tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3514657735828375272024-02-06T21:11:33.770-06:008 Ball RunMy personal pool blog, with weekly 8 ball diagrams, strategy, and video updates for discussionUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger168125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-90596502056658531712013-05-08T13:27:00.000-05:002013-05-19T13:27:42.119-05:0014.1 Spring LeagueJust started a 14.1 league this spring, this is a handicapped league which will last until the end of July. The nice thing about this 14.1 league is that there is no scheduled night for the matches, instead you basically arrange a time with your opponent during the week to play the match. My handicap is +20 meaning that I go to 120 instead of the standard 100 balls for a match.<br />
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Here is my best run (on video) on my home table with a 29 ball run...got a good break on the 3 rack, but choked on the opening shot.<br />
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<center><iframe width="640" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/KHjWRWhfI6w?list=UUE454Z1jSwYlC7GccHtgC1A" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></center><br />
Straight pool on a big table (9 foot GC IV) is a nice change of pace from the normal 8 ball bar box pool leagues.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-60685002502781778082013-03-20T09:48:00.003-05:002013-03-20T09:48:40.539-05:00Speed Pool 2013As in the past years, I have spent the last few weeks gearing up for my favorite time of the year...speed pool. Shooting speed pool is very simple; break and shoot all the balls in with the 8 ball last as FAST as you can. There are penalties for fouls, but the goal is to shoot straight shots so the cue ball is ready to be struck again. The fastest 4 times qualify for the bracketed head-to-head speed pool showdown.<br />
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The past 9 years, I think I have made the final 4 every year...but I have never won the showdown. I can run 70 seconds pretty consistently, but need to shift gears for a better time since it typically takes 50 to 60 seconds to qualify for the speed pool finals. <br />
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This year Brad Bent had the best qualifying time with 43 seconds, Jay Thompson had 58, I had 61 and Shawn Cepurnieks had 63 seconds as I recall. I took a video of Brad Bent's first qualifying attempt, and knew that he would be tough to beat. <br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/IS4nQCPmcgQ?list=UUE454Z1jSwYlC7GccHtgC1A" width="640"></iframe></center>
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The finals is a double elimination 4 person bracket, best of 3 showdown with opponents breaking simultaneously. If there are no fouls, then the first to run and pocket the 8 ball wins.<br />
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1. Brad Bent - 43 Seconds<br />
2. Jay Thompson - 58 Seconds<br />
3. Me - 61 seconds<br />
4. Shawn Cerpurnieks - 63 Seconds<br />
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Seeded 1 vs 4 - Brad beat Shawn 2-0<br />
Seeded 2 vs 3 - Jay won Me 2-1<br />
Winner side: Brad beat Jay 2-0<br />
Loser side: I beat Shawn 2-0<br />
Consolation: I beat Jay 2-1 (Both wins by a couple seconds)<br />
Finals: Brad beat Me 2-0 (Not even close)<br />
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This was a fun tournament, and I am really thrilled to get 2nd...need to pick up the pace. New years resolution is to drop 20 pounds and 20 seconds off my speed pool time! Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-15870939180013108872013-03-17T09:46:00.000-05:002013-03-20T09:46:15.376-05:00Great Plains 4 City TournamentOur Monday team finished 2nd in the league, placing us in the 'A' division for team at this years GP4 City Tournament. After singles events on Wed/Thurs, we had our first team match on Thursday evening (9:30) with a bye in the first round. Our league used a 16-game, 4 person format...but the A and Master team divisions were using a 32-game format.<br />
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Thursday we played agains the a pretty good team, one that we could definitely beat. We were a little off at the beginning, falling behind about 35 balls after 12 games. With only 4 games left, we fought back and tied up the match. After 31 out of 32 games, nothing was settled and the winner of the last game gets the match. Our opponent made a tough 8 ball up the rail to win the match.<br />
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Friday evening, our first loser bracket match went pretty well...a couple of us were shooting well to keep the match close. Then we pulled away to get up enough with 2 games left. We played right away again, and ended up down 10 with 3 games left. My teammates pulled out a couple nice wins to give me a winner take all match in the last game.<br />
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We already had a safety game in progress after my teammate won, then my opponent placed the cueball really close to his ball for a straight in shot. Told him I was going to call a ref, but he changed his mind...wish I would have called him over anyhow. Seconds later, my opponent tries for the bank on his last ball, makes it and appears to foul as the cue ball appears to stop when it hits the tip of his stick.<br />
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After I told him I thought it was a foul, he immediately offered my ball-in-hand...even though he didn't think he fouled. A rerack was also suggested, but I told him to just shoot the long 8 ball he left himself. He missed, then I nearly messed it up...but made a tough 8 ball to win. It was after midnight, and our reward was an 8:30am match the next morning.<br />
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Won a couple matches in the morning before we lost our afternoon match. Matches were scheduled 2 hours apart for 32-games, we were expected to shoot on 4 tables for the first part of the match since Singles was scheduled later on Saturday. <br />
