blonde poker forum

Hi guys :)

There's a hell of a lot of action going on now in the UK for American Pool, and specifically 9-ball. I've been playing American Pool for the last year now, and looking to take the next step. I like entering tournaments but I am best focused in one on one match situations as it suits me better.

My best result so far is beating the World No1/Mosconi Cup MVP/US Open Champion/World 10-ball Champion Darren Appleton in a tournament two weekends ago in Wakefield. Had notable scalps against some of the UKs top amateurs and ran a few close in other matches. I'm showing a lot of potential, and as a result getting free coaching from former top 10 UK ranked player Nigel Webb. So I'm in very good hands.

I am looking to see if there are any people interested in staking for money games. My current record in small games for anything between £5 and £20 is exemplary. My biggest match I've played is 9-ball match for £200 a man Race to 30 racks against a guy called Andy Mistry. Was my first big match and I conducted myself well winning convincingly.

Because I am still a relatively unknown name to most people I want to take advantage of this by getting games that are in my favour. But I don't have the cash I'd necessarily like to get some games going.

WHAT I PROPOSE

I will match the stake offered and I will pay back stake + 50% on any winnings (this is open to negotiation). I am happy to take less than 50% of winnings at the start to repay the faith put into me as a horse.
I live in Leicester, so if any of you who are interested are close by then I’m happy to chat with you. If you want to discuss anything either please reply to the post or send me a private message. If you want to chat on phone I’ll give you my mobile number privately.
I pay back on all dealings promptly. I will keep a log book of all games played, results etc and also try to record my games in action if at all possible.

Cheers
Baz :)

what was the race to when you beat appleton?

a lot has to be taken on trust

Most people are staked by people in the game.

could be interesting sweat if you can play for enough to get you on cuesport.tv

Hi Ace, it was a race to 12 I had a 6 start. So not a game off levels as such. Still, was a match against the player I 'idolise' and I was starstruck and trembling for the whole match. Turned out I play better with wobbly knees than without. Not bad for less than a years play :)

The aim is to get a match on cuesport.tv as long as it is a game that is good for me. I'm not just going to chuck money around if I'm only 30% to win, I have to be at least 50% to win to take any game.

To Action Man - a lot has to based on trust both ways. I can only give my word and offer to start small or meet up with people in person to prove that I am trustworthy.

Kinboshi has met me in person before when he took me to DTD, and while that has nothing to do with Pool or anything else I hope he can at the very least vouch for my character while in his company.

Not a good habit.

Baz do u know my cousin Ben Finch?

know nothing about pool but read some of the viffer stuff and it seems that whether you play pool good or not is irrelevant gambling wise, it's all about who gets the game structured in their favour pre match. angle shooting is positively encouraged. all the drama over the ivey/vaswani golf game for example wouldn't even raise an eyebrow.

if russ hamilton and tiger woods were setting up a golf match, who would you bet on?

How do you get games?

How much are you looking for?

What about expenses?

Funny enough I played him last August. I'm lucky to have beat him from 4-1 down winning 5-4, but he's a class player. Wish him the best on the Pro Division in GB9.

Surely the fact you have never played for proper money before is a huge disadvantage?

I mean you played a race to 30 for £200 and called it a big match!

You could turn up to poker festivals and get $100 per rack games with anyone- bear in mind i mean anyone and me for example, im dreadful- but as long as u didnt beat me too badly id probably do a few hundred etc

Byron, regarding the Viffer stuff it is stupid the weight he is given in One Pocket pool. When the pros have to pot 18 balls to his 4 that really is gambling because he does practise as well. One Pocket is the gamblers game, but in rotation games like 9-ball and 10-ball it is harder to get the right weight. You can give away games on the wire (say 5 start to 21) or you can give balls away, so they can pot the 6-ball as if it is a 9-ball. The handicaps are endless.

When I 'gamble' the game is a lot more simple. Straight race to 21 or whatever the race is, long enough to show true skill but not so long it turns into a snoozefest. A lot of it is about angling for an edge but in my experience the angling seems to be a thing among road players and pros. Brits tend to just play straight races, like most games on cuesport.tv :)


I'll try to lose the small ones and win the big ones :P

Games can occur in different ways. I've been approached through a 3rd party, I've beaten someone in a league who wants revenge, and in the case of Money Match TV there are 5 different categories and you look for players to match up against in your category.

If you want rough figures, then I'd look at minimum £300 max whatever is comfortable for the individual.

Expenses for table time during matches etc and travel will come out of my own pocket.

Hi Dubai, you'd be right that £200 a man isn't a big game. But bear in mind please I am not loaded to high heavens, and 'big game' is subjective. Going around the pool halls in Leicester and other places I frequently visit, you are lucky to get games for £20 a set let alone anything else.

It's probably better to say I played a game for a significant amount of money. Again, that is subjective. To a man who's in a crappy insurance job £200 is a fair chunk, but I'd suggest that £200 is a drop in the ocean to some gamblers.

