Summer Session

This session, with one week to go, has been a complete turnaround from the previous two. All seven players on the team are shooting around the 0.500 mark as far as winning. Still, we have a chance to make the session playoffs and qualify for the City Tournament next year.

One problem we are experiencing, besides a slight case of burnout, is the lack of players at the Skill Level extremes. Right now we have four S/L 4 players and three S/L 5 players. It looks like we'll have three open slots for next session, so we are looking for a good S/L 6 or 7 and a real good S/L 3.

One of the other teams in our Tuesday division has the players we are looking for, and that team might be splitting after this session. I've talked to the players, maybe we'll have some good news during the playoffs coming up in a few weeks.

Tuesday we took 3 out of 5 matches from one of the teams that qualified for Las Vegas this year, that was the high point of this session. The low point came when we got skunked 5-0 early in the session; the fact that the team which accomplished that feat has been in first place all season eases the pain - somewhat.

I'll try to post again next week after I get the final standings and the word on whether or not we qualified for the session playoffs!

No Post in 3.5 Months!!!!

Boy, have I been shirking my blogging duties! Time to catch up.

Spring session we finished 3rd or so, fortunately we were already qualified for the City Tournament (CT). The top two finishers at CT go on to the APA National Team Championships held August of each year in Las Vegas.

In the CT we ended up losing our first two matches and were out for the year. It was a great experience and each match went the full five players, so we were not skunked. Take aways from the tournament were: get plenty of sleep and try to relax.

I'll create another post for the summer session.

The Brass Rail

This Spring session our APA team switched host locations to the Brass Rail in Kansas City North and we are glad we did so! The Brass Rail has 25 Valley Bar Boxes and 6 9-foot Brunswick Gold Crown tables. The site is currently refelting the Valley tables and have completed about half of them.

When we are the home team we get an open table to practice on and everyone on both teams gets a house round during the evening. The tables are 75 cents per game and the beers are cheap and cold.

The Brass Rail actually opens all of the tables every day of the week from Open until 4 PM and then again from 11 PM until close. Really a sweet deal. If you are ever in the Kansas City North area and want to shoot a few racks Brass Rail is the place to go.

There are tournaments just about every night of the week, with 8-ball the game of choice on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Monday and Thursday are $5 entry, pot-matched 9-ball tournaments; Sunday is $10 entry, pot-matched 9-ball and Saturday is a free $100 pot tournament.

My first Tournament at the Brass Rail

On Tuesday I entered the first non-APA tournament I've ever been in. I was there physically, but not mentally and it showed. There must have been 26 players entered in the $5 entry fee, pot-matched plus $100 double-elimination tournament.

I played two matches and really only ever got in stroke in my 4th, and last, game. In my last game I was actually putting a good run together and managed to get the side pocket position I was going for with a nice draw shot to line up my last object ball - but missed my shot in the corner! Hit it a tad too hard and it rattled out. The other players were terrific and I enjoyed sipping my water and watching the other matches.

A couple of the shooters were from another team from the Tuesday night APA league I play in so I spent some time talking to them. I'll definitely try the tournament again when I get a chance, and recommend it to anyone looking to play against some of the best players in the KC area.

I have been going to Brass Rail during my lunch breaks to hit a few racks and have noticed some improvements in my stroke and my shot selections, two things I definitely need to improve.

Well, that's all for now. Good luck in all your pool shooting!

Preparing for the City Tournament

This week we had our last Spring session match and I am now trying to prepare for the City Tournament May 28th - May 31st. The top two teams from the tournament will represent the APA Northland League in the team championships in Las Vegas.

Two, non-pool related, preparations I know I need are to get plenty of sleep and to build my stamina. I have noticed that the later my match is and the more tired I am the worse I seem to do. I actually stroke the cue ball harder than I normally would. Also, during the double-elimination events such as the Top Gun tournament, I tend to sit for long periods of time and end up cooling off and am not able to play effectively.

So, I need plenty of sleep and I need to exercise to build up my stamina. I also need to play more pool! This week I managed to make it to Brass Rail for lunch-time practice every day. I noticed that towards the end of each practice session I am not as good as when I first start.

I also realized that I need to play against better players and in competitive environments so I have decided to try my hand at the Tuesday 8-ball tournaments at Brass Rail. These events are $5 entry fee and Brass Rail matches the pot plus throws in an extra $100. I'll let you know how I do with that.

