The "Lee Brett Snooker Drill Challenge" for Pool Practice

Cardigan Kid

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
THE LEE BRETT SNOOKER DRILL CHALLENGE

*******Update******

Lee made a short instructional video regarding the setup and purpose of the snooker line-up drill for pool..
Here is the link:

https://youtu.be/umlBZ5BlyP4

******* AZ User Video List *******

Lee Brett - https://youtu.be/foOp1ge-UwY

Cardigan Kid - https://youtu.be/dJFS_Fb_CuM

BieberLvr - https://youtu.be/uMsp--Oh9AY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XnEpBWO7oiQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=toXd7cNLJMQ

Poolplayher - https://youtu.be/9Ci1Zyr0ScM

Peppersauce - https://youtu.be/dyCtIPIDZGk

**** looking for more videos*****


Lee gave me this drill at my last lesson with him, and I find it absolutely brilliant and addicting.
With his permission, I want to post it here and maybe get a collection of AZers giving it a shot on video.

There are so many aspects of this drill that will benefit your 8-ball, 9-ball, and 14.1 games but the greatest benefit in my opinion is the pressure. As I work my way through the drill I have to focus on my breathing, concentration and pace since mentally, I'm putting myself under serious pressure.

Set-up:

The 2-7 balls are positioned:

2-4-3 : head string, 4 at center, with the 2 half diamond to the left of the 4 and the 3 half diamond to the right of the 4 (there should be enough room that the 5 goes in either corner pocket).
5: center table
6: on the spot
7: center table, half diamond from rail.

Then seven stripes placed in line:

3 stripes evenly spaced between 5 & 6 ball
3 stripes evenly spaced between 6 & 7 ball
1 stripe between 7-ball and rail.

Play:
Start with any stripe, and alternate stripes then solid, while spotting each solid back to its original place as in snooker.
If balls are bumped into or moved, they stay that way until pocketed.
After all stripes are off table, then run the 2-7 in order to complete the set.

Scoring:
There is a scoring system if two people want to play against each other. The stripes are worth 1 point, and the solids are worth face value. 7 points for 7-ball and so on.
A perfect score is 83.
This adds a whole new element to the drill if you master it by clearing the table, then you can try to beat your high score.

------------------- ------------------- -------------------- ----------------
I ran some video for an hour this past weekend and here is an edit of my best three attempts:

https://youtu.be/dJFS_Fb_CuM

Table: gold crown 2-modified rails 4 1/4" corners, 4 3/4" sides. TDF: 1.08

Set #1: some sloppy play on my part, as i get out of line and have to make some thin cuts with a little luck in some rolls to keep going. The camera battery ran out before my miss on the final 6-ball. Final score 66


Set #2: pressure mounts as I get down to the final 5 ball, but total choke on position to the 6 falling on the fifty yard line. This one was a heartbreaker. Final score: 65


Set #3: I complete the drill but need two attempts on the final 3-ball, so the score ends on the 3 and completion doesn't count. Final score 53


Huge thanks to Lee Brett on this drill. It's been a great challenge and I've learned a lot working with it.
Maybe we can turn this into a challenge thread and have other AZers post some videos of their attempts?
This could be fun! Best of Luck!

Edit: on a side note, this is based on the "Line-up drill" which is common in the snooker world, but Lee introduced the pool version to me so that's why I have since called it "the Lee Brett Snooker Drill for Pool".

******Edit#2 - I initially screwed up the order by having the 2 and 3-balls switched, I have corrected the photos and description. Also, correcting the order in my practice as well. Special thanks to SuperJohn9000 on YouTube for catching that error *******
 
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DrCue'sProtege

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Looks like some pretty good shooting on your part, and an excellent drill! Should definitely improve your game.

r/DCP
 

Scott Lee

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
That's some impressive play Cardigan Kid! :thumbup: I have a couple of serious questions. You have obviously incorporated Lee Brett's elbow drop philosophy, and ingrained it fairly well in your routine. You also shot many shots with a perfect SPF stroke...including some nice power draw in the 2nd attempt. You elbow dropped on some key shots where you missed (you made several too), and in the same frame executed perfect pendulum stroke shots with no misses. What determines which stroke you use? Since the only real difference (assuming a very loose cradle for either stroke) is timing and complexity of movement (both of which can contribute to small errors on the CB) both ways can work, which is obvious from your excellent video. How do you decide?

Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com
 

Cardigan Kid

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
That's some impressive play Cardigan Kid! :thumbup: I have a couple of serious questions. You have obviously incorporated Lee Brett's elbow drop philosophy, and ingrained it fairly well in your routine. You also shot many shots with a perfect SPF stroke...including some nice power draw in the 2nd attempt. You elbow dropped on some key shots where you missed (you made several too), and in the same frame executed perfect pendulum stroke shots with no misses. What determines which stroke you use? Since the only real difference (assuming a very loose cradle for either stroke) is timing and complexity of movement (both of which can contribute to small errors on the CB) both ways can work, which is obvious from your excellent video. How do you decide?

Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com

Thanks for the encouragement and for watching the video, Mr. Lee.

Regarding elbow drop, it was a topic that Lee and I discussed early on. For me, I wanted to build a uniform stroke that could be repeated over and over again, the elbow drop just came naturally into the equation from center ball stun to power follow or power draw shots. There are examples of this same stroke in some other videos I took:

Cross Table center hit : https://youtu.be/6kyWz9li6jU
and
High Inside: https://youtu.be/NzmWf8krh-g

For me, it just feels like the natural motion of the stroke.
However, you pointed out the times when I had no elbow drop such as these two small draw position shots on the 12 and 6 ball here @ 6:52sec: https://youtu.be/dJFS_Fb_CuM?t=6m52s

This stems from the PAT Level 1 training DVD where Ralph Eckert and Thorsten demonstrate the Small Area Position drill which utilizes a light draw shot to get position on the next ball and complete the drill. In the DVD both Ralph and Thorsten have minimal elbow drop in their strokes for this drill. But in others, their elbow is dropping.

For that drill, I can't let my stroke out for two reasons - have to only pull the cue ball back a 6 inches to a foot, and because of that, I find myself setting up with a closer bridge.

The last part I got from a Freddy the Beard video, here:
https://youtu.be/uvjL3D3lsGY?t=28s
Where, The beard describes a proper draw shot utilizes a closer bridge distance.

So ultimately at this point in the 2nd attempt @ 6:52: https://youtu.be/dJFS_Fb_CuM?t=6m52s
my bridge is set closer to the cue ball because of the distance the cue was to the rail - also this close distance usually I default to an open bridge so there won't be any power in the shot - the result is a non elbow drop shorter stroke draw shot for small area position onto the next ball.

However, this has been a hang-up of mine on other shots, where I tend to go for the small area position instead of letting the stroke out to go a rail or two back into position.
An example of this coming back to bite me was the position shot from the 5-ball to the 6-ball at this moment here @ 10:33: https://youtu.be/dJFS_Fb_CuM?t=10m33s

The angle was a bit much and I should have gone down to the rail and back up for the 6-ball, but instead I try the same small area position shot, with short bridge - locked elbow - and over muscle it. Drawing it down to the rail and 50-yard line on the 6-ball which ultimately cost me the complete run.

An example of what I should have done would be towards the end of the Set #3, almost the same situation - shot on the 5-ball to get position on the 6-ball here @ 16:15 :
https://youtu.be/dJFS_Fb_CuM?t=16m15s

Instead of my short stroke small area position habit, I go for the longer bridge, elbow drop, let the stroke out, one tip low and inside to go all the way down to the rail and back up for the 6-ball.

In my time spent studying the pro's, I've noticed that they usually follow the more aggressive route - not because they are aggressive, but because the shot that allows the uniform natural stroke can be controlled a bit more, and also pocketed more steadily since hitting with speed reduces the effects of the throw or table conditions. I've been actively conscious of this aspect of the game and playing by feel for when the time is right to go that direction.
 