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Only issue I had was the format the 32-games were played...it would be <b>much simplier and faster</b> if two games with the same opponent were played <i>back to back instead</i>. This tournament always runs short where there is a requirement to play on 3 or 4 tables to speed up play, but I think 30-minutes per match could be saved if back-to-back play was incorporated.<br />
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Overall, great tournament for our team in finishing 5th-6th in the A division out of a 32 team bracket. Next year my Monday and Wednesday teams will be combining into a single team, which should surely result in lots of fun!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-59873683575966655882013-01-24T10:38:00.002-06:002013-01-24T10:39:53.023-06:00Best 8 Ball RecordI am playing a little over half the time on Monday, and while our team is in 2nd...we are <i>barely</i> within striking distance of 1st after beating 3rd place 4-1 this past Monday. I have a personal best 19 wins in-a-row and have a current streak of 16. 35-1 in 8 ball is definitely a fluke as there have been 4 or 5 games that my opponent should have beat me, and a couple other times I nearly scratched on a tough pocketed 8 ball. The game I lost, I missed the 8 ball twice...so go figure.<br />
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Figured I better capture a screenshot of this since I will be playing the 1st place team twice in a row and will be lucky to keep my current streak going. There is seemingly some pressure on my opponents to end my streak, so I have that going for me! :)<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-67203661576669705742013-01-03T17:00:00.000-06:002013-01-04T08:35:15.635-06:00Obama Billiards PhotoOn Flickr, the official White House photographer (Pete Souza) uploaded the best photos of 2012 to their Flickr Stream. The entire set of photos can be seen here:<br />
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Flickr: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/whitehouse/sets/72157632418300447/">Year in Photographs 2012 by Pete Souza </a><br />
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Of course, from the thumbnails..this one caught my eye!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrGwMk4_0T7E9UWlaEJJKtfX5VRXXE7L1omULMkMaKUVD7Wfnzhzwe9y7Hf4tqe0QDcjojrYuzgoUdIpRqp-XojTWC12-QBWoaMIkw8Pqd2vitbuVcNgETx0Y0DLEzxjAs8HNC6FAf9Cfq/s1600/OBAMABilliards.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrGwMk4_0T7E9UWlaEJJKtfX5VRXXE7L1omULMkMaKUVD7Wfnzhzwe9y7Hf4tqe0QDcjojrYuzgoUdIpRqp-XojTWC12-QBWoaMIkw8Pqd2vitbuVcNgETx0Y0DLEzxjAs8HNC6FAf9Cfq/s720/OBAMABilliards.jpg" /></a></div>
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Here is the caption: May 19, 2012<br />
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"Following the conclusion of the G8 Summit, the President plays a game of pool in the Holly Cabin at Camp David." <br />
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Here are a couple other cool photos from the collection of Flickr..<br />
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July 26, 2012<br />
"A view from behind the President's chair during a Cabinet meeting in the Cabinet Room." <br />
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Oct. 26, 2012<br />
"The President pretends to be caught in Spider-Man's web as he greets the Nicholas Tamarin, 3, just outside the Oval Office. Spider-Man had been trick-or-treating for an early Halloween with his father, White House aide Nate Tamarin in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. I can never commit to calling any picture my favorite, but the President told me that this was HIS favorite picture of the year when he saw it hanging in the West Wing a couple of weeks later."<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW9BjwmsnAx2_HJdAmO-qWvmn02S7xUE7rpAeU229QorZkTVKsUC7zZCyKJhlIARVsNWEY7lhQ8Tpd0-VqmugnzR6j6j5X3bPyyyvXbfxzjfbMPLyotiVyzuehzLcpDDPLrc9skQvG4HcJ/s1600/OBAMAbeing-unimpressed-with-us-olympian-mckayla-maroney.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW9BjwmsnAx2_HJdAmO-qWvmn02S7xUE7rpAeU229QorZkTVKsUC7zZCyKJhlIARVsNWEY7lhQ8Tpd0-VqmugnzR6j6j5X3bPyyyvXbfxzjfbMPLyotiVyzuehzLcpDDPLrc9skQvG4HcJ/s720/OBAMAbeing-unimpressed-with-us-olympian-mckayla-maroney.jpg" /></a></div>
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Nov. 15, 2012<br />
"The President had just met with the U.S. Olympics gymnastics team, who because of a previous commitment had missed the ceremony earlier in the year with the entire U.S. Olympic team. The President suggested to McKayla Maroney that they recreate her 'not impressed' photograph before they departed."Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-76801313622547797122012-12-13T10:47:00.003-06:002012-12-13T10:47:31.764-06:002012 League Stat UpdateMonday I am a part time player and have had a very nice run, my record is 27-1 with a 19 game winning streak and a current 8 game winning streak. I have narrowly scratched on a made 8 ball twice so far and there were definitely a couple other games that I should have lost. My Game Average is 9.89 and Power Ave is 5.54 through 28 games... <br />
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The Monday team is in a distant 2nd right now, and definitely has some ground to make up.<br />
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On my more competitive WW Platinum league, our team is in last...there have been 4 tied rounds that we have lost this season. I predict us moving up a couple spots in the rankings...but we definitely need to get hot.<br />
