2012 AZ Billiards Straight Pool Challenge!
- Thread starter alinco
- Start date
LaserStroke product to disspell whether your cue delivery is straight
Shaky1:
All of the responses thus far are spot on -- especially the little camera idea, and making sure you patronize a place with nothing but positive energy.
One device (inexpensive, no less) that I'd like to share with you, specifically to address the "straight pull-back" question, is the LaserStroke:
http://laserstroke.com/
I'd taken a 14-year hiatus from the game to focus on my career (I.T. security) and music studies (jazz bass guitar). I was playing at high shortstop-level (high run of 133) when I quit in 1992. When I picked-up the cues again in 2006, needless to say my fundamentals suffered. My basic form was still there, but I'd forgotten all those little nuances of how to hold the cue, how to stand, where all the little contact points were in my grip hand were, etc. And I had a problem with cue delivery -- it certainly wasn't straight, and I could see that by cueing over that dividing line on the table between the rail and the cushion rubber.
Finding the LaserStroke was a god-send for me, at least. This device doesn't lie, and the first time you use it, I guarantee you, it won't be pretty. It's a very humbling device -- but at the same time, inspirational, in that it lifts the veil as to "what's going on back there." Now there's no question of how different grips work, whether new placement of your feet creating an optimum pendulum for your arm, etc. "What goes on back there" is now displayed right in front of you with the laser line.
Pick one up. I really think this device will help you. I still use mine from time to time to "spot check" my cue delivery, especially if I hadn't picked up a cue in a while, or if I'm trying something new with my fundamentals.
Hope this is helpful!
-Sean
I didn't do a good job with the last reply so I'll repeat some here To make it easier, Sorry!
I have been told that Although I have a good follow through, I need to stay with the shot longer. That is difficult!!
How do you know when your back swing is straight, other than seeing that your cue is not perfectly running exactly straight back and forth in front of you? Is there a way to turn around and look for a certain position that your arm should be in at the full rear position?
Nerves, I don't know if I will ever beat the nerves.
Shaky1:
All of the responses thus far are spot on -- especially the little camera idea, and making sure you patronize a place with nothing but positive energy.
One device (inexpensive, no less) that I'd like to share with you, specifically to address the "straight pull-back" question, is the LaserStroke:
http://laserstroke.com/
I'd taken a 14-year hiatus from the game to focus on my career (I.T. security) and music studies (jazz bass guitar). I was playing at high shortstop-level (high run of 133) when I quit in 1992. When I picked-up the cues again in 2006, needless to say my fundamentals suffered. My basic form was still there, but I'd forgotten all those little nuances of how to hold the cue, how to stand, where all the little contact points were in my grip hand were, etc. And I had a problem with cue delivery -- it certainly wasn't straight, and I could see that by cueing over that dividing line on the table between the rail and the cushion rubber.
Finding the LaserStroke was a god-send for me, at least. This device doesn't lie, and the first time you use it, I guarantee you, it won't be pretty. It's a very humbling device -- but at the same time, inspirational, in that it lifts the veil as to "what's going on back there." Now there's no question of how different grips work, whether new placement of your feet creating an optimum pendulum for your arm, etc. "What goes on back there" is now displayed right in front of you with the laser line.
Pick one up. I really think this device will help you. I still use mine from time to time to "spot check" my cue delivery, especially if I hadn't picked up a cue in a while, or if I'm trying something new with my fundamentals.
Hope this is helpful!
-Sean
Hi Shaky,
the camera idea is really a good idea. I myself just received a tripod for my camera and planning to video tape myself.
you can also send videos of yourself to some qualified instructors who can evaluate you further. most of my analysis I did by myself and some might apply only to me, but I feel that others may have variations of the same problems.
I completed the puzzle pieces by reading online advice from some instructors and also I had a few instructors in real life.
about keeping back arm straight. making a video of yourself will help you see the problems and help you a lot, perhaps an instructor can see more things in the video if you send it to them.
but when you get down you don't see your back stroke as you said. so a device like that laser stroke are probably a good idea because you actually know how it "feels" to have it straight.
may i suggest also an exercise which is used by a lot of europeans , you simply place a medium to long cross table shot, then first follow the cue ball to the pocket, then second exercise , stop the cue ball all at medium speed. while doing that practice, think of making sure your back arm goes straight back, that you are aligned and that your body is balanced and legs firm on ground. you will see it easily on this type of practice and it can make your back swing straighter, i think.
i heard that niels feijen did that for some time. he's straight as an arrow now.