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frankw

Semi Retired Bodybuilder
Silver Member
I agree the drill is very addictive! Lee showed me the same one.

Just wanted to thank you for posting this, now I'm going to go back and watch the videos lol
 

HawaiianEye

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Thanks for the encouragement and for watching the video, Mr. Lee.

Regarding elbow drop, it was a topic that Lee and I discussed early on. For me, I wanted to build a uniform stroke that could be repeated over and over again, the elbow drop just came naturally into the equation from center ball stun to power follow or power draw shots. There are examples of this same stroke in some other videos I took:

Cross Table center hit : https://youtu.be/6kyWz9li6jU
and
High Inside: https://youtu.be/NzmWf8krh-g

For me, it just feels like the natural motion of the stroke.
However, you pointed out the times when I had no elbow drop such as these two small draw position shots on the 12 and 6 ball here @ 6:52sec: https://youtu.be/dJFS_Fb_CuM?t=6m52s

This stems from the PAT Level 1 training DVD where Ralph Eckert and Thorsten demonstrate the Small Area Position drill which utilizes a light draw shot to get position on the next ball and complete the drill. In the DVD both Ralph and Thorsten have minimal elbow drop in their strokes for this drill. But in others, their elbow is dropping.

For that drill, I can't let my stroke out for two reasons - have to only pull the cue ball back a 6 inches to a foot, and because of that, I find myself setting up with a closer bridge.

The last part I got from a Freddy the Beard video, here:
https://youtu.be/uvjL3D3lsGY?t=28s
Where, The beard describes a proper draw shot utilizes a closer bridge distance.

So ultimately at this point in the 2nd attempt @ 6:52: https://youtu.be/dJFS_Fb_CuM?t=6m52s
my bridge is set closer to the cue ball because of the distance the cue was to the rail - also this close distance usually I default to an open bridge so there won't be any power in the shot - the result is a non elbow drop shorter stroke draw shot for small area position onto the next ball.

However, this has been a hang-up of mine on other shots, where I tend to go for the small area position instead of letting the stroke out to go a rail or two back into position.
An example of this coming back to bite me was the position shot from the 5-ball to the 6-ball at this moment here @ 10:33: https://youtu.be/dJFS_Fb_CuM?t=10m33s

The angle was a bit much and I should have gone down to the rail and back up for the 6-ball, but instead I try the same small area position shot, with short bridge - locked elbow - and over muscle it. Drawing it down to the rail and 50-yard line on the 6-ball which ultimately cost me the complete run.

An example of what I should have done would be towards the end of the Set #3, almost the same situation - shot on the 5-ball to get position on the 6-ball here @ 16:15 :
https://youtu.be/dJFS_Fb_CuM?t=16m15s

Instead of my short stroke small area position habit, I go for the longer bridge, elbow drop, let the stroke out, one tip low and inside to go all the way down to the rail and back up for the 6-ball.

In my time spent studying the pro's, I've noticed that they usually follow the more aggressive route - not because they are aggressive, but because the shot that allows the uniform natural stroke can be controlled a bit more, and also pocketed more steadily since hitting with speed reduces the effects of the throw or table conditions. I've been actively conscious of this aspect of the game and playing by feel for when the time is right to go that direction.

I've found, over the years, that most of the time when I screw up, I'm babying the ball. I prefer to let my stroke out and it lets me hit the ball naturally and I can control things more. I use "dead" ball and the natural angles as much as I can get away with.
 

SmoothStroke

Swim for the win.
Silver Member
I have many posts on short stroke technique.

A short bridge hand is good but may seem choked for a player. I use both short bridge and long bridge depending on what the shot calls for.

A longer bridge and a shorter pull is what I personally prefer when I need to use short stroke delivery.
I feel I get a smoother transition on delivery and works much better with my Body Gait and Ape Index.
I feel wide open yet my delivery is still compact yet very smooth. I pull for what I need to pull, 2 inches or 8 inches and loading it up if needed.
If I use a short bridge I make sure my feet and body open up,if not I adjust.
Playing out of a shoe box will wear you down and cost you.

