Beating the nerves in a match.

[finabb]

Hi All

Recently i was playing in the summer league and we were 4-1 up, i played the last frame and if I won it the team would be in the semi-finals.

I couldn't control my nerves and played terrible (as I had in most of the other matches I played) and after giving a 12 start I just won on the pink.

After the game I put 15-18 balls on the table and in no order potted them without missing whilst gaining good position after each pot so I knew my potting was fine.

How is the best way to calm the nerves WITHOUT drinking alcohol.
Thanks

[cueman]

Just sounds typical of match snooker and most players will have gone through what you have and still do on a regular basis.

There isn't really a solution other than your mindset. For me I just believe in myself, try and shut out the fact its a match, for me its just me and the table, I don't have an opponent. Its easier said than done and it may be a trial and error thing to find something that works, but the very fact that straight after the match that you were playing well again just proves how mentally you need to set yourself up for a match.

Relying on outside agents definitely doesn't work unless you naturally suffer from nerves around people on a regular basis.

[Acrowot]

I first learned to play in an alcoholic free billiard hall, so none of us had alcohol when we played.

Most of our away were games were in licensed clubs, but the majority from my club never touched the stuff when we played.

Only one or two players in our league did drink when they were playing.

Then after we had played we used to have a drink or two, but the odd person used to like plenty of ale to play with. I must say, that most of us younger players (as we were once young!), did not drink until we were 18.

Now, when I played darts, I used to get well fuelled up ..... I supposed that is cos we learned to play darts at the pub and were drinking as well.
:snooker:

[Sport Focus]

The best way to try to control your nerves is to start away from the table, Controling your nerves takes a lot of practice, just as much or as important than the practice that you put into playing the game in the first place.

Your nerves can be up and down like anything else in life, sometimes you can feel that you should be nervous in a situation yet feel calm and other times question why you feel so nervous over something that you feel that you should be comfortable with.

Its not easy by any means but with practice you can try to control this more so that the feelings dont surprise you for one.

Everyone reacts in a different way, so there isnt just one thing that helps everyone, However theres a very good chance that if you was in this situation again you would have learned from this experience and although still feel nervy would naturally try something different to change the outcome.

If anyone would like to work on these issues you may like to have a look at my site.

www.mattandrewsmentoring.org

[CoachGavin]

Sometimes it could be that you are nervous as you are scared of losing/ missing easy pots etc in front of people. One way to look at this is to sit down and imagine the worst possible outcome for a match and play it through in your mind. A lot of the time the worst thing that can happen in reality is no where near as bad as your feelings about the match. You will find that the nervousness and anxiety is a lot worse than it should be and does not match the worst case scenario. If you know and have imagined the worst case scenario then the actual match will likely turn out better than this and your nerves will improve. Accepting the worst case scenario will help you get past it and get on with the match.

[Sport Focus]

Sometimes it could be that you are nervous as you are scared of losing/ missing easy pots etc in front of people. One way to look at this is to sit down and imagine the worst possible outcome for a match and play it through in your mind. A lot of the time the worst thing that can happen in reality is no where near as bad as your feelings about the match. You will find that the nervousness and anxiety is a lot worse than it should be and does not match the worst case scenario. If you know and have imagined the worst case scenario then the actual match will likely turn out better than this and your nerves will improve. Accepting the worst case scenario will help you get past it and get on with the match.

Actually using Visualisation techniques can be really useful but don’t suit everyone and again can take practice.
It’s better to use these more in a positive way where you take time to visualise yourself playing well, visualise how you will stay positive, confident and motivated.
Visualise yourself winning the Frame and think about how this will feel and what it would be like, you can then move on to the next frame and the match.
This really helps to build your confidence, it sets your mind up in a more positive and focused way and it helps to clearly outline what your goal and targets are in your mind.
If you try to use Negative thoughts as a positive, such as what’s the worst that can happen ,if things don’t go your way during a match its easier to imagine things to continue to go wrong for you and easier for this to become a reality.

[CoachGavin]

I agree with you. Really what i meant was that what you are scared of is usually not all that bad and your mind makes it seem worse. In this case I have found it helpful to think through it logically so that you can actually understand that your mind is making it seem worse. I used to get nervous in league matches when I started off but realized its only a game and the worst that could happen was that I lose and miss a few easy balls. The world would not end and I would play again the following week. Once I got this into my head I was more positive and play with more freedom.

I have used positive visualization techniques in the past and found them very helpful. Like you say they are good for the confidence but I would recommend getting advice from someone who knows what they are doing if possible as SportFocus suggests.

[Giggity1984]

I agree with you. Really what i meant was that what you are scared of is usually not all that bad and your mind makes it seem worse. In this case I have found it helpful to think through it logically so that you can actually understand that your mind is making it seem worse. I used to get nervous in league matches when I started off but realized its only a game and the worst that could happen was that I lose and miss a few easy balls. The world would not end and I would play again the following week. Once I got this into my head I was more positive and play with more freedom.

