Return of the Road Player

I can't wait to get back on the road myself.

In my younger days I was on the road alot. From the time I was 18 until I was around 31 I'd say if I took all the time I was on the road and put it all together it would be 6 years for sure.

Back then there was no internet. Now a guy just snaps your picture and knows your whole life in 10 minutes.

I was in Lincoln, Neb and walked into a poolroom to give some lessons when I first started out with Perfect Aim. I talked to some players in there and gave them my card.

They didn't seem to want the lesson so I told them I would play some cheap $100 or $200 sets with someone.

One of the guys had left and checked me out and told his friend that I was who I said and they wanted no part of me at least playing me anyway. I hsadn't played for 8 years hardly but they were getting the 12 year ago line.

That was the first experience I had with internet identification. That was pretty strong. I could see right away that this would be a problem for a road player.

The other part was the Motels and all the expenses on the road. Not only does this internet thing qweer your action but it costs twice as much as it did 25 years ago to travel on the road.

A motorhome is the answer but that still wouldn't work for a road player because they take too much gas. Plus there is alot of upkeep and that would bust the average road player just paying for a few repairs.

I'm going to try the motorhome thing in a month or 2 with my Perfect Aim travels. When I'm not teaching I'm playing and playing everyone I can. It's tough when your teaching though to stay in stroke.

I remember when I was at Bill Rowseys in Memphis, He said how do you teach and then when someone wants to play just jump up and play. I never thought about it much but I did have alot of days when i would jump up and play and lose because I just didn't play my game. Rest that night and win the next day but only got even.

Some truth to what Bill said. Alot of wisdom in that there poolmind of his. Years of wisdom.

Anyway, it's great fun to be on the road even if the lessons are the main life support out there.

It's great fun teaching something good and I get to play alot. If you stay in one spot things kind of get stale. Got to stay on the move and stir things up a little.

I got great action in every city that I gave lesson in on my Perfect Aim tour. Can't wait to do it again soon.

On the road again. Sounds like a song.............SWEET>>>>>>>
 
It's more than that....

Gerry said:
Yup, when I was working in the pool rooms years ago, there was always action. Road agents would come in and get any action they wanted. It wasn't a "hustle" kinda thing, and most times win or lose, they asked around for the next place to try. As the counter guy I would call the other rooms and try to put the guy in action, or let them know a road dude was on the way trying to match up. Not to knock the guy, but to try to help them out with another game.

I think the main downfall of the road player is the net. It takes no time, like said before, to clock a guys speed. I guess players are going to have to learn new stalls, or other ways to get around the fact that everyone knows everyones speed. Or, as I have always liked, just step up, play, and see how it goes, and avoid all the barking.
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With smart phones and the internet, if you have to show any speed at all, you're photo is gonna get out there.

I don't even play for money, except on rare occasions, but when I was up in Wa state for work and went and was playing some and in one of the local tourneys up there. Chuckie Holyoke's Dad was taking my picture with his phone and sending it around to find out who I was before and without me trying to match up with anyone just because I showed a little speed.

I doubt he got any where with it, but that's because most people didn't know me back then , not that they do now!!!!LOL....

Jaden
 
macguy said:
How do you get around the economics? Years ago....hustling pool back then was actually a good paying job plus a lot of fun. I can't see how those days can possible come back, the numbers don't add up.
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Yeah, I am not that old but remember making trips with another player and budgeting $70/ day for expenses. That is only a tank or 2 of gas these days!
 
Black-Balled said:
Yeah, I am not that old but remember making trips with another player and budgeting $70/ day for expenses. That is only a tank or 2 of gas these days!
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I mentioned in my other post my VW bus. I was driving a 65 Ford Falcon and went away for like three weeks. When I came home I bought the new VW cash. The salesman almost fell over when I paid him cash mostly in 10's and 20's for the brand new bus. After I started driving the VW bus I never wanted to come home. I could sleep in it, I did my shopping in grocery stores so it cost me no more to eat on the road then at home. I became a money making machine when I would put my mind to it. One thing when you have a motorhome, as long as you are not trying to cover a lot of distance in a short time the gas is not really a problem. I often stayed in one place for several weeks. Sometimes at camp grounds and sometimes just moving every night so as not to bring attention to myself. A lot of times you sleep in the daytime anyway so any shopping center is fine.

You have to consider what your intent is. Many were just out there willy-nilly playing. Winning, losing, breaking even, usually broke looking for a backer borrowing on their cues and basically spinning their wheels, I liked making money. I bought a pool room when I was just 25 with the money I won in just one year. I used to laugh in the pool room when I would hear someone say, "I want to get together a bankroll so I can go on the road". That's backwards, you go on the road to make money not gamble. If you want to gamble you can do that without leaving home, just make a game you don't need to go anywhere to lose your money or break even.
 
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Road player? Thanks to the Internet a road player has become
myth. I hear stories of how it was back when, now to
win $500, you gotta post $500! It's not too often
you hear of a game in a bar with a drunk in bib
overalls playing for $2.00 a game, three hours later
he's down $18gs, those days are gone I'm sad
to say.(true story)
 
Around here everyone is so afraid of a "road player" that no1 will play a stranger.I think guys get comfortable playing the same people everyday it sorta takes the gamble out of gambling.
 
