Relaxing During a Match

[Zphix]

Alright guys,

I was playing in an APA match last night against my buddies team - and I usually beat this kid in every practice match.

But, when the time came for me to play in the real match I couldn't win a game past the first one - and I've been having this problem a lot. The first game I'm relaxed and shooting like I would in practice.

Then, the farther the game goes I start to over-analyze, and feel pressure so I start to miss more shots, and stop taking shots I usually take (like banks for example). When I'm under pressure I resort to a more cautious type of approach to things, while in my natural state I keep a steady rhythm and pocket balls more and more.

So, in my matches when I get nervous or feel pressure I lose that kinda pace and it almost always costs me a few matches.

Like last night - I won the first game, then basically gave up the next four games to my opponent who I ended up beating later that night 11 to 4. So, in a play for play match I beat him 11 to 4, and in a regular match he beat me 4 to 1.

How can I relax during a match? or in a pressure situation?

 

[DallasHopps]

Expose yourself to the same level of pressure you anticipate being in, and learn to perform under those circumstances. The military does pretty well with that method, and I believe in it.

Specifically? Play more league matches, get into small local tournaments, gamble if that's your thing.

 

[Zphix]

Expose yourself to the same level of pressure you anticipate being in, and learn to perform under those circumstances. The military does pretty well with that method, and I believe in it.

Specifically? Play more league matches, get into small local tournaments, gamble if that's your thing.

If I was able to be exposed to more pool/pressure then I definitely would. This is the same thing I did when learning PUA but I have limited access to leagues because I'm only 19 and most other places around me you have to be 21 to play.

I'll keep this in mind for the future though

 

[Pidge]

Do you find yourself playing more cautious when its show time? This is a really common problem, but its fairly simple to get through it. I've seen people refuse 3 ball run outs that they would make 100/100 times in practice because the game means something. Playing that sort of way has a detrimental effect on your normal game imo. If I know how someone plays, and then when I'm playing them I see them refuse a shot (like in your case a bank shot) then I already know I've won because they're playing over cautious.

The best way to get around it is to make practice sessions mean something. If you can't play in more tournaments and league games then pit money at stake when you practice with your buddies. Doesn't have to be much, but it makes a difference and you become more accustomed to pressure. Another way is to alter your way of thinking. I'm guessing you refuse certain shots because you think 'what if I miss'. Don't think that way, think 'what if I make it'. Have confidence in your abilities and match games will start feeling like practice sessions. I tend to go with my initial thought. If my initial thought is I should bank this shot I go with it, if its I should play safe I play safe. Rely on your subconscious to bring back past experiences at the table and always go with your gut instinct.

 

[l0ngtaithien]

If I was able to be exposed to more pool/pressure then I definitely would. This is the same thing I did when learning PUA but I have limited access to leagues because I'm only 19 and most other places around me you have to be 21 to play.

I'll keep this in mind for the future though

my game used to be like your game right now. like many other people's suggestions Start to gamble for something small with your teammates...like $5 a game or race to 3 for $10 or race to 5 for $20 or even for drinks. this method have helped me out a lot.

and when you are playing match in the league i understand that winning is your only goal but you shouldnt justkeep thinking about winning during the match. it will take away your focus and concentration. just play the game like you always play and careless about winning or losing because either way you still have to pay $10 for nightly fee. not like if you win the match you dont have to pay for nightly free and if you lose you have to pay.

Just play play

 

[victorl]

I have the same problem. I can tell when the nerves start to kick in so I'll start taking deep breaths and tell myself, win or lose, I ain't gonna play scared and just give it my best stroke. I think being nervous is natural and not a bad thing and you'll find your best game will come out if you can learn to control it and use it to your advantage.

 

[Zphix]

Thanks guys -

I hit my psych books a bit and found a few other things that help professional athletes when they feel pressure - most of these take a few minutes and I generally don't have a few minutes to sit and relax in-between shots.

I also noticed that I break my own rhythm on shots when I'm nervous - the first game I won I just shot fluidly while getting position. In the latter games it was more like looking from ball to ball to play position.

Next time I'll rely more on gut feeling and instinct than over analysis.

 

[moneytalks]

Ronnie Allen once said that your nervous energy and adrenaline is your best weapon when you learn how to use it. Once you can harness it, it can be used as a trigger to accomplish amazing things like playing above your normal ability. It's basically "fight or flight". This sounds great and all, but I still struggle with nerves in the beginning of a big match.

Your situation sounds a bit different since you start smooth and then fall out of rhythm. I would pay attention to your routine that you naturally start with, then try to stay consistent through the rest of the match. (pace of play and how loose or tight you are playing for example)

Good luck!

