The ability to concentrate intensely while under match pressure is often what separates winners from losers on the court.

I remember playing a tournament where my match was assigned to a court along side of railroad tracks. Freight trains full of pin chips would chug by several times an hour with whistles blowing, steel wheels thundering and brakes squealing.

I drew a tough opponent and our match was a close, competitive one. My opponent played well but I had difficulty keeping my mind on the match because of those darn trains rumbling by.

Well I lost that match. I shook my opponent’s hand, I complimented him and mentioned that it was a great match and I enjoyed playing but that the conditions were difficult because of all the trains.

His reply was, "What trains?"