Cue Tips: Purple Rain becomes Crimson Tide
Rack ‘em up!
The news that Golden West Saloon decided to skip the Fort Bragg Pool League fall season was sad news, and we hope they are back next season. The Fort Bragg Pool League kind of took off before all of the horses were cinched properly, and in confusion, Golden West Saloon was left standing at the barn. In other news, people are again competing and playing League pool in Fort Bragg after 18 months of not playing. When the first shutdown was announced, we thought it would be over in a couple of months, possibly by June 2020. When we heard the news of the closure, we couldn’t imagine not playing for two months. Never did we think it might last 18 months. It remains a shock to have lost those many weeks of playing in the Fort Bragg Pool League, and the hope it never happens again.
Purple Rain reinvented himself again, and he is now appearing as a version of the Crimson Tide.
Greg, as usual, takes a bit of time before he settles down to winning in League. League play brings its own pressures, and one wishes not to let the team down by losing the match. Worrying about not letting down the team, while you are playing a match, may increase the likelihood of you doing just that. Concentrate on the table in front of you. Tune out all comments and concentrate on your actual opponent, who is playing against you at the table. If you let your concentration wander, you may miss that easy play that costs you the match.
When you get a ball in hand, take the extra time you may not know you need to decide which ball to play first. If you can, choose a ball that gives a natural shape for the next ball. We have all watched as someone with the ball in hand, makes the play and misses the shot, or the shape on the next ball. It seems impossible, but it happens to someone every season. If it does happen to you, let it go. The shot is over, and thinking about it will only help draw you away from your present problem: winning the match. It can be counterproductive to think about your past mistakes while concentrating on a problem you have in the here and now.
For Tuesday, 09/28/2021: Team position: Tip Top Lounge Team # 2: 3 wins; Welcome Inn Team # 1: 3 wins; Angelina’s Grille & Bar Team # 1: 2 wins; Tip Top Team # 1: 2 wins; Welcome Inn Team # 2: 1 win; Angelina’s Grille & Bar Team # 2: 0 wins.
Top of their Team players: Angelina’s Grille &
Bar Team 1: Donnie Appelgate, Brady Baumgartner, and Joshua House are tied with four wins each; Angelina’s Grille & Bar Team 2: Tony Matlick with three wins; Tip Top Lounge Team 1: Will Niemeyer and Jubilee Placido are tied with six wins each; Tip Top Lounge team 2: Olee Johnson with five wins; Welcome Inn Team 1: Ian Rubesch with six wins; Welcome Inn Team 2: Omie Behrns with three wins.
Top League players:
Will Niemeyer, Jubilee Placido, and Ian Rubesch have six wins each. Tino Berlesci, Dan Casteel, and Olee Johnson have five wins each.
Tournament winner: Steve Neal won the first tournament. Steve Jackson the second tournament.
Visit Angelina’s Grille & Bar, Tip Top Lounge, or Welcome Inn: all maintain a calendar of play. Look to the list for someone you know and find where they play. You might join a team, meet new people, or just watch the 8-ball games as they are played. League play starts Tuesdays at 7 pm and is over by 10 pm. Tournaments take a couple of hours to complete, and anyone can enter. If visiting Fort Bragg, test your game against our local players! Good company, food, and music, a full bar with Shuffleboard, Dice, and/or Dart games in addition to billiards for entertainment. Angelina’s Grill and Bar also features Karaoke Friday evenings. If you like a venue with an outdoor Patio, try Malano’s bar, friendly patrons a full-service bar, and you can enjoy the outside air from the comfort of their Patio. Come and enjoy your stay in Fort Bragg.
Cue Tip: If you are having difficulty in a game, that is important for you to win. Become a conservative player and start by playing center hit on the cue ball and playing with a softer stroke. Concentrate on making the ball; forget about spin for
the green and expertly bounced to the left coming to rest closest to the hole. Players, winners or not, at rounds end were treated to a variety of club sandwiches, potato salad, and drinks. Thank you Men’s Club for a great day of golf and to Kathy Sheply and her Pro Shop staff for their excellent support.
A little story: On the eighteenth green I pulled the pin for our team’s attempt at a birdie putt. I noticed a black and yellow bee was trapped in the hole. I tried to rescue the bee before we putted so it wouldn’t get crushed by a ball but my rescue attempt only succeeded in causing the bee to fall in the flag slot. The bee was now safe from getting crushed by a putt. We finished the hole but I could not replace the flag with the bee in the slot so I kneeled on the green and offered a long tee to the bee who gratefully climbed aboard. Rescued!!!