The Intimidation Factor

[drivermaker]

Well, since everyone wants to rag on Bernie, or get their jolly's off on a total waste of a poll regarding the same subject and not start any threads on their own...so I will. Last night I watched a great boxing match on HBO where both boxers had super records, one held the title and both were intimidating to opponents. The title holder got knocked down 3 times in the first round and almost got counted out but made it through the round and came back to go all 12 rounds and get a draw. I thought it was a bad decision and he should have lost, but that's not the way the judges voted. It got me to think about the intimidation factor in pool and what a role it plays. What do you think you are most of the time, the intimadator or the intimidated? What do you think you do when you're playing to intimidate someone and what has someone done to you to make you feel that you don't stand a chance, even if you do. I think it plays a much greater role in winning or losing than people realize or are willing to admit. Sometimes the intimidation isn't even blatant, it's very subtle and slowly starts eroding the confidence to where you start missing shots and it can come in many forms. I've seen it in the way someone walks around the table, chalks his cue, calls his shot, their speed of play, woofs a match, or makes a great shot, and I've been on both sides of the coin and do attempt to keep the factor on my side as much as possible even if I know that I might be outgunned. What have your experiences been?

 

[ridewiththewind]

As a female player, playing in mixed leagues, I cannot tell you how many times I have found myself matched with some young 'hot shot'. If they win the break, they will generally begin slamming their shots in, faster and faster, having a nice run at it. It is clearly an intimidation play.
I have learned, thankfully, not to let this type of player 'rattle' me. In fact, I love playing these types of shooters. The reason is, I know, that at some point, they are going to become over-confident, and they are going to make a mistake. This happens over and over again. When the awaited mistake happens, I step up with slow deliberation, tell myself it's time to play 'my' game. From that point forward, I am no longer playing against my appointed opponent; but am playing against the table itself. I find this very effective, and it often will turn the tables on my opponent. I have been able to come back from my opponent making a 6 ball run, and run out. It's actually quite satisfying, and has garnered me respect for my play ability from my male opponents.

Lisa

 

[Rickw]

I watched that fight too. I thought Paquio got robbed.

As to your point, I think it is best to keep you mouth shut and just play the game to the best of your ability. All that woofing and posturing makes a player look stupid and puts more pressure on themselves. I like the players that are humble, quiet and just let their game do all the talking. That just puts pressure on the other player, not you.

Well, since everyone wants to rag on Bernie, or get their jolly's off on a total waste of a poll regarding the same subject and not start any threads on their own...so I will. Last night I watched a great boxing match on HBO where both boxers had super records, one held the title and both were intimidating to opponents. The title holder got knocked down 3 times in the first round and almost got counted out but made it through the round and came back to go all 12 rounds and get a draw. I thought it was a bad decision and he should have lost, but that's not the way the judges voted. It got me to think about the intimidation factor in pool and what a role it plays. What do you think you are most of the time, the intimadator or the intimidated? What do you think you do when you're playing to intimidate someone and what has someone done to you to make you feel that you don't stand a chance, even if you do. I think it plays a much greater role in winning or losing than people realize or are willing to admit. Sometimes the intimidation isn't even blatant, it's very subtle and slowly starts eroding the confidence to where you start missing shots and it can come in many forms. I've seen it in the way someone walks around the table, chalks his cue, calls his shot, their speed of play, woofs a match, or makes a great shot, and I've been on both sides of the coin and do attempt to keep the factor on my side as much as possible even if I know that I might be outgunned. What have your experiences been?

 

[Kevin]

I think it better overall to be the intimidator and not the intimidatee, but not by conscious design.

No one can itimidate you, but you can be intimidated. His name is fear. Of the unknown. A challenge you knowingly and in cowardice duck, instead of cooly calculating the odds of gain versus loss. If a drunken sailor with friends and a suspicious gun-bulge in the waistband invites you outside to fight, I have nothing to prove and nothing to gain... bad odds, pass. Not cowardice, this is brains. Young bulls that butt heads for joy of challenge I have seen buried before 20. My battleground is the table tonight, I have family and miles to go yet before I sleep.

Intimidation is purely a mental projection inside your own mind, a minor form of bullying that once successfully overcome gives you the strength and courage to fight back with heart at every opportunity to the table.

The only time you are intimidated is if the opponent keeps stepping up and executing, despite your best-laid traps, then you are the one who ends up being gamed, and by yourself at that. Ironic, eh? Probably solid fundamentals keep them from breaking down under pressure.

One way to prevent tournament intimidation is to smile warmly and say "good luck" to your opponent just before the lag, then DO NOT MAKE EYE CONTACT or concede their existence for the rest of the match. Get human after. Part of their game may be "playing" you. Don't give them a chance. Just watch the cue ball, stay in the game, consider what you might do, wait wait wait... and eventually your chance comes! Jump up, tend to business, take that ball in hand, and execute the run. Ignore all bleatings of misery as they sit down to beat themselves up, stew, and probably dork their next chance at the table. 'tis truly not your business now. Focus! Tournament to be won!

