Woofing and Barking=Sharking and Cheating

Johnnyt

Burn all jump cues
Silver Member
I think a lot of people get entertainment and sharking mixed up. Talking, running around the table, and talking to the crowd while your opponent is shooting is sharking…not entertainment. It might be entertainment for the crowd, but it's sharking/cheating to the other player.

Pool players don't make $1,000,000 + a year. Few make a tenth of that, and there betting there own money or a stake horses. What other sport or game allows that kind of thing w/o a penalty where the player puts up his own money?

As far as barking and woofing goes, most of what their barking makes no sense at all and the little that does only to gambling pool players. Most new to the game say, "wtf is he talking about?" I say make your game away from the crowd, then come to the table and announce what the game is and what it's for if you want rail bets.

It's funny how Shane can make a game w/o all the BS and he seems to be quite entertaining to most. Johnnyt
 
I agree. I think most of the loud woofers are doing two things:

1. Trying to shark opppnents

2. On an ego trip, trying to get others to notice them because without those antics people pay no attention to them. Basically people with low self esteem.
 
From what Ive noticed, you can get a guy going a little with some barking and they might agree to something a little less than they normall would have based on that.

-dan (always gets in bad games)
 
THIS is why I don't gamble much on pool. I don't mind gambling on pool. I hate the woofing and crap that leads up to the game. So I don't play that part of it. That simple.

That being said, I don't find the woofing and barking before a match up to be entertaining. I find it to be silly and petty most of the time.

The only entertaining parts are when the players are actually playing.
 
My opponent can talk all he wants. It gets a little difficult to talk after swallowing about 5 or 6 nine balls ;)
 
THIS is why I don't gamble much on pool. I don't mind gambling on pool. I hate the woofing and crap that leads up to the game. So I don't play that part of it. That simple.

That being said, I don't find the woofing and barking before a match up to be entertaining. I find it to be silly and petty most of the time.

The only entertaining parts are when the players are actually playing.

I agree. It's underhanded, infantile, jr-high adolescent crap.
 
I witnessed one of the most entertaining negotiations of all time at Golden Fleece in Kenmore, WA last year. It wasn't sharking at all, just honest negotiation that turned into a revealing episode for one of the participants.

Player A wanted to match up with Player B after losing something like 2k the last time they gambled. Player B used Player C as a negotiating tool, saying that Player A was better than Player C, and Player B was about as good as Player C, so Player A should give Player B the same spot he gave to Player C.

Some confusion followed (I don't remember the specifics) and it turned out that Player B had lied about the spot he got from Player C when he last played Player A (and won 2k). Some mad cue waving ensued, with lots of Player A yelling at Player B, and about 45 minutes later Player B finally settled on a spot. Player A proceeded to come out ahead by several hundred. I had to go home so I missed the end, but I got a summary the next day.
I gained a little more respect for honest gamblers willing to step into the ring with flakey nitty lock artists who don't remember the spot they offered 5 minutes earlier in the negotiations.

So basically... it can be entertainment and not sharking/cheating, but I'm sure it can go either way depending on who the participants are.
 
I really think the negotiating is an essential part of the game itself.

To be totally honest, I try not to get myself into a game where I think I am at a disadvantage from the start. Ive booked a lot of winners since I stopped working (got a buy out and then went back to school) and Im happy with that. Ive had to adjust with certain people and I am still doing well.

Kudos to anyone who can match up and play the game.
 
Too me listening to most players bark and woof is like watching I Love Lucy or some other 1950-1970 comedy. They were funny at the time but most are silly to us now. Johnnyt
 
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