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I am 40-25 with a Game Average of 8.1 and a power average around 1.4, out of the 65 games I have managed 3 EROs and only 1 ERO out of the 28 games on Monday. Maybe we will have a good city tournament this year...would be nice for our Wednesday team. Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-38938133405695392882012-12-06T10:35:00.000-06:002012-12-13T10:35:36.647-06:00Definitely A Fowl<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-70772143282189747042012-10-03T09:38:00.002-05:002012-10-03T09:38:40.952-05:002012-2013 Fall Leagues Get GoingAfter a successful 9 ball league this summer, I am dialed in to have an awesome fall season in my pool leagues. Our team has shifted this season since Chas started a new job on late shift and we picked up a relatively new league player. After playing the 1st place team in week one with a 1-5 start, we have managed to come around the last couple weeks to a record of 8-10.<br />
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VVS has changed things up a little bit this season with only 8 team in 4 divisions instead of the 11 teams we had last season in 3 different divisions. I like this method since it will allow for a 23 week season with 2 position rounds and 3 chances at each team. Previously, the 11 team required a couple bye weeks and only gave 2 matches for each of the other 10 teams.<br />
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I have started out pretty well with a 12-3 start on Wednesday leagues, I have messed up 3 EROs this season already...and I have none with one against me this past week. My Monday league is a part-time deal, but I have luckily started out 12-0 for the beginning of the season...it can only get worse! :)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-74229733469144224902012-09-05T09:51:00.000-05:002012-10-03T09:51:42.682-05:009 Ball League SuccessOne of my favorite leagues is the Coed 9-ball league on Tuesday at Madsen's during the summer. The format is a 3-person team (1 female required) with a 27-game format, this allows you to play each opponent three times...and it moves pretty fast on only one table. The main reason to play this league is to get sanctioned for the Heartland Tournament in Columbus. <br />
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My wife played on a different team, so I teamed up with our friends Matt and Brandi Slosson. We all played pretty well overall, I can remember the specifics...but my W/L record was pretty crazy at like 56-16 or something like that. Matt played very well, especially when we needed it in the final week in the position round. Brandi made some really tough shots, but didn't always get rewarded with another shot. The teams were pretty tight going into the final week position round as you can see below.<br />
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<br />Theoretically, the 6th place team could have won the league...we went 6-3 for the win, but they could have won 9-0 to win it all. The payout was very good at $80 each, which was all of our money back since it was $10 a night for 8 weeks. I recommend this league to anyone that wants to try out something different than a regular old 8 ball league.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-80940901902766188162012-06-14T10:49:00.002-05:002012-06-14T10:49:58.217-05:00Lovers Lane [Joke]A cop comes upon a car parked late one night on Lover's Lane. Upon further investigation he finds a male subject reading a book in the front seat and a female subject filing her nails in the back seat.<br />
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The cop asks the guy, "What are you doing up here?"<br />
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"I'm reading a book sir."<br />
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"Uh-huh. And what’s she doing?" the cop inquires, motioning toward the back seat.<br />
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"Well clearly, sir, she is filing her nails."<br />
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With a puzzled look on his face, the cop says, "In the 13 years I've been a cop I've never seen anything like this on Lover's Lane. How old are you son?"<br />
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"I'm 20."<br />
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"And how old is she?"<br />
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The guy looks at his watch and says, "Well in about 15 minutes she'll be 18."Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-84933303682490466062012-06-13T17:08:00.000-05:002012-06-13T17:08:39.506-05:00Uneventful Position RoundAfter starting out the spring league 6-12, we have managed to finish very strong with 27-3 record the last 5 weeks. We have been stuck in 3rd the last 3 weeks as the top 3 teams have all shot well...only losing a couple rounds.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVrn6RvE4CiTvelTjhtmo6euPDLFIcvsjKCCHsl2H8vtO3JlAdIe0_cD8X7IDzqxNxDIrJ5N-RRRkWY05XalZA5i-jvVwh7dFNKNqOiOWLWsgPJw7SHFuKygdvln6cQebivlDoPX-_C9iB/s1600/PoolLeagueStandings.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" pca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVrn6RvE4CiTvelTjhtmo6euPDLFIcvsjKCCHsl2H8vtO3JlAdIe0_cD8X7IDzqxNxDIrJ5N-RRRkWY05XalZA5i-jvVwh7dFNKNqOiOWLWsgPJw7SHFuKygdvln6cQebivlDoPX-_C9iB/s700/PoolLeagueStandings.jpg" /></a></div><br />
We are still 7 rounds behind 2nd, and 13 rounds ahead of 4th...so we will definitely get 3rd place in the league no matter what. Last season our 70% winning percentage was enough to take the league, this season the teams seem to be stacked a little better.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMwPU8DhexSWgW1NUci0ofHKTq5ahS3BMGkrdtpAsHZdqFkX-y7MLXdWOeutDf-wdv8tqs82S-8T4SHhRliCbz3Fr0TrTQokwzkS20aw_R5WSbypKqcRJzXAhd8cgKh_SQtDH32JRd-gFC/s1600/2011LeagueStandings.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" pca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMwPU8DhexSWgW1NUci0ofHKTq5ahS3BMGkrdtpAsHZdqFkX-y7MLXdWOeutDf-wdv8tqs82S-8T4SHhRliCbz3Fr0TrTQokwzkS20aw_R5WSbypKqcRJzXAhd8cgKh_SQtDH32JRd-gFC/s700/2011LeagueStandings.jpg" /></a></div><br />
Probably gonna shoot some pool in the summer session...not sure though.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-91954423752240887802012-06-10T21:47:00.000-05:002012-06-10T21:47:52.121-05:00Nice Trickshot VideoThis guy gets a girl into many different positions on the pool table...<br />
