Touch of Center

[CJ Wiley]

These's always curvature, either up and down or side to side.

I don't think so. I designed this ball to be just the type of aid to training focus and I found that even with increased focus it's incredibly difficult to actually hit the spot you intend to hit and that includes center ball.

I find that TOI isn't about focusing on a point to hit but more on favoring one side of center ever so slightly to take focus OFF worrying about hitting a precise point.

Of course with practice you definitely end up with a consistent grouping of hits even if you can't hit the EXACT spot each time.

Yes, no one can hit the exact part of the cue ball every time, and the point is you shouldn't have to try. We create margin of error according to how we go about approaching the shot and especially the game its self.

Creating zones is a learned technique for many players, I learned from playing a variety of sports and games. Our basic programming is not to see balls move in straight lines, we throw baseballs, footballs, hit tennis balls, golf balls, etc. and none of these balls follow a straight path, there's always a zone if you know how to "real eyes" the zone.

These's always curvature, either up and down or side to side. When we accept this and use it as an advantage our pool games open up because we are going "with the natural grain," rather than against it. 'The Game is the Teacher'

 

[TSW]

TSW...Sounds to me like you've learned something. BTW, a "tip" of english is about 3mm, regardless of how big the tip on your cue is, or where on the tip you hit the CB. It doesn't change from stick to stick...so your description of 1/32 tip of english is not really relevant or accurate. Everything else you posted I liked. TOI is certainly not for everyone.

Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com

Thanks Scott. To clarify, I never used or bought into the TOI technique. I just remembered the discussion and decided to try to apply that level of precision to my tip placement. And by "1/32nd of a tip" I just mean a very tiny bit of English. When I first started learning my instructor would describe the appropriate English by fractions of the diameter of the ferrule, so I'm used to thinking along the lines of "1/2 a tip" or "5/8 a tip." Of course the amount of your tip that contacts the cue ball does not change from stick to stick. I think we are saying the same thing.

 

[TSW]

The table doesn't care if you aim for center pocket and miss a little left or a little right, versus if you aim to one side of the pocket and deflect the ball back to the center. The pocket is the same size. All you are doing is complicating your shot.

The reason TOI works is because it makes you think about exactly where you are hitting the cue ball and exactly which part of the pocket you are aiming for. "Aim small, miss small."

 

[JB Cases]

I just went to the table and used TOI on every shot. For me personally TOI opens up position routes that for whatever reason I never seemed to consider with center ball. It seems to me that the cue ball now goes where I can see it going rather than me being somewhat sure it's going in the right direction. With TOI I seem to have better control over the speed as well.

DISCLAIMER.

I don't use TOI all the time and I have not committed to it. I use CTE to aim and then use a touch of inside on the shot. I am not adjusting my aiming nor am I going for the near side of the pocket or any of the instructions CJ has posted. All I am doing is favoring the inside of the cue ball slightly. So with that my cueball control is better, the cue ball seems to float into position and I can see and execute routes that I previously didn't consider.

Now having said all THAT I want to say that any focus is good focus. No matter whether you are actively trying CJ's method or some other method you are working in a deliberate manner to improve your game. Where your game ultimately ends up is totally up to you. No one can stop you from putting in the time and trying the various methods other than yourself. You can argue about what method is "better", what the science is, whose character is better etc.....but at the end of the day the table tells you the truth.

If the balls stay up then you need to figure out something else. If they are dropping and you are easily handing out defeats to your opponents then whatever you are doing is working.

To me when a champion speaks I listen and try to try out what they recommend. I might not fully get it, I might not be fully committed to it, I might even disagree with them but generally the act of taking it to the table yields benefits for me. If you don't have a lot of time to play pool, and I don't unfortunately, then you want the time you spend to be enjoyable. For me that means running out when I am supposed to and winning. Anything that helps me to do that is a good thing. And focusing on the task is usually the first requirement towards getting in the zone.

 

[CJ Wiley]

not just the table shapes, it's about conforming to the roundness of the cue ball...

Attempting to incorporate as much TOI as I can into my game, I have notices the opposite effect for me. I've been able to incorporate about 50% of my routine shots into my game. What I have noticed for myself, is when I address the cue ball with TOI, for that particular shot I can actually focus less on hitting the precise point of contact on the cue ball and focus more simply on stroke and speed. Given the fact I have come to have faith that I no longer have to be precise on the cue ball to make the shot has simplified the game a lot for me. I know I can hit the precise TOI point I was aiming for, a little more inside of that, or even a little right of that and make the shot most of the time. This is my experience only.

