I could "hold my own" for the most part, but I found that I was rather inconsistent. And no matter how much I played or practiced I never really seemed to correct that inconsistency. Some shots felt just "right" while others from the moment I shot them were off from the start. I never really felt like I had a good "feel" of the game.
A few years after college I found a local pool hall near my house in the Philadelphia area and every Sunday they offered a flat-rate for the day, costing one hour whether you played for one hour or 12 hours. Each and every Sunday a friend and I would play for four or five hours, and I still couldn't seem to develop any kind of consistency or a good "feel" for the game. And I often found myself making a difficult shot only to follow it up by missing what most would consider a "gimme". It was frustrating and I just didn't know what I was doing wrong or how to correct my problems. And during this time I had always wanted to purchase my own cue, but I always feared that I would be viewed as some sort of "poser", breaking out my two-piece cue and then playing like garbage. I also couldn't seem to justify the expense.
After moving to Arizona I didn't play any pool for over two years. Until about a month and a half ago. I went out with a group from the office for happy hour one Friday night, and the bar we chose had four coin-op tables. We wound up playing pool for almost five hours, and I rediscovered that love of the game I had so many years ago. But, I also rediscovered that same level of inconsistency and frustration.
Being the "nerd" that I am, I decided that I would have to learn how to correct some of my problems in order to better enjoy the game of pool, and applying one of the lessons of my college education, I determined that what better place to begin than books? And so I picked up two books on pool fundamentals. I read them both cover to cover in one day, and to my astonishment I learned a great deal of information. I learned about the history of pool, proper stance, aiming techniques (such as aiming point versus contact point), cue selection, cue maintenance, why many follow a difficult shot by missing an "easy" shot, how aim, contact location, and ball trajectory are not necessarily intuitive (you don't aim the cueball for the contact point, but instead for the location where the cueball will have to be in order to connect at the contact point), and so many other aspects of the game. I also learned that I was doing a number of things wrong and that my inconsistency and frustration stemmed from not having sound fundamentals or a firm understanding of how to play the game.
After learning so much about fundamentals, concepts, and techniques, I became extremely anxious to apply what I learned. The very next day I went with a group of friends to a local pool hall to see if what I learned would really work. But, being a little self conscious about where I learned about the game, I kept that little tidbit to myself. And for four hours I didn't lose a single game.
I no longer feared the long expanse of green on shots at the other end of the table, I developed a better understanding of how to aim for bank shots, I made a number of cut shots I would have in the past considered rather difficult, but when applying appropriate aiming techniques I learned that they weren't so difficult after all, and most importantly, I shot with consistency. I learned to take a moment after a tough shot to regain my composure and allow the adrenaline to subside, my stroke was much smoother and straighter, my shots were more accurate, and I started to gain a "feel" for the game. My confidence also improved, which many say is an important part of playing good pool. I was once again hooked on the game, and because of my new understanding of fundamentals and how to correctly play the game, I wasn't concerned that I would once again become frustrated and quit.
After a few weeks of playing well with house cues, I recently took the plunge and picked up my very first cue stick. I went to a well-known billiard supply store in the area and spent over an hour with the salesman shopping for the right cue for me. We tried different weights, different tapers, different grips, and different materials. I walked out with a solid maple Wynn cue with no inlays (but some bad-ass graphics including a skeleton demon on a skeleton horse and a skull at the base) along with a hard case and basic maintenance tools (too keep the shaft clean and smooth and to scuff and shape the leather tip). And I must say that playing with my new cue has blown my mind. I at first wondered if having my own cue would make much of a difference, and I was shocked at just how much of a difference it made. Better control, more confidence, better consistency from playing with the same cue all the time.
I now play at least two nights during the week and again on weekends. It has become an addiction. I must play at least one night a week, and by Friday I can't go to a happy hour location unless they've got pool tables. Sunday afternoon has become my practice time, working on fundamentals and running through drills at a local pool hall. If I go more than two or three days I have to play again. Learning how to correctly improve my game and remedy many of the problems I had in the past has help tremendously to improve not just my play but also my enjoyment of the game. I've been really excited about my newfound appreciation of the game and just had to share with the group. Of course, my improvement has made it a little more difficult to convince my friends to play as often as I'd like, but some have embraced the challenge and now really enjoy beating me when they're able to.
I don't think I've ever really seen much of a discussion on pool here on the forums and I began wondering if there were other fans of the game in our little community. Anyone else care to share? And if any fans of the game live in the Phoenix area, let me know as I'm always looking for someone new to play with.
Another friend "only plays 8-ball", and the rest I'm lucky to even get to come along let alone actually play. 
Is it bad form to keep things relatively simple at first (two points for a break foul, one point for scratching or not meeting the requirements of a safety, and the 1-point-plus-15-point "bonus" penalty for three fouls in a row) and just leave it at that? Some of the more specific aspects of the game seem to be a little confusing (and a bit overwhelming), so I'd like to apply the basics I list above and go into the more complex aspects of the game once I'm more familiar with the rules (like the frozen ball rule, reracking and rebreaking, etc).
