Sometimes you’re booked so far in advance for a tournament that you follow through and play even if you don’t feel good. In those cases, you try to make the best out of what you have. If it’s a mental or emotional problem that’s bothering you, like a fight with your significant other, you turn the cell phone off and do the best you can to put the whole issue out of your mind. If it’s a physical problem, like a headache or the flu, you take a couple of aspirins and play anyhow. After all, you already spent the money and drove the miles.
But what about when you don’t have a lot of time and energy invested and a big entry fee to forfeit? If you’re a competitive player and it’s important to you to perform well, why bother to play in a weekly tournament or league night at the local poolroom when you don’t feel good?
It’s all right for a recreational player to play after a fight with a significant other, even if the player was reminded, in strong language, of every failing ever exhibited. In fact, a good rowdy pool game might shift the whole thing around; after slamming the balls around the table a while and knocking down a couple of drinks, maybe the spouse’s point of view doesn’t look so bad after all.
But if you’re a player, there’s a bigger picture to consider. There are ramifications to playing when you’re not up to snuff. If you come into a match with a lot of emotional residue, it will be difficult to stay focused and easy to get distracted. If your hotshot opponent tries to shark you by talking with his beautiful girlfriend while you’re shooting, he’ll probably succeed. He’ll help you rack up a sub-par performance, and that, in turn, can damage your long-term confidence. Mental images of misses that are loaded with emotion tend to stick around.
Especially stay out of the ring when you don’t feel good about yourself. You have to like yourself to play well, and you have to be on your own side to have even a chance of winning. If you gamble and hang around the tournament room when you are upset, you will attract predators like a lame antelope. They will smell the blood and surround you like a pack of hungry hyenas. Woe to you if you accept any offers at that time. It’s better to leave the poolroom immediately.
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Here’s a different slice of the concept: Who feels good about losing? Some people think it’s okay to put themselves into tournaments with stronger players without getting a handicap. They figure it’s all right as long as it doesn’t cost much to enter. It’s as if they were blindly following Mosconi’s advice when he was asked the best thing to do to improve. “Play better players,” he said. “My game never really took off until I was on the road every night playing exhibition matches with Greenleaf.”
If you constantly put yourself into positions where you can’t win, however, you will learn to get comfortable with it. Losing is supposed to have a bit of a sharp edge, but if you get too familiar with it, it can cut a groove. When guys are going in the players’ auction for three or four hundred and no one will even throw a ten-spot on you, maybe you don’t belong there yet.
If you have to win to feel good about yourself, think more like a boxer. Pick your fights carefully. Make sure to book at least 60%-70% winners. Don’t enter a “B” tournament until they throw you out of “C” tournaments. Don’t enter an open event until they throw you out of “B” tournaments.
But if you’re the kind of person who thrives on a challenge and that’s more important to you than racking up the wins, then go for the gusto. Learn to take your wins in small increments—a game here, a match there. Get out there and let people know you’re coming. “It doesn’t matter what you do to me now, because I’m going to learn from it. I’ll be back, and eventually I’m going to win.”
In other words, find out what makes you feel good. Find out what makes you feel good about your game, and redesign your whole approach to the sport around that concept. Choose shots that make you feel good. Dress the way that makes you feel good. Cut your hair the way that makes you feel good. Find a cue that makes you feel good. Choose matches that make you feel good, and restructure your goals to support you in that purpose. Interact with other players in a manner that makes you feel good about yourself.
When your hotshot opponent tries to distract you by talking to his girlfriend with the crop top and belly button ring, don’t get upset. Have some fun. The next time he gets down on a shot, wander over and talk to her yourself. Say things like “Wow—what a cool belly button ring!” That should be fun.
Good luck & good shootin’!
Most serious players know that it takes work to practice successfully. They approach each practice session with commitment and intention and view the opportunity as one where they can devote an intensified focus to specific areas of their game.
This is a productive form of practice and far more valuable than randomly hitting balls, but there are ramifications to consider. When you have your attention on technique, you are focusing on how you do a specific action. It greatly accelerates learning to see the fine distinctions between what works and what doesn’t. It helps you gain conscious understanding of your skills and is probably the best way to hone your technique into a consistent and dependable whole.