Champions Tournament (Top Gun)

On May 9th the Northland (of Kansas City) APA League held their annual Top Gun tournament for the top players in all the divisions over the last three sessions. I was one of the 32 players honored with an invitation, my second such in the two years I've been playing APA, and felt it would be a great opportunity to play against the top players who we will most likely face in the upcoming City Tournament. (I was under no delusions of finishing in the money!)

My first match was pretty sad and I ended up being skunked 5-0 by an S/L 7. The next match, against an S/L 6, was better. After falling behind 3-0 I came back to win the next three games and the match.

Next I matched up against an S/L 5, the same one that gave me my first loss of the session. I played much better and was up 2-1 and needed just one more win to take the match and to keep playing. One game I was playing pretty well and I actually performed a sweet kick shot to pocket my last object ball. Unfortunately I left the cue sitting near the corner pocket and could not see the 8 ball through the 6 or so object balls my opponent had left on the table. Fearing a scratch I picked up the cue and handed it to my opponent. At the time I thought it was a smart move on my part only to realize later that I should have tried to cluster up some of his balls when faced with giving him ball in hand. I'll try to remember that lesson for years to come.

Spring Session Ends

Well, we finished the last three weeks of the Spring session on a down swing and will stand at either 2nd or 3rd when the points are totalled. The 15th and 16th week matches saw two of our better players, Scorpion and Too Tall, out of town on a business trip and we went 2-3 both weeks. When the smoke cleared we ended up in 3rd place - 3 points out of 1st and 2 out of second.

The last week of the session we won 3-2, but could have been 5-0 easily. Both Scorpion and Too Tall played, but with the two weeks off their play suffered. We had a good session, ending up with 67 points for the 17 weeks, now it is time to look forward and get ready for the City Tournament the end of the month.

Team still tied for first after twelve weeks

Well, it's been a while since my last post and I apologize. We've played thirteen weeks, and in the standings through the twelfth week we are tied for first with one team and another just a point off of the pace.

Right now it is Thursday the 16th and I am sitting in the airport in Milwaukee; no free wifi access so I am typing this in Notepad for uploading later tonight. Last time I was here in Milwaukee was in 1971; I was in Navy Boot camp at Great Lakes and we got to spend a Saturday in town.

I have struggled in making a decision on whether or not to go public with team player names and have decided to give first names and assign a nickname to them for use in this and later posts.

Mike "Deadeye" has been a level 5 since his third match, which seems remarkable since those matches were against 3s and he lost the middle one! He is usually very accurate with all shot types: banks, cuts, long and short.

Mark "Scorpion" is a real good level 4 and could easily be a 5 - he is currently 8-of-10 - and the nickname comes from the brand of cue he plays with.

Jason "Too Tall" is the same level and plays like Mark. "Too Tall" because he can reach across the table to mark his pocket. (I on the other hand need to walk around!)

Larry "Lightning" plays like he's an hour late getting home. He sees the table well and starts pocketing balls in a hurry. He is a level 5 and could easily be a 6; he also plays good safeties.

Shawn "Borderline" wins and goes up to a level 4, loses and heads back down to a 3.

Aaron "Heater" always complains that the pool hall is too hot and is a great money player. Currently a level 5.

Jacen "Unpredictable" has his ups and downs, mostly down this session with a 1-for-4 record that could have easily been 4-for-4.

Glenn "No nickname" (maybe we should have a naming contest) is currently 7-for-8 and is underrated as a 4. Oh well, maybe my nickname should be "No Respect."

The team is still struggling and winning, but not to the level we are capable of. Since my last post the team has posted matches of 3-2, 3-2, 2-3, 3-2 and 4-1.

The first 3-2 match I thought we could go 5-0 against them, but a level 2 beat Heater (she smoked him, looking like a 6 in the process) and one of their 7s beat Deadeye for only his second win of the session (both against us!).

The 2-3 match was played against a team that has added some quality players and I am glad we do not have to face them again this session. We might have had another win against them, but it was not to be.

The 3-2 match the following week we should have gone 4-1, but Too Tall was beat by a 3, who won only his second match in ten tries. Too Tall could not put a run of two balls together, often failing to make a straight in shot. Their match went 37 innings with the match ending 2-2. I struggled in my match as well. I won the first three games, lost one and then won the final one in 35 total innings to beat a level 2. Here again I think that I have a problem adjusting my play to match that of my opponent.

Finally, on April 14th we had a tremendous effort in going 4-1. It could have easily been 5-0, but the middle match Deadeye against their struggling 5 - ours ended up struggling and theirs ended up being hot.