I meant don't win well so you can do this:


Rather than doing this:


Turn up at a festival, whup the world champ 21-0 and gg getting any action.

Oh, and whilst what constitutes "large stakes" is indeed subjective, the whole point about it is that some players crumble under the pressure of it whilst others thrive on it.  Anyone can clear the table in practice, but when the money on is obscene, many players start missing regulation shots.

cant we just land a betting coup with you instead

Hi Baz, can I ask a couple of probing questions please, only fauir I think seen as you disappeared from here for 18 months after a spell where you posted a lot, then come back and within a day or two are after money.  

You seemed to be mad keen on chess, then you say youve now dropped it, how does an investor know you wont lose interest over night if you lose a match or two?

At what '£' point does '£' affect your game?

What reason do you need staking, you simply dont have the cash?

GL anyway.

Hi Chip Prince, that's fair enough I'll answer.

I was keen on chess and ended up turning into a complete recluse, and a complete nutjob over it. I stopped posting here and everywhere else, I stopped going out other than to chess clubs and lost a lot of my friends because they thought I'd gone mad. Probably true considering if I lost a blitz game I'd want to hit the screen.

Pool taught me a lot about self control, and my coach has a lot to answer for in that he changed my mindset.

Pool is something that has always interested me, but I never wanted to take it seriously because I was scared I'd lose the love for it. But I have a balance of activities now so that pool always feels fresh, even if I play 4 hours a day (my norm). Having a giirlfriend helps too :)

At what point does £ affect my game? In any tiny game up to £20 a man I can play as if I am practising. My mindset doesn't change much other than that I replace bragging rights (in friendlies) to winning money. The couple of times have played for considerably more I have found I am nervous for the first 3 or 4 racks while I am finding my feet. After that I have the same mindset I have in practise.

I am looking to be staked for 50% as I have to give some of my money to my girlfriend. We reached a compromise where she'll support me in money games but only if I am not responsible for 100%. She's my rock, and she's in a difficult patch therefore I will agree if she supports me. She does 100%, and thats why I'm looking to the staking.

Sorry about the timing of it all, it seemed a good idea to ask while I am planning my next 6 months with my coach to include a week on the road in Holland. I'm just catching up with whats what on here after all this time. Glad RSQ is still around :)

Baz

I'm gonna sound a complete noob here, but what is a betting coup?

No offence intended, whatever the answer to this question, I just want to remeber if you are the guy I think you are..

Are you the poster with autism?

That's right.

I'll just say if I've broken any kind of forum etiquette in asking then I do apologise. Not my intention to wind anybody up if I have done so. :)

you havent - people are still a little sensitive after a few grimming episodes last year

there is a lot of trust required for your proposal - but glgl with getting staked

Well if he loses, can just make him go casino and grind blackjack

I'll give you a go.

I'll put up £125, if you can find 3 others to do the same that's a £500 roll to get you started.

If keef is in I'll have a punt for 500 too. Would want a few more details about you via pm though if that's ok

im in- where do u live? going pub at weekend with one of my mates who fancies himself, he is obv terrible and you would be 1-1000, but he likes a punt and got real good job, so after few beers would challenge u to a monkey no doubt if u was just messing around on the pool table nearby. If not this weekend can set it up at some point. He can afford and needs a pool/gambling reality check, will save him money in the longter,

I'll do it to for £125 but i want a bit more structure and some input into who you play etc (don't want you taking a game against someone you've never heard of for half the stake for example).

Would there be people around who will play you for money anytime who from experience are of a similar standard?

lol

Keep us updated with games/stakes/how you are doing on this thread.

A weekly report would be nice.

Make sure you keep this roll separate to other money, once you start mixing your roll with living money you can get in all sorts of trouble.

Treat it like a business.

Right, me, Cos, Acey and Dubai will put up £125 each. That's £500.

Send us a group pm with your bank details, address, telephone number etc etc and how you plan to get this show on the road.

Could get 4 more and make it a bag? Im up for him going all in v a few chumps a few times until we get to like 16k.

Dunno about that.

A guy who is used to playing for £5-£20 suddenly playing for 8 lumps doesn't sound too good unless he's playing a complete egg.

yeah just a rich fish with an ego- got a phone full of them

Lol <3 dubai.

Baz is currently having a sly tommy tank at the thought of playing a race to 9 for 16 grand against one of Dubai's mates!

I always thought that a stakehorse was the guy who put up the money, ie. the backer not the player.

lol Karabiner I'm not sure of the exact terminology I just know Im the horse running for 1st place :)

Im off out to practise but I will be sending messages out later this evening. And no, I will not be putting everything on the line in one go lol. Anything can happen in pool, even against a complete moron.

I'll be in touch in a few hours time when I get back.

Baz

Im out- "You got to be willing to die, in order to live"

Legend

GL Baz, hope it works out for everyone, sounds like it will be a fun adventure if nothing else.

Fucking awesome!!!

Not my personal philosophy but I can't fault any man willing to risk it all to win it all and more.

Which poker player said that originally? It was one of the old school American players I think?

Amir Vahedi

I want in if all these balla's are up for it.

Would just like an idea of what the plan is, just show up at places and hope for a game?

Ben's your cousin?
He's awesome on a day/night out. He also has that rare talent of actually playing better when he's had a skinful/hungover
A good mate of Daz appleton's too

Fugly, if you were shaking when playing for them relatively small amounts then I suggest you get a fair few more games under your belt. Money games are as much about, if not more, the mental side of the game. Beating Daz in a race to 12 with a 6 start doesn't mean a thing, sorry if that sounds harsh.
Sounds like your best bet is to get Dubai to set up games with his mates who have plenty to lose. This will give you the ideal practice. If your serious about money games then you can always find games for thousands of pounds, if thats what you want.
How much do you expext your exes to be. I remember them being fairly expensive, in relation to prize pools for tourneys, that were not on your door step

I'll tell you what Fugly,

If you can beat me(an old bloke who hasn't picked up a stick in anger for two or three years) in a race to 12 giving me 6 start for £20 I'll take a piece of your action.

I'm resident in Nottingham so easy enough for me to pay you a visit.

Can you film yourself running out a few racks?

Vegaslover, it was only when I played Daz that I was trembling. He is my favourite player so to play him was an unusual experience. As soon as I got a couple of racks early I was fine.

Let me please say I know beating Daz off +6 means nothing. Even beating him off +1 doesn't count because his aim is to just level the match. Can't think of winning until he has done so. But it's just to give people an idea that against the players who I look up to, I am not fazed and I can play fairly decently. In the money games I just have a massive rush of adrenaline in first few racks, then calm it down and get into stroke but no wobbly knees. Even a bout of sickness didn't stop me from playing well in a match.

I wasn't looking for stakes in tournaments, but the expense for the GB9 Tour is massive (partly why I'm not bothering as no value for money). Fees for the Challenge Tour are £595 for 4 events, plus £78 hotels, and rip off prices for food and travel. Pro Division I think is a lot higher around £750-£800 then same exe's on top.

If I'm playing a one off money match for say £250 and above - which a few challenges have been issued to me  -  then I'm spending probably £30 on fuel and drinks to the driver, and money for a hotel or finding someone I know to stay with. The expenses aren't cheap but much better than an overnight tournament and the reward is instant and a lot higher.

Theres a bloke I've played approximately 15 times who has never beat me, and every time says 'one day I'll beat you, I got your number'. He wants to play me for £500 a man but wants a race to 100 which is stupid. But there are enough games like that going around in Leicester, and if Dubai has some rich and stupid mates then even better!

I can certainly try. But if you are expecting me to do what the top amateurs do and run 4-5 racks in a row then I can't give you that. The most I've ever run in a row is a 3pack. What I will do is get my mrs to film and then send it to you somehow or put it on youtube.

Here is one video of me running 1-15 in a line up drill. #Invalid YouTube Link#

This was 8 months ago, but is only thing I have. I changed my cue since then from a crap £30 Rileys cue to a custom cue with Predator 314/2 shaft, so I can play more shots and play with more precision and feel.

The video was taken at the Winchester Snooker Club in Wigston, Leicestershire.

Edit would help if I actually posted the video! :)

Also live in Wigston. Play any other clubs in leicester?

Okay cool. PM me and we can sort out when you want to play. Theres a couple of decent tables in Leicester we can play our game on.

Just to stress to people too, the people I'll be playing are those of supposed similar ability. But I have spectated more games than I care to remember, or have sources who know these guys, whereas I'm an unknown quantity.

Ooooh a Wigstonian in the house :)

Main club is Rileys by the Infirmary, because I get free table time there. Play at Rack n Roll and Club 147 as well. Winchester is too expensive to practise on my own - £6 an hour for dead tables is no good for me. Whereabouts are you? I live by the Cuisine of India.

Off the Oadby/Wigston road so not too far!

doesnt seem like there is much money in the game

Depends. If I am being expected to rake in tens of thousands then you would be right. But there are plenty of games I can take at few hundred a time, while building up with smaller games at same time. There are regular action nights at Vegas Bar Wakefield and I know of places I can go to get games. Even if it means me travelling to wakefield there are enough games going that I can gain an edge in.

This isn't a quick buck thing, unless Dubai really does know loads of idiots ready to chuck away cash off levels lol

Do you ever find the chess skillz helping out with the pool at all?

George and Fugly get yourselves over to Rileys Nottingham not Leicesteurrrggghh

Me and Ralph will come and beat you

First money match is on!