 

[JoeW]

Depends on how serious you are to master this skill. Use biofeedback to learn to relax on command. You can buy a decent biofeedback machine for under $100.00.

Use Deep Muscle Relaxation to learn the same thing. When you have learned the technique you can completely relax in 5 - 10 seconds.

 

[bdorman]

Try playing your league matches just for fun, like you're playing with your buddies -- yes, you're still competitive but in the usual friendly way. If a the thought of getting "serious" ever enters your mind, think of something fun/funny to get you back to just playing for fun.

I'm not saying this will solve the problem; nothing is that easy. But the results will give you an important piece of information.

 

[Zphix]

Depends on how serious you are to master this skill. Use biofeedback to learn to relax on command. You can buy a decent biofeedback machine for under $100.00.

Use Deep Muscle Relaxation to learn the same thing. When you have learned the technique you can completely relax in 5 - 10 seconds.

You don't even need a machine to learn biofeedback - you can anchor emotions to an action... you basically create a biological network between an action and an emotion.

Like if you get yourself into a state of relaxation then flex your pinky knuckle - after doing that enough times when you flex your pinky your body will create that connection again.

I never thought I'd have to do psych on myself to play pool though haha - I've done it in other areas of my life but never thought I'd have to for pool.

 

[ScottK]

First, read Pleasures of Small Motions by Bob Fancher. I won't elaborate any further. Buy it. Read it. No, you may not borrow my copy. Buy it. Read it. OK, that's actually second because you're going to read what I post right now and you can't possibly have finished the book yet.

Second, or... first, understand that each shot, each game, and each match are an entity unto themselves. Once you play a shot, a game, or a match... good or bad, it's in the past. Don't dwell on any of them. Appreciate your good shots and let them go. Learn from the bad ones and let them go too. I know this may not sound particularly applicable, but it is. Or it at least likely may be.

If you shot lights out the first game, then suddenly dog an easy shot the second game you're probably inclined to wonder what the hell happened. You're thinking (I'll address thinking in a second, as will the book) about all the good shots and that bad shot. Those shots are in the past. They have no bearing on any shot, game, or match yet to come. Let them go and play in the present.

RE: thinking. There is a saying: You can't shoot in the thinking position, so don't think in the shooting position. Assess the table and plan your shot... in detail. Once you are down to shoot the thinking is over, just let yourself execute.

Oh yea, and think three balls ahead.
:wink:

 

[CJ Wiley]

Only about 2% (of these thoughts) are useful

Dealing with distractions is really about making judgments....some are helpful some are hurtful, but YOU are allowing yourself to make that decision, no one else.....I suggest you "just observe your thoughts".

Don't judge or even acknowledge them, treat them like a river that you are standing by and all your thoughts are like the water passing by....clean water, dirty water, rough, smooth, tin cans, garbage, back to clean, blue ON AND ON....we have an average of between 30 Thousand and 50 Thousand thoughts per day.

Only about 2% (of these thoughts) are useful, and only 2% of those do we even act on....most just loop through our minds causing worry, sad, unhappy, restless, irritable, bored, discontent etc ON AND ON....when you start to understand this you can become pro active.

Does this mean you can "think them away".....not at all, you have to observe them away...treat them like a science experiment that you want to watch, but not become personally involved with.....and there's ways to do this called meditation, all the animals do it and it's essential in this fast paced world to stop, and just do nothing for awhile. "in my life I've had thousands of "tragedies".....some of them even came true" - 'The Game is the Teacher'

 

[Zphix]

First, read Pleasures of Small Motions by Bob Fancher. I won't elaborate any further. Buy it. Read it. No, you may not borrow my copy. Buy it. Read it.

RE: thinking. There is a saying: You can't shoot in the thinking position, so don't think in the shooting position. Assess the table and plan your shot... in detail. Once you are down to shoot the thinking is over, just let yourself execute.

To the kid who can't buy the Tor Lowry videos, remember? =P

I'm picking it up from the library tomorrow to read it, then I'll buy it later. Or you can let me borrow your copy for the $5 that you won in that doubles match

On a more serious note - the other thing that gets to me is the fact that other people are watching and I'll feeling like they're judging my shots which always ****s me up. It's easy for me to say right now that what they think doesn't matter because it doesn't, and in reality people don't even care about the shots I'm taking - it's just a matter of me feeling like there are judgmental eyes on me.

Dealing with distractions is really about making judgments....some are helpful some are hurtful, but YOU are allowing yourself to make that decision, no one else.....I suggest you "just observe your thoughts".