Get human after the match, don't get involved in pity games during the match. It is better and cleaner to close out an opponent surgically, to better demonstrate the error of their ways and the path that lies before them yet to make it up the hill of self-improvement, than unkindly string them along with false sympathy, a spirit unbecoming the competitive confines of a match. Do not play the crowd (we know that type), nor the opponent, just the table. Strong belief in your rock-solid fundamentals --you have worked on them, you deserve this-- will cause lesser players to mentally break down into indecison, fear, doubt, and ultimately poor choices, which lets you back up to the table.

The exception of course, is if they happily ask you to gamble and you are happy too play them like fish, then admit you are probably lucky as sin (can't happen again.. just beg me to let you double that bet), they are horribly unlucky (suuuuuure your luck is gonna change! Gotta! No way can I keep that up all night! Sorry about that lucky 3-rail dead combo shot I also got position and safe on, nobody coulda nivver ivver seen that coming! Rackemup, dood!)

 

[drivermaker]

I watched that fight too. I thought Paquio got robbed

Yes he did...and did you also see what his favorite pasttime was when he wasn't training for a fight? As a national Phillipine hero, I wonder if he and the other greats ever got together...spending 6-7 hours a day in a pool room I would have to think so.

 

[drivermaker]

As a female player, playing in mixed leagues, I cannot tell you how many times I have found myself matched with some young 'hot shot'. If they win the break, they will generally begin slamming their shots in, faster and faster, having a nice run at it. It is clearly an intimidation play.
I have learned, thankfully, not to let this type of player 'rattle' me. In fact, I love playing these types of shooters. The reason is, I know, that at some point, they are going to become over-confident, and they are going to make a mistake. This happens over and over again. When the awaited mistake happens, I step up with slow deliberation, tell myself it's time to play 'my' game. From that point forward, I am no longer playing against my appointed opponent; but am playing against the table itself. I find this very effective, and it often will turn the tables on my opponent. I have been able to come back from my opponent making a 6 ball run, and run out. It's actually quite satisfying, and has garnered me respect for my play ability from my male opponents.

Lisa

There are a lot of games that men can play to intimidate each other, let alone a woman. You seem like a tough minded person, and Kevin gave an excellent post that hits the nail on the head. It really does come to mental strength and having no fear, although it still happens even at the pro level. Archer, Bustamante, Earl, and others all have players that give them trouble and they'd rather be thrown in the bull ring with a raging bull than have to face a particular nemisis in a tournament. The mind always wins...yours or the other player.

 

[ridewiththewind]

There are a lot of games that men can play to intimidate each other, let alone a woman. You seem like a tough minded person, and Kevin gave an excellent post that hits the nail on the head. It really does come to mental strength and having no fear, although it still happens even at the pro level. Archer, Bustamante, Earl, and others all have players that give them trouble and they'd rather be thrown in the bull ring with a raging bull than have to face a particular nemisis in a tournament. The mind always wins...yours or the other player.

I agree completely!! I am the first to admit that I am my own worst enemy, IF I allow it.
After a couple of years getting 'rattled' in matches, I knew I had to get a whole new mind-set. And as strange as it sounds, it was in playing women exclusively that I was having the problem. Playing men made me 'step' my game up, and I would always play better. So I set out to analyze MY particular weaknesses. The very first thing I noticed was that the reason I did poorly against women was because I didn't give them the same level of play as I did the men. This is kinda hard to articulate....I never palyed the women as hard as the men, because I had bought into the whole 'women don't play as tough as men' thang. Which is simply not true. Especially in a league situation, women play pretty dirty. What I mean by this is, if the ability to execute the shot is not there, they have a habit of 'burying' the cue ball. OR, if they feel they are playing someone with a better game than they, they will 'bury' the ball.

This actually worked out in my favor....as that is where I began to not get 'rattled' at being buried, and took as an added challenge to get myself out. I quickly learned, that very rarely is there 'no shot'. I began to enhance my ability to 'see' the shot that was going to get me out of an ugly situation. Hey, I've had alot of ol' timers do it to me too...and then they learned to quit, because it had no effect. I might not always execute the shot....but I never got 'rattled'.
The next best thing I ever did was get my hands on a wonderful book called 'The Eight Ball Bible'. It's basically a book on how to win at bar room 8...but the lessons learned translate into whatever game you are playing. The basic premise being...pattern play, shot safety, and play the table, not your opponent. When you remove the opponent out of the equation, the only intimidation that is going to happen is you intimidating yourself.
And I gotta tell ya.....shot safety, shot safety, shot safety is my mantra every game now. It's just about become second nature. It's also increased my ability to 'read' a table. It's not playing dirty, it's playing smart. And it does tend to remove the whole 'intimidation factor' from my game.

