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Dec 01, 2004 :: Please Whitelist The Monk
Winning and not Winning
How do you define “winning?” Is it claiming lots of money? Is it getting the biggest trophy? Is it beating the most people? What does winning mean to you? Have you ever played a match where you know that you played well and maybe even better than your opponent but still lost that match? Maybe your opponent got some fortunate rolls.
This happens more often in 9-ball than in 8-ball. Or, perhaps you’re at the level where you’re breaking and running most racks. In this case, it’s just a matter of whose break it is, what kind of spread you got on your break, and what the format is.
Unfortunately, the strongest player does not always win. They will win more often, but not always. No matter what level you’re at, you should be aware of when you play a winning game. If you believe you played your best game, gave 100% to every shot, and stand behind the decisions you made; then be proud of that. You can not control the outcome of the rolls and how your opponent plays. If you gave your finest performance and got outplayed, then applaud your opponent for playing well. If you gave your finest performance and got unlucky rolls, then accept that you did what you could.
Do not punish yourself for losing a match if you played well. And, only you know if you gave 100% to every shot. If your goal is to simply win the tournament then that’s easy, you could find any little $5 tournament around town to rob. If you just want to beat people, just play people that are worse than you. But, if your goal is to become a better player, then be proud of a worthy performance, regardless of the outcome.
Only one person can walk away a first place winner. Of course it’s disappointing not to win a tournament. But, if you delivered a first class performance, you can not be disappointed with that. If you gave the same performance and won, you would be pleased. It doesn’t matter who you’re playing, your winning performance is something to always be proud of, regardless of the outcome. So, the next time you lose a match but know that you played well and someone asks, “What happened?” you can say “I lost, but I played well.”
