Sun Tzu, The Art of War
I'm watching a game of pool.
It's Winner Stays On and the guy that beat me has just been trounced by the latest challenger. 6 out of his 7 balls are still on the table and he was beaten so quickly it was almost embarassing. .
I am next up and sitting on my stool I'm thinking to myself:
"How do I beat this guy?"
He's clearly more skilled than me. I know I can play a bit but anyone that can pot 7 balls that quickly with virtually no mistakes is not someone I can match shot for shot.
Then it hits me. In boxing, one of the keys to winning is to not let your opponent do what he wants to do. This guy likes to play fast - maybe he needs to play fast.
I wait for him to ask who is next then I get up and stroll over to the table slowly. I'm whistling to myself, taking my time racking up the 15 balls into a triangle. I drag the process out, like a perfectionist playing on his own with all the time in the world. I spin the black ball and lift the triangle motioning to him to begin. He unleashes a sledghammer break as though he's got a plane to catch, potting two (spots) and spreading the balls well. By the time I get on the table I'm down three but I take my time, whistling, chalking up my queue, measuring the angles on a few different possible shots. He looks restless, like he's itching to get back on the table, I think I'm actually singing to myself(?)
He gets back on the table in a hurry, misses an easy shot and curses himself.
I smile inside.
"Don't play the game, play the man."
I can't remember who said that but they knew their stuff. Again I take my time, measuring angles, whistling, moving to my own rhythm almost dancing around the table. I pot one ball and then while lining up another shot one of my crew taps me on the shoulder as a picture is being taken.
"Perfect!" I'm thinking to myself, as I lean into the shot throwing up a peace sign horizontally like the cool kids do.
I get back on the table and pot another.
The Speedster's impatience is growing, he hits his next shot much too hard and fouls, giving me two shots and yet more time for my little experiment.
I didn't play particularly well, in fact I missed a few easy shots but much like the tortoise to the hare in that famous children't story I was more consistent. The Speedster was so thrown off by the change of tempo that he missed several easy shots and I won the game.
It reminded me of something the late great, Sugar Ray Robinson once said which I will paraphrase:
"Boxing is all about rhythm and that starts with your heart...if that isn't right then you're in trouble. Once you control the rhythm you control the fight, and the fighter who controls the fight wins."
CONTROL THE RHYTHM
Sugar Ray Robinson & Muhammad Ali (link to image)
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