What Defines Heart?

M

MBTaylor

Banned
I started this thread because gunn_slinger suggested a thread about it in another thread.

IMHO, heart is,
1) You will play anyone anytime. Not scared of competition or a challenge, but in an intelligent way.
2) You will gut it out. Even if you are way down in a set or not shooting your greatest, you grit your teeth and fight through it to the bitter end and not tucking your tail and giving up. As we all know, anything can happen in pool. All it takes is one bad roll and things can change.
 
first.....

MB, I agree with all your assessments. I would add that sometimes being stupid can be mistrued by some as "having heart".
What I mean by that is players that jump in the box with someone and have almost no chance at winning. In my opinion that is just stupid.
 
to me, having heart is fighting until the end and never giving up even though sometimes you may not have the best of it.
 
Heart to me is exactly what ironman just mentioned, fighting and not giving up not matter how many racks you are down, showing passion in your stroke
 
I like to think of this in terms of "that kid has got heart"......heard that one quite a few times....

Pool example:

You've got a young kid at the pool hall who has been working at his game. One of the better players notices and approches him to make a game. Although knowing his a little bit of an underdog, the kid takes the challenge. He gives it his all, makes a good showing, but ultimately he's outmatched and loses. They shake hands, he makes no excuses, but simply says good game. Instead of tucking his tail between his legs, he's the first one back in the pool hall the next morning, working on his game and practicing to improve so he can later be on the winning side.....

For an elder example, I think TCOM offers a pretty good example....after Eddie gets hustled by Forest Whitaker, he rededicates himself, practices, and raises his game back to compete with the best yet one more time....
 
Then: Keith
Now: Alex

its a complicated thing, and there arent relly words to describe it. Ilike chocklate cake, we all know what it tastes like but can you describe it???
 
Depends on the quality of the ingrediants. What kind of chocoloate? What kind of flour? What kind of butter? etc etc.....

The better quality the chocolate or butter used, the more refined and nuanced the taste will be. In terms of the shooter, this could be defined by how they view the table and the layout. Their vision for the shots and routes define the character of that person's game whether it is subtle and refined or an in your face go for it all style.

The quality of the flour determines the crumb (texture) and structure of the cake. In this case the shooter's knowledge of different formats, ability to play safety, kicking, banking, shot making ability, stroke, finesse and power aspects, etc. All of that is the base upon which each individual shooter's game is built.

Taking that all into account, along with their mental make up and intelligence for the game, will determine how the person plays or views themself. How that all resists the pressure of match play, imho, determines to some extent how that person will hold up when push comes to shove or who they choose to match up with (and how that match is set).

Do they look for the easy win (lack of heart) or do they setup a match that will truly test their abilities and metal (heart/grit)?

Fatboy said:
Then: Keith
Now: Alex

its a complicated thing, and there arent relly words to describe it. Ilike chocklate cake, we all know what it tastes like but can you describe it???
Click to expand...
 
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one disagreement

MBTaylor said:
I started this thread because gunn_slinger suggested a thread about it in another thread.

IMHO, heart is,
1) You will play anyone anytime. Not scared of competition or a challenge, but in an intelligent way.
2) You will gut it out. Even if you are way down in a set or not shooting your greatest, you grit your teeth and fight through it to the bitter end and not tucking your tail and giving up. As we all know, anything can happen in pool. All it takes is one bad roll and things can change.
Click to expand...

We only disagree on one part. Heart has nothing to do with intelligence other than that someone with intelligence who still takes on a battle at great odds shows more heart than the person who faces great odds without fully comprehending just how large the odds are.

Heart is a great thing to see, particularly in a seasoned veteran that knows exactly what he is getting into. However it takes heart and judgment to be a consistent winner. Heart alone makes a pool player attempt the almost impossible shot. Heart and judgment makes him risk a less than great safety instead knowing there is risk involved but the odds favor the other player failing.

Hu
 
MBTaylor said:
I started this thread because gunn_slinger suggested a thread about it in another thread.

IMHO, heart is,
1) You will play anyone anytime. Not scared of competition or a challenge, but in an intelligent way. This is balls.



2) You will gut it out. Even if you are way down in a set or not shooting your greatest, you grit your teeth and fight through it to the bitter end and not tucking your tail and giving up. As we all know, anything can happen in pool. All it takes is one bad roll and things can change. This is heart.
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IMO.......

You must have both.
 
CrownCityCorey said:
IMO.......

You must have both.
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Oh, yes. Its a powerful combination. You can't miss it in some players - Keith McCready for example. And there are the quiet (relatively compared to Keith) ones who have guts(for the gals) /balls and heart.
 
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Heart is a vital organ that pumps blood. Unfortunately it is used to descrbe a myriad of other things. I personally don't like when it is used in descriptive terms. Desire to win, passion for the game, HUGE competitive drive, are all better than the blanket term....he has HEART, yet, you will hear it used routinely, and rarely desribing the exact same situation....oh well.

In the way it's being used in this thread, I would say you can still find good-great players with no heart, but you'll most likely never hear someone described as the BEST at something w/no heart. Still not a big fan of the term, but in a pool sense it'd be equal to competitive drive and will to win.
 
MBTaylor said:
2) You will gut it out. Even if you are way down in a set or not shooting your greatest, you grit your teeth and fight through it to the bitter end and not tucking your tail and giving up. As we all know, anything can happen in pool. All it takes is one bad roll and things can change.
Click to expand...

Heart. I has it. ;)
 
HEART= COURAGE + PASSION + CONFIDENCE + DRIVE, even when the odds are against you. Even if you lose, you can still show a lot of heart.

I used to have some heart.

Don't know where it went, it just sorta dissappeared on its own.

Now, I sweat and shake for a $5 bet. LOL

Stones
 
MBTaylor said:
I started this thread because gunn_slinger suggested a thread about it in another thread.

IMHO, heart is,
1) You will play anyone anytime. Not scared of competition or a challenge, but in an intelligent way.
2) You will gut it out. Even if you are way down in a set or not shooting your greatest, you grit your teeth and fight through it to the bitter end and not tucking your tail and giving up. As we all know, anything can happen in pool. All it takes is one bad roll and things can change.
Click to expand...

The definition of Heart is very simple and it applies to everything not just pool.

Heart --- Is giving 200% in all that one does, never quiting even under the most adverse situations, win - lose - or draw understanding that there is always another day, and that the loss of a battle doesn't constitute the loss of the war.
 
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omgwtf said:
Heart. I has it. ;)
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You my dear, have "balls" in the figurative sense...that is what counts - not the danglers.

There are plenty with danglers that have no "balls" whatsoever!

Ice-T has a great song in the spirit of this concept; reference track 8 of O.G.
 
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