about concentration to keep on target, how to keep your eyes longer on the target? one advice I read, is this: the time you take to look at the object ball before stroke delivery, double it. to lock your eyes on the target a bit longer than you would think you need to, this is scientifically proven in many sports (from the articles i've read). that is probably because of the way the brain works...
about nervousness, and concentration, yes the camera might help also to see what you're doing.
to truely improve it though, may i suggest something that might seem silly, which in fact improved my concentration by 200% which is simple meditation and/or some breathing techniques. in fact after doing this for a few days, my brain and eyes naturally found out that i was not looking at the target long enough, then naturally i would find myself more concentrated on the target.
the reason to have tension and lose concentration i think is because of too many thoughts and emotions inside, and also you are trying to think to much and execute less. to reduce that, meditating 2-3 times a week for 20 mins a session should do some good.. if you have the guts to do it..
if you don't know how to do it, i would suggest look up dr. chopra on youtube he explains how to do meditation well , or just look up anything else you wish or go to some classes.
breathing exercises also work, like tai chi or yoga breathing, etc.
also another reason of nervousness is thinking too much about the other player's game and about the other things around you, including the behaviour of people, the music, weather, etc.
you find that even when you concentrate not to think too much, it won't really work, because you are thinking about not thinking. the only way is to reduce those thoughts. and this can be accomplished by breathing exercises, or meditation.
it's also known that breathing is very closely associated with thought process. the slower your breathing the less thoughts you will have.
also when you get down on the shot, if you breath in, and hold it, and not breath out, you are keeping the co2 from coming out so your brain and head becomes quite tense after some time.
there is probably a lot more to sports psychology , but i find it's quite important. the mental thing is like 90% of pool. wouldn't you agree?
anyhow i don't want to hijack this thread into something else than it's meant to be ( posting 14.1 results and videos
) so i suggest you work on those things if you wish to, then perhaps read more about sports psychology or check with a sports psychologist if you want to help eliminate some mental things from yourself.
----------------------------------------------------
the camera idea is really a good idea. I myself just received a tripod for my camera and planning to video tape myself.
you can also send videos of yourself to some qualified instructors who can evaluate you further. most of my analysis I did by myself and some might apply only to me, but I feel that others may have variations of the same problems.
I completed the puzzle pieces by reading online advice from some instructors and also I had a few instructors in real life.
about keeping back arm straight. making a video of yourself will help you see the problems and help you a lot, perhaps an instructor can see more things in the video if you send it to them.
but when you get down you don't see your back stroke as you said. so a device like that laser stroke are probably a good idea because you actually know how it "feels" to have it straight.
may i suggest also an exercise which is used by a lot of europeans , you simply place a medium to long cross table shot, then first follow the cue ball to the pocket, then second exercise , stop the cue ball all at medium speed. while doing that practice, think of making sure your back arm goes straight back, that you are aligned and that your body is balanced and legs firm on ground. you will see it easily on this type of practice and it can make your back swing straighter, i think.
i heard that niels feijen did that for some time. he's straight as an arrow now.
about concentration to keep on target, how to keep your eyes longer on the target? one advice I read, is this: the time you take to look at the object ball before stroke delivery, double it. to lock your eyes on the target a bit longer than you would think you need to, this is scientifically proven in many sports (from the articles i've read). that is probably because of the way the brain works...
about nervousness, and concentration, yes the camera might help also to see what you're doing.
to truely improve it though, may i suggest something that might seem silly, which in fact improved my concentration by 200% which is simple meditation and/or some breathing techniques. in fact after doing this for a few days, my brain and eyes naturally found out that i was not looking at the target long enough, then naturally i would find myself more concentrated on the target.
the reason to have tension and lose concentration i think is because of too many thoughts and emotions inside, and also you are trying to think to much and execute less. to reduce that, meditating 2-3 times a week for 20 mins a session should do some good.. if you have the guts to do it..
if you don't know how to do it, i would suggest look up dr. chopra on youtube he explains how to do meditation well , or just look up anything else you wish or go to some classes.
breathing exercises also work, like tai chi or yoga breathing, etc.
also another reason of nervousness is thinking too much about the other player's game and about the other things around you, including the behaviour of people, the music, weather, etc.
you find that even when you concentrate not to think too much, it won't really work, because you are thinking about not thinking. the only way is to reduce those thoughts. and this can be accomplished by breathing exercises, or meditation.
it's also known that breathing is very closely associated with thought process. the slower your breathing the less thoughts you will have.
also when you get down on the shot, if you breath in, and hold it, and not breath out, you are keeping the co2 from coming out so your brain and head becomes quite tense after some time.
there is probably a lot more to sports psychology , but i find it's quite important. the mental thing is like 90% of pool. wouldn't you agree?