Ches itself taught me to never give up and fight for every last hope (swindles etc). Translating to pool that means never conceding because they could dog a ball and leave you with the rack. Chess also taught me to be resourceful and once you find a move (or shot for pool) then look for another one. Not so relevant for rotation games, but for One Pocket and Straight Pool (14.1) it's very important.

Pool is social and fun, chess is about as anti-social and reclusive as it gets :)

Riley's Nottingham is a dive pal lol. The roll on the tables there is crazy. Let alone tables being poorly maintained. lol :)

Absoulute dive but at least its not in Leicester  ;)

If a few people were interested I would be tempted to drive over for a few games.
Always wanted to see that american pool shark Karabiner in action

Here is the plan/structure I want to have to make this as successful as possible. If you have any suggestions following this please have a say.

First off, I will set up two bank accounts separate from my living expenses – One for my half of the stake and another for your staking money. All money goes in there, and what I will do on a weekly or fortnightly basis is send account details to all the backers, so you can see what money has gone in (winnings) and out (stakes). By keeping accounts separate, it is easier to administrate and makes things simple. It just means carrying two cards around with me to withdraw equal amounts but that’s no hardship.

At the moment that means there’d be two accounts starting with £500 in each.

Any game won results in me paying Stakeback + 50% so for example if playing a match for £500, as you have 50% of the stake at £250 then you get that back plus £125 (50%) on top. If I lose, then that money has gone.

I do not intend to just turn up to a Rileys or Club 147 or wherever just hoping to get a game. If someone comes up and challenges me though, then I have that option to accept their challenge but only if I’m comfortable it’s a game I can win. I won’t be playing complete strangers who play like total crap then approach me, as that could be a hustle.

As I am putting my own money on the line as well, I will not be putting it all on one game. Even against a very bad player anything can still happen. That isn’t negative, it’s actually a good thing because if arrogance takes over then I will lose. I do not want to lose mine or your money.

I don’t really have any specific rule set for playing maximum %age in any one game, but as a general rule I will never go over 25%. If I intend to go over 25% of the roll I will try to get to one of you guys to see what you think. It would be a good idea if you have a ‘head’ of the group I can contact to get the green light. I don’t want to set money alight. I want to act with total integrity and honesty.

There is a designated Action Night in Wakefield on Thursdays where virtually every table has games on for money. This can be anything from £10 up to £200 depending on the players. This is the best night if I get a car full to try and make ‘big bucks’ in one night. I have a few challenges for an event called ‘Money Match TV’ ran at Vegas Bar for www.cuesport.tv too. One guy (Brendan Leigh) wants to play me for £500 a man, the other (Barry Briggs) will be £500 a man minimum but could possibly scrape more judging on other games he’s played.

I will keep a log book with all the money games played, dates, names, scores, amount played for etc. On a weekly basis I will email all backers with the results. I am objective, so I can tell you how I played. Where possible I’ll try to get a recording of my games, but you can understand some guys don’t want to end up on youtube randomly so might not always be possible? :)

For any small games up to £50 I don’t really see any need to consult you guys on my opponents because it’s going to be guys’ whose speed I already know. However any amount over that I will consult all of you and give you what information I can on the player. I will not be counting national rankings in my assessment of a game, because they mean nothing. Too many good players on tour, and if you play only 1 or 2 events a year and lose to say Ben Finch or Shane Appleton then you’re gonna be rock bottom, but may actually be a great player. I have enough contacts in the game to help me find out about somebody’s speed.

One thing that needs considering by you guys, is how regularly you’d like the payments. To start off with it’s going to be miniscule amounts if you’re splitting between 4. I can either pay all of you separately through bank transfers, or if you want to set up a group account (if that’s easy) then can pay to that and you guys work out the winnings between yourselves. Any money that goes back into your bank account can be used for staking until you all decide otherwise.

To confirm who is in on the action so far:-

The Camel - £125
GreekStein - £125
Dubai - £125 (please confirm)
ACE2M - £125

You're right, crap balls, crap tables, it's why I never play in Nottingham anymore.

Yes Stu, let's drive over there and whoop them and then George can take us somewhere nice for a ruby.

Sounds like a plan :)

Ruby! How could I say no.  :D

Count me in too.  I'll be the official observer - like Norris McWhirter (he loved a good curry too).

How about going over one afternoon next week, can you guys manage that?

Tuesday or Wednesday would be fine for me.

Tues possible
Weds nope

How's Tuesday for you Fugly, George, Kinboshi?

Tuesday sounds good to me.

:)up

Friggin hell that tour has got expensive. Hope it's a lot better managed then it used to be, though i doubt it is.
Looks like they taken a leaf out of harwoods book.

Hi Baz

Good to see you theres a few members intrested in staking you. Theres two 17 year old lads that would be intrested to play for £500 if you were intrested. The match could be organized to be played at andy appletons venue, vegas bar, which is in wakefield,  and im sure andy could arrange it to be on cue sport tv for your backers to watch.

PM me if your intrested.

