I recently went to New Jersey to shoot in another semi-pro event, this one was the N.J. State Championship presented by NorthEastWomensTour directed by Linda Haywood. The last qualifier for the us open.
Saturday morning I found the billiard hall in which we were to play Primetime Sports Bar & Grill located in S.Amboy. I arrived nice and early so I could practice, get warmed up, and get accustom to the invirement. When I started hitting balls and started to build up my convidense, you tell yourself that this will be the day you can't lose. Your head is now where it needs to be to compete and win. Then the door opens and in walks the best of the best, your heart starts to pound out of your chest and you realize you could possibly play Karen Corr, Julie Kelly, maybe even Alison Fisher the list goes on. Keep your eye on the door because more have arrived, the best of the best are all here to compete. You tell yourself this is what you want, to be the best, you must first beat the best. Then the tournament begins, table assignments are called out and you are waiting to hear your name. Deep down you want someone who plays at your level, hopefully that first game will give you the momentum to move deeper in the tournament. I give a sigh of relief that my first match-up is not with one of the greats. I win and I am on my way to the top. When you play around the better players you naturally watch their games. They play the game with such precision and accuracy, an error is almost impossible to spot, if they do make one they are so proficient they have no trouble fixing it. The final 12 make it to the next day and only the pros remain. Karen Corr wins with her usual style. she is so deliberate and she stays so focused. The rest of the top fifteen battled hard to win. there were a lot of close games and sometimes just a wrong turn of the ball this way or that way or a miscue was all it took for someone to advance and others to be done for the day.
As an amateur I stand in awe watching, trying to pick up on a few things that they do on the table that I could use later. The pros are just that, they play pool for a living, most of them have played their whole life. For amateurs we usually have chosen other careers and when we can we practice, some more than others, I usually practice 4 times a week 3 hours a day, in the back of my mind I tell myself that I am as good as they are and one day I will get the opportunity to prove it to myself as well as others. So to everyone who reads this article the following should apply, stay calm, you will get out of the game whatever you put into it, desire alone won't get you there. Practice, practice and more practice, you must have a good attitude. You need to be able to listen when someone wants to help and give advice. Try not to take offense, the last thing I can say is that it is very important to never give up, whatever level you want to be in the game of pool, be happy and enjoy the game! Thanks,
Cheryl Pritchard
A member of the Northeast Women's Pool Tour.
WWW.JPNEWT.com