Lisa...who's greatest joy comes from a game well played...win or lose!

 

[TATE]

I don't like the term "intimidation" because it is too narrow. Usually it is used by players who view others as "weak" or "strong". If a player views pool in this manner, I think they themselves are susceptible to intimidation.

I also think the situation is more intimidating than the opponent. Just playing in front of a big crowd, for example, or on camera, for a big prize, for more money than you're comfortable with, in a hostile environment, or worrying about intimidation can be distracting and cause nervous mistakes.

Sometimes the act of trying to intimidate fires up an opponent. For example, one player was this 250 pounder who tried to intimidate other players by quickly bouncing around the table wiggling his butt like a happy jackrabbit. I took one look at this crap (which isn't pretty on a big guy) and I came wanting to drill the guy because I wanted to see how his butt wiggled when he was getting it handed to him. Guess what? It stopped wiggling after he was down 3 or 4 games. Come to think of it, he hasn't been in the pool room since then.

I think nerves are a major factor between two relatively evenly matched players. Nerves are always a factor in the beginning of a match. Nerves are sometimes a big factor at the end of a close match.

Just remember, everybody has a breaking point where nerves hurt their game. The more experienced a player is, the higher the threshold. Is it intimidation? Yes, and a lot of other things.

Chris

 

[satman]

Everyone gets intmidated at some point. The time I notice it most is after a match with a very high caliber player. In Jan. I had to play Jose Parica In a one pocket match for the first time. After the match I studied my mistakes and the shots I missed.
I know I was intimidated that match, but I think the next time I will play a little better. Sam

 

[THE SILENCER]

excellent post/question. one time, i was playing a tournament, and my mouth was getting dry. i asked the crowd if they had any gum? a girl gave me gum. lo and behold, the gum helped in 2 ways, first, it made my mouth wet again, helping me function,and secondly, it intimidated the living shit out of my opponent. it looked or appeared to him, that i was just breezin around, on top of the world!, i won. also, to further this question how do you intimidate your opponent, pick up your pace, it's just that simple, if you pick up your pace, your opponent, feels, shit, this guy feels confident, and it backs him down!

 

[ridewiththewind]

also, to further this question how do you intimidate your opponent, pick up your pace, it's just that simple, if you pick up your pace, your opponent, feels, shit, this guy feels confident, and it backs him down!

Ahhhh....that is not necessarily true. My opponent can pick up the pace all he/she wants, but if I get back to the table, it is my job to take control back, and slow the pace of the game back down, which will often throw a fast-paced opponents game off.

Just because an opponent decides to set their pace fast, does not mean that you have to answer at an equally fast pace. Once you are at the table, it's your game, and you can play it at whatever pace suits you.

Lisa....who plays her game her way...good, bad, or otherwise.

 

[satman]

Stick to your guns Lisa and take em' down at the pace you choose. Sam

 

[ridewiththewind]

Stick to your guns Lisa and take em' down at the pace you choose. Sam

Why, thank you Sam!

I have generally found, in my experience, when my opponent gets out ahead, and is playing 'fast and confident', that if I wait, they will hit 'over-confident', and make a mistake. It is then my job to capitalize on that mistake. I figure, I get the one chance, if I blow it, then my opponent deserves to win.

There are those occasions when an opponent will get out ahead, play 'fast and confident', make no mistakes, and win the game. Hey, when that happens, I figure, he deserves to win, he just woked the entire table for it, why would I take that away? I don't take it personally.

I take it personally when I have the opportunity to take the game, and blow it. But the only one I am beating up is myself, and I am going to congratulate that opponent for a game well played....because it was. They played well, I didn't....sheesh, it happens....life goes on, and there are plenty of more games to play.

And, as I have stated before, I really don't mind losing, as long as I played well. It's like poker, you can do it all right, and by the book......and then there is luck. No shame in that. But on the flip side of that, I will beat myself up for days for playing a game poorly. And I hate it even more when I win a game that I played poorly!!

Lisa

 

[satman]

Nice to hear another person who has the good sports-man-ship attitude. Don't beat yourself up too bad, just try to learn from the mistakes. I have been recording a lot of the U.S. Open matches and they all make errors. Missed shots and position errors are part of learning the mental part and sounds like you're on the right track. Sam

 

[ridewiththewind]

Nice to hear another person who has the good sports-man-ship attitude. Don't beat yourself up too bad, just try to learn from the mistakes. I have been recording a lot of the U.S. Open matches and they all make errors. Missed shots and position errors are part of learning the mental part and sounds like you're on the right track. Sam

Oh yes, I'm always trying to learn from my mistakes. Often, if I am having an 'off' night, I'll realize that it has nothing to do with what's happening on the table. It may be that I don't have my head down, or am not comfortable in my stance. I am finally learning that it is okay to stand back up, step back, and then reset my body position at the table. Once I realize what I am doing wrong, in that aspect, and correct it....my game comes back, and I am a happy camper once again.
And of course there is that odd night when it's probably best for me to quit while I'm behind.

