Let the games begin

I'm having a great time playing on my new Wednesday team. The division is much more competitive and its fulfilling my need for some more hard core pool that I whined about in my blog last fall. And, it has offered the opportunity for a rematch from my David & Goliath win in the Top Shooter Tournament (See Karma is a Bitch and Saturday she was my patron saint). Good times!

The match yesterday confirmed the need for a new word to be added to the English language: lagorrhea. From the greek-rooted word LOGOrrhea, which means an excessive flow of words. LAGorrhea means an excessive flow of words while lagging. Had this been and isolated incident at the tournament last month, a new word would be indulgent and uncalled for. Fortunately, this behavior repeated itself, and hence I feel the justification of an entirely new word. You may recall that last time, just as we were lagging, my opponent decided to ask me if I was feeling tired. Yesterday, as we were lagging, he was really rambling on, and then just as I was taking my warm up strokes asked me if I had been nervous at the Top Shooter tournament. To which I replied "Nah, I was just having fun." So, either he is reading this blog, and is just taking the piss (which I would actually admire) or this is some standard strategy he uses.

I lost the lag, but not by much. I proceeded to chase him on every game shooting on the 8 or close each time. Played some good safes and generally was shooting well-enough to make him sweat. I slopped the 8 in once to get on the hill. In the case game, he dogs his next to last shot, and leaves me an easy 8, which I then dog! Ha! I lost in the end, but it was a fun match. He knows that my beating him in the tournament wasn't entirely an accident.

There were more shenanigans in addition to the lagorrhea that I won't go into, but they are so absurd, I just think they're funny. I believe they are attempts at sharking, but they're really more like....clowning. Clowning (n): a feeble, laughable attempt at sharking that some may find irritating, but in general will provide entertainment for opponents and spectators. Keep it up big boy, you're very good at what you do.

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All snarkiness aside:
There was one more incident of note last night. I was shooting at one of my balls that was frozen to the eight. I was trying to shoot straight into my ball with extreme right to throw the ball and get a good hit. I miscued badly and my cue deflected quite a bit to the side. Someone from the other team who was apparently asked to watch the hit, called a foul, saying I had hit a stripe first--which was completely bizarre, because there wasn't a stripe even near the the balls I was aiming at. At first I couldn't even make a case for not hitting a stripe, because the stripe had moved, but I couldn't imagine a scenario for where I could have even hit the ball. The cue ball would have had to masse backwards and then caromed off several balls and a cushion to end up in its final position. (Maybe he had been watching this guy.)

I finally realized I must have knocked it with my stick. Then he asked, "Well, did your ball hit a rail" which I believe it did. As the shot watcher, he must have been so concerned with the stripe he hadn't followed my ball. Anyway, to my opponent's credit, he deferred to the shooter (me), as I had done in the tournament, thus ending the twilight zone moment. His sportsmanship in this matter was appreciated.

The Sound of Second Loss Slapping

My first, and only match on the one loss side. The case game started off with me breaking and coming heartbreakingly close to an 8 on the break and finishing with me playing safe with both of us with two balls left. My opponent didn't have a makable shot, so she just whacked at it....and slopped something in and ran out. Ugh.

This was especially painful because I should have won the first game as well, but scratched on the 8. I knew that the cue ball was headed to the side pocket, but didn't hit it hard enough to actually get there. All the spectators were kind of amazed that the cue ball just kept rolling. But I should have known better because, that had been happening the whole game. Yesterday's table was like shooting on astroturf and today's was like an ice rink. I should have made more adjustments to my game, start hitting a little below center.

I was nervous, but my stroke was pretty smooth and consistent. My only aargh! moments were when the cue ball didn't stop when it should have. So, I feel okay about today.

Its a little maddening to watch the final round of a tournament and think, a ball here a ball there, a little less follow, a little more speed and I could have won this thing. I should have won this thing. My opponent from the first day went all the way, and I so had her, but I dawged it. Twice. She managed to have the luck and the cool to win under pressure. This weekend, I didn't. But with my first "big" tournament under my belt, I still believe that I suck a little less at pool each and every day.

The Sound of One Loss Clapping

I'm at the APA Singles Regionals right now. After a 4 plus hour drive and a BIG hassle with our hotel rooms (our hotel was overbooked, and our prepaid, confirmed reservations turned out to be worthless, so the morning of our departure we made desperate calls to find the last rooms at various hotels competing with regional soccer, wrestling, and paintball tournaments), we arrived at our lovely Regionals Venue, centrally located about 20 miles south of the middle of nowhere.

With an 8:00 am start, I warmed up well, and then proceeded to wait until about 12:00. My first two matches were no shows, and so I didn't play until about mid-day. I was really nervous, but shot fairly well, winning my first game, and had more chances than I care to admit to win both the next two games, but it was not meant to be. Fortunately, its modified single elimination, so I can work my way through the one-loss side. Despite my loss, I am shooting well, and having a great time, so I can't complain.

Some brief lessons from today:
1) Breathe
2) Ask one of my friends to sit in my corner. I wasn't sure if it would make me self-conscious, but I think its reassuring.
3) Remember that the cue ball is going to travel on thin cuts.
4) Don't pull my stroke.
5) Don't be to clever with my safeties. That is, always consider leaving them long, or just not leaving a good shot. Its not worth making an unnatural shot to try to get ball and hand--cuz if you screw up, you might sell out.
6) Never pull the trigger too soon on the 8.

But I made some excellent shots today and played well....I'm learning and really enjoying this. I want more. Win or lose tomorrow, I can't wait for the next one.