On a personal note I have won my last three matches; Tuesday against a six that lost one match all last session, but who has been struggling this one (luckily for me). He won the first game, I took the next two, he took the fourth and I came through to take the fifth for a win.

I have not heard, almost a week later, how the other first place team or the team trailing us by a point did, hopefully not as well as we did.

I will try to have weekly updates from this point on. Best of luck to you in your pool shooting - as long as it is not against me!

Free - Live Steaming of Super Billiards Expo

Got this in the email today:

Our friends at Inside Pool Magazine are streaming live from Diamond Open 10-Ball Championship at the Super Billiards Expo starting today. Stream is available for free on the IPT home page for your convenience. Here is their press release:

Live Steaming of Super Billiards ExpoTAP League and Hybrid Bring Live Streaming with SpheragonTap, LLC (TAP League) and Cue and Case Inc. that they have partnered with Inside POOL Magazine and Spheragon to produce the live streaming video of the Diamond Open 10-Ball Professional Players Championship at the Super Billiards Expo in Valley Forge, PA March 19-22, 2009. The live streaming of the event will be produced by Spheragon, a leading video production company in the sport of billiards and will be streamed online for free.

Live streaming of the Players Championship from the Super Billiards Expo will start at approximately 10:45 am EST on Thursday, March 19, 2009.Spheragon will be conducting encore performances of the previous day throughout the event, so the streaming will be operational 24/7. The live streaming will be continuous for 24 hours per day from start until 10:00 am Monday, March 23, 2009.

The Diamond Open 10-Ball Professional Players Championship is a $25,000 added event with a guaranteed first place prize of $20,000. The 64 player field will be using a race to 10, rotate breaks, double elimination format with an entry fee of $1000. Live streaming will begin with the first round, which starts at 11am on March 19, 2009.

Enjoy!
Glenn

Team Slump

Well, eight weeks through the session and we're still in first, but we may not be alone anymore. Two weeks ago we played Balls-in-hand; a team that, while good, I would have thought we could have taken four of the five matches if not three. Instead we took only two. One of our S/L 5s matched up against a 3 and he threw the match - that is the only way I can call it.

I did not fair much better, but I was matched up against a fairly respectable 5. I promptly lost the first three games, playing some of the worst pool ever. Every shot I took, and there were plenty of opportunities for me in those three games, I slammed the cue ball. The only thing I can think of is that my match started around 11 PM and I was exhausted after a long day at work. I managed to play better and win the next two games to go hill-hill. While I played well the last game, it was not enough to win. Now I have two new goals: Build my stamina and get plenty of sleep on Monday nights.

Monday I flew back to Kansas City around 11 PM from a long weekend on Boston's North Shore visiting family, and the second Tuesday is 4H with my daughter, so I missed last night's match. I got all of the gory details when I got to work since four team mates work for the same company. Another 2-3 night - yuck!

Last night's opponents match up well against us on paper, but for some reason we under-perform when visiting them. Our 5 who had an off-night against a 3 last week continued his less-than-stellar performance again last night, only this time against another 5. He managed to lose four straight games to lose the match. In the third game he managed to sink the 8 out-of-turn with a very hard shot; I'm thinking at this point that a hockey fan would admire the guy's slap shot, but most hockey players and pool players need to have a wide-ranging selection of shot speeds in order to put the "puck in the net" or pocket an object ball. Again in the fourth game he slammed the cue into a cluster that contained two of his balls and four of his opponents. According to one eye-witness there was no possibility of making a ball on the shot and it left the opponent an opportunity to run the table. These were not "Slappy's" last two balls on the table so he would have had other chances to break out his balls.

Well, here's hoping next week we come prepared to win. I am thinking that "Slappy" will be benched for the match.

I managed to get in six or so practice games while in Gloucester over the weekend - most of them playing scotch doubles. The table, probably one of only a half-dozen or so spread across a town of 30,000 that once claimed 3 pool halls, had an oversized eight ball! It looked like the Goodyear blimp sticking up out of the other balls.

Adios, hope your pool playing brings you happiness this week!

Reflection on Play and How to Improve

[I had actually posted this as part of a longer post last month and decided it should stand on its own.]

I have been contemplating my inconsistent match play and am beginning to think that I play to the S/L of my opponent. Then again I can make some difficult shots and then turn around and miss a straight in shot. Maybe that is a let down after reaching up to play near or above my abilities on the previous shot.
Now comes the time to evaluate my play and make improvements by trying to get more practice time in.

