I used to shoot a lot of pool. Never got great, but I was pretty good. Thought it would be like riding a bike in that you never forget how.
Apparently it isn't. I recently tried to play on a full size table for the first time in years and could not hit anything. I bet the touch would come back pretty quickly if I started playing regularly again, but I shot several games and did not seem to get any better.
I hear ya. In my younger days I was pretty good and could do all sorts of trick shots successfully. It kind of felt good to hear my opponent mutter something like 'motherfuk...' after I won a game by making the ball jump or bouncing it off a few rails before sinking it.
Later, after a hiatus of 10yrs or so, I picked up a cue again to play with some friends and was lucky to get the ball anywhere near the pocket. Luckily we weren't playing for money otherwise I would have been cleaned out.
[This message has been edited by otakudude (edited 09-18-2023).]
Used to play on my Grandfather's pool table when I was a kid, got pretty good. I'd go years without playing. (we'd go to visit just not play pool), and pick it right back up.
Used to play on my Grandfather's pool table when I was a kid, got pretty good. I'd go years without playing. (we'd go to visit just not play pool), and pick it right back up.
I assume that if I started playing again it would come back quickly.
My daughter suggested that maybe I just was not as good as I remember. I laughed at first, but I have actually studied memory, and there is probably some truth in what she said. We remember the shots we made much better than the shots we missed. Our memories are not what really happened. They are our version of what happened.
That being said, I know I used to be a lot better than than what I shot that night.
I was never any good at pool, but I shudder when I think of some of the sleazy pool halls I occasionally visited as a mid to late teen 50 years ago. One in particular in the downtown core was no doubt a haven for all sorts of nefarious activities.
Shane misses the six. What that means is, is that the very best in the world can fail to make the shot. Six months of daily practice can rehabilitate a poker's stroke. See, it's all in the stroke. Smooth. Best escape ever, on a 9 foot table. Dude has a sure shot at the 8, plays a block instead on my last stripe. Two banks onto a kick into the side pocket ! A thing of beauty, a cracking good shot ! He felt so bad, he pocketed the 8 with his hand, to deprive me of the coup de grace. I told him ' I could have missed ', lol. Blues bar in Vancouver, across the street from my Hotel, '97. Ah.. glory days. ' Sure, I can century '
[This message has been edited by Valkrie9 (edited 01-07-2025).]
Use to play in a couple of leagues when I was stationed in SC. Got pretty good but the longer the night the more I won and the more I drank. Sure you can see where that is going. Now my eyes are just not good enough. I'm still ok but no where as good as I use to be.
I have a couple of cues in the closet that could use some attention. Perhaps I should get them out.
The game can really mess with your head, and why one must practice constantly, to be a contender. To self-test your ability to strike the cue-ball straight, place two balls on the end cushion, one diameter apart + 1/8", on the center-line. Place two more on the opposite, balk, end, one diameter apart + 1/4", also on the center-line. From the balk line center, strike the cue-ball smoothly between the cherries, attempting to pass between the balk end cherries. A player will discover that it is, in fact, difficult to achieve on a twelve foot snooker table, a 21' 11" shot.
I assume that if I started playing again it would come back quickly.
My daughter suggested that maybe I just was not as good as I remember. I laughed at first, but I have actually studied memory, and there is probably some truth in what she said. We remember the shots we made much better than the shots we missed. Our memories are not what really happened. They are our version of what happened.
That being said, I know I used to be a lot better than than what I shot that night.
I'm not going to guess whether you were worth a damn, but I bet you weren't as good as you recall. I think the memory thing is correct. My uncle used to tell me all kinds of stories about how fast this car or that thing was. In reality the transmission wouldn't even carry him to the speed mathematically that the dash board said and speedometer read. Not to mention aerodynamics, weight, etc. I don't know how many things I misremember. Relationships, skills, ease, whatever.