As valuable as it is, however, this type of practice is artificial. It is vastly different from playing pool, and if you tried to play this way during competition, you would get killed. When playing, you need to be focused on doing specific actions, not on watching how you do them. In practice, you can jump back and forth between being the performer and the observer, but in playing, it is essential to stay in the role of the doer. When competing, you want to stay on the court and out of the stands.
Sports psychologists tell us that when a player is under pressure, he is likely to revert to the mode of operation with which he is most familiar. If most of your practice time is spent focused on technique, then that is likely to be where your attention will go when the pressure is suddenly increased. Because of this tendency, it is wise to adopt the 60-40 rule and devote at least 60% of your practice time to practicing playing pool.
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Most players who become aware of this decide to spend more time running balls. This helps train you to shoot with confidence once you get in stroke during competition, but it really doesn’t prepare you for the times when you are under pressure. Pool competition has a normal flow to it that includes waiting for the balls to get racked, breaking, and sitting in the chair when your opponent is at the table. In actual competition, even when you’re playing well, you are continually stopping and starting. In addition, you are often presented (particularly in the beginning of a rack) with table situations that will not allow you to simply run out. Between run-out players, these are the times in a match which most determine who will win and who will lose. If you only practice running balls, you may never get the opportunity to show what you have mastered.
You can look at breaking from the same perspective. Most players practice their break by racking and breaking rack after rack, but that’s not the way it happens in a real match. Even when you are stringing racks together, you only get to break every tenth shot in 9-ball, and usually it’s considerably less frequent than that. In a race to 11, which can take anywhere from one to two hours, you will only get to break about 10 times, and each break will be separated by substantial periods of shooting balls and playing safe. It makes sense to practice the same way.
The best way to practice playing pool is to do just that. Rack the balls, break them, and play it out. If you miss or decide to play safe, take a few seconds in a designated player’s chair before you come back to the table in the role of the second shooter. If you want to replay shots you missed or moves that didn’t work out like you planned, it’s okay to do so, but take a seat for a moment before you move on to the next shot. In competition, you’re coming out of the chair for every new inning, so if you duplicate this in practice it will become the familiar. If you are a strong run-out player, you may decide not to finish racks when there are only a few open balls left. Practice time for you might be better invested in working through the first few moves of each rack, as your proficiency there is more likely to determine your future win/loss ratio. Once you know you’re going to run the last few balls, let your imaginary opponent concede the rack. Then rack ‘em up again.
Good luck & good shootin’!
In pool, the issue of control begins with being able to control the destination of the object ball. Once that skill is established, the concept of control shifts to one of controlling the cue ball and after that it moves to controlling the table and even the arena itself. The common denominator of all of these is self-control.
It is only when you are in full control of yourself that you are able to reach a level of mastery in these other areas. Since you are the center of your universe, you bring your entire physical, mental, and emotional package with you when you step into a match. Any issues that affect your ability to control your mind, emotions, and attitude come into the match with you. That’s one of the reasons so many people are attracted to competitive pool and why there are so many mentally strong people at the highest levels. Going into a match with an equal or stronger player forces you to experience the deeper levels of yourself. If you have a strong intention to play well and win, serious competition will reveal the areas of yourself where you lack control.
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Self-control is essentially control of the mind and that, in turn, leads to control of action. It shows up in daily life in terms of doing what you say you will do and in focusing your thoughts and attention on the outcomes to which you are committed. If you say you are for peace, for example, but continually indulge in violent thoughts, you have a gap in your self-control. If you say you are going to stop smoking, but buy six cartons of cigarettes in Kentucky to save on the taxes, you are similarly conflicted. To have self-control means to exercise it. It means to have goals, values, and principles and to be continually steering yourself in a direction consistent with them. It is the opposite of impulse but in no way conflicts with spontaneity. In fact, self-control is the only real basis for true spontaneity.