I'm not as good a player as many of you members are. I'm an APA league player and only an SL7 in 8-Ball and SL8/9 in 9-Ball. For guys like me simplifying the game has been a tremendous help. Like CJ mentioned a few posts above, I now look to see if I can make the shot and position using TOI. So far about 50% of the time I think I can. If I don't have the confidence to get position using TOI, I simply use what I think I need to use. At least for me this had made my game much more consistent. I don't break and run racks all day, but I can break and run my fair share at any given time. I used to use a lot of outside english in my game since I was taught it was the helping english. Now I find I only use it about 30% of the time.

The position shot using TOI requires force. The cue ball is going to play "heavier," so you have to hit it slightly firmer than you may be accustemed to (I'm guessing since I've never seen you play in person).

The best way we describe it is you "force the cue ball around the table," as opposed to spinning it. This "force" makes the cue ball look like it's "floating" instead of spinning. You will hear it when a player is using this type of stroke, it makes a higher pitched sound, which we road players call "pinning the shots".

Remember the object ball acts as a reflection of the cue ball. If you spin the cue ball with right english, it puts left english on the object ball. High english puts low on the object ball, low puts high, etc.

If I'm cutting the object ball to the right, and I use a "touch of right(inside)" this will make the cue ball hit on the left side of the object ball which is the correct side (when aligned like a straight in shot) to make the shot. This is why my flexibility is far superior using the TOI than it can be using center or cuing it to the outside.

This is taking advantage of what happens naturally in a pool shot. In other words if I"m cutting a ball to the right, it's more natural to put a touch of right on the cue ball to make it favor cutting the ball more to the right. When I say "natural," I"m saying it favors that type "influence" on the object ball anyway.

This is a more advanced way of describing how the 3 Part Pocket System works, if this is confusing, put it on a shelf and we'll come back to it later. We also a tremendous banking system (it works with any amount of rails) that takes advantage of the "mirroring" effect I described, it's amazing how perfectly systems like this work on the pool table. It's because of the perfect geometrical shapes, not just the table shapes, it's about conforming them to the roundness of the cue ball. 'The Game is the Teacher'

 

[CJ Wiley]

another way of describing how the margin of error created.

The table doesn't care if you aim for center pocket and miss a little left or a little right, versus if you aim to one side of the pocket and deflect the ball back to the center. The pocket is the same size. All you are doing is complicating your shot.

The reason TOI works is because it makes you think about exactly where you are hitting the cue ball and exactly which part of the pocket you are aiming for. "Aim small, miss small."

If you miss center using center, how are going to adjust the next shot? What if you miss the side of the pocket you are aiming at, how will you adjust? If you miss "cheating the pocket" you will miss position and face it, if you miss a shot using center you have no way of knowing which way it deflected. With TOI this is all covered, you can make adjustments because the feedback you're getting is accurate and precise.

The advantage to favoring one side of the cue ball is - none of us can hit the perfect center of the cue ball every time. If we try we will fail because it's simply not possible, especially when hitting the cue ball straight. To prove this get the straightest shooter in the world and have them put the cue ball on the foot spot and an object ball on the head spot.

Have them shoot the cue ball into the object ball and make it come back and hit the cue ball. They can't do it consistently and I'm sure you can't either, we humans are not that perfect, nor should we pretend to be. On the other hand have them set up the same shot and use TOI and we can predict EVERY TIME which side of the cue ball the object ball will come back on. This is another way of describing how the margin of error created.

The other part of the TOI system is it enables a player to aim every shot like it's straight in to either the center or edge of the object ball. Can you do that with center? Not hardly, you would have to incorporate an aiming system into the picture to create your angles.

TOI is not an ordinary aiming system, it blends all the calculations you make on each shot into one system of play....it's not an "aiming system," it's a "playing system".

If you're wondering what calculations I'm referring to they are:

1) The angle you are creating on each shot

2) The shot speed you are creating on each shot

3) The cue ball target you must hit with your tip on each shot

With the Touch Of Inside Technique these three calculations are all BLENDED together. This is why it takes much less thought to play this way, you don't have to think about three things every time, you just concentrate on one thing. Over time this is brutal to play against, it will wear down "the best of them". 'The Game is the Teacher'

 

[The Renfro]

Thanks Scott. To clarify, I never used or bought into the TOI technique. I just remembered the discussion and decided to try to apply that level of precision to my tip placement. And by "1/32nd of a tip" I just mean a very tiny bit of English. When I first started learning my instructor would describe the appropriate English by fractions of the diameter of the ferrule, so I'm used to thinking along the lines of "1/2 a tip" or "5/8 a tip." Of course the amount of your tip that contacts the cue ball does not change from stick to stick. I think we are saying the same thing.

You don't say?

 

[TSW]

You don't say?

View attachment 264494

Come again? I've always been a TOI skeptic/critic. The whole point of this thread is a criticism of those who think there is some magic to it.

 

[JB Cases]

Come again? I've always been a TOI skeptic/critic. The whole point of this thread is a criticism of those who think there is some magic to it.

There is "magic" to it. As the quote goes, "any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic". Here you have a top player who is also able to communicate who has put a professional level technique into the public realm.

If this were something common or known then it would easy to point to another source for it.

But you don't have another source because all the textbooks and all the instructors have always preached center ball and center pocket. They have always said just learn to adjust when you have to "cheat" the pocket, meaning play away from center pocket to get shape.

Now, CJ Wiley is turning all that over and saying no, you have to favor one side of the cue ball for most shots you will take and favor one side of the pocket to create a bigger zone and you will use power and very little side spin to move the cue ball.

And people are reporting that it works as described and works as advertised.

And of course this is going to mean that the conversation is going to come back to center ball and whether all we REALLY need is to focus more on center ball. And OF COURSE focusing more on center ball will yield results. And OF COURSE focusing more on hitting where you intend will yield better results.

As Efren said when asked what his number one piece of advice is he said focus. But to say that TOI is just about focus is just not right in my opinion. It's a way to play that makes a bit of a different connection to the shot and to the cue ball. The feeling when hitting the ball is different the reaction of the cue ball is different.

So if you don't "buy into it" you can't possibly know what it feels like. In fact I don't really understand the use of the term when talking about a method of playing pool. It's either something you try or you don't. Either something you put some effort into or not.

But making an equation to a known method, i.e. focusing on the place you want to hit the ball, is just not right if you haven't actually put in the time to learn it. That's like reviewing a movie based on the 3 minute trailer.

I have yet to see any critic of any of these "new" methods say that they put in the time and learned them and still find them lacking. I guess it's a catch-22 because if you already think something is crap then you aren't going to spend time learning it. But I'd be willing to bet that if people did spend the time with an open mind then they might just find that these methods do work as promised.

 

[victorl]

Good post, JB. You summed it up perfectly.

 

[CJ Wiley]

Is something spoiled if we learn the secrets of how the "magicians" do their tricks?

There is "magic" to it. As the quote goes, "any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic". Here you have a top player who is also able to communicate who has put a professional level technique into the public realm.

If this were something common or known then it would easy to point to another source for it.

But you don't have another source because all the textbooks and all the instructors have always preached center ball and center pocket. They have always said just learn to adjust when you have to "cheat" the pocket, meaning play away from center pocket to get shape.

Now, CJ Wiley is turning all that over and saying no, you have to favor one side of the cue ball for most shots you will take and favor one side of the pocket to create a bigger zone and you will use power and very little side spin to move the cue ball.

And people are reporting that it works as described and works as advertised.

And of course this is going to mean that the conversation is going to come back to center ball and whether all we REALLY need is to focus more on center ball. And OF COURSE focusing more on center ball will yield results. And OF COURSE focusing more on hitting where you intend will yield better results.

As Efren said when asked what his number one piece of advice is he said focus. But to say that TOI is just about focus is just not right in my opinion. It's a way to play that makes a bit of a different connection to the shot and to the cue ball. The feeling when hitting the ball is different the reaction of the cue ball is different.

So if you don't "buy into it" you can't possibly know what it feels like. In fact I don't really understand the use of the term when talking about a method of playing pool. It's either something you try or you don't. Either something you put some effort into or not.

But making an equation to a known method, i.e. focusing on the place you want to hit the ball, is just not right if you haven't actually put in the time to learn it. That's like reviewing a movie based on the 3 minute trailer.

