Stepping up to the Challenge

Monday (June 27th, 2011) my wife and I arrived at Bumper's Billiards for our regular league night to find out we had a bye week. We decided to practice with some teammates and were having a good time when they announced that a 9-Ball tournament would be starting shortly. This tournament wasn't going to take into account handicaps so at first I wasn't going to join. I've never played 9-Ball in league and my 8-Ball skill level is only a SL3 so I didn't figure I'd have much of a chance.

I hadn't played 9-Ball in weeks and I have never played it competitively. In fact, I had never played in a pool tournament (other than on a team). After some coaxing from my wife and team captain, I decided to give it a shot. I figured the worst that could happen would be a three-and-out in both my matches since it was double elimination. I paid my entry fee and waited. About thirty minutes later, they were ready to get started and I was paired with an opponent who said he had been playing 9-Ball for quite awhile.

I surprised myself by winning the first game which helped to boost my confidence. I lost the following two games but was able to win the fourth game with a billiard which made it double hill. Now was the time for my lack of experience to shine brightly.The one ball was on the end rail opposite the cue ball with most of the balls crowded on the left side of the table. The right side was clear and I decided in my infinite wisdom to go for the long bank shot. To be honest with myself, my first thought was to play safe by banking the one ball softly to the right rail and hiding the cue ball behind the cluster of balls on the left. I shouldn't have second guessed myself. The bank attempt was AWFUL and left my opponent an easy billiard which he promptly sank to win the match.

The second match was similar in that I got it to double hill. I missed a backwards cut on the nine in the fifth game and left the nine sitting and quacking on the edge of the pocket. My opponent sank the easy shot to eliminate me from the tournament.

Even though I made some stupid mental errors, I shot well and was very happy with my performance. I did MUCH better than I expected to do, I gained some tournament experience and I had a lot of fun. If nothing else, it was a confidence builder. While there were players in the tournament who could have blanked me easily, I fortunately did not have to face them. The two players I did face were very good and only through some fairly good defense was I able to get as close as I did.

I might not have won the tournament but it was definitely a winning night.