Couldn't have said it any better!:thumbup:
Why are pro pool player so afraid to gamble?
- Thread starter gxman
- Start date
Couldn't have said it any better!:thumbup:
gambling
Some of the best players in the world (world champions) don't gamble. They don't think it's worth the hassle. Does that mean that they have no "heart"?
I can't tell you how many times I've had people just refuse to pay when they lose. Or threaten physical violence. Or damage your car because you took them off for a few bucks. Or cheat. Or change playing rules in the middle of a match.
Gambling is not all it's cracked up to be...and I would never judge a player on their willingness to gamble.
Some of the best players in the world (world champions) don't gamble. They don't think it's worth the hassle. Does that mean that they have no "heart"?
I can't tell you how many times I've had people just refuse to pay when they lose. Or threaten physical violence. Or damage your car because you took them off for a few bucks. Or cheat. Or change playing rules in the middle of a match.
Gambling is not all it's cracked up to be...and I would never judge a player on their willingness to gamble.
Sometimes it's just nice for a pool player to just get paid and actually make a profit. That's my best guess.And they're living it the way they decide to live it...but you still want to criticize it. What are you? Their wife?
So, you're complaining that you can't find easy action anymore...but criticize them for not gambling.
You must be their mother-in-law
There is no universal game or length of set to gamble with. No real rules. Everyone wants to dictate to there advantage.
+1
Another +1
I'm pretty sure, that if Shane could make enough money to pay the bills ice fishing, he would quit playing pool. It's not always about gambling.
You do realize that NFL players get paid if they win, lose, or even if they don't play in the game, which many don't, right ?
Seriously. 99% of serious players can't come near making a living off of pool. You get 5 in a room that are either currently on top or have managed to build a life from the game, and after they've already entertained you, you just want them to piss away whatever they can against one another or in glorified shit-talking fests, giving weight to bonafide scrubs and hangers-on after traveling for days and playing all day long? Maybe they want to take a break after working.
I get the appeal. There's certainly something gladiatorial about money games, both in the sense of the high-stakes contest's risk v. reward, and also mirrored by the plebes sitting around enjoying the spectacle of desperate and generally poor people self-destructing in front of them.
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Because gambling is for amateurs!
What would be their goal in doing so?
Not trying to be a smart ass....just an honest question like yours.
Why don't you take all your earnings after you win a tourny... When you win one....and throw it all on the table and challenge all players your equal or maybe a ball better than you.
When you go home broke more often than not maybe you will figure out the answer to your question.
It was more like an exhibition tournament. All players were guaranteed $2K even if no matches were won. All traveling expenses were paid for.
Some of these are the same guys that cant stop barking on facebook about playing anyone anytime for 10K a pop.
I guess it all depends on the match up they can get. When Shane knew he was stealing from Nick the greek, he couldn't fly to Greece fast enough to play him.
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This is the best answer. But also, most of those guys do gamble and aren't "afraid" to gamble. You usually don't hear about it and it usually isn't with each other because again ... see above.
I think that generally that is where the line drawn between a gambler (or a Hustler) and a professional. Not to say that they never gamble with each other, I'm sure it happens quite a bit, but as a professional I'm sure they understand they have certain responsibilities before they gamble and when you're that good, gambling is likely to be more recreational rather than a necessary part of your income.
Then there are those of us that don't gamble and we take a lot of crap for it, but we also don't have to explain to our families why there are no groceries or diapers or rent didn't get paid or why we got a shut off notice from the power company, etc... Gambling is a risky proposition regardless of at what level you are playing at.
I regularly see here on AZ that some of the poster make fun of the handicap league players because they don't match up even. When I watch people negotiate a money match I rarely ever see them agree to match up even, someone always wants a spot and they ask for a spot so they think they have an advantage, where's the heart in that?
Then there are those of us that don't gamble and we take a lot of crap for it, but we also don't have to explain to our families why there are no groceries or diapers or rent didn't get paid or why we got a shut off notice from the power company, etc... Gambling is a risky proposition regardless of at what level you are playing at.
I regularly see here on AZ that some of the poster make fun of the handicap league players because they don't match up even. When I watch people negotiate a money match I rarely ever see them agree to match up even, someone always wants a spot and they ask for a spot so they think they have an advantage, where's the heart in that?
I very seldom ever went "broke" when I used to gamble playing pool almost every day for years, but I NEVER went "broke" thinking the OTHER guy would WIN!
I always managed whatever money I had to allow me to play for enough games to get in a groove, hopefully, before my money ran out. I played every kind of way, but I preferred ring games or long sets because I was always capable of running racks or running out when I got hitting them good. The plan was to get "hitting them good" before the cash ran out and I had a very good record of doing that.
Aloha.
I don't know that anyone will get through to you.
It's NOT a free roll...
Do people who are paid speaking fees and have travel paid consider that a free roll? No, its considered part of their INCOME, and they treat it as such.
The people who played in that event are the upper echelon of pool, and worked very hard to get there. They are being paid for their time and knowledge.
It's NOT a free roll...
Do people who are paid speaking fees and have travel paid consider that a free roll? No, its considered part of their INCOME, and they treat it as such.
The people who played in that event are the upper echelon of pool, and worked very hard to get there. They are being paid for their time and knowledge.
some people simply aren't degenerates...I personally have never gone to work and lost money. with the sad state that pool is in I would take 5k and pocket the cash. why risk wasting your time? not sure why this topic is being brought up...for all we know those guys spent the next week trying to take each others wad...weird post not sure what the op's agenda is???
no easy action
Years ago all or most all of them gambled. Almost everyone that played pool
gambled. If you went broke you could start hitting the bars a pump back up
in no time. The big scores put money in your pocket the small scores kept
it there. Johnson City was mostly for the gamble, and there were pool rooms
everywhere and all had there house champions that would play. These
players didn't know the pros and would play. Jack Cooney went years playing
people that didn't him. That can't happen now. Now if they lose it is next
to impossible to get it back quickly. I would bet that they all would like to
see it back like it was then. They gambled with each other more because
they could recover their , or there stakehorse money. no way now.
jack
Free SJD
Years ago all or most all of them gambled. Almost everyone that played pool
gambled. If you went broke you could start hitting the bars a pump back up
in no time. The big scores put money in your pocket the small scores kept
it there. Johnson City was mostly for the gamble, and there were pool rooms
everywhere and all had there house champions that would play. These
players didn't know the pros and would play. Jack Cooney went years playing
people that didn't him. That can't happen now. Now if they lose it is next
to impossible to get it back quickly. I would bet that they all would like to
see it back like it was then. They gambled with each other more because
they could recover their , or there stakehorse money. no way now.
jack
Free SJD