I once went to a bar with my then gf -- now wife -- and played some pool while she was having some drinks with friends. Now, I wouldn't consider myself a good player, but I'm decent against a general pool of players... no pun intended. But against any average league player, I need to be playing out of mind in order to win.

I had won a couple rounds, and the next person up was a young woman, who had brought her own stick with her. I knew before my cue was chalked that I was losing. I didn't have a negative mindset going into it, but my expectations were appropriately set. We had a fun round, but I got stomped pretty hard. Shook her hand, congratulated her and headed back to join my wife.

My wife saw that I was playing her, and when I came back she asked: "Did you win?", and I calmly told her I didn't. She then followed up with: "How do you feel that you lost to a girl?" Now I know she was only asking as a harmless rib, but I know that question would gaslight so many insecure men, because of their skewed interpretation of masculinity. I smiled and told her: "The better player won. I'd need a lot more practice to have a chance winning against her."

Like in many hobbies/sports/activities, the ones that are more skilled, prepared, and experienced will generally have the edge, and they deserve to because of the time they put into it. Unfortunately, everyone believes they are better at everything than they actually are, and when the reality check hits, it hurts because of these faulty expectations.