True self-control is not a function of force or coercion. It is not an issue of self-discipline and persistence. It does not mean gritting your teeth and grinding it out. It requires digging deep, but there is a naturalness about it that is undeniable. At its fullest, self-control is an expression of authenticity and shows up as effortlessness, ease, and high energy. When you are in control of yourself, nothing bothers you. Nothing interrupts the flow of your attention and nothing hinders the easy unfolding of the action on which you are focused. When you are in control of yourself, you are in full possession of yourself, and when you are experiencing self-control you are being yourself at a profound level. From this perspective, self-control is not a function of applying control over the self, but rather one of giving up control to the self.
This is different from the normal view of self-control and seems to fly in the face of the usual associations. Most people think of self-control in terms of shutting things down, not opening them up. So let’s turn the conversation back to competitive pool and see what we can discover. What part of pool does the previous paragraph describe? Doesn’t it remind you of something that all pool enthusiasts have experienced at one time or another? Don’t you remember? That’s right ... it’s being in dead stroke.
Wow. Isn’t that a surprise! How can being in dead stroke be an example of pure self-control? When you’re in that state it seems like you’re not even present, certainly not in a controlling fashion. This can only mean that you are most in control when you have no conscious sense of being the one in control. You are totally focused on the matter at hand, and nothing interrupts or distracts you. You aren’t anticipating the future or fearing the past. You are in the moment and allowing yourself to play pool with grace and power. That’s true self-control.
Good luck & good shootin’!
Over the last ten issues, this column has been devoted to an in-depth look into the shot process. Since we essentially finished in the last issue, let’s use this month for an overview.
In the beginning, I defined the shot process as the steps you go through after committing to a specific shot. I asserted that there were four major sections: the standing address, the transition, the set-up, and the delivery. The standing address began the moment you committed to a shot and included how you aligned your body and visualized the shot. The transition began when you completed the standing address and ended when your bridge hand touched the cloth. The set-up included everything you did to prepare yourself down on the shot, and the delivery included the final backstroke and ended with watching the object ball and the cueball go to their targets.
By the time we got to the last couple of columns, however, my understanding evolved, and I realized there was so much going on in the delivery that it was best to look at it as two separate sections. The execution, then, includes the final back and forward stroke, and the stay down lasts from there until you start to rise up. Let’s look at each phase of the shot process in terms of the three most important points and how to tell when to move on.
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The most important thing in the standing address is to create a vivid mental image of what you want your body to do. You must “see” the shot without confusion or doubt. The second is to stand in proper alignment so your eyes are positioned over the imaged path of the cueball to the object ball—just where you want them to be when you get down. The third most important thing is to allow your mind to move into the present. You must be free of “thinking” before you move into the next section, and the key is to leave the mental preparation behind. If you still have thoughts, doubts, or concerns, let them subside before moving forward.
The transition takes you down and into the shot, and the most important thing is to stay focused. It’s easy to get distracted here, and you can avoid this by keeping your attention on your senses. Keep your eyes focused on the ferrule, or the cueball, or whatever is natural for you. The next most important thing is to stay on the shot line and come directly down. The third is to allow your body to adjust so that your upper torso is in the proper alignment to shoot before you touch down. You are through the transition when your bridge hand is on the cloth and your weight shifts slightly to the back.
The third phase of the shot process is the set-up. It is where you settle into your stance; address the cueball; refine your aim; confirm your stroke; and set the balance, feel, and timing of your anticipated execution stroke.
That’s a lot of activity, but if you did the first two sections properly, it all flows naturally. The most important thing is to let your body execute. If the thinking mind creeps back into the picture, you’re in trouble, so stay in the present by staying with your senses. The second most important thing is to trust your nervous system to do what you trained it to do. The third is to set the timing of your stroke by anticipating the contact of the cue tip to the cueball. When your nervous system tells you it’s ready, move on.
The execution starts with the final backstroke and ends with the completion of the delivery stroke. The most important thing is to let it happen naturally. You can work on it in training, but if you try to control it during competition, you will seriously handicap yourself. The second most important thing is to stay focused on what you are doing. Watch it happen as it unfolds. The third thing is to keep your stroke level, and that includes the final backstroke too. You’ll know it’s over when the ferrule comes to a natural stop, neither over-extended nor shortened by conscious control.
