Do 14.1 players practice more?
- Thread starter alphadog
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justinb386
Banned
14.1 seems like the best game to practice though, for consistency (if that makes sense). I wonder, when you guys practice 14.1, do you play matches against yourself, or what is the best way to practice 14.1? I imagine the best way is just to play like races to 50 or 100 (or whatever you think best, for your speed) against yourself, and just try to keep improving (maybe by recording innings?). Thanks for any thoughts about this. I never was a straight pool player, but I have played it some.
I use a straight pool break shot to open them up and then just run balls. If I miss, I just keep going. Use a coin to count racks when I run them.
This is a great way to practice straight pool imo.
It also is very honest. You can only run what you can run.
Its very humbling.
This is a great way to practice straight pool imo.
It also is very honest. You can only run what you can run.
Its very humbling.
You,my friend,are the exception. If you are to play 14.1 what do you practice?
IDK if 14.1 players practice more. I don't know any "pure" 14.1 players, anyway. Nowadays everybody plays rotation games. I have to sometimes play 9 and 10 ball, because that is what most people play, even if I consider them MUCH inferior games to 14.1, and of course the national league system and championships mostly focus on rotation games. The thing is, that the shotmaking you learn playing rotation games will give you lots of firepower for your 14.1, so playing those games is not a waste of time in that respect.
There are certain concepts in 14.1 that are very difficult to practice with structured drills. They are about seeing possibilities in chaotic and unique situations. You can't really practice that. Other than that, there are many drills that will help every pool game. All classic cueball exercises help 14.1 play. I practice running the balls, and several drills I invented myself.
I really practice rotation games kind of half-heartedly. That is, I should probably spend 50% of my time working on my break. I just can't. I don't like the games enough to spend my time on that, so I could possibly be better at 9/10 ball than I am right now. I just don't want to endlessly stand around the pool hall, smashing balls all over the place. I'm happy to shoot a shot I'm struggling with (in straight pool or snooker), or a drill 500 times, but I don't really care about being good at 9 ball, so I don't spend a lot of time on the break. The rotation games are mindless, brute games that have very little subtlety to them (straight rotation being the only exception). If you have a good break and can make the basic shots, you'll be at least half decent at 9 or 10 ball. The whole game has maybe 12 shots to it. If you can make those 12 shots consistently, you can beat anyone on the planet so long as you break well...The people I know who play almost exclusively 9 and 10 ball spend FAR to little time on their breaks. IMO, once you are a decent player, half your time should be devoted to the break. Instead, they are mindlessly pocketing balls without any structure. I guess a lot of people don't have the mental stamina to spend their time practising only 13 shots. It's easier to practice straightpool, beacuse it inherently has more variety to it.
I don't care how well you make those 12 shots in one pocket, it just won't be enough, and in straight pool you will also come up short...So yes, I practice straight pool in a more focused manner, and more often. For rotation games, I mostly work on my shotmaking.
Experience, knowledge etc. are not even really advantages in rotation games. The winner of many tournaments will be the 17-20 year old who just fires at everything without thinking. The races are too short for this to come back and bite them in typical tournament formats. You want to be good at tournament 9 ball? Shoot the 12 shots and practice the break until you bleed. Then, when the tournament comes, shut of your brain and fire at everything. It's a crap shoot anyway, the winner will usually be decided by the break and one or two random rolls.
There are certain concepts in 14.1 that are very difficult to practice with structured drills. They are about seeing possibilities in chaotic and unique situations. You can't really practice that. Other than that, there are many drills that will help every pool game. All classic cueball exercises help 14.1 play. I practice running the balls, and several drills I invented myself.
I really practice rotation games kind of half-heartedly. That is, I should probably spend 50% of my time working on my break. I just can't. I don't like the games enough to spend my time on that, so I could possibly be better at 9/10 ball than I am right now. I just don't want to endlessly stand around the pool hall, smashing balls all over the place. I'm happy to shoot a shot I'm struggling with (in straight pool or snooker), or a drill 500 times, but I don't really care about being good at 9 ball, so I don't spend a lot of time on the break. The rotation games are mindless, brute games that have very little subtlety to them (straight rotation being the only exception). If you have a good break and can make the basic shots, you'll be at least half decent at 9 or 10 ball. The whole game has maybe 12 shots to it. If you can make those 12 shots consistently, you can beat anyone on the planet so long as you break well...The people I know who play almost exclusively 9 and 10 ball spend FAR to little time on their breaks. IMO, once you are a decent player, half your time should be devoted to the break. Instead, they are mindlessly pocketing balls without any structure. I guess a lot of people don't have the mental stamina to spend their time practising only 13 shots. It's easier to practice straightpool, beacuse it inherently has more variety to it.
I don't care how well you make those 12 shots in one pocket, it just won't be enough, and in straight pool you will also come up short...So yes, I practice straight pool in a more focused manner, and more often. For rotation games, I mostly work on my shotmaking.