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<center><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/AeiEiSKAp5M" width="640"></iframe></center><br />
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Impressive...pool shots I mean!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpirfkTpo2bA8A4bp1Ko8d6hEP-WrIFxOwSHtX751awRuhn2dTlPvlLEiH7fdPeQlyI_RRh3DIcNFY7nK3gGFiHUJjXYxoMolmfNvqqL-w1c1Fcl7vkUWCWWbn9LYH_-OR6vQ4r3WN9Rxj/s1600/Poolshots.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" fba="true" height="350" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpirfkTpo2bA8A4bp1Ko8d6hEP-WrIFxOwSHtX751awRuhn2dTlPvlLEiH7fdPeQlyI_RRh3DIcNFY7nK3gGFiHUJjXYxoMolmfNvqqL-w1c1Fcl7vkUWCWWbn9LYH_-OR6vQ4r3WN9Rxj/s640/Poolshots.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-64890904993429468872012-05-30T09:44:00.000-05:002012-05-30T09:44:23.065-05:00Spring League ComebackAfter starting out pretty rough in the Spring pool league, we have managed to comeback for a chance to win the league. <a href="http://www.8ballrun.com/2011/06/spring-pool-league-standings.html">we finished strong to win the league</a>, and I have hopes of pulling it off again. Personally, I am struggling a little bit with a 18-12 record.<br />
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My pool team started off 6-12 at the begining of the season, and have gone 16-2 the last 3 weeks to get within striking distance. There are 2 more weeks until the position round, and we probably need to climb to 2nd to get a chance at the top spot. It is rare to see a lurking 3rd place team win a league in the final week position round...but it is certainly possible.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrqxFlMWsTWruKiU_O7mWA1qNsQueGpi_zE7MzLMEMu2MrwHQ2-LGWh3Juxp0RofAlk-q5XG5v6vtmew_MJAj8A1r5cuXjGk3hQMIbddwHDdiONFGcrshEkkrkLyPSFEsnWqV2B7oN7q9k/s1600/WWGoldLeagueSpring.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" rba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrqxFlMWsTWruKiU_O7mWA1qNsQueGpi_zE7MzLMEMu2MrwHQ2-LGWh3Juxp0RofAlk-q5XG5v6vtmew_MJAj8A1r5cuXjGk3hQMIbddwHDdiONFGcrshEkkrkLyPSFEsnWqV2B7oN7q9k/s640/WWGoldLeagueSpring.jpg" /></a></div><br />
Tonight we play the last place team in the league, hopefully we can play well and gain a little bit on the top 2 spots.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-9770568538921930182012-04-30T09:26:00.001-05:002012-06-10T21:53:40.978-05:00Flexible GifDoesn't she need one foot on the ground?<br />
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<center><a href="http://dailygifblog.com/" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwaKIP_-xmAZ-8sitp-iDa3R5rUkEt5cfbrhyeGkz4tooorS45B0d4AQ7sKcEdUYdWC4IMUPmwkP4Em80AnLMGzW4vxyJ1dFqJPZTxAIsZYEWOynZ_gD-eXv2nfITmepNlcXRS8aE8Pgfe/s1600/WGFlexiblePool.gif" /></a></center>________________________________________Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-81272880885597923222012-03-16T14:16:00.000-05:002012-03-26T14:30:14.567-05:00WW Gold Final StatsWe finished out the season in the Widmer Wheat Gold with 57-75 record, it was a tough season for us. We definitely didn't play as well overall as we did in the Silver division last year. After winning the <a href="http://www.8ballrun.com/2011/03/lincoln-city-pool-tournament.html">2011 City Tournament "B" Division"</a> we had to move up to Gold and will be playing the A division of the tournament this year.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixWZY6yES8fhC_oAPZ2wqBlxB83XV7VQ9lSVA351HhJbanqxzs9ZH5lTp5O0E25TkzSLJCVH5TvNBGeY0R4tBC5hJztzSQbqbGOLfJLaxiyQEn5-uaaQ67v9405GhqHIUl6oS4wLjxeR4c/s1600/LeagueStatsFinalWWGold.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img aea="true" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixWZY6yES8fhC_oAPZ2wqBlxB83XV7VQ9lSVA351HhJbanqxzs9ZH5lTp5O0E25TkzSLJCVH5TvNBGeY0R4tBC5hJztzSQbqbGOLfJLaxiyQEn5-uaaQ67v9405GhqHIUl6oS4wLjxeR4c/s1600/LeagueStatsFinalWWGold.jpg" /></a></div><br />
I finished the season <b>61-44 with 9 EROs and only a 1.03 power average</b>. This puts me in 9th out of 50 or so in the league, with the league <i>individual champ</i> showing a record of <b>76-34 with 7 EROs and a 2.19 power average</b>. We came a long way from <a href="http://www.8ballrun.com/2011/11/struggling-in-gold.html">last place after 6 weeks</a>. We have shown that we can compete in the Gold, and overall our team is getting better as players develop.<br />
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One last thing, after a couple rough years in the Master division at city the VVS league operators have dropped my personal ranking from "Master" to "A" player. 2 out of the last 3 years I have been "one out of the money" in singles, definitely leaving missed opportunities on the table. Planning to show them up by signing up for Master singles with something to prove.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-41486588021271887612012-02-19T09:25:00.000-06:002012-03-02T09:54:14.517-06:00Cruise Ship Pool Table: Radiance Of The SeasMy wife and I, along with a couple friends just returned from a cruise on the Liberty of the Seas cruise ship from Royal Caribbean. This looks like a tough table to shoot on, but would be a blast for sure!<br />
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<center><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/N-aE5oszXyQ" width="640"></iframe></center><br />
