Instructors - Any Benefits To This Drill?

D

DrCue'sProtege

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I do this drill every so often and thought I would ask what everyone thinks about its possible benefits. If any, of course.

You place two balls, in this case the 3B and 8B, apart just enough so you have enough spacing for another ball to go between them by about 1/2 inch. You can make it tighter or looser if you prefer, depending upon your skill level.

Then you simply shoot the CB through the two balls. Using a Follow stroke, Stun stroke, and Draw stroke.

What does everyone think? Helpful? Waste of Time? All input will be appreciated.

r/DCP

https://pad.chalkysticks.com/b0002.png
 
donuteric

donuteric

always a newbie
Silver Member
I do something similar. I have a 4.5" corner and I put two chalks on each the side of the pocket to reduce the size. CB is on the other end of the corner pocket. Goal is to shoot x amount of shots in a row without touching the chalk. It has personally helped me to fine tune my stance, my stroke, and many things in between.
 
Bob Jewett

Bob Jewett

AZB Osmium Member
Staff member
Gold Member
Silver Member
DrCue'sProtege said:
I do this drill every so often and thought I would ask what everyone thinks about its possible benefits. If any, of course.

You place two balls, in this case the 3B and 8B, apart just enough so you have enough spacing for another ball to go between them by about 1/2 inch. You can make it tighter or looser if you prefer, depending upon your skill level.

Then you simply shoot the CB through the two balls. Using a Follow stroke, Stun stroke, and Draw stroke.

What does everyone think? Helpful? Waste of Time? All input will be appreciated.

r/DCP

https://pad.chalkysticks.com/b0002.png
Click to expand...

Do you have trouble with that kind of situation in real games?
 
D

DrCue'sProtege

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Bob Jewett said:
Do you have trouble with that kind of situation in real games?
Click to expand...

Not sure what you mean - what situation is that?

This is, to me, just a stroke drill. If you can consistently shoot the CB through the two balls with them 1/4 to 1/2 inch apart using a Follow, Stun, and Draw stroke then to me that's positive reinforcement. It tells me I am aligning good, aiming good, and stroking good.
 
goettlicher

goettlicher

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
DrCue'sProtege said:
Not sure what you mean - what situation is that?

This is, to me, just a stroke drill. If you can consistently shoot the CB through the two balls with them 1/4 to 1/2 inch apart using a Follow, Stun, and Draw stroke then to me that's positive reinforcement. It tells me I am aligning good, aiming good, and stroking good.
Click to expand...



Good drill.

That wouldn't be a stroke drill. That would be an aim drill!

randyg
 
D

DrCue'sProtege

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
goettlicher said:
Good drill.

That wouldn't be a stroke drill. That would be an aim drill!

randyg
Click to expand...

Thanks for the input Randy. You have a point there. And one of the benefits, as I see it, is that if you consistently hit one of the balls on the same side all the time that is feedback that tells you there is a slight flaw somewhere.

r/Mike
 
SmoothStroke

SmoothStroke

Swim for the win.
Silver Member
Aim Accuracy Drill

Work the drill as you normally do maybe 30 to 50 strokes or as needed.

Then set an object ball even with the side pocket, using a reinforcement tab.
Pocket the ball with a stop shot between the 3 and 8.

When you feel good with that, place a ball on the top rail directly on the shot line, pocket the ball and draw into the ball on the rail.

When you feel good with that use a follow stroke with a nice rolling cue ball and try to follow the object ball through the 3 and 8 into the pocket.
Open bridge, elevated to the proper height to grip hand, loose grip, short pull, smooth push through.

You can shorten up the shot to make it easier and increase the distance as you go along for all drills.
If you have a good eye or can mark the table remove the reinforcement tab for the follow drill.
You can adjust the shot more to an open line so you have a larger pocket.

Aim accuracy drills are more effective when you put an object ball into play.
Your vertical ladder skills will increase much quicker.
Laser preferred for and accurate line.
 