Improvements needed:
1. Don't get lazy: take time to look at the shot before getting down.
2. Practice shots that I have difficulty with. Side pocket shots are high on the list, as well as shots where the cue is against an end rail and the object ball is at the other end of the table.
3. Learn the diamond system for bank and kick shots. I usually do quite well by eye-balling the object ball and target pocket, but would like to raise the percentage on these shots to 90-95 percent success rate. (I'm talking one rail, nothing fancy.)
4. Think defensively. I always go up to the table trying to make every shot, and that is not the best strategy - especially if you are playing a high-caliber player who can either run the table or plunk in one or two at a time, while leaving you snookered and ready to give up ball-in-hand.

If anyone has any practical tips for working through the above issues I would like to hear them!

Tools of the Trade - What I Play With

When I started playing APA league last January I was shooting with house cues. That was just fine playing at Side Pockets in North Kansas City (our home location at the time) because there were probably a hundred cues available to select from.

Then, during the second or third week of that session, we played at a small bar in Kansas City that had two tables and maybe twelve cues - half of which looked like they were used to participate in, or break up, bar fights! I found one with a decent tip, the only issue was that the weight in the butt was loose so that every time I shot the weight shifted. At that point in my young league playing career I decided I needed my own stick.

With the $50 my wife graciously said I could spend, which just happened to match the amount I received in the form of a Lands End gift card for Christmas, I visited the local Sears store. With the sale taking place I purchased what I thought was the stick I would play with for years. My satisfaction with the cue ended up lasting around six months, but it was not the cue's fault.

At the beginning of the 2008 Summer session a newer player on the team purchased a $200+ Mali cue through Side Pockets (at the time they offered a 20% discount to APA players) and picked it up before our match at Moxies on North Oak Trafficway. Now Moxies has a nice setup, the three pool tables and assorted games are in a separate room - and the tables are Diamond 7-footers with tight pockets. After the match we practiced some, and Jason let me try his new Mali for a game. From that point onwards I had it in mind to get a better hitting, solid cue.

I ended up purchasing a new McDermott Tucson cue pictured here:
This cue has a solid hit with a sweet sound as the cue hits the ball. About the only complaint I have with it is that the tip is harder than I am used to so I have to concentrate more on getting the draw I desire.

I purchased this cue on eBay, I basically bid to bump up the highest bid by $1 for a maximum of $20. For roughly 40% of the MSRP I purchased a McDermott!

Well, this cue was too nice to carry around and store in the soft case I had my Sears Mizerak cue in, so I went to Side Pockets and purchased an Action 1x1 case for more than I might have paid on-line.

Next, since the tip is harder than I wanted, I got a Shadow Tip-Pik with Chalker. This Tip-Pik has a black body with recessed pins and the chalker is attached with a small chain.

To shape the tip I purchased a Willards dime shaper, which I placed on the Tip-Pik's chain. For the shaft I carry an Action shaft slicker. And lastly I carry my quarters in a plastic Skoal container that I also use for marking the pocket when shooting the 8 ball!

I am interested to learn what other players carry, and also what recommendations folks might have for a new tip!

First Place after Six Weeks of Spring Session

Actually we were in first after five weeks, but there were three teams tied for that honor. We played one of the teams this week, the second time we have faced them this APA Spring session. This team came in first during the recently concluded Fall session, a solid 10 points or more above the second place team.

We met the second week of this session and managed to take 3 of 5 matches and I was hoping, though not expecting (since we where visiting their location and shooting on their tables), to match that score and go one point up in the standings. Well, they had an off night and our team was clicking. We took 5 of the 5 matches to go five points up in the standings! (This was our second 5-0 week this session, after an easy match against a new team last week.)

So, if the third first place team took all five of their matches against whoever they were playing there would be a two-way tie for first. After the match I dropped by the Brass Rail to drop off the score sheet and weekly dues. Low and behold, the other team was playing there against one of the better teams in the league. The other first place team dropped 4 of 5, so we are currently alone in first place. Of course, next week we just happen to play against the team that took four matches against a strong team, so we'll see what happens. It is only six weeks into a seventeen week schedule, but it feels real good to be in first.

I managed to catch the last match at the Brass Rail. The match had two S/L 6s in a race to five wins for the match. Ryan, captain of the other team that was tied for first before the evening began, took a 3-2 lead and broke for the sixth game. The 8-ball went in on the break, unfortunately the cue ball ended up halfway across the venue. Match was now 3-3 with Peter breaking. Peter broke and ran the table, match 4-3 Peter. Ryan won the next game, so it came down to the last possible game, which Peter took to take the point. All in all a great match.