Many players use a long bridge and a short pull; just watch Alex, Dennis, Lee Van and many more.
Having a 10 -15 inch bridge and a short pull is a technique everyone should master along with short bridge.

Edit:I am sorry for going off the subject, when I read your post and saw the short stroke chat I got carried away with myself, I will delete the post if you want.
 
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Cardigan Kid

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I have many posts on short stroke technique.

A short bridge hand is good but may seem choked for a player. I use both short bridge and long bridge depending on what the shot calls for.

A longer bridge and a shorter pull is what I personally prefer when I need to use short stroke delivery.
I feel I get a smoother transition on delivery and works much better with my Body Gait and Ape Index.
I feel wide open yet my delivery is still compact yet very smooth. I pull for what I need to pull, 2 inches or 8 inches and loading it up if needed.
If I use a short bridge I make sure my feet and body open up,if not I adjust.
Playing out of a shoe box will wear you down and cost you.

Many players use a long bridge and a short pull; just watch Alex, Dennis, Lee Van and many more.
Having a 10 -15 inch bridge and a short pull is a technique everyone should master along with short bridge.

Edit:I am sorry for going off the subject, when I read your post and saw the short stroke chat I got carried away with myself, I will delete the post if you want.

This is what is great about the drill, so many aspects of the game come into play and open up to great discussions. No need to apologize when you open up to some very keen observations.

I have watched Alex Pagulyan very closely and I noticed on his really precise shots, he has that long set-up, but extremely short back swing/pull and it's very effective. He talks about it during the TAR podcast with Bustamante... Link:https://youtu.be/6Y2qoCtdiak

On those shots in question where I went to a shorter bridge, I'll have to admit I really want to bridge from the rail there, but I've also had miscues when trying short draw while bridge from the rail at that distance, so I've grown to default to the shorter bridge draw and just make that work for consistency-but the result is that it's now up to pure muscle control to get the desired distance and as we all know, late into long sets/sessions/matches, that's what can start to fade.

So your long set-up, and short pull, like Alex really does remove more working parts from the equation resulting in less chance of misfire.

I agree wholeheartedly.
 

Cardigan Kid

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
For those who are interested, here is a video of Lee working the snooker lineup drill on a snooker table.

https://youtu.be/foOp1ge-UwY

I noticed he used the tactic of utilizing the black to mop up the balls behind the head string, then switching to the pink to take care of the middle reds.

On my successful runs at the pool version of this drill, I found that this works best. If I stay down by the 7 too long I start relying on speed control to bring the cue off the rail and back out, leading to position errors as the drill moves to the final stage.
 

SFC9ball

JimBaker PBIA Instructor
Silver Member
Nice Drill

I really liked this drill, I made 3 83's in a row, once I figured out a pattern. the first few racks were in the 50's and 60's. Great drill!
 

Cameron Smith

is kind of hungry...
Silver Member
For those who are interested, here is a video of Lee working the snooker lineup drill on a snooker table.

https://youtu.be/foOp1ge-UwY

I noticed he used the tactic of utilizing the black to mop up the balls behind the head string, then switching to the pink to take care of the middle reds.

On my successful runs at the pool version of this drill, I found that this works best. If I stay down by the 7 too long I start relying on speed control to bring the cue off the rail and back out, leading to position errors as the drill moves to the final stage.

The line up strategies change depending on what players are trying to accomplish. Some of the great players I've spoken to will add little caveats, like trying to clear while only using one side of the table, only the black, only the pink. The scariest I've seen is attempting a clearance while only taking on the yellow.

A lot of that can be transferred over to this pool drill in order to work on cue ball movement.
 

Cardigan Kid

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
The line up strategies change depending on what players are trying to accomplish. Some of the great players I've spoken to will add little caveats, like trying to clear while only using one side of the table, only the black, only the pink. The scariest I've seen is attempting a clearance while only taking on the yellow.

A lot of that can be transferred over to this pool drill in order to work on cue ball movement.

