The 2012 US Open 10-Ball Championships are underway!  TAR will be streaming the event, and today's stream is free. Tomorrow it becomes a PPV event. Check it out here!

This matchup over the weekend was extraordinary. Plenty of drama and great pool playing.  Unfortunately, I only got to watch the 2nd day, but what a day it was.  Race to 25 in only 4 hours.  You can read my live tweets from the even (rack by rack scoring and commentary) here: http://twitter.com/#!/stlJohnnyPool

Friday was our league's after party where prizes were handed out and we all talked about any concerns or suggestions we might have for the next session.  Things were pretty smooth, no issues, other than wanting to get more players participating.  Afterwards, I decided to play a bit of 3-cushion billiards.  And it was, as always, a lot of fun - while also being really frustrating. After I switched gears in my brain, my shot selection was usually pretty close to the right shot.  Even though in the 2 hours I played I only scored about 11 points, probably 70% of my shots were only off by less than a foot.  Now, that seems like a lot to normal pool players, but in reality, I'm typically sending the cueball 20-40 FEET around the table, off multiple cushions and only missing my target (of 3inches) by a pretty small margin.  This is a game where 1/10th of a diamond turns into a foot or more 4 rails later - coupled with 1/2 tip of extra english can throw off the target by 1/3rd of the table after 3 rails of contact.

For example, here's a shot that I could NOT believe didn't score:

I lined up the 3-railer to the corner and shot it:

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Man, TAR is really pumping out the hits this year! Check out this matchup:

I realized that I never wrote a full description of a 3-rail kicking system I use when I have to shoot off the short rail first.  So, first, here's the diagram showing the three main paths: (click for larger image)

The trick to this sytem is having just the right amount of running english on the cueball.  Too much spin can cause the red track to scratch, not enough spin will send it to the blue track's end point.  And like all systems, it can vary by table, cloth, cueball and humidity.

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Just read about this:

The Action Report is excited to announce TAR 25: Hatch vs Dechaine presented by OB Cues and sponsored by Simonis Cloth and CueSports International. This match features two of best players in the U.S., Dennis Hatch will be facing off against Mike Dechaine in a Ten Ball match at the TAR Studio in Las Vegas, NV May 4,5 and 6 if necessary.

The match format is Ten Ball race to twenty five. Mike and Dennis will play one set a day. The first player to win two sets wins the match. This is the first TAR match in our new model of players playing for a prize fund put up by The Action Report. The prize fund is $5000 with winner receiving $4000 and the loser $1000. This new model follows the one used by boxing and mixed martial arts. The new way of doing things will allow TAR to create more exciting match ups more often than than the past model of requiring players to post high entry fees.

TAR 25 will take place the weekend before the start of the BCAPL National Tournament in Las vegas Nevada. The match will be played in the TAR Studio on a Diamond Pro Am nine foot table with Simonis 860 cloth and 4 1/8 inch pockets. Jump cues are allowed, winner breaks and the Magic Rack will be used. Start time for each days play is 7 PM Eastern.

TAR 25 will available to watch live via streaming pay per view on theactionreport.com. The price is $15 per day or $35 for the entire match. Each days play will loop on the PPV stream until 5 PM Eastern the next day. In the event that the match ends after two days then the entire match will loop on the third day for 24 hours. For information on how to watch the streaming PPV please visit theactionreport.com and view the PPV FAQ section. There will be extremely limited seating in the TAR Studio for this match. Seating info will posted soon on theactionreport.com

The Action Report would like to thank our presenting sponsor OB Cues as well as match sponsors Simonis Cloth and CueSports International. Thanks to their support and that of the many TAR fans we are able to continue bring exciting match ups featuring the worlds best players. Please join us the first weekend in May for TAR 25: Hatch vs Dechaine presented by OB Cues. It's sure to be a great match.

Mike and Dennis have been jousting back and forth for awhile now. Mike is looking to cement himself in the upper echelon and Dennis wants to prove he is still the monster of the north eastern U.S. This should be a good one.

Wednesday, I went and played some 14.1 (aka Straight Pool) for some shotmaking and position practice. I played a friend a race to 50.  This is the 2nd time we've played, and the 2nd time he's won. The strange thing is, how he wins. I tend to pick apart the rack and break up the clusters, but then get out of line and miss a shot - leaving him a much more open table than I started with. That's not always the case, I mean, he's a good shot; but if I had to call out only one flaw in his game - it's that he consistently shoots optimal break-out balls early in the rack, leaving himself with far too much work to do later in the spread. It's always close, within 10 points or so, but still. I just can't seem to get him. haha

However, the great news of the night, is that I scored a new high run! We were playing a shorter race to 25 just to finish out the time, and I was on like 5 or 6 points when he missed a shot. I ran the last 10 balls to get to great on my break-out ball.  We racked the 14, I fired the breakshot, sunk my ball and then ran another 11 balls before getting out of line trying to bump a ball out of the rack for my next break out. So, that was a run of TWENTY-TWO!! 11 from the previous rack and 11 from this rack! I didn't even know I had finished the race, and I get he was letting me go, since I was clearly shooting well. I'm glad he did. :)

