Let me start with with a little background. I'm 56 and have been playing for longer than I want to admit. At 16 it was 8-ball on 10 footers. Quickly graduated snooker and by the time I was 19 could rattle off the occasional 100. Well school and a girl got in the way and I picked the game back up in my late 20's. By then all the snooker in Canada was on it's way out and I gravitated to pool (with the occasional game of Golf on a 12 footer). And the passion came back. I slowly started playing all the games. Even 14.1 and 1PKT which is almost nonexistent up here. Self taught. Thank you Youtube. I got good fundamentals, touch and thankfully great eyesight. Can make few balls but at 56 my best years are behind me. To date I have been lucky and not seen a decay , except for being able to play all night. But with, a wife, two kids and business to run I don't have time for that anyway. Nowadays I'm lucky if I get out twice a week for a few hours.
Well I figured if I ever got to Minneapolis I would see a man about a "tune up". That man is Demetrius Jelatis (The Tin Man) from MN Boot Camp.
www.mnpoolbootcamp.com/ Well as luck would have it my business brought me there so I reached out to Demetrius. I've seen him play online and the best way to describe the man is...he doesn't beat himself. He gets the absolute maximum juice out of his lemon. So with zero expectations and a open mind I show up at his place for a three day overhaul.
Now I won't get into a point by point dissertation abut what he covers. I'm sure it varies by student. For me it was a quick look at my fundamentals, ball pocketing and shape play. He had very little (aka nothing to say about the first two) and 3 days of tension about the third. How can I put it. He thought I played like an a-hole. Too much feel and dependency on shot making to get me out of trouble. In short he was right. Over the years I had developed a laissez-faire approach to position play. Rarely unless it was critical did I actually go over and look at where I wanted to be...let alone pick a spot. This is not Demetrius' approach to the game. He is laser focused on running the balls in as simply and solid manner as possible and he preaches fundamental and time tested simply transitions that work. Most I knew but you always learn something.
Fast forward three weeks and he has ruined me. Now I see the table through his eyes and hear his voice in my head. He has taken all the fun out of the ride. I'm getting out of more racks and I have definitely taken some of the mustard out of my hot dog. It looks like the lessons have stuck. For those who are old enough to remember this clip:
I guess I just had to see the proof. Thank you Demetrius. But I still reserve the right to do the occasional burn out.
For those of you who still can't beat the ghost and you are looking at buying your 4th carbon fiber shaft. Well save up a couple more dollars and give the Tin Man a call. Best money I ever spent on my game. Great player and student of the game.
Well I figured if I ever got to Minneapolis I would see a man about a "tune up". That man is Demetrius Jelatis (The Tin Man) from MN Boot Camp.
www.mnpoolbootcamp.com/ Well as luck would have it my business brought me there so I reached out to Demetrius. I've seen him play online and the best way to describe the man is...he doesn't beat himself. He gets the absolute maximum juice out of his lemon. So with zero expectations and a open mind I show up at his place for a three day overhaul.
Now I won't get into a point by point dissertation abut what he covers. I'm sure it varies by student. For me it was a quick look at my fundamentals, ball pocketing and shape play. He had very little (aka nothing to say about the first two) and 3 days of tension about the third. How can I put it. He thought I played like an a-hole. Too much feel and dependency on shot making to get me out of trouble. In short he was right. Over the years I had developed a laissez-faire approach to position play. Rarely unless it was critical did I actually go over and look at where I wanted to be...let alone pick a spot. This is not Demetrius' approach to the game. He is laser focused on running the balls in as simply and solid manner as possible and he preaches fundamental and time tested simply transitions that work. Most I knew but you always learn something.
Fast forward three weeks and he has ruined me. Now I see the table through his eyes and hear his voice in my head. He has taken all the fun out of the ride. I'm getting out of more racks and I have definitely taken some of the mustard out of my hot dog. It looks like the lessons have stuck. For those who are old enough to remember this clip:
For those of you who still can't beat the ghost and you are looking at buying your 4th carbon fiber shaft. Well save up a couple more dollars and give the Tin Man a call. Best money I ever spent on my game. Great player and student of the game.
. There are several who play regularly from what I've heard so your little birdie is accurate.