Gerry said:
I hate it when someone craps a ball in, and then has to tell you and the whole world how lucky they are.......we already know....shut up and shoot.
I used to be more friendly when playing in a match or gambling, then I played a guy who never showed any emotion, kinda like Efren, and that bothered the hell outta me. So I started to play that way also, and it works. I never realized how much energy it took to chit chat, or whine and complain. Now I'm very even tempered at the table, good or bad rolls. When I leave, now thats another story alltogether.
Gerry
I do the same thing Gerry. I've had people say to me, "Smile! Aren't you having fun?" I didn't know how to answer thier comment but my brother answered them for me by saying, "Thats his game face, He won't talk much either." I don't talk at all accept to say, "Safe or foul."
Last night in a team event for $2000 one particular opposing player is known to pull every shark he can. He's a good player but heres the list of things he does during a match as examples:
1) If you take any extra time figuring out a shot he walks up to the table and says, "What are you going to do? Play safe? What's the problem just shoot the 2 with draw!"
2) If you play a shot with a small position zone and get it. He rolls his eyes up and mutters "Damn you get all the rolls."
3) He will call a foul where no foul occured to argue, then completely back down.
4) He will foul and deny it, argue it, then completly back down.
He tried these ploys on all of us last night. It worked twice for him. (But in the end we took first place.) So on one particular shot it was a real tossup of playing a difficult safety or a difficult shot. He starts with line one above.
I say nothing and do not acknowledge. He gets louder and closer till he's standing beside me. I acknowledge him by smiling at him and walking around the table for another view. He says, "Are you gonna say something? Are you gonna answer me?" Long silence. Someone from the crowd, "Does he have too? Sit back and watch!"
"I want to know what he's going to play', he says throwing his hands up! (By the way the shot at hand had no chance for a foul to be called.)
The longer he ranted the longer I took. I told myself, "He is doing this for a reason, what is the reason? Fear, he cant control the table when I'm on it. I need to wait and sort this all out till I'm actually ready to shoot the shot and am sure I am calmed down.
The commotion caused a ref to come over. He stopped his tirade. The ref and him talk the ref says, " Lets wait and see." I played the safe. He got a good hit. I got out.
His game went to crap in his next couple of games as he was still fuming.