My previous high run was 17 from a few weeks ago. :)

Well, league hasn't been all that great lately. I lost to a guy I shouldn't lose to, because I missed THREE 9 balls - and he won by 3 games. So, I absolutely gave that match away. But, I'm pretty sure I know the reason behind that.  Last week, after my 2nd real domination in a league match, I stopped to eat some food, then got into some action.  The game was one pocket, and we negotiated a fair game, 10-7 - me going to 7. The first came I won by 2 balls, then he won the next 6, then I got one back, then he got it. I called it quits down 5 games.  I knew it would be tough action, the guy moves well, plays a lot more one pocket than I do, and can run balls.  But, still, after I calmed down and thought about what happened, it was apparent that I didn't really do too many things wrong - I just didn't execute the plans. I'd miss an easy shot that he wasn't supposed to leave me; I'm supposed to get 4 or 5 balls from that position, but I'd be lucky to get 2. I just wasn't punishing him for his mistakes.  Okay, lesson learned.  But, it did really put a dent in my confidence level.  Which is probably what caused me to lose my next league match; I just didn't feel like I was owning the table.  After that horrible loss, I took a break, had some dinner, and again matched up with the same guy, same game (10-7).  And again, we traded some games, but I still ended up loser, (basically a 3-ahead set, so I quit down 3 games).  And again, after review, I made the mistakes I did last time - not executing my shots/plans.  Well, there's another big dent in my confidence.

So, last night, I went to go practice. I hit some balls for a while, then was asked to play some, a race to 7 in 9-ball. I lose the first rack by missing the 7.  The 2nd rack, he breaks dry, I *run out*!! He gets another game, then I get the next 5, putting me on the hill and him on 2 - at which point, he buys out.  I played really well, good position, took my time, didn't force anything and I got a few rolls.

The sweet icing on this cake is that I quit smoking over the weekend and I wasn't sure how playing pool would go; since I tend to get pretty upset if I dog too many balls (something else to work on).  But, since I wasn't dogging, I wasn't getting upset - and I had the e-cig available when I did miss a ball.

I'm going back tonight to see if it was just a fluke, or if I really have regained some good composure. :)

I'm planning on trying some new drills this week.  First up: The Shotmaker Test

Then after that, the Colin Colenso Potting Test:

I don't expect either of these to be a walk in the park, but should be interesting either way.

Friday, as usual, was league night. I have to say, I played pretty damn well. My opponent was struggling a little, and since we're friends outside of the pool hall, I usually get a little sympathetic and it affects my game. But, two weeks ago, I made a decision to really focus on just my game, regardless of what the other person is doing. My first "test" of this new mentality was actually last monday when I played a make-up match against someone who is notorious for shitting all over the table. I used to get really frustrated by that, and I still get annoyed, but I noticed it really wasn't bothering me that much.  He was really struggling too, which is always a bad sign because then he just freewheels and fires at everything 100 miles an hour. It's when he's the most dangerous.  But, I jumped out to a quick 4-0 lead so the luck factor at this stage didn't really worry me. I was playing well, making good decisions, feeling good. All the while, he's getting more upset that I'm missing less than I used to. "Oh well" I thought to myself, and continued with my run. I won that match 9-3, you can watch the video here.  Back to Friday's match. it was sort of similar, except I hung the first 9 ball rack, so he got the first win, but then I got the next 5. Including my first break and run during a league match!  It was as if the stars aligned though - I make 3 balls on the break, and 3 other balls are ducks no more than 6 inches from the pocket.  Still, I made it interesting, by coming up short on the 8 ball and am forced to shoot a cross corner bank, but it goes and I get good on the 9. Take a few extra breaths and sink it. I end up winning that match by 6 racks, 9-3 as well.  I was really happy, and it's a real confidence booster. No video on this one as for some reason my camera was acting very strangely - super zoomed in and panned to the extreme right - but there are no controls for that in the camera. I might have hit it somehow and dislodged the sensor, I dunno but I'm a little annoyed.

I sit around and grab some dinner, and chit chat with some players for a few hours, then get into a one pocket match.  I'm getting 10-7 and although I win the first rack, I lose the next 6, then I get one back, but lose the next one. I call it quits down 5 racks.  In retrospect, I should never have played. We started close to midnight and I was already tired, but the end of the match, I wasn't even thinking straight. Even my memory is hazy at best at what I was shooting.  But, I always think I'm more awake than I actually am - and that's when I play poorly and lose money. *sigh* Oh well. another learning experience.  Fridays are bad for action, since by the time I'm ready for action, I've already been up for about 16 hours, spent all day at work, and played a league match. Mentally, I'm already a step down. Someday, I'll remember that no how good I feel, getting close to that 18 hour mark, I lose a lot of focus.