This sounds fun.  I'll chuck a bit in if looking to get the roll up to a grand.

Who are the guys?

If they're fish wanting to gamble on pool, ty.

If not, I'll fill you in later on my thoughts.

Mark Lunn and Liam Waterworth. Both from Leeds area. Both can hold a cue as i imagine anyone who plays for £500 can. Conversation came about money matches and pool and i rememberd this thread. I explained to both theres a guy from leicster called baz asking for stakes for pool on a poker forum asked them if they would be intrested if a game could be arranged, both said yes, and here i am now asking if there would be any intrest from Baz wanting to play. There both young, LIams played a few matches between £100- 300, Mark hasnt played his 1st money match yet. Let us know your thoughts and if theres any more info you want.

Rather play Dubai's egotistical mates, but if that's off, I'm up for this plan.

Don't count on Mark not having played any money matches. Maybe he hasn't at 9 ball.
He plays all cue sports and very experienced at 8 ball. Had played youth international IIRC. Also done well in many tournaments with pros in

Me and Liam Waterworth get on quite well as pals, so this would be a no no game anyway just for that. He's a very good player and we've had a couple of cheap sets against each other. Let's put it simply, I wouldnt want to draw him in a competition let alone play for money. :)

Begaslover - the GB9 tour is phenomenal now. Lee Rigby does a great job as organiser, but now its moved to Barcelo hotels its turned very expensive and no value for money either. Tables they play on are awesome, but they no Brunswick or Diamond tables.

Want to get the roll up to a grand if I can, I'll count Jamier in on the action. I can't match any more than a grand (and that's at a push) so anyone else who wants a piece there's £375 left.

I'll have to play the role of the awkward *beep* :) I got tests at doctors in the afternoon on Tuesday so won't be able to commit to anything.

are there any poker games at all when ppl are bored of playing pool in wakey?

I think there are poker games going on. Dont know what stakes are played but can easily be found out for ya.

pls i can imagine it being very juciy

What all afternoon?

No not all afternoon lol, but if something goes wrong (not great with needles) then I dont want to let anyone down last minute.

When i first spoke to the lads i was been pritty vague, spoke to liam since he does know you baz and thinks like wise about your game, TBH the boys were more intrested about how someone can get staked for pool on the internet. Fwiw mark hasnt played any money matches holding a cue at any sport but as pointed out by vegaslover hes a very capable player. Gl luck with staking baz its not something i would not be intrested as its a long term comitment but if you ever get a match and stuck a stake request similar to a tournment stake and were selling %%% of yourself then pm me  i would be intresterd in buyin a piece if it was over one match.

If these kids were any good and had a brain- they would just get 4/5 credit cards whilst they are young- and go play for proper money- the fact they dont means they either aint very good or are stupid

Perhaps if you tell us which afternoons you are available next week and we can try and re-arrange it.

LOL yes that would be a good idea. Free on Weds/Thurs/Fri.

What is Money Match Tv?

It is an event televised by www.cuesport.tv and hosted at Vegas Bar, Wakefield. There are 4 main matches where the winner stays on for next event and defends their 'crown', while there are 2 wildcard matches. Cuesport.tv choose what they think will be the 3 best games to stream while the other 3 are 'undercard' matches and not shown live. All players have walkon music and get interviewed before/after the match. All matches are race to 21 racks of 9-ball

Matches played for £500 a man minimum.

There is also a similar event being set up at Hurricane Room in High Wycombe, and I have a few potential matchups there too. Dont think the games are streamed live (TBC) but games are race to 11 for £50 minimum and race to 19 for £200 minimum. For me I'm personally looking to play for higher stakes against the players I know I can beat.

i'll be honest and say i don't want to stake you to play the whole lot in one game. It's a bit nuts, its not like a tournament with massive potential returns.

can you engineer a few matches of between £100-£200 just to get yourself used to the pressure?

when i used to play it took me quite a while to be able play with fluidity in big games.

go to china and train some kids up imo

How much do cue.tv give the players for appearing on tv?

I won't be playing the whole lot in one game. That is a dumb thing to do. I might as well be asked to spunk it all on Red and hope it comes in.

I have a few games engineered already against opponents who I should be better than 50/50 against. First one that is guaranteed on is in 3 weeks time - February 19th at Wakefield. It is more than £200 but I'm actually only putting £50 more on myself than I did in that match as I staked myself for the full £200.

I have thought about how much %age I should take and maybe if you doing it as a group I should take less myself. I will pay all interested 70% on top of stakeback instead of 50%.

There's no appearance fees unfortunately. If only... :-)

Why are you so against playing for whole roll Fugly? You realize if you are like an 80% fav it's almost criminal not to wager it all.

Either you ain't as good as you say
Or you have no idea about gambling

I assume it's the latter which is worrying but rectifiable. In life people don't have many opportunities to double their money as a significant favorite and when they do fs retarded to compare it to.a 48% shot in roulette

but we don't know if he is 80% fav or not

No but surely that's what he is saying in the opening post?