Experience, knowledge etc. are not even really advantages in rotation games. The winner of many tournaments will be the 17-20 year old who just fires at everything without thinking. The races are too short for this to come back and bite them in typical tournament formats. You want to be good at tournament 9 ball? Shoot the 12 shots and practice the break until you bleed. Then, when the tournament comes, shut of your brain and fire at everything. It's a crap shoot anyway, the winner will usually be decided by the break and one or two random rolls.
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Well said Straightpool_99!!! My dislike for rotation games may exceed yours. I set up a break shot and run until I miss. The cool thing is I can take more chances in practice vs. a match. I practice a lot of safety play too. Discipline is your best friend. 14.1 players are a dying breed.
i bought a nice table to play on ,i decided straight pool would be best to play
i needed practice running balls so i started playing straight pool at home
i absolutely hate it,it is killing my game,i lost what little confidence i had and play worse than i did
my table is for sale now
i had to return to the pool room to play one pocket
the game looks easy but it is not,my high run so far is 28 balls and that came after i started playing one pocket to get back to playing again
i can not figure it out
i even miss the ball in hand break shot frequently
i know that straight pool players are good players,but it does not work for me
i needed practice running balls so i started playing straight pool at home
i absolutely hate it,it is killing my game,i lost what little confidence i had and play worse than i did
my table is for sale now
i had to return to the pool room to play one pocket
the game looks easy but it is not,my high run so far is 28 balls and that came after i started playing one pocket to get back to playing again
i can not figure it out
i even miss the ball in hand break shot frequently
i know that straight pool players are good players,but it does not work for me
I play mostly equal offense which is a cousin to 14.1 - I like it because you keep score.
Dean, be honest,yout table was for sale the minute you bought it.
Your table probably has "tight" pockets for 1pkt. You play practice,set up norhing but breakshots for a week. I bet that improves
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Ken - when you post a video you run the risk of people giving you unsolicited advice. :smile: So here goes:
1. If you haven't already, get Racking Secrets by Joe Tucker. Making the corner ball simply means you are getting a consistent gap between between the 4 and one of the two balls touching it (there are other gaps that would give you this result, too). If you look closely I can guarantee the balls are settling into a dimple and creating the same gap each time. If you change your cue ball position you won't make that corner ball any more. Or, rack the balls on the other side of the table and see what happens.
2. Your cue ball is flying back to the head of the table because you have either center cue ball or a touch of draw on the shot. Hit a little above center cue ball so that after contact with the rack, the cue ball backs up to center table and then parks itself there. You want a little spin on the cue ball, but not so much that it takes velocity away.
3. Accuracy on the break is more important than power, which you seem to understand. As you are able to control your cue ball better, you have lots of room to go in increasing power for a better spread of balls.
So there. You asked for it!
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Same
Ive been turned off rotation games
Only practice 14.1
And the highlighted is true
Very humbling and your average run will let you know in a hurry how good a shot maker you really are when there are no restrictions on Which ball goes where
I think the "fine line" here is "practice".
See while a 14.1 player may be able to spend more time just hitting balls I say it's a bit more of a productive hitting of the balls than say a rotation player as less risky shots are taken. But a rotation player has more shots to "specifically" work on and if one is truly into "practicing" they will spend some percentage of time working on them, see a 14.1 one player is less likely to go practicing "big shot" than the rotation player for those who understand the different dynamics/shots involved in both types of games.
The 14.1 player depending on level will practice the break or different types of it but for the most part will resort to "just hitting balls"
See while a 14.1 player may be able to spend more time just hitting balls I say it's a bit more of a productive hitting of the balls than say a rotation player as less risky shots are taken. But a rotation player has more shots to "specifically" work on and if one is truly into "practicing" they will spend some percentage of time working on them, see a 14.1 one player is less likely to go practicing "big shot" than the rotation player for those who understand the different dynamics/shots involved in both types of games.
The 14.1 player depending on level will practice the break or different types of it but for the most part will resort to "just hitting balls"
You are correct on many things.
Big shotsin rotation games= minute cueball travel in 14.1
Try the insanity drill on for size
Do 41.1 players practice more:
a.1) hours at the table no.
a.2) shots at the table yes.
a.1) hours at the table no.
a.2) shots at the table yes.
I feel that 14.1 players do, maybe perhaps, practice their favored game more because of the the purity of the challenge that's always there waiting for them.
The table and balls just sit there and whisper, "Come on, big boy. Let's see what you can do." You rack them, break them open, and see how high up the mountain you can go. It's always there, day after day, week after week, year after year. So you can always get a sense of where your game is.
I also think that 14.1 players, as they progress, are able to appreciate the subtle intricacies of strategy, CB movement, and shot making the game offers. So they get sucked in and are able to stay engaged.
Lou Figueroa
The table and balls just sit there and whisper, "Come on, big boy. Let's see what you can do." You rack them, break them open, and see how high up the mountain you can go. It's always there, day after day, week after week, year after year. So you can always get a sense of where your game is.
I also think that 14.1 players, as they progress, are able to appreciate the subtle intricacies of strategy, CB movement, and shot making the game offers. So they get sucked in and are able to stay engaged.
Lou Figueroa