03.07.07
Memoirs of Lake Jackson
Most of this posting was written at 8:21a.m. (Houston time) March 3, 2007. I’m back in Colorado now.
I’m currently waiting at the Houston George Bush Intercontinental Airport, waiting for my 11:30a.m. flight. Of my many travels, this is the most confusing airport I’ve ever been to. When you get off the plane, there aren’t even signs indicating which direction the baggage claim is. I just relied on following the locals from my plane. Oh! Amongst them included Houston Rockets, Yao Ming. Yeah. He could barely fit through the airplane doors. I was pretty proud of myself for recognizing him.
Anyway! I arrived Friday afternoon around 3p.m. My good friend Carter picked me up and we immediately headed to Lake Jackson. After checking in, Carter obliged a starving me to a nice seafood feast before we decided to swing by to check out the pool hall.
I was initially not going to hit any balls on Friday night. Bob gave me the entire day off from pool and just wanted me to have some fun but get a good practice in the next morning. Unfortunately, it’s really difficult to get a quality practice in the morning before the tournament starts because everyone else is trying to do the same thing. So, I decided to go ahead and play some with Carter.
Most of the tables in Texas are 8 foot tables. That’s what all the qualifiers are played on. Most of the serious girls on the tour practice on 9 foot tables either at home or on the one or two 9 foot tables in their pool room. This place, Shooters II, had 8 foot Gandys. Those are the tables they have at Table Steaks East. They were newly refelted with clean balls so you could draw like a champion on these tables but the rails played about normal to slower speed. I quite like the combination, myself. It’s ideal conditions for the delicate, finesse player.
Okay, if you just want to skip to the final results of the tournament without all the middle stuff, feel free to continue to the final paragraphs.
Format: Big (8 foot) table 9 ball. Race to 7. Alternate Break. Flip for the first break. If you make a 9 on the break, you receive a $2 scratch ticket and if you break and run, you receive a $5 scratch ticket.
Match #1 vs. Natalie Mans. I consider Natalie a good friend away from the table. I met her in Vegas last year and we usually hang out when we see each other at these events. I had warmed up well and felt pretty comfortable with the tables but honestly, I didn’t really play my best during this match. I didn’t play horribly, but just not as well as I know I could have and should have.
I ended up losing to Natalie 7-6 after being up 5-3. I started off pretty strong and got out when I was supposed to, but towards the end, a botched safety led to a nice table run by her and another one to follow. I ran the next rack to make it 6-5 and she broke in the 9 to make it hill-hill. At double hill, I broke, didn’t make a ball and she missed the opening shot. The table was pretty open and I was “on the rack.”
I began shooting. All the way to the 4-8 combo, which was the only problem on the table. It wasn’t a hanger either, I had to get good on it and I did. Unfortunately, only focusing on making the combo, I ended up leaving myself a shot where I needed to use the bridge for the 4 ball that was now pretty close to the pocket. I just needed to draw it straight back a few inches to have a decent shot on the 7 for the 9. I drew it straight into the opposite corner pocket… 
I don’t think I drew it at all. I think I just punched it straight over there. Bummer…
Match #2 vs. Julie Stephenson. I won 7-3 and I played pretty well. I was finally getting my confidence back and loosening up. I had a couple racks where I could’ve broke and ran but miscued or something goofy like that. It was still a much better performance from my first match and I felt like I was just one ball away from greatness in every game. UGH!
Match #3 vs. Jillian Valles. I continued that some energy from my match with Julie, concentrating on only a few main things: 1) making the ball (and really focusing on the contact point of the object ball), 2) making sure my stance was perfectly locked in, and 3) staying down (which I’m generally pretty good about) and following through completely, all the way. This helped tremendously!
I just visualized the ball going into the pocket and forced myself to override the negative thoughts. That was NOT easy to do but when I would start to doubt myself, I just kept saying in my head, “Just make this ball. It doesn’t matter what else happens.” I could say that last part because I had already decided how I wanted to shoot before I got down on the shot. It was in this match that I really “fought for the angle” like Bob always says and didn’t make any careless decision. I controlled the table and when I wasn’t on the rack, I ducked. I felt pretty good about this match.