I have used positive visualization techniques in the past and found them very helpful. Like you say they are good for the confidence but I would recommend getting advice from someone who knows what they are doing if possible as SportFocus suggests.

I think CoachGavin's post was very useful to anyone trying to sort out their mental game. I have read(too many times to count!!!) Bob Fanchers "The Pleasures Of Small Motions" many times and there are several sections which deal with a fear of winning and nerves at the pool table. It transposes directly to snooker and is particularly good if your trying to get your nerves in check!

I would add that personally I think it's a good idea to remember that it is a match and not practice. I know a lot of people say "forget you're playing a match", but, for me, this doesn't work. It's like saying, don't think of a pink elephant, subconciously, that's all you will focus on and eventually, you will. lol.


This basically feeds back to what CoachGavin was saying and that I tend to think, "ok, this is the frame for the semi's, the whole of my team and all of their team and some bystanders are watching, what's the worst possible outcome?!" then think "ok what's the best possible outcome?!". Psychologically an unanswered question is always there nagging away at you. If you deal with it in your head and focus on playing and cueing straight then hopefully things will work out. If it doesn't, then the outcome is never as bad as you think!

[muzicman147]

Hi All

Recently i was playing in the summer league and we were 4-1 up, i played the last frame and if I won it the team would be in the semi-finals.

I couldn't control my nerves and played terrible (as I had in most of the other matches I played) and after giving a 12 start I just won on the pink.

After the game I put 15-18 balls on the table and in no order potted them without missing whilst gaining good position after each pot so I knew my potting was fine.

How is the best way to calm the nerves WITHOUT drinking alcohol.
Thanks

I used to be the same,but after yrs of playing league pool and snooker i dont think about it now.
I used to find if i watched the frame before mine i'd get wound up. so i used to try to play first or leave the room the frame before,i found this helped. but in the end i think it comes down to the more you play, the less it bothers you.

[andy carson]

play some games against friends for money (not big amounts but big enough for you to want to play properly and win) and that should help you play under pressure on the pots and safety

[finabb]

Thanks for all the good advice, I've got my first winter league match tomorrow and I'll put some of your idea's into practice.

[finabb]

Up-date of the match last night.
I lost both my games but the nerves weren't really there so quite happy about that.

It seems that you go with good intentions to stand, sight, pause, follow through correctly but it just doesn't happen; one of the above gets left out and you have a poor game.

Hope i play better next week

[thelongbomber]

The best way to try to control your nerves is to start away from the table, Controling your nerves takes a lot of practice, just as much or as important than the practice that you put into playing the game in the first place.

Your nerves can be up and down like anything else in life, sometimes you can feel that you should be nervous in a situation yet feel calm and other times question why you feel so nervous over something that you feel that you should be comfortable with.

Its not easy by any means but with practice you can try to control this more so that the feelings dont surprise you for one.

Everyone reacts in a different way, so there isnt just one thing that helps everyone, However theres a very good chance that if you was in this situation again you would have learned from this experience and although still feel nervy would naturally try something different to change the outcome.

If anyone would like to work on these issues you may like to have a look at my site.

www.mattandrewsmentoring.org

Matt, the word "Professional" is spelled wrong on your site. Your spelt it "Proffesional"... lol

[gem]

Every one suffers from nerves, it is part of the reason that we enjoy it. You can't beat feeling terrified but still playing well, a win in this instance lasts for days later.
If it didn't get you a bit worked up then there wouldn't be a great reason to win.
I think sometimes just having played under pressure can help. I remember that I tended to feel a bit more pressure when playing league matches after the summer break but a few weeks in I could handle it better.
I think sometimes people miss when under pressure if they lose their routine. This can lead to rushed shots and lifting from the shot early. If your cuing is decent then as long as you cue smooth and aim well then you should pot under most conditions.

I remember something that helped me with my golf under pressure. Just before our club championship I had watched Reteif Goosen three put from 12 feet when 2 puts would have won him the 2001 US open. He went on to win the next day after time to compose himself.
I went into the matchplay stage with the mindset that if one of the worlds best players can three put from there why should I fear doing this myself. It allowed me to not feel too much pressure on the short puts as anyone can miss them.
You could do this with snooker as well. Look at the pots the top players can miss at times and we realize that it is not just us that can do this.

[thinsy]

I feel this is good advice
Many people practice snooker on the table but actually keeping calm is best practiced off it.

Marco Fu is very good at this and Williams, Ebdon, Ronnie on the pro front

One does meditating, one just does not give a toss, one has read books on mind control and the other if not all of them have paid for a mind coach at some point.

One thing that helped me was some free advice I heard from one of these mind coachs (mentioning no names) but he said try staying calm when watching a sport that you like. So I went to watch a boxing match and tried staying clam all the way thro it.
I did this again and again at football etc and eventually I started clearing up from behind at snooker more frequently with no nerves. (strange but true)

Practice off the table in this regard is more important than practice on it I feel, not so much for us club players but I would think it is esential, especially for the top players.

WOW!! Never heard this before, but I like it

Hopefully it will work for me :snooker: