A Brief Stint at Home

I leave Wednesday for the 2008 Super Billiards Expo [aka Valley Forge] in King of Prussia, PA. I LOVE this tournament! The payout and format could be a lot better, but it’s always SO MUCH FUN! I’ll be doing Xtreme News again with InsidePool so I’m extra excited this year.

For some reason, I had it in my mind that I had a couple weeks to chill out before hitting the road again. Oh well, at least I’ve been somewhat productive.

By now, you can find all the results from last weekend’s Regional Tour Championships online just about anywhere. Here are the results and the brackets. Congratulations to Susan Mello from Arizona for winning the whole thing! The entire experience overall was incredible, better than I ever could’ve expected. I also can’t believe the tremendous support I’ve received from all my pool friend, especially the Texans . THANK YOU!!!

My First RTC

To cut to the chase, I barely limped into the cash at 17th-24th. Though I’m not thrilled with the final result, I did learn a tremendous amount last weekend about tenacity, stamina, playing at this level, and being in the moment. This was, hands down, the toughest tournament I’ve ever played in. There were no “dream draws” for anyone.

A Rocky Start

My first match Saturday morning versus Sherry Pouncey was a hairy one. After a near flawless practice Thursday night, I was feeling confident and lovin’ the speed and playability of the tables. If I could guess what happened in my first match, I would have to admit that I let the strictly enforced “shot clock” get to me. It’s so silly, there’s shot clocks on the Hunter Tour, but all the hype about it really got into my head. I was totally rushed and completely out of my rhythm. Towards the end of that first match, I was so out of sort and not focused at all. It was really disappointing.

All that, combined with a couple short racks, and the fact that Sherry was playing well, equated to a rough start for me. I shared my frustrations with Zinnie, who responded, “Don’t even think about that. Especially now. They expect the loser’s side to take longer so just play your game.” And that’s exactly what I did.

Some Surprises

Papa J thought it would be fun to sneak some surprises into my case before each match. Before my first match, I opened my case to find a personalized dollar bill. It was before my second match when the true surprise occurred. I didn’t even leave my case unattended for very long. Sneaky!

I was practicing on the other side with Susan Williams to get that bad taste out of my mouth from my first match. Normally, I like to pack everything up and unpack everything before each match. It’s like a fresh start. Well, they called my match and I ran to the restroom to wash my hands and do my self-talk. When I got back, I just grabbed everything and headed to my table on the other side.

It wasn’t until the second or third game when I needed my jump cue that I opened my case to discover a bright yellow, furry ducky inside. That’s not it! Somehow, he had strategically rigged it so that when I pulled it out, it began quacking, loudly. I can smile as I write about it now, but I was pretty mortified at the time. Especially with all the strict no-cell-phones, no-talking, no-noise rules. I scrambled to shove that thing in my bag so quickly. “I’m so sorry. I had no idea that was in there.” I said to my opponent. Everyone around me just laughed their butts off. Yeah, it was pretty funny…

Tournament Highlight

My highlight for this tournament was beating Debbie Schjodt, currently ranked 39th on the WPBA. She’s an experienced professional player and at 6′ ???” a bit intimidating. I can admit now that I was slightly stressed about the match when I accidentally saw that I was playing her, but I felt pretty great during most oft the match.I broke and ran the first rack. Broke and ran down the the 8 ball in the 2nd rack where I got funny and played a nice safety eventually giving me that game.

I knew she was struggling and I just had to make sure I took advantage. I tried to stay solid and not make any bonehead mistakes. I was very thoughtful and precise with my decisions and safeties. It wasn’t a flawless performance, but I felt pretty good overall with how I played. That was a HUGE win for me.

Not Ready for the End

After losing my late Saturday night match, there was obviously nothing more I would’ve rather been doing on Sunday morning than playing pool. I guess it worked out okay thought since I woke up Sunday morning with a splitting headache from being in the smoky poolhall all day Saturday. Papa J & I went for an airboat ride, bought some fresh Florida fruit, and headed back to the Capone’s to check out the finals action.

Afterwards, Michell, Shanna, Supadra, My Hanh, Zinnie, Papa John, and I all shared the perfect last sushi dinner before the girls and I headed out for a night on the town (which is not as easy as it sounds in a town catered to a more geriatric crowd). We found a quiet (until we got there) place, chatted with some locals and played some pool. HA!

Some Highlights from the Trip

See my personal blog for photos. These are just the handful of things that come to mind.

• The helicopter ride
• Boiled peanuts
• Meeting and getting to better know new friends
• WATER!
• The weather
• Cruisin’ with the top down
• FRESH SEAFOOD!
• Moments of greatness throughout the tournament
• Just the overall experience…

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