Don't judge or even acknowledge them, treat them like a river that you are standing by and all your thoughts are like the water passing by....clean water, dirty water, rough, smooth, tin cans, garbage, back to clean, blue ON AND ON....we have an average of between 30 Thousand and 50 Thousand thoughts per day.

Only about 2% (of these thoughts) are useful, and only 2% of those do we even act on....most just loop through our minds causing worry, sad, unhappy, restless, irritable, bored, discontent etc ON AND ON....when you start to understand this you can become pro active.

Does this mean you can "think them away".....not at all, you have to observe them away...treat them like a science experiment that you want to watch, but not become personally involved with.....and there's ways to do this called meditation, all the animals do it and it's essential in this fast paced world to stop, and just do nothing for awhile. "in my life I've had thousands of "tragedies".....some of them even came true" - 'The Game is the Teacher'

CJ,

Would you mind expanding on this a bit more?

 

[Ty-Tanic]

I always take the shot that comes most natural to me. For instance, if I have a choice to make a hard cut shot but also see it as a natural bank and feel more comfortable with the bank shot and I will take it. Also take into great consideration what CJ said. Be a observer of your thoughts and don't take action in them. This is what a lot of people do while learning how to meditate at first. If you can simply observe your thoughts without judgment, you can learn to better understand them and choose what thoughts you want to believe to better yourself. Your thoughts are the biggest part that affect the human condition and you have thousands of them every day. Even becoming more aware of the thoughts you think will help a lot, try to get out of subconscious mode when thinking. Learn how to control your thoughts and understand them and it will pay off dramatically both on and off the table.

 

[CJ Wiley]

answer for ourselves....through experience and observation, not explanation

CJ,

Would you mind expanding on this a bit more?

If you want more information about mediation I have posted some basic fundamentals at the bottom of the page. To expand on what I was saying a bit more........

A bridge between our conscious and subconscious mind is the breathing.

We can think about our breathing right now (breathing in or out as you read this?) or we can continue for long periods of time {not} being aware of our breathing (consciously).

This being said, there's a fantastically effective way to connect the conscious to the subconscious. This process will give us the ability to not be emotionally controlled by our thoughts - we can, instead, go into a mode of observation (through meditation).

When we observe our thoughts (in meditation) we suddenly "real eyes" that we are not our thoughts......and if we're not our thoughts, then who are we? ....... that's a question we all have to answer for ourselves....through experience, awareness, and observation, not explanation. 'The Game is the Teacher'


“The Method (How To):

Sit cross-legged or on a chair in a quiet room. (No background music – silence is the utmost important).

Close your eyes softly or keep them half closed Place your left hand with palm facing up on your lap and place your right hand (palm up) on top of your left palm.

Bring your attention to the upper lip or below the nostrils. Observe the breathing in and breathing out in the fixed area of the upper lip or below the nostrils Maintain your attention in this area and gently bring your awareness back to this area if you are distracted.

NOTE: If you are not able to maintain your awareness in the fixed area, you can count one and one while breathing in, two and two while breathing out until ten and ten and start again. Or follow your breathing in and out. If you are too overwhelmed take ten deep breaths (conscious breathing) to calm your mind and bring your awareness back to the fixed area.

Make sure to return to regular breathing after the conscious breathing. Be a neutral observer.

Notice the temperature of the breaths, sensations below the nostrils or upper lip, and the rhythm while simply observing them.

The Frequency and Duration: Week 1 – 15 minute meditation – 2 times per day (morning and evening)

Week 2 - 30 minute meditation -2 times per day (morning and evening)

Week 3 – 1 hour meditation – 2 times per day (morning and evening)”

Read more about Anapana Sati Buddhist Meditation for beginners - (How To Meditate) on:
http://buddhist-meditation-techniqu...ource=INK&utm_medium=copy&utm_campaign=share&

 

[mark187]

I try not to watch my opponent too closely when I'm in my seat. Clean your cue, have a drink, try and think about the good shots you've played (don't do fingers in the ears, Earl style, I think this only works for him). You'll hear when a shot has been missed by your opponent, so you're not willing him to miss so intently as if you're watching. I find that this way I'm playing the table not my opponent. I tend to care less if the table beats me- it does so more often than not!

Mark

 

[Shannon.spronk]

A couple months back I was in a big team tourney. I was not playing all that well. I was over cautious and not playing my game. My captain turned to me and said "just play pool". Then said "just go hit the ball". It did wonders for me. Now when I feel I am getting out of my game I just remember to just play pool.

 

[(((Satori)))]

...................................................

 

[gmoney1]

Relaxing

Spend your time building up your fundamentals. When in competition you will begin to trust those things and confidence will rise.