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Would definitely be fun though...we actually joke about a pool table being on our cruise ship! :)<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF8GpE9SpyK6KBCpByZpDno-qS86MKOs4qLiwfHbkBf9OtplRn-Tx-Pg0oqEFy_b_h6mJ6bpl1BNOtbhnAIcxijWfnwmf0ylvmAsF2Iou4qef_riIOIgXPq1hZJ7YjWaYkzjEwJp0AsXxU/s1600/CruiseshipPool.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF8GpE9SpyK6KBCpByZpDno-qS86MKOs4qLiwfHbkBf9OtplRn-Tx-Pg0oqEFy_b_h6mJ6bpl1BNOtbhnAIcxijWfnwmf0ylvmAsF2Iou4qef_riIOIgXPq1hZJ7YjWaYkzjEwJp0AsXxU/s1600/CruiseshipPool.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCO5pyXXdxRueMBSTBFBVH57W1tjQYGCHqv8a17Po2SeHbpYlyyk2h0Wp6zeRQxsf4i9POxM8O4kty4Vg7ecTLbiZPuz6n1EJqPcObynQriglEOjSlqlLz3o7BZJhj0A_w_r7kQgbnWbD8/s1600/GyroPool.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCO5pyXXdxRueMBSTBFBVH57W1tjQYGCHqv8a17Po2SeHbpYlyyk2h0Wp6zeRQxsf4i9POxM8O4kty4Vg7ecTLbiZPuz6n1EJqPcObynQriglEOjSlqlLz3o7BZJhj0A_w_r7kQgbnWbD8/s1600/GyroPool.jpg" /></a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-11606364749086606302012-01-27T13:04:00.000-06:002012-01-27T13:04:40.945-06:00WW Gold UpdateAfter ending up 3-3 the last two weeks, we were a little disappointed. Mainly because we were up 3-1 going into the last round both times, and managed to lose the last round bad enough to lose total as well. This week, we played the 3rd place Kingpins and started off with 10-1 ERO and 10-0 ERO in the first round. Another guy on our team broke dry in the 1st round and had an ERO against him 0-10.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-4B5wzaucUM506IMXWGvS35Vsy7qGO5s8qS9Gdb3rO857_JDLwE1nIozCmIoSPnsvzcLOcDL72h3Zt9ciVGLnbbs8mI0SV2StT3YUfk8M4datE6JSPwhxpGBeujoqtt0HVQNfAFsDCuz2/s1600/Screen+shot+2012-01-27+at+12.59.00+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-4B5wzaucUM506IMXWGvS35Vsy7qGO5s8qS9Gdb3rO857_JDLwE1nIozCmIoSPnsvzcLOcDL72h3Zt9ciVGLnbbs8mI0SV2StT3YUfk8M4datE6JSPwhxpGBeujoqtt0HVQNfAFsDCuz2/s600/Screen+shot+2012-01-27+at+12.59.00+PM.png" /></a></div><br />
We managed to sneak out the 1st round, and didn't really have a chance until the last round. I needed to win my last game to go 2-4, but didn't get it after messing up my runout twice and tying up a couple balls.<br />
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We have our bye next week, then I'll miss pool the next week as my wife and I will be going on a cruise.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-87151783271553488342012-01-20T12:38:00.000-06:002012-01-27T12:57:28.722-06:00Heartland Pool Tournament 2012I sat out of singles this year to take the kids to the grandparents after school, but my wife played pretty well in Women's singles taking 7th out of 40 or so. Steph, who is on her team was shooting well, and ended up winning the whole thing. My wife won some money in singles and their team started off hot in team winning their first 2 matches. Then the lost to Charlies Angels, and had to play a tough match to get in the money...I think it was $450 for 1st, and $200 for 2nd. If they lose they ended up getting 3rd and $0.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbrKoKsGCijRDByPJSIslcnlv5kps1t0PsWfZyuncVGtmama_UTl61fneYZ3aTc2ml78PxoOfZQphtAmD1T_94BA_FMDkLo0_DI3nHAmpbqTUo5-OcYl3fQqPhlu1cXjJ64WbUvRa3wqNN/s1600/8ballluckyshot.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="348" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbrKoKsGCijRDByPJSIslcnlv5kps1t0PsWfZyuncVGtmama_UTl61fneYZ3aTc2ml78PxoOfZQphtAmD1T_94BA_FMDkLo0_DI3nHAmpbqTUo5-OcYl3fQqPhlu1cXjJ64WbUvRa3wqNN/s640/8ballluckyshot.png" width="640" /></a></div><br />
Their pool match came down to the last game, with the winner of the game winning the match for their team. Steph had her 8 ball tied up, and the other girl kept playing safeties. Steph played smart buy handing her ball-in-hand a couple times since scratching on the 8 ball would lose the game and match. <br />
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But with her opponent down to the last ball, she tried a soft kick and <i>barely scratched</i>. It may have worked if the 8 would have been hit more head on. This was about 11:30 PM on Saturday night.<br />
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My team had won our first 2 matches, then lost the 3rd match after lunch. We had a long break before we won a couple more matches to get down to 9th out of 90 teams (I think). Our team came down to winner for the match, and it ended up being a big safety game. Tom tried a tough jump and gave the opponent a seemingly easy ball-in-hand runout, with only a solid and the 8 ball left. Then he decided to give us some hope:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-IkiCe_dlYh7hqG_tM5jxAFF4BneKlLZR1aCiT9SUpmR4Rnn9FgK7EtH_L41uDcrFMtiXbHejR2AyF6_Dtc8R9zAUhJIdpV6IPhB1Cg7uK8IVsphQtkg1ZMOMnsK9t1qxTw3pemZ6ReQS/s1600/8ballkick.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="346" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-IkiCe_dlYh7hqG_tM5jxAFF4BneKlLZR1aCiT9SUpmR4Rnn9FgK7EtH_L41uDcrFMtiXbHejR2AyF6_Dtc8R9zAUhJIdpV6IPhB1Cg7uK8IVsphQtkg1ZMOMnsK9t1qxTw3pemZ6ReQS/s640/8ballkick.png" width="640" /></a></div><br />
After about 45 seconds of deliberation, he decided to kick it in (really only option) and made it to a huge cheer of the other team. We were left with $200 ($320 minimum if we continue on) and a little disappointed. Would have much rather seen him get easy shape on the 8 and drop it.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF7gycGVC383mbheRrEa5L6tHKqqMzmCHJR57pv5kmOwE-YqZcUMuoLilxm9HdD09amByux1t_V-zl-Z9TxzTELNjmkyIDIYUki6hSHNW1XRbw6SQ0MWHjxYfXDVSc1aCHIWL8bhXTOw7z/s1600/8ballbadshape.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="346" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF7gycGVC383mbheRrEa5L6tHKqqMzmCHJR57pv5kmOwE-YqZcUMuoLilxm9HdD09amByux1t_V-zl-Z9TxzTELNjmkyIDIYUki6hSHNW1XRbw6SQ0MWHjxYfXDVSc1aCHIWL8bhXTOw7z/s640/8ballbadshape.png" width="640" /></a></div><br />
The team that beat us, ended up losing their next match...<br />
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Fun weekend, we will probably have to either play intermediate or change our team next year.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-83918024883507214392011-12-19T14:01:00.000-06:002011-12-19T14:01:33.919-06:00Moving Up The ChartsFor 2 weeks in a row we have managed to win our matches, albeit against the same team two weeks in a row. We started off the season with a couple wins before a big downward spiral that didn't end until we fell into last place. We are still in 8th place, but after a nice 5-1 we are inching our way back to 0.500 which would be a nice realistic goal to reach.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRkLV5sJqegwyN_2fezkvTt7rtKx4JrIaV20IHbhZEEi4riUgPiX7106qUN5B8HMPyMQ4Eioi047l8qRuXzjxdrnedNzSA8BbbOmRJq3-4F_LAIHewh6flVs7rMfHS2T_TLhIHSw9wBT6R/s1600/WWGWeek13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRkLV5sJqegwyN_2fezkvTt7rtKx4JrIaV20IHbhZEEi4riUgPiX7106qUN5B8HMPyMQ4Eioi047l8qRuXzjxdrnedNzSA8BbbOmRJq3-4F_LAIHewh6flVs7rMfHS2T_TLhIHSw9wBT6R/s640/WWGWeek13.jpg" /></a></div><br />
