When You Are In A Slump

D

DrCue'sProtege

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member

ChalkySticks Pad

ChalkySticks Pad is an advanced billiards / pool diagramming tool. Recreate any pool situation on a variety of different table types and share with others.
pad-v1.chalkysticks.com pad-v1.chalkysticks.com

What do our instructors here recommend to do when you get in a slump? I am so bad anymore I can't hardly make anything or even run 2-3 balls. I hosed up the diagram you see here. Missed the 2 Ball. Normally I would have gotten this spread out but I am really pitiful right now. Everything feels bad. And my state of mind is really bad. Coupled with hardly ever getting a decent chance to runout after the break is just making me not want to play.

Maybe I should do as some on here have advised over the years. That being take two weeks off then quit.

r/DCP

p.s. Chalkysticks doesn't seem to be working so the link might not work. But trust me, it was a simple 2Ball.
 
I am not an instructor.

I can tell you're struggling with some of your recent posts. We get burned out at this game and eventually the winning attitude is gone. Everything is against us, let's go eat worms. At some point it's hard to keep interest, then there is the slump.

Honestly with the time of year it is get out in the woods and find some morels. Your head will be clear from worries. When you come back to the table after a week or so off while hunting mushrooms you will play better. Finding mushrooms is a skill that translates directly toward the pool table. You have to pay attention to find them and they get your eyes "excited" to see what they need to see. Stuff looks interesting.

For me personally, slumps usually occur when I start playing good enough I don't have to think and get into autopilot. It happens slowly, but eventually it leads to laziness, lack of focus, and the fundamentals fall apart. One thing snowballs into another then you think it's over, I finally am on the downhill side of this game. But it doesn't need to be that way. You have to be interested enough to re-discover the fundamentals and feel every shot. Feel the beauty in it. Don't worry about results right off, just evaluate the quality of hit/stroke.

It's usually something dumb like rushing, or half assing because you see only doom at the table. Bad layout, tough shots, etc. I know it's hard but get interested in the challenge, see it as a puzzle to be solved. Be realistic, we can't run everything and beat the ghost every time etc. But we can find the joy in solving the problem on the table. And when we can no longer find that joy, stop being a masochist and take some damn time off. Plant a garden, go fishing, pick some mushrooms etc. The table will be there when you get back with a clear mind and a better mind state.
 
Play another sport or do something else that's athletic for awhile. Get the hand-eye coordination going again in a positive way. When we fall into a slump, our body and mind are out of sync. We need to get them back working together again. Think of it as re-calibrating yourself.
 
If its practice then depending on how I'm playing i will take ball in hand at every missed shot that im left with a low % next shot and usually I get back into a rhythm of pocketing balls and controlling the cueball. Or you can setup really easy 2 ball outs with ball in hand and when you get that then move up to 3 balls type thing. Try to make it as easy as possible at first and gradually work your way into the harder stuff

Everyone is different so this might not help. Good luck and im sure you'll get it figured out.
 
OP.... when you realize what caused it, then work on that area. Slump can mean just about anything even.
League burnout :).
 
It is recommended to play for six to seven weeks daily, followed by one week off as a cycle for learning and refreshing (for amateurs).
 
A slump is usually fundamentals. Refresher lesson with an instructor could help a lot as they are far more likely to identify what's wrong and help you fix it.

Phil Mickelson (a hall of fame golfer for you only-pool die hards) was asked how he gets out of a slump once and said that it's usually a very basic thing he's taken for granted. He returns to focusing on grip, setup, and alignment for a week and poof, slump over. It's easy to let lazy habits slip in and become the norm. And the difference may only be a centimetre here or there, but that's enough to throw off a finely tuned potting machine.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top