Well the comment about playing guys you "should be better than 50/50 against" is a bit worrying too.

Hopefully you're just being modest or subtle in an open forum  :)  You need to be the one with the most info or you're gonna get stitched up!

Dubai

I don't recall at any point saying that I was a world class cueist! Compared to the population yes I'm a good player. And I can hold my own against most players.

If I am any of the options then I'm closer to having 'no idea about gambling'. I'm trying to treat this as a business, and unless the guy I'm against can't hold a cue straight or misses things over bags, I will not gamble everything when one half wanting to back me wish me to use only a %age.

What you possibly forget too, is that say I put in your total of £500 or £625 I am matching that full amount in the first place. It's meant to be a medium to long term investment with me winning amounts over time and building the pot up.

However, if you want to do an individual thing where you put me against one of your fish mates who can't hold a cue then I tell you what I'll do. You cover my expenses to get to wherever for the game, you back me for full extent with none of my own money at risk, I'll take 20% of winnings you take the rest. But I want a medium length race to eliminate any freak luck. Something like race to 13 9-ball. Sounds about right, if they that crap I'll be done between an hour to 90 minutes.

Jamier Host

It is part modesty but also part keeping in tune with my mindset. Once a match has been agreed I have to treat the game seriously as if they have as much chance to beat me as I do of beating them. Only a fool goes into a pool match thinking that he cannot possibly lose. Many class players have lost with that attitude, so it is my way of staying in control of things. I practise better, I feel more energy and as a result play better by giving my opponent respect (whether they are shit or not they've stumped up cash for me to take!)

I hope that this makes sense to you. As far as most pool players go I can get the information to tell me if its a game I 'should' win or if it's closer to evens. 'Should' - meaning that if I turn up and don't piss about then the money is mine to take.

What's the point of playing on tv then?

Sufrely you want hide the fact you're a good player as long as possible?

It's just an internet stream, rather than anything else.

You wouldn't believe the amount of challenges people get because they watch thinking "this guys a chump, I can beat him" then they end up on there losing themselselves. It's not popular to the extent that everyone will know who I am. The actual likelyhood of me being on the camera table anyway is minimal as the elitist viewers like to see only the top boys in action while everyone else gets ignored.

Is this standard pool terminology?

Oh yes, putting your shaft on a butt is standard. Putting your balls on the table is standard too. Would someone like to try my shaft? I like a hard tip.

All standard stuff haha :)

Nob off Popkin. Leicester FTW. Have to travel to Notts enough as it is

Not being funny but I don't know fuglybaz. He seems a nice guy and I'm happy to take a piece. Should be a fun thing to follow with interest. Playing for the whole lot opens stakers us to being done over more easily.

Don't mean that as anything against you barry, I'm just saying one reason why I'd be against you playing for the whole lot in one go, unless you're playing dave's mates etc.

I'm not offended at anybody not wanting me to play the whole lot in one game unless against somebody you guys all know personally.

I'm not out to do anyone over but I'm also not out to gamble the whole lot unless it is truly a 99% certainty that I will win.

Contact turny on here fuglybaz. He has some decent pool players at his club in Dunstable. Or is that too far?

It's a crazy idea playing for whole roll in one match, not far removed from using your whole poker roll to enter 1 tourney.
Pool matches can be very swingy, the better players can and do have losing days.

It's an English pool club that turny has.

What's the plan then guys? Who's in for this? Want to try and get set up by next week if possible.

Isn't it as before...?

Thought we waiting for you to play Karabiner?

Is that going to happen?

Doubtful

Me Matt and Ralph are just heading to Notts Rileys for a game tonight as I think Fugly was unsure and Matt said quite rightly 'Fuck Leicester'

Ohhhh I see. Yes it will happen, but I won't play at Nottingham Rileys which has the most f'ed up tables I've ever seen.

Tuesday I was unsure about but couldve done Weds/Thurs/Fri...

Gonna try get some footage tonight on camera phone when I go out to practise with my coach...

Yea he is. Will set up a game with Baz if interested?

Baz whats your full name and il message Ben and try and get u a game at Vegas in Wakey?

Barry French is my full name. Ben knows me anyway pal he's coming to support me in a £500 a man match I have at Vegas Bar on Saturday 19th February. Why don't you come along too if you're not tied up with other things? :)

If you're asking me do I want to play Ben then no not for cash lol. The game I've got against this guy called Brendan Leigh is a game I should win more than 80% of the time. I have people who are knowledgeable in pool who can advise me who I should/shouldn't play. Ben is a top class player and I am not fit to tie his shoelaces lol.

Cool gl in your game mate! I work saturdays and are hard to get off really. If Ben has good words i might take a slice.

Is Ben still as vocal as he used to be when watching mates play. When Daz Appleton beat Ross McInnes in a large money match I remember Ben being very vocal in his support.