That's a shame. Someone needs to defend the room! We had a road player come in a few years back looking for our best player. I was down a couple sets to another guy so the owner and I backed him against the stranger since he was playing better that night. Our guy was getting killed, then getting the 8ball and getting killed some more. The room owner stepped up and lost a hill hill set without missing a ball. I was then offered the 8ball and beat the guy to death with it. He quit up only a few bucks for the night. I was shocked at how well I played. If I can do it, anyone can. You never know what you're capable of doing unless you try. Don't get me wrong, we couldn't get ahold of any of the great players from town so it was us or noone for the guy.
 
mikeyfrost said:
I got to thinking recently with the rise of Dippy and the return of the suckers that this will ultimately lead to one thing and one thing only....The return of the road player.

Yes, I think in 2011 all that free information that people were just spewing left and right people will be a little more tight lipped about it. Only will tell there friends and people they make money with. I feel like it's cut throat out there now, this might be a good thing.

The return of taking the rail off is back strong. People know, they don't want to accept it but they know when they get taken off and deep down they respect the hustle of it all because that's what they do or that's what they wanna be.

I watched the TAR stream and to me the message I took away from it was simple, it ain't bout skill it's about the money. You can get action with anyone if your bank roll is long enough. You can get whatever spot you want. I think the setup games are back. Pay your tolls.

Bottom line I think the hustle is back in pool now. I know regular guys that won't play on streams, I think we will see more of that. You don't see people posting anymore on how they would match up with someone, there's a good reason for that.

You heard it from Frosty, 2011: Year of the Road Player
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At DCC the road players blew their cash to the card players.

Dippy and friends, who were in action too, walked away with quite a bit of the road players $$.

A fair number of the top card players are ex pool players themselves, and Dippy's buddies at DCC played the "smart guys" at the Derby like a harp.

Wish you were right, but not too much $$ ended up in the road players hands.
 
jrhendy said:
At DCC the road players blew their cash to the card players.

Dippy and friends, who were in action too, walked away with quite a bit of the road players $$.

A fair number of the top card players are ex pool players themselves, and Dippy's buddies at DCC played the "smart guys" at the Derby like a harp.

Wish you were right, but not too much $$ ended up in the road players hands.
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Hendy what you say is too true, this is why the backers don't ship it. I think a huge problem is this, a player wants a shot at the most money possible especially if it's not his own money. A stake horse wants his money in as good as possible because he is probably laying 5:3 on his money at a minimum. So while the poker money is a blast to chase cause you can run $5k into $50k, it's no good unless you are stealing. Instead you end up bust cause they can keep raising the bet, the more you win the more you will adjust, so inevitably their bank roll is just too damn long to fade in most cases.

Only way I see the pool players winning money is to break the number 4 rule in gambling, you have to quit winner. I had this conversation with a buddy of mine and he convinced me it is no worse to quit winner than to get totally out gambled and go home bust. It's like trying to win $2k off someone starting with $20 and you know you are all in at all times in a tough game. Eventually it's just something no one can fade.

Back to your point Hendy the poker players follow rule number 2 of gambling to a tee, the sucker is always right. If you want to know how to hustle a hustler, it ain't hard to tell.
 
mikeyfrost said:
Hendy what you say is too true, this is why the backers don't ship it. I think a huge problem is this, a player wants a shot at the most money possible especially if it's not his own money. A stake horse wants his money in as good as possible because he is probably laying 5:3 on his money at a minimum. So while the poker money is a blast to chase cause you can run $5k into $50k, it's no good unless you are stealing. Instead you end up bust cause they can keep raising the bet, the more you win the more you will adjust, so inevitably their bank roll is just too damn long to fade in most cases.

Only way I see the pool players winning money is to break the number 4 rule in gambling, you have to quit winner. I had this conversation with a buddy of mine and he convinced me it is no worse to quit winner than to get totally out gambled and go home bust. It's like trying to win $2k off someone starting with $20 and you know you are all in at all times in a tough game. Eventually it's just something no one can fade.

Back to your point Hendy the poker players follow rule number 2 of gambling to a tee, the sucker is always right. If you want to know how to hustle a hustler, it ain't hard to tell.
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I've never had any problems quitting winner.

It has never happened though, I lose all the time. But if I am ever ahead, I will quit!
 
Roy Steffensen said:
I've never had any problems quitting winner.

It has never happened though, I lose all the time. But if I am ever ahead, I will quit!
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"A strange game. The only winning move is not to play. How about a nice game of chess?" - Joshua from "War Games"
 
jrhendy said:
At DCC the road players blew their cash to the card players.

Dippy and friends, who were in action too, walked away with quite a bit of the road players $$.

A fair number of the top card players are ex pool players themselves, and Dippy's buddies at DCC played the "smart guys" at the Derby like a harp.

Wish you were right, but not too much $$ ended up in the road players hands.
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you guys mess it all up worrying about winning and loosing, it should be about having fun and if you are worried about losing a set or two then you are betting to much to start!!!!!!!!

i told everyone to bet what they are comfortable with. UNless they had me stuck aa bunch!!!!!!!


poool should be fun you guys take it to seriously.
 
DippyD said:
you guys mess it all up worrying about winning and loosing, it should be about having fun and if you are worried about losing a set or two then you are betting to much to start!!!!!!!!

i told everyone to bet what they are comfortable with. UNless they had me stuck aa bunch!!!!!!!


poool should be fun you guys take it to seriously.
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Which is why the only gambling I do on pool is for the next round of drinks :)

Otherwise, to me, it's not fun. And fun is why I play it!
 
a great new signature line . . .but Mr.Wilson would ban me for it !

mikeyfrost said:
The road been dead so long maybe it's one big p*ssy waiting to get f*cked
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Your right , Mikey , it is.
and it always has been , if you whisper in it's ear just right .
but just like a married chick , you can only fvck it if you keep quiet about it . . .
 
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