Young player gets a lesson in sharking.

[TVmike]

This is a match I recorded which we can all learn from. Michael Watkins has only been playing pool for a couple years. He makes it deep into the tournament to play veteran player Bobby Hibbitts. Bobby leaves enough room for Michael to win but pulls some moves like talking, walking around and so forth when the match is going on. Michael plays smart but when it's time to win he's so mentally weak at this point that he fails to execute and he loses composure several times getting angry at Bobby. You also see in the match a dead on frozen cue ball to an object ball and Bobby pushes through it which is one of the most debated shots in our game. You have to play your game and getting yourself riled to the point of threats with a cuestick despite the situation can only hurt you. You can take a break nothing forces you to shoot when someone is bothering you.

The video is too long for facebook. Use firefox or Chrome, I put it in my freebies section.

http://www.tvmike.net/michael-watkins-vs-bobby-hibbitts-t4246.html

 

[00john]

This is a match I recorded which we can all learn from. Michael Watkins has only been playing pool for a couple years. He makes it deep into the tournament to play veteran player Bobby Hibbitts. Bobby leaves enough room for Michael to win but pulls some moves like talking, walking around and so forth when the match is going on. Michael plays smart but when it's time to win he's so mentally weak at this point that he fails to execute and he loses composure several times getting angry at Bobby. You also see in the match a dead on frozen cue ball to an object ball and Bobby pushes through it which is one of the most debated shots in our game. You have to play your game and getting yourself riled to the point of threats with a cuestick despite the situation can only hurt you. You can take a break nothing forces you to shoot when someone is bothering you.

The video is too long for facebook. Use firefox or Chrome, I put it in my freebies section.

http://www.tvmike.net/michael-watkins-vs-bobby-hibbitts-t4246.html

If you are playing bca rules If the cue ball is frozen to a legal object ball, it is legal to shoot toward the object ball provided you use an otherwise legal stroke and no other foul is committed.

 

[Atlatlien]

that is one sloooooow playing table!

He could have been a dick right back and called a foul when he stopped the cue ball with his stick after sinking the 8.

 

[qbilder]

The young guy lost because he was afraid to win. He had ample opportunity to close out the match but instead kept ducking safe. His nerves got him doubting himself. Had nothing to do with being sharked. He was yapping at the old guy just as much as the old guy was yapping at him. The foul in question wasn't a foul, either. If frozen, that shot was legal.

What I did see was commentators heavily leaning for the young guy, and disliking the old guy. IMO, that is not the commentator's job. Neutrally report what's happening in the match, rather than rooting for one player and nitpicking the other. Just an observation.

 

[pocket]

...What I did see was commentators heavily leaning for the young guy, and disliking the old guy. IMO, that is not the commentator's job....

I agree but I'm going to guess that they likely know both players, in other words it's not just whats happening on screen there is some history there.

 

[CMarshall]

How is this sharking? Not being confrontational....just a question. I'd say he kinda got schooled, not sharked.

 

[cuetechasaurus]

At 6:40 Bobby clearly doesn't hit a rail when he attempts to play safe, and Mike walks to the table immediately after and doesn't say anything, and it looks like nobody else noticed it either. Not calling a foul on yourself on something so obvious as that speaks volumes about this guy's character.

Mike went too far by threatening Bobby later in the match, so in terms of the mental side of pool that's something that needs to be addressed. Definitely a learning experience for Mike here. Never lose your temper like that.

 

[qbilder]

I agree but I'm going to guess that they likely know both players, in other words it's not just whats happening on screen there is some history there.

Obviously the guy isn't going to win the most popular award. But for somebody watching that doesn't know anyone involved, it really looks lop sided, like they are picking on the older guy. He won with experience and keeping calm, not by cheating or sharking.

As for him not calling a foul on himself, if nobody else saw a foul then isn't it fair to say he didn't, either? Sorry guys but before I watched the match, I was under the impression that the older guy blatantly and obnoxiously sharked an opponent for the win. But after watching, that's not what I saw at all.

What I did see was a kid whom everybody wanted to win and beat the old guy because nobody likes the dude. That was a lot of pressure on him, as if playing a tough opponent late in a tourney wasn't already enough. The kid obviously lacks experience and in-depth knowledge of the game. He took his raw skill as far as he could, and it folded when he faced the more seasoned player. Nothing to be down about or pissed off about, IMO. It was a priceless lesson.

 

[alstl]

Given a choice of being 100 pounds overweight or a young healthy kid, I'll take the latter whether I can play pool or not.

Therefore the kid wins.