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Dec 13, 2004 :: The Monk's Monday Lesson #1
To H*ll With Bad Luck
What do you do when you encounter a match that simply does not go your way? Often times, we get into a game where all the rolls seem to be going the other way and we can’t get a break. It is not long before we can see ourselves telling our friends that we lost because of bad rolls. We can see the conversation in our mind. We can almost hear the words that are sure to come. This is a glimpse of an expected future and if we are not careful we will satisfy our self-fulfilling prophecy.
If all the rolls are going against you, it is time to slow everything down. Take extra time on the break. Stand at the head of the table and imagine the balls racing around with great speed. Listen to the expected sound of a good break. Anticipate the shattering of the rack. Follow through. Stay away from the temptation to deliver a defeated stroke on your break shot.
Go through your pre-shot routine several times in a slow and deliberate manner. Trust your stroke. Each time you lean into a shot, believe you will make the shot. Look good shooting the shot. Stand tall. Do not yield to the torments of that fickle mistress lady luck. Square your shoulders and expect good rolls. Close your eyes and visualize the momentum swing that is coming your way.
To often when bad luck comes our way we give up. After all, luck is something we have no control over. It comes and goes on its own and when we feel victim to the mistress of bad fortune, we throw our arms up in despair. This gesture alone will increase the bad rolls. Don't give in. When you resist the onslaught of bad luck, you strengthen good luck. We strengthen that which we focus on. In one match I was having a very hard time with my stroke. It was so bad I wished my opponent would run the set so I would not have to go to the table. Everything I did was comically wrong. My safeties left him straight in. When I missed, which was often, I left the ball in front of the pocket. It was like touching hot coals. I sat in my chair and hoped he would just run out.
Leave me to my misery. On one shot, a simple stop shot for position on the 9-ball, I decided to draw it the length of the table, and then back down to end up where a stop shot would take me. I loaded up the cue ball and delivered a crisp "I don’t care draw stroke." The cue ball raced down the table, and back up for perfect position on the nine. This ridiculous attempt was to throw pie in the face of bad luck. I overcame it with my actions. My opponent thought I was crazy but for the rest of the match, my stroke was free and smooth.
I managed to crawl back in the match and then snapped the nine in at hill-hill. I never did have that conversation with my friends.
