My love of pool started my freshman year in college, when I took the billiards class. After the first couple weeks, I realized this game is not as simple as it appears. It became obvious that no matter how long you play there is always something to learn or improve on.

By the time I was a few weeks in I was playing an additional two hours a day outside of class. Also, I started taking the instructors advanced four hour one on one instruction. At the end of the semester I was playing 20+ hours a week and my skill level was skyrocketing.

After two years of practice , taking the class a second time, and joining the pool club. I got the opportunity to teach the class. I created my own curriculum that took the students from how to hold the cue to learning strategy and ball control. In my three years of teaching I taught over 400 students. Along the way learning how to effectively communicate the ideas in a different way to each student.

The local 8-ball pool league was a sanctioned 18 week league. I played a total of 4 seasons over 2 years. We played in five person teams, each player would play three singles matches. These matches we scored based on how many balls were pocketed with extra points for winning.

In these four seasons I grew a lot as a player. Playing in a high level competitive environment forces you to learn how to perform under pressure. After years of training and practice, the shooting part was second nature. The hard part, is stay calm and relaxed to not make unforced errors.

My love for pool has now lasted eight years, because of the endless complexity and learning opportunities.

Skills Gained:

• Improved problem solving

• Ability to stay calm under pressure

• Refined and precise motor movement

• Ability to plan ahead