I rattled the 8 ball in the 4th round, then broke and ran for a 47. My 10 was actually erased as it was already penciled in for me since it was a pretty straightforward shot. (Can you say jinx?). Ryan has been in the anchor spot the past couple weeks, with the last game of the night needing a win for the round. He came through both times, and is probably 75% when we have needed him to win. Lets keep in rolling this week...Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-33286774172448812422011-12-13T15:01:00.000-06:002011-12-13T15:01:45.936-06:00Pool Season MidpointAfter playing all of the teams in our league were were in 9th place, then we played a position round against 10th and won 4-2 putting us in 8th overall. In our position round match, we were down 1-2 and about 25 balls and came back to win the last 2 rounds and get total by a narrow margin (184-180). Ryan has been shooting great in the final spot, much like he did in the city tournament.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2RNfoUaMRYoZRG0_I1_TPFkpI6NgqNNybg3T-vIDPAlOn_ZETit4RD2APnLpHEKoS9vYeJ_ZMUtAwraOIunCAv6YSrUJXIkU-FeJHj1atdYnUiyJgvCgk91jLHxDend9nEPEH7ye7fZkg/s1600/8Ballrun.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2RNfoUaMRYoZRG0_I1_TPFkpI6NgqNNybg3T-vIDPAlOn_ZETit4RD2APnLpHEKoS9vYeJ_ZMUtAwraOIunCAv6YSrUJXIkU-FeJHj1atdYnUiyJgvCgk91jLHxDend9nEPEH7ye7fZkg/s1600/8Ballrun.jpg" /></a></div><br />
Our team has been down for runouts this past season, but we did manage to get 2 ERO's in the last round during our position match to sneak out a 4-2 victory. We will play through the teams again, starting with the same team again at our home bar...hopefully we can get 5 or 6 to fight our way back to 0.500 in the league.<br />
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My personal stats are down as compared to the last time I shot a "gold division" league. In <a href="http://www.league-central.com/teams.asp?session=2&a=vvs&league=1205&company=">2007-2008 with the Smooth Stones</a> I went 62-43 with 6 EROs, this season I am 28-27 so far with 3 EROs. Need to step it up!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-87179336729988273392011-12-12T09:36:00.002-06:002011-12-12T09:36:27.282-06:00Comic: Bad Date<center><a href="http://www.hdhumor.com/"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkJk4t7yDeR6upv9JCvHeLmCVwltGzLLorZP_qNm-NXQS_ZeZCZiTSWD3IpJ2Him2F3SKQS7uDhNHv-XpL8wo4FM7h_rgClVrQaazz5oq330k2fLIlf6WCh62IVJ9eGVqhR-0AX4qf52o/s1600/ComicCrazyWeather.png" /></a></center><br />
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Via: <a href="http://www.hdhumor.com/2011/12/comic-crazy-weather.html">HD Humor</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-63703435083060730632011-12-05T11:42:00.001-06:002011-12-05T11:45:10.799-06:00Best Books On 8 BallSince Christmas is getting near and many of you either enjoy pool or may be buying a gift for a pool player. I thought I'd give you favorite pool related books to help improve yourself or your competition.<br />
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<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=hd05a-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=0964920417&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=hd05a-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=0964920484&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=hd05a-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=0156005549&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=hd05a-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=0812922417&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=hd05a-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=1585745391&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=hd05a-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=1402714289&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0964920417/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=hd05a-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0964920417" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" dda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9zbJivVycToBZELZ9GzVMiCewpobwA2bBUh3axuTJxjsHHrERRP9FshDT_Jlak2itQaCpxEHKITPyQoTeLE-La86l4lN4pQQLgByVYxKO5WHgJoSeRVaPRpXVteh0wycmrZk8vf5ksARL/s1600/AMindForPool.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0964920417/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=hd05a-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0964920417"><span style="font-size: large;">A Mind for Pool: How to Master the Mental Game</span></a><span style="font-size: large;"> by Philip B. Capelle</span><br />
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This is a great analysis of the mental side of pool with lots of information on the competitive side of pool: how to gear up, dealing with slumps and streaks, etc. Just as important, Philip emphasizes that pool should be enjoyable, whatever one's manner of enjoyment might be, from very leisurely to ultra-serious. To sum it up, "There is so much to love about pool that it is simply foolish to waste any time on the negatives."<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1pGLat-UK5yxyylXL0EjZ3XwYJiCnWLDV4Xz7Tfc0_y5CzRLr_wIVNeHnAwvKXaA3i1cIjFVlkbyOd1q5I0SGLYNvBao4rzZdiiI8QfA50irBhFfxpFjHm6AOuHf-ZkIYFT_GSmMSf32-/s1600/PlayYourBestPool.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" dda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1pGLat-UK5yxyylXL0EjZ3XwYJiCnWLDV4Xz7Tfc0_y5CzRLr_wIVNeHnAwvKXaA3i1cIjFVlkbyOd1q5I0SGLYNvBao4rzZdiiI8QfA50irBhFfxpFjHm6AOuHf-ZkIYFT_GSmMSf32-/s1600/PlayYourBestPool.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0964920484/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=hd05a-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0964920484"><span style="font-size: large;">Play Your Best Pool</span></a><span style="font-size: large;"> by Philip B. Capelle</span><br />