On a personal level, during my match against an S/L 3 who normally wins quite often, I played fairly lousy pool. We had already won four matches, so there was some pressure to win for the sweep. Sue managed a good run to get to the 8-ball, but unfortunately (for her) scratched on her shot. I managed to take the next two games on my own merit to win the match, but it was hardly my best shooting.

I have (jinx) managed to win my first four matches this session against a 5, 6, 2 and 3 in that order. After winning against the 6 I had a suspicion that my S/L might go up, but when I looked at the roster the next match my S/L dropped to a 3! Wow, it was a blow to my ego, but having a 3 on the roster actually makes it easier to match up players and keep the S/L total for the match to 23 or less.

Hope you have a great week shooting pool or enjoying your favorite activity.

A Quick Overview of the APA

The American Poolplayers Association (APA) bills itself as the governing body of amateur pool. I can not say one way or the other, but I can vouch for their slogan "Have Fun, Meet People, Play Pool." Over the past 13 months I have been doing all three. If you enjoy playing pool and want to try a more "competitive" and organized environment I recommend it.

To make playing more competitive for all levels and fun for all the APA has a system for handicapping players based upon their record in the league. The more matches you play the more accurate your Skill Level (S/L) should become.

In APA 8-ball leagues the Skill Levels range from a low of 2 to a high of 7. Players new to APA will start off with an S/L that the majority of players of the same gender play at: men start at an S/L of 4 and women start at 3.

Each team has a roster of five to eight players and five players on the team shoot in a given match. The team standings depend upon how many of the five matches your team wins each week.

So, each week your team plays another team in the league, which normally has six to twelve teams. Each of the five players shooting on a given night plays a match against a player on the other team. The number of games a player needs to win in order to take the individual match depends upon his or her S/L and that of his/her opponent. For example, I had been playing at an S/L of 4 and my opponent was an S/L 6. I needed 3 games to win the match (and a point for the team) and he needed 5 games to win the match.

One final APA rule before I end this post. The APA has a S/L limit of 23 for each team during a match. In other words, the total of the five players who play on a given night for your team can not exceed 23 points. Let's say that a team only had five players show up for a match and their skill levels were 7, 7, 6, 6 and 4. On this night they could send up a maximum of four players with skill levels of 7, 6, 6 and 4 for a total of 23 S/L points. If the other team was able to field five players with an S/L total of 23 or less they would win the fifth match by forfeit.

For more info on the APA go to: http://www.poolplayers.com/

Why am I doing this???

Well, there are some neat and unique pool-related blogs floating around. There's OMGWTF and Fast Mikie for starters. FastMikie has some excellent tips and videos on playing the game and getting in quality practice time, and OMGWTF is just a pool junkie.

I am approaching this blog from the prospective of a long-time pool shooter who has been playing APA league pool for about a year. I started APA play on January 22, 2008 - I remember the date distinctly for two reasons: 1) I had been at Side Pockets consuming brews and shooting pool for about five hours consuming large glasses of Samuel Adams and shooting pool at a work-related "team" meeting when some members of a team that was playing that night asked if I wanted to join their team, and 2) it was three or more hours later when my match started. By then I was ready to call it a night and it showed in my shooting.

For the last three sessions - including this one that started several weeks ago - I have been the team's captain. While this is an honor (that apparently no one else on the team wants) it is frustrating and nerve racking. Frustrating in getting players to show and trying to match them to opposing players in hopes of attaining the most wins for the evening. Nerve racking in watching the matches take place and seeing shots missed that during practice the player would normally make without thinking about it.

This blog will follow my efforts to play better, smarter pool and to lead the team on to victory. Also I will cover some of the rules and tribulations of playing in an APA league.

The team I joined and now coach has Slop Shots as its name, which may have been appropriate when it was founded many years ago, but now seems a bit demeaning considering the infrequency of sloppy shots we make.

Anywho, the first session I was on the team I ended up winning half of the matches the team won and got to play in the Top Gun tournament as a level 3. Actually, half way through my match against a level 5 player the League Operator got on the PA system and announced that I was moved to a level 4. Not that it mattered - I won one game and lost the match. One consolation was that the guy that beat me ended up coming in first place.

The team placed last in the league of 11 teams that first session, around 18 points behind the 10th place team. The Summer 2008 session we missed first place by one point, came in second place in the Summer playoffs and qualified for the Local Team Championship so we were all psyched!

More later ...