Billiard Coach – Mike Fieldhammer

Pool Stories

Posted on 12. Dec, 2009 by Fieldhammer in Game Strategy, Mental / Theory

Billiard Tales: The most memorable pool story that made you a ‘better’ player

Mike Fieldhammer – December 2009

This article is the first of a series of posts written in coordination with other pool bloggers. This first month’s theme is BILLIARD TALES. To see others, go to: http://www.pooltipjar.com/2009/12/poolsynergy-volume-ii/

Pool stories.  I love to hear them.  I find the more players I talk to, the more little gems of information fall into my lap. This month, I’d like to highlight small tidbits from four of the best players in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota. I struggled to select one great and memorable story that made a major impact on me that elevated my game, so I decided to pass on four small tips gleaned from great players.

Jimmy Wetch. Jimmy and I were at a major tournament watching a race to eleven between two players. One a legitimate pro and one with loads of talent and the ability to beat anyone, but not as seasoned in the pro circuit.  The rookie played hard and happened to get down 7-2. From the bleachers, Jimmy and I could see the player losing steam and not playing with the same determination as the first part of the match.  Jimmy said to me, “That’s the worst thing he can do. Now he’s gonna get punished by that guy for a long time.”  I asked Jimmy to explain further.  The upshot is that by giving up he was letting his opponent gain confidence and knowledge for the next time they drew each other.  He would have an edge on that player by knowing that he only had to get halfway to the finish line and his foe would ease up and he could coast in for the win.

The trailing player should have fought harder with every turn at the table and made the match a hard fought victory for the other guy no matter what the score was.  Showing no give up, sometimes even in an un-winnable situation, the player will have a twinge of respect for showing determination and fighting to the end.  That type of reputation might be more useful for the next match up than the alternative.

Lee Heuwagon. Years ago, Lee saw the frustration in my eyes after getting bounced out of a tournament earlier than I had hoped. We started to discuss my disappointing performance and he suspected that I was putting too much pressure on myself.  It is true that I felt I should have done very well in that particular tournament.  I went in with high hopes. My preparation for the tournament was as good as it could have been. I had been practicing and the field was one that I really felt I had a chance to win. Maybe all these factors took me out of my best game because the high bar I’d set was exerting undue pressure. His advice was that when it is time to win, it will happen.  He suggested that I focus on playing the great pool I was capable of and that winning would come easier if I relaxed and let it happen.

The magical blend of high level play, confidence, and determination is still a complicated equation. Learning from every experience but not beating yourself up about it is a more productive and pleasant way to deal with an early exit from a tournament.

Demetrius Jelatis. Demi is a real student of the game. Every serious player would benefit from watching Accu-Stats matches.  Demi has found inspiration in some matches so compelling, he’s able to commentate matches from memory from seeing them so many times.  His unusual advice about the DVDs is that you should watch some sub-par matches too.  Pat Flemming’s company denotes recommended matches in their catalog with an asterisk to help customers select great discs, and they are great. Many of them are semi-finals or finals matches with an incredible level of play.  The players who win tournaments are usually on a roll, playing tremendous pool and shooing in the high 900’s according to the Accu-Stats rating system.  Demi says that players can be fooled and discouraged to see such high level pool.  I think we have all seen a shot or a miraculous run-out that has made us groan and during the appreciation, thought, “I can’t believe how good that was. I don’t think I could do that in a million years.”

This kind of blue sky thinking isn’t reality.  Every top professional is human and they have bad matches, bad tournaments, and bad months.  Demi suggested watching some early matches that didn’t have the Accustats asterisk.  These matches sometimes show top professionals struggling to run out. They may show great exchanges where safeties and silly mistakes are made. These can be the types of games that happen to you and maybe you can see some familiar shots and learn from them.  It also might just make the pros less intimidating and give you the confidence to know that you too can play with the pros.

Beau Runningen. Beau means business. At only 25 years old, he has demonstrated the patience and wisdom of a player one might expect to see in a player twice his age.  Local players talk about the guy who did nothing but break for 2 hours straight, or the guy who didn’t pocket a ball during an hour long practice session because he was working on safeties.  Beau takes every part of a tournament seriously beginning with planning for a tournament months in advance. He’s got notebooks full of diagrams, drills, match notes, and the like.

All this planning and preparation seems to be regurgitated on the pool table. Beau makes run out after run out look routine. In fact he makes them look boring, which is really a compliment. No nail-biting shots, no wild chances with the outcome unknown, just the facts. Taking inspiration from Beau’s attention to detail and serious approach to every aspect of the game can do wonders for your game. In fact, my New Year’s resolution is to make a plan, work that plan, and repeat.  Repetition of good habits breed good habits.

This article is the first of a series of posts written in coordination with other pool bloggers. This first month’s theme is BILLIARD TALES. To see others, go to: http://www.pooltipjar.com/2009/12/poolsynergy-volume-ii/