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When I initially read it, I found some useful ideas but was disappointed that I didn't find more. A week after buying the book I entered played a big regional tournament. I didn't do as well as I would have liked but couldn't understand why. That night I went home and looked through this book again. Suddenly it was like a totally different book. After having played in the tournament I realized what this book really teaches you: How to think about pool and your playing. If you are into playing pool seriously, you need this book.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy7MAe23EtMCknLC7z3JQUzhihrMv9bsedSYCogHEymDKOe_1nmW4eYWh0nNtHADT1x-9q3ZD_vdBWkbxZ6DkJ7OSXZ95NzprzgETQK7j7Iw_NfQoSEqWBLhlB3KLf9UL7WVhyTPNfdV-B/s1600/ByrnesNewStandardBook.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" dda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy7MAe23EtMCknLC7z3JQUzhihrMv9bsedSYCogHEymDKOe_1nmW4eYWh0nNtHADT1x-9q3ZD_vdBWkbxZ6DkJ7OSXZ95NzprzgETQK7j7Iw_NfQoSEqWBLhlB3KLf9UL7WVhyTPNfdV-B/s1600/ByrnesNewStandardBook.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0156005549/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=hd05a-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0156005549"><span style="font-size: large;">Byrne's New Standard Book of Pool and Billiards</span></a><span style="font-size: large;"> by Robert Byrne</span><br />
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Any serious pool player has read this book. It's informative, fun, gives you exercises to use that will improve your game. Thorough book, very easy to read, from the way you setup your stance to the way you hold your cue...this book has it all. It's also a great gift idea for that hard to buy person who (either occasionally or regularly) plays pool.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0812922417/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=hd05a-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0812922417" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" dda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEJ0XKagRkjvNKsAKEsbRyASh5llzvX7l9J5fBzqzpCKaYeyJSUtJ-TAvdmeAUhig7djGMODzGVLWj43hS8Fie6SCfKBQrKIAm3XjtDGLTp-o2NxeRzYztE-WyMz2L3tAATfaXETQdfJi3/s1600/99critical.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0812922417/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=hd05a-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0812922417"><span style="font-size: large;">The 99 Critical Shots in Pool: Everything You Need to Know to Learn and Master the Game</span></a><span style="font-size: large;"> by Raymond Martin</span><br />
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Using a little imagination and three principles I learned a long time ago from the 99 Critical Shots, I was able to make a really slick shot, instead of playing a safety.<br />
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However, this is NOT a book of trick shots. It is a book of fundamental principles, many of which I doubt you can learn on your own (at least, I couldn't have). In fact, the book does an excellent job of emphasizing that pool is not about trick shots, but about controlling your position.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1585745391/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=hd05a-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1585745391" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" dda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp3FJdbiFKdCY86YDWBQRnba49aRs573rknJffZpyoHOH45wp5di2fyRrbyXHuG7Z5W5NJYtJVmqMvabvGYadpZWf2PesneWDpolxOLGZa3S52OJxsGm3koAGiFmLIiQBmIbslmfbX_-Pp/s1600/Pleasuresofsmallmotions.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1585745391/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=hd05a-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1585745391"><span style="font-size: large;">Pleasures of Small Motions: Mastering the Mental Game of Pocket Billiards</span></a><span style="font-size: large;"> by Robert T. Fancher</span><br />
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After you hone your basic shotmaking skills, pool is almost entirely a mental game. There are precious few books on the topic of the mental side of pool and billiards (I know of only three), and this is by far the best of them. The author is a sports psychologist (and pool player), and he explodes a lot of the "mental myths" of pool, including undoing some bad advice written by pool pros and wanna-be pros who meant well but didn't know what they were talking about psychologically speaking. The prose is also a nice read, especially for a nonfiction book. I can especially recommend this volume for intermediate players who are having a hard time dealing with league or tournament competition pressure. Fancher may give you some mental tools to quit being a "Count Choke-ula".<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEholypq-oPW6ZDuxM30UXjOCz1heSnTbrgS-QwykeuYXgkADd6XfuNGx0IlFuKN8vLy-NJKcFAQpmZ_D01bOidj6qon2QWiMTTWRr4lId9GLAuYc_vnBpdxgUfGaDv2vb09BtkFCQkZtuA7/s1600/IllustratedPrinciplesofPoolandBilliards.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" dda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEholypq-oPW6ZDuxM30UXjOCz1heSnTbrgS-QwykeuYXgkADd6XfuNGx0IlFuKN8vLy-NJKcFAQpmZ_D01bOidj6qon2QWiMTTWRr4lId9GLAuYc_vnBpdxgUfGaDv2vb09BtkFCQkZtuA7/s1600/IllustratedPrinciplesofPoolandBilliards.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1402714289/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=hd05a-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1402714289"><span style="font-size: large;">The Illustrated Principles of Pool and Billiards</span></a><span style="font-size: large;"> by David G. Alciatore</span><br />