anyhow i don't want to hijack this thread into something else than it's meant to be ( posting 14.1 results and videos
) so i suggest you work on those things if you wish to, then perhaps read more about sports psychology or check with a sports psychologist if you want to help eliminate some mental things from yourself.----------------------------------------------------
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ran 52 saturday for my high this year.
http://vimeo.com/37220768
far from pretty--too many difficult shots and scrambling
thanks, jim
http://vimeo.com/37220768
far from pretty--too many difficult shots and scrambling
thanks, jim
BenLeBlanc
Registered
Ran 42 on my first and only inning for the day. I believe a big run is coming. :smash: http://vimeo.com/37344813
Nice shooting Ben !!
It was kinda hard to really see the patterns from the camera angle, but what i did see that you shoot a real good game. you seem to have a good handle on patterns and table management.
I can just see that you are gonna put together a much bigger run real soon, hopefully we get a better camera angle for that one !!!
Good luck and keep up the great work
-Steve
Thanks, Steve. It's my first 50 and it feels good to finally do it.
Congratulations to Rich93
Congratulations to Rich on hitting the 50 mark. After your 43 on Monday and your recent good play, I was hoping it was just a matter of time before you did the deed. You are in a nice groove now, so keep them coming.
For those who do not know, in addition to playing a pretty sporty game of 14.1, Rich basically runs the two leagues at the IBC and the league at Red Shoes and the occasional tournaments we have at the Shoe. He also helped sponsor the Derby City Straight Pool Classic and did a lot of work down there, scoring runs and matches.
Rich not only hit his 50 in match play, but it was against the best player in both leagues, Ed Latimer, who is somewhat of a mentor to most serious players in both leagues. Ed told me in an email this morning that Rich looked pretty good in running the 50, too. In other words, it was not a fluke run, not a "cue ball flying all over the place and landing who knows where for serendipitous shape" run.
This bodes well for the future.
Congratulations to Rich on hitting the 50 mark. After your 43 on Monday and your recent good play, I was hoping it was just a matter of time before you did the deed. You are in a nice groove now, so keep them coming.
For those who do not know, in addition to playing a pretty sporty game of 14.1, Rich basically runs the two leagues at the IBC and the league at Red Shoes and the occasional tournaments we have at the Shoe. He also helped sponsor the Derby City Straight Pool Classic and did a lot of work down there, scoring runs and matches.
Rich not only hit his 50 in match play, but it was against the best player in both leagues, Ed Latimer, who is somewhat of a mentor to most serious players in both leagues. Ed told me in an email this morning that Rich looked pretty good in running the 50, too. In other words, it was not a fluke run, not a "cue ball flying all over the place and landing who knows where for serendipitous shape" run.
This bodes well for the future.
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Wow, that's awesome! I only dream of getting into that next rack, I keep getting stuck at 15.
Great job Rich. Move over Walsh, there's a new Sheriff in town for 2012.
No, no - he's still Marshall Dillon and I'm still Festus.
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The neat thing about our leagues is we get new people coming in who are placed way ahead of guys who had been playing for years in terms of handicaps. Then as they learn more about 14.1, if they are serious, they start playing even better. This results in better competition at a relatively high level which is good for all of us.
In the past year, other than me, three other guys at IBC hit the fifty mark for the first time in their lives. Only one of the guys is younger than 60 years old, which shows we can still improve at an advanced age and that is encouraging to all of us.
And there are plenty of other guys in the leagues wanting to move up which is nice.
Nah, I think we only have one Sheriff right now, Ed Latimer, and a lot of deputies at various levels. Rich is making steady progress and if he could bottle whatever he has been doing the last week, he would be right up there near Ed.
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getting more consistent
Been about three weeks since I practiced any 14.1. Got a 45 on my second attempt this morning. Seems like I'm getting into the 40's with more consistency now. I might try some more this afternoon, but then again, I may capitalize on the nice weather and do some gardening.
Cheers all...
Been about three weeks since I practiced any 14.1. Got a 45 on my second attempt this morning. Seems like I'm getting into the 40's with more consistency now. I might try some more this afternoon, but then again, I may capitalize on the nice weather and do some gardening.
Cheers all...
BenLeBlanc
Registered
Ran a 56 today and two 42's. The tables were just recovered, and the pockets got some new shims. It is nice when you can trust a table! I think my next session I will start with 50 practice break shots. :smash: http://vimeo.com/37466483
Anyway I slightly improved my best for the year.
I think Ed would be Marshall Dillon and I guess that makes me Chester. When the limp got too bad, Festus took over if I remember right. :grin-square: