When I was a kid, I came up with a drill that helped me tremendously in learning CB creativity. I call it the Clock Drill and I have showed it to many people over the years who were trying to learn this game.
First, there are 4 things that control where the CB ends up, every single time you shoot.
Speed
English
Type of stroke ( there are three: follow, draw and punch )
Angle
There are countless combinations of these four. For me, it's all about simplicity, in the end. In other words, if I am playing perfectly ( yeah, I know, good luck on that ), I am only using three of the four on every shot: speed, angle and ( punch ) stroke. Yup, that means I am never using english. I am always hitting dead center on the CB ( Thus bunting whitey every shot ). But that is an ideal only. It's nearly impossible to accomplish.
That said, it is almost IMPOSSIBLE to hit dead center on the CB. Almost every time you cue whitey, whether you realize it or not, you are putting some type of english on it. So it stands to reason you need to know what english will do in any given situation, with any speed, any stroke, any angle.
So here we go... throw the balls up ( let's play 9 ball ) or break. Makes no difference. Shooting the 1 ball, use 12 o'clock ( high center ) english, regardless where the 2 is or what english you would normally use to get shape. Use all 3 of the other entities ( speed, stroke, angle ) as needed to get shape. The next shot ( regardless whether you make or miss the 1 ball ), cue 1 o'clock. The next shot, cue 2 o'clock. The next, 3 o'clock. And on and on, around the clock.
Now... you're preaching to the choir if you tell me that makes no sense whatsoever. I already know that. But, in chaos comes simplicity. And yes, if you tell me you cannot possibly get shape in a percentage of the attempts you will make? Preaching to the choir again. But what it does do is... it forces you to be creative. It forces you to come to understand the almost limitless variations there are to getting position, using all 4 entities in combination. It forces you to understand you almost ALWAYS have options. I guarantee it will expand your horizons in getting whitey to work for you.
