Invincible, the book

Now on Amazon.com

Shoot or Safe

Lessons to be learned:

I feel that I don't play safe often enough.

That leads me to question "enough".

What I'm really wanting is to increase my win rate.

by optimizing my probabilities of winning with each shot.

It's seems that we are wired to take the shot.

Taking the shot is more aggressive, more manly.

Playing safe seems passive, avoiding our responsibilities.

Most of the time, when it is our turn at the table,

we don't think at all about playing safe.

Running out is our first instinct,

especially when we have an easy first shot.

We don't even think of playing safe... why should we?

Because playing safe can increase the chances of winning

We don't think fully before we take that first easy shot.

And what about the next one, and the one after that?

If a runout is a low probability, then it should not be attempted.

The alternative is to play defense and still control the table.

More of an offensive defense.

When a safe is easier than a shot, play the safe to get ball in hand.

I like the safe where you block a pocket, hide the cue ball, 

and break up a cluster, all at the same time.  

The trifecta of offensive defense.

Lots of choices we have for each shot.

If we thought of the probabilities for how each option would play out, 

I think we would be playing safe much more frequently. 

Playing pool would be more like chess.

But better by far than chess because the pieces can move anywhere on the field of play,

and they can look beautiful while moving there.

There is no physicality with chess, it's all mind.

Pool can have such beautiful physicality 

while delighting the mind with clever strategy.

Safe play can delight the mind if it is unexpected, and especially if is precise.

Gratuitous safety play can greatly frustrate an opponent,

breaking down their game,

an ideal strategy for a less skilled player,

a classic hustler move.

The key to increasing my win rate is to consider more choices more often.

Each shot must be planned based on the continually changing field of play,

so the mental strategy checklist must be restarted from scratch.  

Each shot.