Oh! I also got my first $5 scratch ticket of the tournament during this match.
Match #4 vs. Belinda Lee. Again, I continued to focus on those same three things and played steadily and solidly. She proved to be a fierce competitor. She was ahead for the early part of the match. She has a consistent, solid break and a beautiful stroke. Her biggest downfall was not being demanding enough of her cue ball. She must’ve ran 2-3 tables during our match but the ones she didn’t were because she got on the wrong side of a ball or one time, she left herself straight on the 8 ball but all stretched out and she tried to draw it straight back for the 9 on the other side of the table. She ended up just stopping it and missed the bank on the 9.
These subtle little errors are things we are all capable of being guilty of. I know I am. That’s one HUGE thing that Bob has been forcing me to work on. He pounds into my head everyday the importance of fighting for your angle and for me, that includes making sure I leave myself somewhere that I can reach, even if it means having a longer shot or a bigger angle. I would rather have a longer shot that I can reach than be closer to the ball but have to use the bridge. That’s just my preference.
Match #5 vs. Kyu Yi. She’s one of my favorite people on the tour. She has such a great attitude about this game and a terrific energy about her. She is one of those players that really plays this game the right way. She makes all the right decisions and is truly a smart, smart player. She doesn’t wait until she gets into trouble before addressing a problem. She always has a plan. She’s got a great stroke and fires everything into the center of the pocket. In fact, she knocked me out of the last Hunter stop.
Our match was finished pretty early and we actually went to dinner together afterwards. I wish I could’ve continued playing all night. I was really shooting great! My match against her was my best of the tournament. I only missed maybe one or two balls early on in the match and did not may any dumb decisions or take any risky shots throughout the rest of the match. I was very proud of how I played and I really needed to deliver a strong performance against her and I did. She was considered one of the early favorites in a pre-tournament AZBilliards article. Also, I broke and ran on the hill which was huge for me because I did not want to give her a chance to get back in the match which I knew she was more than capable of.
Match #6 vs. Helen Hayes. This was my first match on Sunday morning at 10a.m. Silly, superstitious me ate the same thing for dinner and breakfast and tried to follow my regimen from the day before as closely as possible. I didn’t specifically seek out to do it, but I figured if it worked yesterday… Overall, I played barely above average against Helen. I had a few strong outs but for the most part, it wasn’t anything to write home about.
I really, really wanted this match. I was beginning to develop a pattern of making it to the Sunday round and dogging my first match and I really didn’t want that to happen. It was important to me to play well in this first match and do my best to not give up one game.
Match #7 vs. Heather Lloyd. This would be the end of my reign of terror through the loser’s bracket. This was my first experience playing Heather and I really enjoyed watching her play. Although I lost 7-1, I don’t feel the score reflected how I felt and played. The one game I won was a solid run by me and every time she got to the table with a chance to run out, she did. She’s a strong, fierce player.
She had one 9 ball break, I miscued on a 7 ball, and played two poor safeties that cost me those games. Maybe I’ve said (written) this before but there’s something very unassuming about her that I really admire. She is not flashy in anyway and even when she needs to stroke the ball, she executes with such a smooth consistency that looks so effortlessly. I really like her style.
Final Results: Well, after losing my first match on the hill, I won the next five matches to finish 7th/8th but better than that, I was only one place away from the qualifier spot. Leslie Anne Rogers got the spot, finishing 5th/6th. Had I won one more match, I could’ve duked it out with her for it. Of the 43 girls in the tournament, only 8 paid the qualifier and 3 of us traveled in from other states. Oh well. Next time.
The brackets from this tournament can be found on AZBilliards.com. Heather Lloyd came back to double-dip Lisa Marr in the finals. Here are the payouts. Also, I’m currently ranked 11th on the tour. SWEET! You don’t even have to scroll down to see my name on the Point Standings page. I would love to finish the year in the top ten!
Sorry for the novel. Thanks for all your support!
