Omega Tournament - Third Try Playing

I have played in three Omega Billiards Tournaments so far this year.  Latest one was at Rusty's Billiards in Fort Worth, Texas:

Cool, huh?!?!

As the Tourney Director, I wouldn't be able to play in the tourney also if I didn't have really great help.  My friends Dana and Heather are my sidekicks and I feel very comfortable with their professionalism and so I can leave the tourney in their hands during my matches.  At this event, Dana could not make it and Kara stepped right in to help.  Such a great team of ladies! 

Kara and I:

I don't feel like I can really keep up with all the great guy players on the Tour, but since it's a handicapped tour I feel much better about playing in it.

At the last tourney, I played HORRIBLE.  Even tho I had just won the Texas BCAPL Women's singles and scotch doubles, I think everyone presumed I would automatically place well?

Doesn't work that way.

Didn't work that way.

I was super nervous for some reason.  Played really badly.  :(  And for some reason my two matches were next to the only pro in the tourney (Jeremy Jones) and so more people were around watching.  Granted they were watching him and not my matches, but it's still unnerving lol.

This time on June 14th weekend at Rusty's Billiards in Fort Worth, I can proudly say I won 2 matches!!  My first time to win a match, Lol.

The first match I play a 5 (I race to 6, he raced to 5).  Before I played him, his wife jokes with me he can't believe he has to play a world champion first.  I was like, "omg ..."

But those kinda comments are a little unnerving, I fully admit.   I saw them again and she says it again.    

I reply, "Ummm. .. Not a world champion."

"Might as well be," they said as they laughed.

I was sooooo nervous during our match.  He got ahead, I made a few stupid mistakes.   With such have a short race, it makes for a very brutal match.  He had me down 3-0.  Yikes!  And I felt like all eyes were on me anyway,  "she's a national champ,"  because I had just won at ACS Nationals in May.

I really did notice more people watching more than usual.

The pressure was immense and I was more nervous in this match than any match at the ACS Nationals!  lol.

I somehow managed to win (still not sure how), then won my next match a little later on against a 6.  This time I was less nervous and my opponent was the nervous one.  I then played another 6 and really hoped I would win because he beat me at the last tourney AND because if I won, I would actually be on the winners side still on Sunday.  Just the possibility was amazing really!

I tried too hard tho and several rolls he got was just too much and I lost.  :(  Gosh I wanted to win!

I played the very last match of THE TOURNEY and it didn't end til 1am.  I was sooooo exhausted from the long day that even tho I had a shot in every game I made maybe 5 balls total and lost 0-6.  Ouch.  My opponent played very, very well tho (might need to bump him up to a 7, as I might have mis-ranked him lol).

I placed 17th out of 61 players.  Not too shabby I suppose?

So, even tho I faltered I need to really play in more of these events to get more experience.  It will help me so much to keep trying!