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I would say outright the easiest billiards book I have came across. It goes from the basics to the strong techniques. A step by step program to improve your game. My game has increased dramatically using the simple guidelines in this book.<br />
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<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=hd05a-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=0964920417&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=hd05a-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=0964920484&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=hd05a-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=0156005549&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=hd05a-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=0812922417&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=hd05a-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=1585745391&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=hd05a-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=1402714289&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-17164165934982526942011-11-30T09:59:00.000-06:002011-11-30T09:59:21.404-06:008 Ball SituationThis is an interesting situation to end up on the 8 ball. I was in a similar situation once, the only difference was that the 13 ball wasn't right in front of the pocket.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6dtXfCckH2oIRd-52qunT3XJI19c77iM9b8X8PbUNriFqGZ6BxN7_1splhngv2Ij-PwVB4AxXQdbziodHFnjCeflXfHfSJ75-071NrC-mZzLy5QXJJkhD8CgNbabBlKD4yPJA6fRVdF7S/s1600/8ballbankjump.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" dda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6dtXfCckH2oIRd-52qunT3XJI19c77iM9b8X8PbUNriFqGZ6BxN7_1splhngv2Ij-PwVB4AxXQdbziodHFnjCeflXfHfSJ75-071NrC-mZzLy5QXJJkhD8CgNbabBlKD4yPJA6fRVdF7S/s640/8ballbankjump.jpg" /></a></div><br />
With the 13 ball in front of the pocket, it makes a safety much more difficult. This sort of forces you to try an offensive shot, which doesn't seem possible to the naked eye.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_j4bcY3y6Fz8AyDf9qdaQaVR_LD7Xzk57Zso06qmJdxqADZX2dnfPkT_Um36mjQbe4ezmxT7jlPOXVDWnvp3mlnlrd4RtKbIHnHF8SjDTcPx3KoQebmP8hgTeHboSO3rDBOs7OeHIBeSG/s1600/8ballbankjump1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" dda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_j4bcY3y6Fz8AyDf9qdaQaVR_LD7Xzk57Zso06qmJdxqADZX2dnfPkT_Um36mjQbe4ezmxT7jlPOXVDWnvp3mlnlrd4RtKbIHnHF8SjDTcPx3KoQebmP8hgTeHboSO3rDBOs7OeHIBeSG/s640/8ballbankjump1.jpg" /></a></div><br />
By elevating your cue stick a little bit and hitting the cueball hard, you can cause the 8 ball to become airborn a fraction of an inch. By hitting the rail higher that usual, this causes the 8 ball to have a launch angle. This launch angle increases with how hard you hit this shot. If you hit it too hard, the 8 ball may bounce straight up or just plain jump off the table. But once you figure out the speed, you can make this 8 ball bank 2 or 3 times out of 10. <br />
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Here is a video demo...<br />
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<center><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/mdJCBh3GF10" width="640"></iframe></center><br />
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Thoughts...other options?Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-61075005152957059142011-11-22T21:32:00.000-06:002011-11-22T21:32:12.760-06:00Triple Bank Situation (8 Ball)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigHoSeNQBsKQgqMERjA6ybGa1-QvBtbSJtc8KH8r-BqehErz-IjcL3Z8p1ihDSDxbQfMjwBSGuA1zIeKy5CJYDfMdx7XHvO3OqTfmZYbb2T42YggrsVBN_DR2dAP9F9GiCcO2LWj9Rtw8H/s1600/8balltriplebank.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="349" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigHoSeNQBsKQgqMERjA6ybGa1-QvBtbSJtc8KH8r-BqehErz-IjcL3Z8p1ihDSDxbQfMjwBSGuA1zIeKy5CJYDfMdx7XHvO3OqTfmZYbb2T42YggrsVBN_DR2dAP9F9GiCcO2LWj9Rtw8H/s640/8balltriplebank.png" width="640" /></a></div><br />
Personally, I have never been in this situation...but have been in something close. The 8 ball was a little off center and I had a chance to cut it...but missed it. This triple bank on my personal experience, is about a 4 in 10 shot on my home table. On a bar box that I'm unfamiliar with, it is likely half that...or 20% at best. <br />
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<center><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/vKBS3g5PO_g?hd=1" width="640"></iframe></center><br />
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Other options include trying to cut the 8 ball in the corner or bank it in the corner. <a href="http://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=253983">Neil on AZBilliards</a> suggested playing a pure safety with a halfball hit on the 8 ball as show below. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1Bb3UsmI-m32Uts9X3G7uRLewcrr6jIvf2upG4qBId0LVNGDuZJsFcCusaHTzn_Dw6fpGRT1WArfb9ra8L7jVgWSAqsqXIbfL2D0mp9Mm5fusKvOgJkAga69UBosa72ZEiy_vcxJ3Br1F/s1600/Screen+shot+2011-11-22+at+9.29.06+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="348" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1Bb3UsmI-m32Uts9X3G7uRLewcrr6jIvf2upG4qBId0LVNGDuZJsFcCusaHTzn_Dw6fpGRT1WArfb9ra8L7jVgWSAqsqXIbfL2D0mp9Mm5fusKvOgJkAga69UBosa72ZEiy_vcxJ3Br1F/s640/Screen+shot+2011-11-22+at+9.29.06+PM.png" width="640" /></a></div><br />
What is your opinion?Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-351465773582837527.post-71854150992737661352011-11-20T15:35:00.000-06:002011-11-20T15:35:06.241-06:008 Ball, Solids And Stripes Tied-upThere a couple breakout issues here, I went for a breakout on the first shot and missed. Managed to get in shape enough to make the breakouts, couple tough shots on my last stripe and the 8 ball to get the 8 ball run!<br />
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<center><iframe width="640" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/CYaE_xXMdoU?hd=1" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></center>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0