Watching the Room( Make Room Watching A Part of Your Game )
Blackjack shifts his focus in this article to an analysis of the surroundings and how they effect the players. But as you might expect, the discussion quickly moves the characteristics of the human players. After all, you won’t be playing a poolroom., a table, or a pool cue.
- Watching the Room - In my book, Lessons in 9 Ball, I included a chapter entitled "Gone Fishin". In that part of the book, I described the different characters that exist in the world of pool room gambling. I was a Road Player, The Quiet Guy In The Corner, and ultimately, The Fisherman. I incorporated those three roles into who I was when I walked into the room. Those roles fit my personality. They may or may not fit yours, so it is important to evaluate what roles you are comfortable with. Watching the room is an art form. Watching the room is one thing, but watching the characters that fill the room is also an art. You must be able to identify the characters that were described earlier, but how do we do that? I scan the room. I start from the back of the room and work my way inward. I take notice of many different things, especially the players. I also look at who is not playing. From there I must determine what is actually going on in the room. Is the room “dead”? A “dead” room is a room that has no action at all. The players that are there are merely recreational players, or guys that have brought their girlfriend to the pool hall. Nothing is happening, and chances are that nothing will happen any time soon. A live room is a room that is filled with two or more of the described characters. This is usually a room that is filled with different types of people, all with different agendas. As I said earlier, it is important to watch who is playing, and who is not playing. All of the different characters have one thing in common: They want easy money. They also are going to be dishonest in their approach, which may or may not be an approach towards me. I pay attention to everything. If someone approaches the guy next to me, my antennas go up and I listen carefully. I listen to the approach, the response, and the outcome. I then watch to see what his next move is. This tells me whether he has carefully selected his prey, or if he is just a reckless fool. What if he comes to me?
I watch a person’s eyes. The eyes will tell you everything that you need to know about whether they are genuine or not. I recently had a guy approach me for lessons, explaining to me that he was a beginner, and that he merely wanted to learn more about the game. When you run into characters like this, it is extremely important to figure them out prior to making any deals with them. Anyone can figure it out after the fact; be much smarter than that. When you do figure them out, don’t make a big production out of it. Be subtle, and decline to participate in their game. You’re not going to prove anything by beating people like this, mainly because 9 times out of 10, they don’t have a dime to their name. Don’t draw attention to yourself by making a scene. He probably wants that. Decline politely and let them move on to someone else. Never take the bait to defend your pride. I don’t care how tasty the bait looks, it’s always attached to a hook. Always go back to my rule that says you must always be in control of the situation. If you have to pause and think about anything, you are NOT in control. If you have to think twice about anything, your are NOT in control. Many players believe that the guy doing the most talking is control of the situation. I don’t buy that at all. I’ve seen many guys out there that are annoying chatterboxes, but they lack the discernment needed to be good at what they are doing. Shoot more than you talk. What if you are a money player that likes action? Always remember that the winner is not going to be the best pool player. Anyone that believes that is out of their mind. I won a lot of money from guys that should have drilled me. I merely controlled the situation. Once you have control of the situation, do not release control for any reason. This is the chief mistake many players make. They answer every challenge as if they would be doing something wrong by declining. That is like a fish that bites at everything that moves. If you control the situation, you will control the game. Watching the room and working the room go hand in hand. In "Gone Fishin" I explain that in order to work the room, you must first learn how the room works. Every room works differently, but yet they all work in a similar fashion. The faces and the characters are interchangeable, yet a wise player always learns the intricacies. In my years on the road I won and lost a lot of money. In every disaster, it was a lack of attention to the intricate details that did us in every single time. Hindsight is always 20/20, which makes foresight an awesome weapon. The more your prepare yourself, the better things will go. That is true in any endeavor, especially in pool. Scouting the room is very important for a road player, but it is also very important for you in your every day dealings in your pool hall. You never know who might walk through the door. For that reason, we must always be prepared, and even more prepared than anyone that may appear on the scene.
The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that may have it more abundantly - John 10:10
Answers To
Your Most Crucial Practice Questionsr! |
