightly reflect light more, which makes you susceptable to glare in the daytime, but at night, when playing Pool, I think it actually assists you in seeing the angles better.

All I know is that I haven't been able to see this well since I was 5 years old. I have one Acuvue with astigmatism lense, and one Bausch and Lomb lense (because of the curvatures of my eyes). I wear a pair a month, and then discard, and wear the next pair a month, for 6 months, then purchase a new 6 pack.
 
I dont have a problem shooting pool with my glass's on. I'd rather play with my glass's on than with contacts. I usta have contacts and tried wearing them while bowling or playing softball and i noticed everynow n then they'd get blurry and wow, your blind lol. Right in the middle of a softball game.

I bought a new set of glass's in jan 06, and the frames were a alot smaller than my previous set, so it took a bit of adjustment when leaning over for a shot and stuff. But it helped me keep my head up.

I personally dont see whats the problem with wearing glass's while shooting, i can read and see everything clearly and dont have to worry about my eyes getting blurry in the middle of a shot.

Also, I wouldnt even think of getting lasik even though people say its safe. I'd rather live with glass's than take a chance of not being able to see for the rest of my life.
 
I wear Bausch and Lomb multi Focus lenses

Snapshot9 said:
I wore hard contacts for 38 years, have astigmatism front and back of my eyes, corneal scarring, and just in December went to soft contacts. The best eyesight I had with hard lenses was 20/40. With the monthly soft ones now, I can see 20/25. This may not sound like much improvement, but to me, it is a big improvement. I can see now where they were gray areas before for aiming.

I have shot 3 times with glasses, and they were, by far, the worst for trying to play. Messed my game all up. The new soft lenses are the most comfortable, and I notice only a slight dryness, usually around 12:30 or 1:00 in the morning when out playing for the evening. I carry a small bottle of solution with me to oil my eyes when I need it. Regular solution geared for soft contacts is much better than Visine or something like that.

When you get used to contacts, depth perception is better, I think, than glasses. Contacts slightly reflect light more, which makes you susceptable to glare in the daytime, but at night, when playing Pool, I think it actually assists you in seeing the angles better.

All I know is that I haven't been able to see this well since I was 5 years old. I have one Acuvue with astigmatism lense, and one Bausch and Lomb lense (because of the curvatures of my eyes). I wear a pair a month, and then discard, and wear the next pair a month, for 6 months, then purchase a new 6 pack.
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And they are the best tool in my pool arsenal My game has gotten 35% better with them!:)
 
I have never worn glasses until a few years ago. I guess it is a privilege of age. Everyone told me that it would affect my game. It did. I now play better. I think it is just a mental thing that some players will also use as a excuse.

I would like to get some glasses with my prescription that would make me look like the Hanson brothers in Slapshot.

If you walked into a pool hall wearing them and carrying one of these

http://www.dazadi.com/product_info.php/products_id/6380/cPath/1_23_1097/box/top_seller

you could get all kinds of action.
 
Bishop said:
My eyes are getting worse and I've tried to wear glasses while playing but I can't stand the frames cutting off my full plane of vision. I'm not going to go Kareem style either. I've also noticed glasses have affected my depth perception too. I play a good 30 or so hours a week so this hasn't been something I'm willing to compromise on.

I'm strongly considering getting contacts. I've never had them before. Can you tell you have them on? Do things look any different with them depth wise. Are they uncomfortable in a smoky invironment. I know thing will be clearer but has anyone not liked wearing contacts while playing. Thanks for any input.
Click to expand...
I've had mine now over a few months. I swear by them. If ur thinking about getting them, think of these things:

Your eye doctor should care about ur eyes as much as u do..... make sure u take ur time to get the results u want. Don't let the doctor rush you.

Get options. The doctor should give u plenty, if not, they're really not doing their job, unless of course, there's a special case.

Prepare for different expectations. U will definitely see things differently especially on a pool table. It will take some time to get adjusted.

Understand limitations. Contacts can be worn only for so long.... so take care of them, and expect good results. Don't take care of them, and of course, ur results will vary.

I've had a great eye doctor, gave me options, and the results are awesome. The hard part was getting used to some irritation (but that's because I chose the cheapy contacts), but got over that (even the smokiest rooms I have little or no problems with.... and that's without saline/eye drops). Can I feel them? Well, at first yes. But now I can hardly tell that they are there. As far as vision results..... they were excellent. It took some time to adjust to the pool table..... but after 1 month, i swear by them.

As far as brands: i use B&L Pure Vision. It's cheap, delivers more sharpness (which I asked for, during consultation), but can be have more irritations than the others.

So I hope great results if u decide to get them!
 
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