st Michael - Pocket Billiards

Elizabeth in Pool Tournament - Wendover, Nevada March 2006

2007-06-05T21:10:00.000-06:00

My Wife in Nevada

Extra Pool Photo's

2007-05-01T01:30:00.000-06:00

Michael Jensen - Pechauer Tour LA 2003 October

ACUI College Tournament 2003

2007-05-01T00:46:00.000-06:00

Hope Jensen (1st place women) & Myself (Michael Jensen 1st Place mens)

Article from On The Break News

Below is a local channel 2 (CBS) News coverage on our accomplishments at the ACUI Regional Tournament.

Regional Championships in Boise Idaho

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National Championships in Boulder Colorado

2002 US Open 9 Ball Championships

2007-05-01T00:34:00.000-06:00

This was a dream trip for me. My wife (Hope) was able to get sponsors and donations for us to have a raffle to help pay for the trip and entry... God Bless my wife...

My CBS Local News coverage a month before I went to this tournament.

I played two matches (double elimination tournament) and did not win either... However, I did play well and gave Keith McCready a run for his money... The score ended 11-9. I had him tied 9-9 with me running out but I got sloppy on my shape on the eight ball and left it hanging in the pocket for Keith to run out the 8 and 9 and he broke and ran the next game to win the match... For a part time pool player I did not do that bad...

Hope took photo's of me playing Keith and I have posted them below. For those of you who do not know who Keith is he is the pool player in the movie "Color of Money" who is famous for telling Tom Cruise that "its like a nightmare, isn't it"!

Keith McCready as Grady Seasons with Tom Cruise as Vincent

in the movie Color of Money

Keith McCready

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The following photo is after the tournament the wife and I went to Baltimore to fly out. We had a few days to visit the area and of course practice some pool...

Me (Michael Jensen), practicing in Baltimore!

2002 VNEA Idaho State Championships

2007-04-30T00:07:00.000-06:00

Below is an article from On The Break News back in 2002 that covered the Idaho 2002 VNEA State Championships. I found this on my computer and wanted to post it before I lost it...

Scotch Doubles
Starting the weekend off with a great display of teamwork and camaraderie, Mike Jensen and JoeAnne Santy taking first after defeating Dick & MaryKay Jenkins again after beating them on for the hill. Mike and JoeAnne shot very well together and special congrats to Mike Jensen for taking home two first place trophies (Scotch Doubles & 9-ball) with a 5th-6th placing in the 8-ball event.

9 Ball

The men's 9-ball event turned out to be quite a display of good pool playing as Mike Jensen fought his way to the top after being shut down by fellow league teammate Steve Hanks. Meanwhile in the winner's bracket the crowd was torn as favored players Tony Norella and Mark Anderson played each other for the hill.In the loser's bracket Mike Jensen continued to walk through his opponents as he did not let up on anything. Being sure to close the game at any given chance it seemed that Mike was breaking the spirit of his opponents. All this finally led to a ferocious match between Mike and Mark Anderson to see who would challenge Tony's command of the hill. Mike's robotic like shot-making procedure vs. Mark's sheer determination to give Mike nothing made for a match worth watching. After the smoke settled Mike ended up on top as Mark took third place.After losing the first match to Michael for first place, Tony Norella turned things up a notch as Michael came out firing in the first match. The final match proved to tense as Tony answered Mike's assault with two nine ball breaks. Mike undaunted came back with a nine ball break of his own and a safety play on the one that can only be described as an "Efren Reyes" safe that seem to change the course of the match in Mike's favor. Congratulations to all the finishers, and thank you for hours of great pool!

The Bridge Hand

2006-11-12T19:49:00.001-07:00

The first step towards becoming a good pool player is the deveopment a solid bridge hand. This foundational tool will bridge you between the average and top player. The two bridges I will introduce have many varienance you can create on the fly to solve any problems that may come up during a game. If you remember one thing about this lesson it should be that stablility is the main function of the bridge. If you have a stable bridge your developmental curve will increase sharply.

V-Bridge or Open Bridge

The First Bridge in a persons toolbox should be the V or Open-Bridge. It is formed with your cue stick sliding on the top of your hand, in-between the channel formed by your thumb and pointer finger (see photo). Please notice that your hand is not completely flat on the table. Your hand should have an air pocket in the middle of your palm and the table. This forms a tri-pod effect using your two far fingers (pointer and pinky) as two legs of the tri-pod and the back of your palm is the third leg. Your hand is not lightly on the pool table, your fingertips should be firm on the table to the point of turning white from pressure placed on them.

A trouble area for most beginners is the channel between the thumb and pointer finger. By looking at the photo example you can see the stick crosses the pointer finger. The thumb is right up against the pointer finger which forms the channel. Too many people try to keep the pointer finger straight to the intended shot. This pulls the thumb away from the correct position and makes life hard. All you need to do is turn your hand on the table so the pointer finger is crossing the stick line of aim (See Photo).

Closed Bridge

The more difficult of the two bridges is the Closed Bridge. Most people teaching pool push this bridge on beginners because it holds the cue stick in place better while shooting shots. I prefer teaching this after they have success with the Open Bridge.
Looping your pointer finger to your thumb forms the Closed Bridge. Your Cue Stick will then slide in the loop of your thumb and pointer finger. When you place your hand on the table, with the Cue Stick in your loop, your back of the palm touches the Table first (Your First leg of your Tri-pod). You then place your fingers on the table with the pinky and Middle finger as the second and third leg of the tri-pod. Your stick should cross over your middle finger a bit to give extra support to your cue stick. All this time your looped fingers should still be in place. Keep in mind not to have a loose loop around your cue stick. The object of this bridge is to have more of your hand in contact with the stick to insure a firm bridge while stroking the cue ball.

Most beginners will find this bridge uncomfortable, and develop some bad habits trying to shoot with it. So please keep in mind, The Bridge hand is only a tool to insure an accurate hit with the cue stick. If your bridge hand does not guarantee an accurate hit you might as well play one handed. Your results would be the same.

Other Bridges

All other Bridge that you form will be a combination of the two bridges you just learned. Keep in mind a simple foundational rule. The Bridge hand should be STABLE (Not Moving)! With each unique circumstance the Stability of your bridge may very to a degree. Less stability means less certainty!

Here are a few photos of other bridges I use with Stability in my thoughts!