On topic. I was a 5 BCS at my best. I've always thought it is weird girls start out at a 3 and men a 4. There is no physical advantage though except maybe general height. I still have my Lacoste cue, but rarely play. I'd guess a 3 BCS these days. It is fun, but great players spend hours a day practicing. I was never good enough to even hustle someone at a pool haul. I had an 8x4 table in my house for years and a bar table at our work. We played HOURS a week. Drunken mostly. No one that wasn't playing as much as a few of us could win, but I was never anything special. At a certain point, it just wasn't worth my time effort and stopped being fun. I could never go to the next level with it. Hope you had fun playing with your daughter. That's the real win.
I've got a Lucasi Custom (serialized) and a very old Joss with a Predator 314 prototype shaft. They feel the same, the balance point is about 1/2" farther forward on the Joss, I seem to gravitate to it when shooting.
What I have found is that a $1000 cue wont make you a better player.
You want to be a better player? Shoot a million balls. But that's no guarantee either.
It's a mental game once you've gained the basic skills. Total focus and total concentration.
I've got a Lucasi Custom (serialized) and a very old Joss with a Predator 314 prototype shaft. They feel the same, the balance point is about 1/2" farther forward on the Joss, I seem to gravitate to it when shooting.
What I have found is that a $1000 cue wont make you a better player.
You want to be a better player? Shoot a million balls. But that's no guarantee either.
It's a mental game once you've gained the basic skills. Total focus and total concentration.
Lucasi. That's how you spell it. Mine is a hybrid. I don't know how long I've had it decade plus. You are right. $1000 cue didn't make me better. Shooting with the same one and on a nicely felted table made all the difference. It translated to a better game overall even on a crappier table.
I once watched a video (I think I saw it on here) with the Black Widow or whatever her name is. She was such a shitty person to play against in the video I watched. No sportsmanship and mocking her opponent (who I think was playing from winning an amateur tournament). We used to go to bars and play and would run into people who would be crummy about losing and made it no fun. I don't drink anymore these days and only one buddy still has a table. No family pool halls in my area either. I don't think it's a game, but when I was a kid we had a local pizza joint and played by the hour.
I was once told by a lady bartender what it meant if the light over the pool table was missing, and found out 1st hand a few nights later. Probably didn't do much good for the felt on the table but I really didn't care. Does that count?
What I have found is that a $1000 cue wont make you a better player..
When I was in college in the '80's I had a roommate who was on the tennis team. The larger headed racquets were just becomeing the big thing and he played with the wooden Prince racquet. he had 3 or 4 so he would let me borrow one to play with. He also had wire baskets of balls. When I showed up at the courts with a basket of balls and a Prince woody people assumed I was a great player. I was so bad that I was embarrassed to play anyone I didn't know.
Invaluable counsel from World Champ Steve Hendry. Applicable to pool on smaller billiard tables.
The Academy of Spherical Arts Prince of Wales' single pedestal marble snooker table. Cliff Thorburn broke century on it, very difficult. India rubber cushions, very hard and fast, requiring a delicate light stroke.
Michael Holt Snooker Coaching His practice routines are helpful. Only for those of you interested in spending time playing as a pleasure seeking pursuit. Mink's 147
Throw the ball, English is one of the most important things you can learn. Position is everything, either to pot your next ball or keep the other person from hitting an object ball.
I'm no where near an expert but I have played with some people that were amazing. I had a friend back 35 years ago that would kick your ass with a mop handle, with the mop still attached. I also drank allot back then and some other things but he was one of the best sharks I have ever seen. Lot of good pool players when there is nothing else to do.
I used to shoot a lot of pool. Never got great, but I was pretty good. Thought it would be like riding a bike in that you never forget how.
Apparently it isn't. I recently tried to play on a full size table for the first time in years and could not hit anything. I bet the touch would come back pretty quickly if I started playing regularly again, but I shot several games and did not seem to get any better.
My pool playing was many many years ago and pretty much exclusively on bar tables. Going to a full size table is pretty sobering if you believe you are a good player on a bar table.. Good times though