Girgy
Ask Ben if he remembers playing Gangsters a few years ago and Daz throwing a pint over him whilst he was sitting in the hotel bar!, was funny as fook at the time. Just say It was the night Jonno was behind the bar, and put everyone's bill onto BMW's tab!

i am and assume everyone else is still in.

i'm not in of you're going to play some one for the whole stake in game 1.
If you're matching the stake then why don't we say 20% of BR max per game? Would force you to play a decent amount to get to the point of playing for £500 or we could all decide to up stake if you seem to be up to it after a few games.

That's the kind of %age I'd play in one game so we on same wavelength :)

I've been challenged to a match on Thursday afternoon at the Rack n Roll in Leicester. I'll PM the guys name to anyone interested, but I've seen him play several times. Misses plenty of sitters even in friendly games, never done well on the GB9 tour or tours previous, and has a lot of health cards he throws out when he loses.

He wants to play £200 a man, playing £50 sets until either the money has swung one way or the other, or if time runs out (playing from 1pm to 9pm).

Anyone want to use this match as a cheap 'trial'? If you do, I'll pay double the stake if I win for the faith shown in me.

Confident I will win, I'm a lot more solid around the balls and I am playing on a table that I know inside out. He's doing 5x15 hour working days before the match then playing on an alien table. Not a game he can win without those obstacles, so the obstacles make it even harder. I'm 75% at least to win. Against someone who plays on the tour that's about as good as I'll be to win a match, and the format we're using suits me well as skill wins long term.


Anyone wanna give it a go? £25 each if thats 5 of ya, paying double the amount when I win. I'll just be happy with double my stake for this game just to prove that I can play for a decent sum.

let me know asap please so can sort getting money to me etc before Thursday.

Cheers
Baz

Played a match for £225 a man earlier and won 25-15. Played pretty solid just lost concentration after a great start and then in the middle when I wasnt being tested. Got 5 break and dishes which is a 20% success rate. Top ranked players in country have average of 15-17% on GB9 events so in that context a 20% success rate after scuppering chances for more is good going.

Key scorelines in match were 3-0, 8-3, 13-7 (after letting him pull back to 9-7), 20-13 (after letting him pull to 13-12) then seeing the job off while keeping him hooked.

The guy I played is a proper gambler who doesnt have a shot to beat me. But he wants to degen more money in my direction and wants to play me this Sunday.

I broke and dished 5 racks with my own cash on the line today. And my focus was 100% and mental game was pretty good. And I made him like losing his money to me but without having to hustle him. This is really your best chance to earn some dead easy wonga. Message me if you interested and I'll let you know all details.

This is my last message I'll post about this because nobody has responded in the past couple of days, despite me being as up front as I can.

I thank all for at least considering my offer if you not interested, if you are then lets do this. I'm in Leicester if you need proof then come down. I'm giving the top amateurs a tough game yet I still have a reputation as a chopper...

Are we doing it or not gents? i'm relying on you lot for my guidance, i'm a bit busy at the moment.

I'm in. Sorry just been busy donking around. Gimme acct details and how much to send

can i send mine to you on tilt?

nope lol

wanna get rid of tilt dollars

Hows this going?

Don't think I'm going to be seeing my monkey again.

Interesting thread about our hero I found:

Seems like he lives in Dreamworld, not Leicester as we all thought.

http://www.doublefinish.com/showthread.php?385-barry-french

He's apparently nicknamed "The Fury" in darts circles.

http://www.doublefinish.com/showthread.php?385-barry-french

"Thieving Bastard" would be a better moniker.

I'm amazed anyone gave a stranger on here staking money to play pool!

That forum you linked to is full of classy people

Yep, totally stupid.

Did get a decent reference, but should never have given him money.

Jeez, I'd completely forgotten about this thread!

Wonder where he is now...

Why did it take so long for you to post this Keith?  Did all the backers just agree to leave it?  Gotta be the first grimming blonde thread that wasn't 50 pages in a day and linked to every other gambling forum in the UK!

Yep, classy joint, that.

Weird, really, because yes, with the benefit of nice clean rear-view mirrors, this one was nailed on to be a grim, everything about it, it's so obvious.

And yet......we have all - or many of us - fallen for the same trick before.

Remember that Tennis ones, "solaris" was it? Sheesh.....

I don't apologise for being too trusting of others. It's just a shame when trust & gullibility merge.

What made you suddenly remember this, Keith?

To be honest I totally forgot about it!

I was deleting some folders in my email last night and I came across the last message from Mr French saying he wasn't going to play for a couple of weeks as his pregnant gf was ill and his head wasn't right.

He'd get back to me in a "couple of weeks".

4 years later and I'm still waiting!

We set him up for a game against Karabiner, who would be able to tell us if he was any good.

He didn't want to play Ralph because the tables weren't good enough or something.

