Are They Really Sharking You?

During the Omega Tournament in January, I was sitting at the tournament desk on Sunday and all of a sudden I hear someone talking very loud at me.

I look up and a player is visibly upset.

He's about two and a half tables away, but he was still standing there upset, and raising his voice at me.

"You gonna let him go take a cigarette break?   Really?  I just won 3 games in a row and he has to take a break now?"

I didn't really understand completely what was going on.

But with what I knew, I replied over the tables, "Yes, he can take a break."

"But right now?  He's obviously trying to slow me down because I just won three games in a row and now it's only 3-4."

I stood my ground, "Everyone can take a break each match.  Whether it's to smoke or go to the bathroom, they can take a break."

He was STEAMING.  I could see it in his eyes.

His opponent came back quite quickly, even for a smoke break, and they continued their match.

I would find out later that his opponent had him down 4-0, and he came back and ran 3 games in a row and that's when his opponent took a break.

My optimistic side automatically says that the guy who took the break prolly just simply needed a break.  He was up 4-0, now he's down, and they are playing on the non-smoking side, so he took his break to go smoke a cigarette.

If I was pessimistic, I could see how I would think the guy was deliberately taking a break to slow down his opponent.

I just don't believe a lot of people do "mean" things intentionally.   My heart tells me that the guy just wanted to take a break because HE needed one.  I'm pretty naive, huh?  Or, do I just have a big heart?  I just don't think that way.

But, maybe I'm wrong.  Players do take breaks at "convenient" times, huh?