Very cool insight.
Lee did mention how this drill can be configured to work on areas of your choice-like the stripes positioned across the table along the head string.


How far did they get with just the yellow? That's some insane skill.
 

Cameron Smith

is kind of hungry...
Silver Member
Very cool insight.
Lee did mention how this drill can be configured to work on areas of your choice-like the stripes positioned across the table along the head string.


How far did they get with just the yellow? That's some insane skill.

It was a clearance, here is a video of it. This guy does all sorts of weird and wonderful stuff,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qtzjg1NathA

He changes the configuration of the reds a bit to make a yellow clearance a bit easier. But it's still beyond my skill level, that's for sure.

This gentleman manages a 99 clearance with the use of the baulk colors and no reds below the blue.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8hCOU24Q0s
 
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Pidge

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I've played the line up drill thousands of times. It's addictive trying to hit the max score. This drill alone improved my break building more so than any drill I've tried.

Once you start to reach a certain standard and it becomes less challenging, the possibilities are endless to keep it a challenge. The most difficult I've tried was potting a red, then yellow, then red, then green, then red, brown, red, blue, red, pink, red, black, red, yellow.... You get the idea. Cycle through the colours in value order until you have no more reds left. The reason it's difficult is the white has to travel more than normal. But what it achieves is forcing you to think not just 3 shots ahead, but several shots ahead. It's mentally tiring but you get used to being mentally tired... Which is a good thing also.
 

Cardigan Kid

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
It was a clearance, here is a video of it. This guy does all sorts of weird and wonderful stuff,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qtzjg1NathA

He changes the configuration of the reds a bit to make a yellow clearance a bit easier. But it's still beyond my skill level, that's for sure.

This gentleman manages a 99 clearance with the use of the baulk colors and no reds below the blue.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8hCOU24Q0s

First, thanks for the links.

Wow, absolute wow!

That yellow clearance was humbling and inspiring at the same time. Humbling, because now my pool line-up clearances don't seem like much :eek:
Inspiring, because now I understated that this drill can universally test anyone to the fullest of their potential. The bar can be set very high. We see it here.

Thanks again for the links.
 

bbb

AzB Gold Member
Gold Member
Silver Member
It was a clearance, here is a video of it. This guy does all sorts of weird and wonderful stuff,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qtzjg1NathA

He changes the configuration of the reds a bit to make a yellow clearance a bit easier. But it's still beyond my skill level, that's for sure.

This gentleman manages a 99 clearance with the use of the baulk colors and no reds below the blue.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8hCOU24Q0s

I've played the line up drill thousands of times. It's addictive trying to hit the max score. This drill alone improved my break building more so than any drill I've tried.

Once you start to reach a certain standard and it becomes less challenging, the possibilities are endless to keep it a challenge. The most difficult I've tried was potting a red, then yellow, then red, then green, then red, brown, red, blue, red, pink, red, black, red, yellow.... You get the idea. Cycle through the colours in value order until you have no more reds left. The reason it's difficult is the white has to travel more than normal. But what it achieves is forcing you to think not just 3 shots ahead, but several shots ahead. It's mentally tiring but you get used to being mentally tired... Which is a good thing also.

this is a great drill shown to me by lee
i will start to try some of the variations mentioned regarding the numbered balls
 

MitchDAZB

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
After all stripes are off table, then run the 2-7 in order to complete the set.
Good drill and good shooting!

Just so I'm clear, do we need to get on the 2 directly from the last stripe, or can we shoot, say, the 5 after the last stripe to get on the 2?

Thanks and again, good shooting.
 

Cardigan Kid

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Good drill and good shooting!

Just so I'm clear, do we need to get on the 2 directly from the last stripe, or can we shoot, say, the 5 after the last stripe to get on the 2?

Thanks and again, good shooting.

Thanks for watching, Mitch.

Yes, the way I was shown is that after the last stripe you have one more solid of your choice to get position on the two and then begin the run of colors in order to complete the drill.

Thanks for the compliments and as more videos get posted, I'll copy the links and add them to the list in the first post.
 
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