It was just supposed to be a test of his ability not a real game!

I should have pulled out when he refused to played Uncle Karabiner.

He's still very active on darts and pool forums by the looks of things, if I have half an hour spare I might go and see if I can recover some of my money.

I discovered that I had his mobile number from when we tried to set up that game Keith.

I sent it to you six months or so ago. Did you check it out or was it dead?

It was dead.

Probably more naive then stupid at the time. Back then forumites were always staking this and that for sweats, i.e. people would often post x amount of stakes available for x tourny etc.
 I was interested when he said he knew Ben Finch and Girgy said that Ben was his cousin. That wanting to gamble whole stake put me off tbh.
Looking back now he was making crazy statements i.e. dishing 5 times and better then tour average. Even me half cut could have dished 5 times in 20 odd games.

Perhaps Girgy could ask Ben if he has contact details, or knows somebody who does

^^^

Pretty sure he meant break and dish.

Indeed, you obvo know the lingo

Will drop ben a message on FB see if he knows owt...

Ben deleted him from FB a few months ago but this is your man if u wanna drop him a message....

https://www.facebook.com/barry.french.967?fref=ts

Im here to put some things straight as they were.

I emailed Keith last night after Id seen his reply. I went through a lot of desperation in trying to make money from the hobby I loved that I ended up deluding myself re: my skill levels etc.

I was a good player but I didnt have a good head. I sunk myself so far that I was too embarassed to say anything to Jamie and Keith (I had returned money to Greekstein when he wished to pull out).

I dont play pool competitively any more my last money game was over 2 and half years ago but I donked out well before that at end of 2011 because Jamiw got in touch.

My number shouldnt be dead and Id be happy for anybody to get in touch - its removed by mod. I cannot ever apologise enough for being afraid to just admit I failed! I havent handled things well at all and the only reason Im here is to just redeem myself. My wife has said under no conditions should I be on gambling sites/videos/forums etc.

Im upset that people think theyve been grimmed but I understand why you reach that conclusion. Do you really think I would name drop and give my address etc. Especially when George2loose lives near my estate!!! Normally losing bets dont pay back etc however I am willing here because I am ashamed and upset at the way Ive done things to pay back the money and that includes the deficot that I owe greekstein which I think maybe about 80 quid. I cannot just do it all in one go I do not have that kind of money but I invite anybody to call me, so that I can resolve this fairly with all concerned.

I have nothing to hide, Ill man up and face my mistakes. Mentally I have issues and I should never have tried to do what I did but I wanted to have success. What a skewed thouhht that was. Lets straighten this out. I look a plank on here saying all this. Let me just get it straight.

Guys - please text or call me I will speak to you.

Regards
Barry

Barry, good to hear from you.

Take your number off the forum first, you'll get bots picking it up and get loads of spam phone calls.

I'm very busy today and tomorrow, but I'll email you at the start of next week.

Everyone makes mistakes, it's how you deal with them that is important.

i've taken the phone number off for you

i can forward it to people involved in the situation if required

Please do. If you require it to pass on I'll send it privately. Id ask people to email or text me first which I can pick up and then call back soon after. I need privacy and dont always have it around my children (had a daughter in apr 11 and a son in november 12 thats how long its been :( )

Not that it makes much odds either but I deleted virtually everyone on fb who I wasnt close to because I dont want all and sundry having access to my personal life. Ive divulged more on here about having aspergers sundrome, my bullying at school etc than I'd ever share with anyone else.

However if any of you wish to message me on facebook please do. Im not hiding, Ive dealt with things in a bad way and I want to make amends if that is at all possible.

Baz

Pay back what you owe.

You were hiding. It's cowardly.

Ive said that I will but I need time as I cannot pluck that money out of thin air.

Yes I was a coward hold my hands up on that one. I got obsessed with chasing for quick results which was dumb. A mistake Ill never make again.

Just an update on this.

Came to an agreement with Barry that he'd pay a small amount every month.

He hasn't missed a single payment and is over half way towards repaying the total amount owed.

Pffft - this thread will never get to 32 pages with posts like this.

FuglyBaz is a thief thread pls

You regularly sound like a guy who just wants other peoples lives to be a little worse as if it will some how make your life a little better. What would be the merit of the thread you propose?

Glad to hear you are getting your money back Keith.

Possible joke?

Seems to lack some of the basic requirements for a joke, although I agree it may have been intended as a joke. He just seems to spend a lot of time getting at people and it's a bit sad.

Lol yes confirmed joke considering all the mention in a different thread of xxxisathief etc. This whole forum is built on banter/jokes so chill out.

Dont say it was ill placed as this thread is long dealt with.

Also your comment is utterly ridic, regularly posting getting at people? I think ive posted no more than circa 5 non tft posts in 6 months and no wonder why.

Chill the hell out and grab a sense of humour.

.

Yeah, it probably was harsh. Apologies.