I watch alot of pool on ESPN/ESPN2. I love the overhead perspective because it shows you where the cueball is winding up in relation to the next shot. I have learned ALOT from watching these matches.

Some of my favorite matches I have played have been against some very good male players locally. They're the ones where I have matched my opponent stroke for stroke, shot safety for shot safety. We usually both wind up laughing and congratulating one another for a game well played....and what great fun it was. Those are the best, in my book, no matter who took the win.

Lisa

 

[Rickw]

Yes I did see the part about him playing pool 6-7 hours a day. He must be a fair pool player if he's spending that much time at it. Who knows, maybe he'll be like Danny DiLiberto and play professional pool after he quits boxing. I'll bet he knows Efren, Busta, Victor and all the other great pool players from PI.

Yes he did...and did you also see what his favorite pasttime was when he wasn't training for a fight? As a national Phillipine hero, I wonder if he and the other greats ever got together...spending 6-7 hours a day in a pool room I would have to think so.

 

[drivermaker]

As good as the advice is to just play the table, I've always been one to study my opponent as a match progresses to see if I can spot some chinks in the armor. In the beginning, I'm looking at how he approaches me or interacts just as another human being. Is he confident, arrogant, cocky, standoffish or personable, laid back, shy, timid, walks fast or slow, has smooth or herky-jerky movements, makes eye contact and how long he holds it with a certain intensity, and his posture. I also watch his speed of play, how he moves around the table, and what force he typically uses in his stroke for various shots. Focusing on the other person and looking for minute changes in anything not only gives me confidence that he may be breaking down, but it keeps my mind off of myself and allowing any negativity to start creeping in to cause my own demise. Even while I'm at the table, I want to look over to see if I notice any slumping of the shoulders or a look of dejection or frustration overtaking their demeanor. Sometimes the intimidation factor doesn't come into play at all in a particular match...it's just two focused warriors going at it till the dying end and you can't really get pissed off if you lose. They were the better player on that given day. It's also very gratifying to win on those occasions against a player who is strong in all respects. Most of the time though, intimidation will set in at some point and then the fear of loss, self doubt, technical thoughts, bad strokes and thinking, as well as a resignation to defeat. Better them than me, as I see it.

 

[Chokeinator]

I would consider myself an intimidator more than intimidated, mainly because I am a very queit player, I practice alot outside of the poolroom, and everytime I do go back to the poolroom I've added something new to my game so the guy I played last time is usually caught offguard with some strength that used to be a weakness. An example of this happened in leauge a few weeks ago, the first guy had beaten me in tournament before and is a very devious, safety oriented player. That loss prompted me to work on my safety play and broaden my game. Anyway the last time I played this guy I beat him using a safety that left me with ball in hand and a single ball on the table. Ironic that he was initially what prompted me to work on this aspect of the game that led to his defeat.

This wasn't always the case however, when I first started playing at the room I do now I was at the bottom of the pecking order. Slowly I've managed to improve and get upset after upset. Initially I think many of the regulars might have thought some of those wins were flukes because I don't play in the room all the time so they don't see my improvement on a daily basis, I just show up now and then and suddenly my game has moved up a notch or two. ( I practice at home daily.) Anyway more than anything they were probably underestimating my ability and getting punched in the nose for it. After the last 10 weeks of leauge play I think they are starting to notice my level of play and are actually a little intimidated. My play is very consistent and even against the best teams in my leauge I am winning more matches than I lose. (if only the rest of my team could do the same, I still luv em though

Right or wrong I generally guage my game by the players I'm able to take down, I started out here last year when I first moved here and had a list of about 20 players I wanted to take something from and eventually beat, right now I'm down to 4, they have no idea I'm gunning for them, I watch their games, learn from them, practice the fundamentals of what I think they have to teach me at home, and eventually put that practice to the test in the weekly tournaments they hold at my local pool hall. I don't attend every tournament as I don't want my game getting knocked, I might go to a tournament once every two months, almost always after I feel I've made some signifigant improvement. I'm going to win that tournament eventually. That's my goal for the next year. So am I intimidated sometimes, absolutely. How do I deal with it? I practice whatever it is about that players game that intimidates me, safety play, shot making, position play, and I try and fight fire with fire. When you've practiced some specific aspect of your game because of a specific player and you come across that player again in competition it's hard to be intimidated anymore because you are more focused on surprising the guy with what you've learned since the last time you played one another than anything else. To be continued....