What is the One Major Player Flaw You See Most Often At The Pool Hall

The_JV said:
Funny that you consider that a flaw. I'm not sure if it's a snooker player thing, but I feel my most comfortable when gripping the butt of the cue. Probably why I generally don't bother with using an extension when most probably would.

As long as it doesn't alter the position of my wrist. I wouldn't think twice about holding the back end.
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gripping the butt is probably as old as tall pool players. hardly a flaw
 
skogstokig said:
gripping the butt is probably as old as tall pool players. hardly a flaw
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It is a flaw for me for one reason, what follows! Been well over fifty years ago now but when I first started playing I started giving the cue a vicious twist at near time of contact trying to make the tip dig into the cue ball with more bite. It even worked occasionally, making the cue ball jump around like a mexican jumping bean with zero control!

I did that dummy thing for a few months or so, maybe six. Learned better and you would think this much later that old bad behavior would be long ago corrected. It will come back sometimes if I grab the cue around the back of the butt and the bumper. When I grab it like that people can see me reset so I have straight cue under my whole hand, never the bumper. If I feel the bumper under my hand it is time to do the Twist! Definitely not planned. After over fifty years a tribute to muscle memory. I have given up hope of it going away in this lifetime.

Hu
 
WobblyStroke said:
Usually a good spot for a safety.
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Fair enough. I guess I should have added that the safety isn't a good option either. I remember hearing Grady say something to the effect of, "If your faced with a tough shot and an equally tough safe, you might as well shoot the shot because you have a chance at staying at the table." It's one of those things that seemed so obvious once I heard it I was a little mad at myself for not thinking about it on my own.
 
Jimmy_Betmore said:
Fair enough. I guess I should have added that the safety isn't a good option either. I remember hearing Grady say something to the effect of, "If your faced with a tough shot and an equally tough safe, you might as well shoot the shot because you have a chance at staying at the table." It's one of those things that seemed so obvious once I heard it I was a little mad at myself for not thinking about it on my own.
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An easy choice if the shots are equally hard but I always give pocketing the ball a little extra weight. Might try a two way shot but I dislike any plain safety that doesn't involve locking a door and throwing away the key! A lot of my action was in a time and places where safeties were heavily frowned on and if they didn't get you a pop in the teeth or worse a safety was adequate reason for someone to quit on you and never play you again. You had no honor and weren't a real man!

Crazy!

Hu
 
Mensabum said:
Failure to chalk consistently and not staying down on the shot. No consistent PSR to speak of either.
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I chalk consistently, before a game and before any shot with a lot of spin. Masters gets the job done just fine with that routine. I don't need make-up and neither does my tip! I had four cubes of this and that fancy chalks in my case, gave them all away untouched after toting them a year or two. I have a lifetime supply of Masters, flag if it matters, it will do. I kept thinking I would try some two dollar chalk or some twenty dollar chalk but I have half a gross of sixteen cent chalk left. It kinda matches my thirty-five cent tips anyway!

Hu
 
Jimmy_Betmore said:
Fair enough. I guess I should have added that the safety isn't a good option either. I remember hearing Grady say something to the effect of, "If your faced with a tough shot and an equally tough safe, you might as well shoot the shot because you have a chance at staying at the table." It's one of those things that seemed so obvious once I heard it I was a little mad at myself for not thinking about it on my own.
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Fair enough. I just posted that as a bring back to my original thoughts on the most common mistake...lack of tactical awareness and the absence of defence. All too often I'll see players in a tough pot with tough shape spot and take it on anyway with little reward and a potential sellout if they miss, completely ignoring a relatively simple safe that even if it doesn't lock up their opponent, sure as hell doesn't lose the rack for them.
 
WobblyStroke said:
Fair enough. I just posted that as a bring back to my original thoughts on the most common mistake...lack of tactical awareness and the absence of defence. All too often I'll see players in a tough pot with tough shape spot and take it on anyway with little reward and a potential sellout if they miss, completely ignoring a relatively simple safe that even if it doesn't lock up their opponent, sure as hell doesn't lose the rack for them.
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Things like this are just one of the many many aspects I love about pool. The average recreational player has no clue how deep the game actually is and the tricks and moves people have invented over the years. And I don't expect them to. Not everyone falls in love with the pool just like not everyone falls in love with every hobby, sport, or whatever. There's more than enough room for people who just want to go out, have some beers, and knock some balls around with friends. I just know that I've thoroughly enjoyed those "AHA!" moments I've experienced over the years.
 