The stay down is the frosting on the cake. It is where you learn to play better. The most important thing is an attitude—to be willing to accept the outcome, as it happens, no matter what. The second most important thing is to watch the ball go in the hole—from a “down” perspective. The last of the three is to give your self a proper feedback of the outcome. A little inner joy to acknowledge a successful shot is probably not out of line. Some sports psychologists even recommend an emphatic, internal “Yes!” If the shot goes awry, however, a detached and unemotional observation will keep your mental composure at a high and effective level. Good luck & good shootin’!
In the last column, which I called “Shark Attack 101,” we looked at the insidiousness of intentional sharking. We saw that sharking is a matter of degree and that anyone can be sharked under the right conditions. I left you to ponder several questions in the search for viable strategies to handle such occasions: What can you do when you are being sharked? How can you deal with the situation effectively? What strategies have you used in the past to stop shark attacks? I asked you to email me with ideas, but I forgot about the lag time between columns, so I’m writing this second part before you even got to see the first part. While I’m waiting for your ideas, let’s look at a few suggestions I’ve received from others. Welcome to “Shark Attack 202!”
I asked the following questions: What do you do when your opponent intentionally sharks you by moving his cue suddenly just as you go down onto the shot? How do you handle it? I presented these questions to people at different competitive levels and explained that I wasn’t looking for the usual knee-jerk answers such as “be mentally tough,” “just focus on the ball,” or “just ignore it.” I wanted them to remember when they had been distracted by an offending player and how they put a stop to it. I ran this scenario past experienced tournament and stake players, nationally ranked players and champions. Here are some of their responses:
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Jim Cherry, a friend of mine and a tough match player, says he uses a humorous approach. He doesn’t confront his opponent directly but turns the tables on them with remarks such as “What’s the matter? Did you forget to take your medication today?” His tactic is to acknowledge the shark move and let his opponent know it wasn’t going to work on him. Cornbread Red once told me a similar response. After the opponent made his move, Red would say to him, “That ain’t gonna help you none.”
Another friend and experienced competitor, Cass Marchinowski, is more likely to take a confrontational approach. Like several others I talked with, he’ll ask the offending player nicely, one time, to settle down and play fair. “Then I let him know, in no uncertain terms, that this is not going to continue.” I never did ask Cass what would happen if it continued, but I imagine one of his options was to involve the tournament director. That can work sometimes, at least in professional events. Tournament director Scott Smith told me, “All you have to do is come and get me. If your opponent is intentionally trying to distract you, I will tell him to stop. If he continues, I can even call a forfeit on his match.” He went on to caution me, though, that all perceived sharking isn’t real. “One time,” he said, “I got all upset because I thought my opponent was trying to shark me, but it turned out he just had a nervous condition. He wasn’t moving on me intentionally.”
Grady Mathews, in his instructional video “Killer One-Pocket,” said that when your opponent is moving on you or “pouncing out of his chair” when it’s your inning, you must make him stop. Otherwise, he will destroy your tempo and concentration. In a recent conversation with him, I realized I was focused on the wrong thing in these situations. I was focusing on what I wanted to stop, not on what I wanted to have. Grady shared two words with me that made a difference. One was “still,” and the other was “behave.” He told me he walks over to the guy and asks politely, “Will you please be still while I’m shooting?” If it’s a gambling match and the player refuses to compete fairly, he’d find the room owner and ask if he can get the player to behave. “Most of the time, the owner of a place will make a player either play fair or quit.”
Anyhow, all of this reminds me of the basic premise I mentioned last month: You are not mentally weak if you can be sharked. You are not a wimp if you can be distracted by an opponent who will stoop to sharking to get his way. In the next column, I’ll wrap this subject up with some of your e-mails and also a few things I learned from Jose Parica and Danny Diliberto. Danny’s life story, by the way, is featured in the new book Road Player, which could practically be a text book on this subject matter. If fact, consider it required reading for Shark Attack 202!
Good luck & good shootin’!