Bob Jewett

Bob Jewett

AZB Osmium Member
Staff member
Gold Member
Silver Member
DrCue'sProtege said:
Not sure what you mean - what situation is that?

This is, to me, just a stroke drill. If you can consistently shoot the CB through the two balls with them 1/4 to 1/2 inch apart using a Follow, Stun, and Draw stroke then to me that's positive reinforcement. It tells me I am aligning good, aiming good, and stroking good.
Click to expand...
While some drills having nothing to do with pocketing balls may be useful, I think in general it is better to work with drills that are related to your weaknesses, such as shots that you miss or position that you have trouble getting.

Aiming for a gap is very different from aiming to hit a ball. Or at least that's my experience.
 
BeiberLvr

BeiberLvr

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Bob Jewett said:
Aiming for a gap is very different from aiming to hit a ball. Or at least that's my experience.
Click to expand...

That's very true.

I think a better drill is the ol' golf tee drill. For those unfamiliar with the drill, here's how I do it.

Set up any shot. Place 2 golf tees right next to each other, directly behind the cueball. With enough space between the tees to allow your shaft to go through uninhibited.

The goal is to make the shot without knocking over the golf tees.

It's really good for cut shots, because it provides instant feedback for those of us with steering issues.


1. If you're not as advanced you can start with the tees further apart. Then move them closer and closer as you progress.

2. If you don't have golf tees lying around, you can also substitute pen caps, or any small object that can stand vertically.
 
D

DrCue'sProtege

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
BeiberLvr said:
That's very true.

It's really good for cut shots, because it provides instant feedback for those of us with steering issues.
Click to expand...


This is a good idea BeiberLvr. Never thought about doing this with cut shots, always just did it with straight in shots. I have those steering issues at times which causes me to overcut some shots. Might give this a try tonight when I get back from Evansville.

r/Mike
 
gregcantrall

gregcantrall

Center Ball
Silver Member
Bob Jewett said:
While some drills having nothing to do with pocketing balls may be useful, I think in general it is better to work with drills that are related to your weaknesses, such as shots that you miss or position that you have trouble getting.

Aiming for a gap is very different from aiming to hit a ball. Or at least that's my experience.
Click to expand...

My aiming drill is to place the object ball on the foot spot and cue ball on the head spot shoot a stop shot and have the object ball rebound from the foot rail to hit the cue ball. This will show any flaws in your delivery. My record is 9 in a row on a 7 foot table and I just did 3 in a row on a 10 foot diamond. What a table for practice!!!!!

I think this is a fundamental drill, as in at least 15 minutes (first) every practice session.
Just like doing scales in music lessons.
 
F

FranCrimi

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Bob Jewett said:
While some drills having nothing to do with pocketing balls may be useful, I think in general it is better to work with drills that are related to your weaknesses, such as shots that you miss or position that you have trouble getting.

Aiming for a gap is very different from aiming to hit a ball. Or at least that's my experience.
Click to expand...

I agree. Whatever corrections are made have to be applied to real playing situations. How many times have players corrected their stroke in a drill but then didn't trust the correction in actual game play and reverted back to their comfort zone? It happens to all of us.

People think the hard part is making the correction. It isn't. The hard part is making it work in real game play.
 
T

tableroll

Rolling Thunder
Silver Member
DrCue'sProtege said:
I do this drill every so often and thought I would ask what everyone thinks about its possible benefits. If any, of course.

You place two balls, in this case the 3B and 8B, apart just enough so you have enough spacing for another ball to go between them by about 1/2 inch. You can make it tighter or looser if you prefer, depending upon your skill level.

Then you simply shoot the CB through the two balls. Using a Follow stroke, Stun stroke, and Draw stroke.

What does everyone think? Helpful? Waste of Time? All input will be appreciated.

r/DCP

https://pad.chalkysticks.com/b0002.png
Click to expand...
The drill I like is to put the cue ball on the spot. Shoot it straight up table at various speeds, follow and draw. If the cue ball comes back to hit the tip of your cue, then your stroke is straight. If it does not, then you may have a twitch or you may not be hitting the cue ball in the exact center.
 
BC21

BC21

https://www.playpoolbetter.com
Gold Member
Silver Member
gregcantrall said:
My aiming drill is to place the object ball on the foot spot and cue ball on the head spot shoot a stop shot and have the object ball rebound from the foot rail to hit the cue ball. This will show any flaws in your delivery. My record is 9 in a row on a 7 foot table and I just did 3 in a row on a 10 foot diamond. What a table for practice!!!!!

I think this is a fundamental drill, as in at least 15 minutes (first) every practice session.
Just like doing scales in music lessons.
Click to expand...
.
I like this. It reminds of the drill where you set a ball on the foot spot, then place the CB about a foot away and shoot the ball straight into a near corner pocket with a draw stroke, drawing the CB back about 8 to 12 inches. Set another object ball on the spot and shoot it in with draw again. Never touch or reposition the CB again. Just keep shooting the shot and drawing back. See how many you can make before getting too far out of line and causing the CB to hit a rail.

Turning practice into little games like this is a very effective method for rapid improvement. The brain really handles this type of development well.
 
BC21

BC21

https://www.playpoolbetter.com
Gold Member
Silver Member
BeiberLvr said:
That's very true.

I think a better drill is the ol' golf tee drill. For those unfamiliar with the drill, here's how I do it.

Set up any shot. Place 2 golf tees right next to each other, directly behind the cueball. With enough space between the tees to allow your shaft to go through uninhibited.

The goal is to make the shot without knocking over the golf tees.

It's really good for cut shots, because it provides instant feedback for those of us with steering issues.


1. If you're not as advanced you can start with the tees further apart. Then move them closer and closer as you progress.

2. If you don't have golf tees lying around, you can also substitute pen caps, or any small object that can stand vertically.
Click to expand...

I've always liked this one.
 
gregcantrall

gregcantrall

Center Ball
Silver Member
BC21 said:
.
I like this. It reminds of the drill where you set a ball on the foot spot, then place the CB about a foot away and shoot the ball straight into a near corner pocket with a draw stroke, drawing the CB back about 8 to 12 inches. Set another object ball on the spot and shoot it in with draw again. Never touch or reposition the CB again. Just keep shooting the shot and drawing back. See how many you can make before getting too far out of line and causing the CB to hit a rail.
Click to expand...
Wow, that is one I have done and forgotten about. Thanks for reminding me! Will add variety to practice.

Turning practice into little games like this is a very effective method for rapid improvement. The brain really handles this type of development well.
Click to expand...
My way of getting competition practice is to do the drills left hand against the right. My left hand(my second) has won the last two days of practice. Today he set a personal record of 4 in a row of the bounce back drill on the 10 foot table.
 
BC21

BC21

https://www.playpoolbetter.com
Gold Member
Silver Member
gregcantrall said:
Wow, that is one I have done and forgotten about. Thanks for reminding me! Will add variety to practice.

My way of getting competition practice is to do the drills left hand against the right. My left hand(my second) has won the last two days of practice. Today he set a personal record of 4 in a row of the bounce back drill on the 10 foot table.
Click to expand...

I do the same thing -- pit left hand against right playing 6-ball. I can't run 9 very often left-handed, but using six balls gives my left hand a better chance when my right hand gets out of line. I also like to use two different cues -- Mezz vs Schon, or Mezz vs Joss, or Valley bar cue, etc.... It's great practice to highlight exactly how much you depend on your normal playing cue's deflection, or lack of deflection. Playing with anything other than my Mezz, I use less english and focus more on natural roll. It's weird, but when the Mezz loses I feel bad. I mean, she's my regular shooting partner! Lol
 
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