Jimmy_Betmore said:
Things like this are just one of the many many aspects I love about pool. The average recreational player has no clue how deep the game actually is and the tricks and moves people have invented over the years. And I don't expect them to. Not everyone falls in love with the pool just like not everyone falls in love with every hobby, sport, or whatever. There's more than enough room for people who just want to go out, have some beers, and knock some balls around with friends. I just know that I've thoroughly enjoyed those "AHA!" moments I've experienced over the years.
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Great post
 
Quesports said:
Critiquing anyone’s game has always been a No No for me. Even when someone asks advice I get a bad feeling about giving it..

One day at Chris’s a guy I did not know asked to shoot some. Why not, let’s play.
I win the very first game and this Nit tells me I played the run out incorrectly. So I decide to ask him what I did wrong. He makes this stupid comment regarding what he thought I did wrong.

I turn my back on him and think, you imbecile you’re racking. So I decide to bring out my A game and teach him a lesson in humility.

We go from 8 ball to 9 ball then to 10 ball. He lost every single game for two straight hours. Buddy was watching the whole time knowing what I was doing.

Finally I got tired of thrashing his ass and pulled up saying I had to go.

About two weeks later in walks Bob again. I am doing some drills alone on a Diamond and he spots me. Hey Bob how you doing you want to shoot some, I ask?

He looks like oh shit it’s him and says no thanks I’m good. I follow that up with yeah I bet you are. He gets a rack of balls and goes into one of the back rooms not to be seen again.

Buddy looks down smiling and says yeah he’s good!!

Hopefully he learned a lesson that day and does not go around pretending he can play or even knows how to play.

He pissed me off!! He lost and wants to tell me what I did wrong. Then he lost for two hours straight!!!

Nits….
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Unsolicited advice... I was playing a dude in the finals of a one pocket tournament and he had me in a super tough spot. I could either play a tough safe or shoot a tough shot. I chose the tough shot because if I made it I had a really good chance of getting out. Unfortunately I missed and ended up losing the set. But afterwards the guy I played came up and said, "Dude, you should never shoot that shot." I just said ok because I don't have the energy or time to argue about it. To this day I still one hundred percent believe I made the right decision. I just didn't execute it properly.
  • I could shoot the tough safety. If I get what I want, he's still coming to the table and could either make one of those crazy one pocket miracle sixteen railers where the object ball kisses off another ball and goes in his hole and he gets out, or he could potentially put me right back into a the same or worse situation. If I don't get what I want, he's most likely out. Granted, he could also shoot completely straight up in the air and flub his return safe. But he didn't end up in the finals by accident.
  • I could shoot the tough shot. If I make it, I'm likely out. If I miss, he's likely out.
 
When left with " a tough shot " chances are I also will give it a try nothing ventured nothing gained , right ?
First and foremost this is a game not life or death ha ha

So you will either be a hero or a zero if you take the shot or play a safety , yes I enjoy winning as much of not more than anyone else but if I'm defeated by good old fashioned great shooting I'll take it with a smile and a hand shake and chock it up to experience and go on with life as a lesson learned .
 
Rusty in Montana said:
When left with " a tough shot " chances are I also will give it a try nothing ventured nothing gained , right ?
First and foremost this is a game not life or death ha ha

So you will either be a hero or a zero if you take the shot or play a safety , yes I enjoy winning as much of not more than anyone else but if I'm defeated by good old fashioned great shooting I'll take it with a smile and a hand shake and chock it up to experience and go on with life as a lesson learned .
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It's good to remember a quote from Star Trek of all places: "It is possible to commit no mistakes and still lose. That is not a weakness. That is life."

Full disclosure though, I've never played a set with zero mistakes.
 
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