Which Great player taught themselves how to play?
- Thread starter housecue
- Start date
I know allen hopkins and steve mizerak walked to the table and could just "see" how to pocket balls.
I'd agree with JohnnyT to some degree. I'd add the name Jimmy Reid to the list as well as many of the top players of his era, and earlier times. Freddy talks quite a bit about how difficult it was to get the top players to give up their knowledge. The recent surge in paying for lessons is somewhat different than paying for lessons in the old school pool halls that were around during the period after WWII.
JMO, FWIW
Dan
JMO, FWIW
Dan
SVB just practiced and practiced by himself i think. Self taught (for the most part of course).
Fatboy - next you get Johnny on the horn, ask him about Chester Flynt. According to Johnny's website, Chester taught him the "basics". I also know for a fact with first hand knowledge that safeties were not a part of Johnny's game back in the late 1980's. He would go for any shot until he realized that wasn't working very well for him. The impact that Nick Varner has had on Johnny's career is seldom spoken about, yet hard to ignore.
Mizerak had many teachers, mainly his dad. He was a pool prodigy, and along the way he got tips from just about every major name in the game in the 1950's and 1960's. Being from New Jersey and knowing the level of talent (known and unknown) that there is to learn from around there - I would also doubt that Hopkins didn't pick up a tip or two from some great players, including Mosconi.
Shane's mom (Timi Bloomberg) was a well known player on the national level back in the 1980's. Shane comes from a long line of pool players, mostly champions at different levels of the game - so self taught? Doubtful - but I am sure that Shane inherited 20 times the amount of natural ability that most us don't have.
When studying the history of black players - you start to see more players that came up learning and finding out more on their own, case in point Black Rags.
Mizerak had many teachers, mainly his dad. He was a pool prodigy, and along the way he got tips from just about every major name in the game in the 1950's and 1960's. Being from New Jersey and knowing the level of talent (known and unknown) that there is to learn from around there - I would also doubt that Hopkins didn't pick up a tip or two from some great players, including Mosconi.
Shane's mom (Timi Bloomberg) was a well known player on the national level back in the 1980's. Shane comes from a long line of pool players, mostly champions at different levels of the game - so self taught? Doubtful - but I am sure that Shane inherited 20 times the amount of natural ability that most us don't have.
When studying the history of black players - you start to see more players that came up learning and finding out more on their own, case in point Black Rags.
yeah i was aware of his family history. I was thinking about what i heard danny D say in this clip:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlnImyaj1iM (2 mins 57)
Self-taught maybe a bit much, but to get to his level without playing the big boys that much seems to be quite an achievement.
NOONE taught themself. It would be impossible. We need practice partners, good competition, and opponents to excel. How much we absorb is up to each individual. The only way to achieve, at an early age, what some of these guys did is through competition. You can hit balls all day long; but, without competition of some sort, you won't get better. We pick up little nuances, and habits, and learn certain situational play ONLY from other people. All of our pool experiences shape and mold us. Now, I know some people just "see" things more clearly, and some people need less effort to reach a high level (just through natural God given gifts). I just don't believe you could ever pick up a cue for the first time, lock yourself away, and come out of that room and play Johnny. Impossible. Our influences, decisions, confidence, play under pressure, etc. all make us into whatever level we are.
crawfish said:
I guess that depends on how you define self taught. Efren says nobody taught him how to play but when he saw somebody make a good shot he would practice it. I think you could call that self taught since he didn't have a teacher giving him lessons.
Jay Swanson?Fatboy said:
Blackjack said:
I saw/heard an interview with him and he said his dad was a very skilled player. Tristate champion or something... I'd also have to agree that the Miz was never self taught...
Having a close relative that plays well is the best possible way to become a world beater at a young age... perhaps the only way...
No, that would mean that he was given an answer to a question. Like, "How do I get the cueball to reverse and break that out?" "AhA, thanks for that answer Mr. Player that I have just witnessed doing just that." Self taught would mean you figured it out yourself, not by watching another player. Then, can you do it under pressure in hostile surroundings? That has to be taught, also.alstl said:
JCIN said:
i can believe him when he says he just practiced.
watching him warm up for all his action report matches - you just get the impression he could hit balls all day and not get bored, and stay completely focussed. and still play a long set afterwards. even his breaking. i saw him hit about twenty breaks at least warming up, constantly re-racking the balls. i get pissed off racking the balls again on the second or third time, and i love to play.
obviously all the pro's love the game, but with shane you just get the feeling he loves it a little bit more than most.
Some of the coolest time I have ever spent in a pool room has been in Lucky's in Sioux Falls in this old ass rock wall basement with no one in it but Shane practicing by himself. I would just watch as he would break and run out. The only sound being the balls as they went in the pockets and the crash when he broke.worriedbeef said:
I know it makes me sound like a nut hanger but so be it. That was and still is a lot of fun for me. A unique dude and a unique atmosphere. I agree with you, he seems to love it and be enthralled with it a little more than most. I have a feeling many great players at his stage of development have been like that. The test is what happens when life catches up to him. (House, girfriend/wife,kids, all the other things)