I have yet to see any critic of any of these "new" methods say that they put in the time and learned them and still find them lacking. I guess it's a catch-22 because if you already think something is crap then you aren't going to spend time learning it. But I'd be willing to bet that if people did spend the time with an open mind then they might just find that these methods do work as promised.

Yes, unfortunately as we get older we "real eyes" there's no magic, it's either real or it's not.

I remember the only time I was around Minnisota Fats was at the Bicycle Club in L.A. It was really cool because I have grew up watching him on TV and his matches with Willie Mosconi were legendary on Wide World of Sports. On the second night I was there I got invited to the Magic Castle by Chef Anton and "Fat's" wife and a group of us decided to go together.

The Magic Castle is a famous private magician's club in Hollywood and has every room set up for different magic tricks and many of the people there are magicians. There are no visible doors on the outside and you have to say a secret "open sesame" phrase to a sculpture of an owl outside to open the secret entrance.

After one especially stunning show in one of their private rooms the magician stopped him on his way out and gave him his watch back. This was the last straw for this gentleman and he turned white as a ghost and told us "this is too spooky, there's something really wrong in here," and rushed out the door, jumped in a cab and I never saw him again.

I remember wishing I was him and could believe the magic was real, however, I had studied magic at an earlier stage in my life and I knew the "tricks," so the best I could do was "act" amazed.

Unfortunately that's how I became with pool too, once I knew all the tricks it wasn't as "magical" anymore. Sometimes I have moments that I think knowledge makes life less exciting, and sometimes I have a burning desire to learn everything possible.There is something spoiled if we learn the secrets of how the "magicians" do their tricks, and I'm starting to understand why some of us would rather not. 'The Game is the Teacher'

 

[lfigueroa]

The table doesn't care if you aim for center pocket and miss a little left or a little right, versus if you aim to one side of the pocket and deflect the ball back to the center. The pocket is the same size. All you are doing is complicating your shot.

The reason TOI works is because it makes you think about exactly where you are hitting the cue ball and exactly which part of the pocket you are aiming for. "Aim small, miss small."

It's kind of funny because this is the same reason some folks find benefit from some of the aiming systems: it is just forcing them to focus.

As to the rest, no doubt that if Pro X came on here and offered a "new" system call a Touch of Outside (TOO), or a Touch of Draw (TOD), or a Touch of Follow (TOF), there would always be those willing to attach themselves and make passionate claims of "I'm cured!" as they danced around the wagon.

Lou Figueroa

 

[Neil]

There is "magic" to it. As the quote goes, "any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic". Here you have a top player who is also able to communicate who has put a professional level technique into the public realm.

If this were something common or known then it would easy to point to another source for it.

But you don't have another source because all the textbooks and all the instructors have always preached center ball and center pocket. They have always said just learn to adjust when you have to "cheat" the pocket, meaning play away from center pocket to get shape.

Now, CJ Wiley is turning all that over and saying no, you have to favor one side of the cue ball for most shots you will take and favor one side of the pocket to create a bigger zone and you will use power and very little side spin to move the cue ball.

And people are reporting that it works as described and works as advertised.

And of course this is going to mean that the conversation is going to come back to center ball and whether all we REALLY need is to focus more on center ball. And OF COURSE focusing more on center ball will yield results. And OF COURSE focusing more on hitting where you intend will yield better results.

As Efren said when asked what his number one piece of advice is he said focus. But to say that TOI is just about focus is just not right in my opinion. It's a way to play that makes a bit of a different connection to the shot and to the cue ball. The feeling when hitting the ball is different the reaction of the cue ball is different.

So if you don't "buy into it" you can't possibly know what it feels like. In fact I don't really understand the use of the term when talking about a method of playing pool. It's either something you try or you don't. Either something you put some effort into or not.

But making an equation to a known method, i.e. focusing on the place you want to hit the ball, is just not right if you haven't actually put in the time to learn it. That's like reviewing a movie based on the 3 minute trailer.

I have yet to see any critic of any of these "new" methods say that they put in the time and learned them and still find them lacking. I guess it's a catch-22 because if you already think something is crap then you aren't going to spend time learning it. But I'd be willing to bet that if people did spend the time with an open mind then they might just find that these methods do work as promised.

John, what you and others don't realize is that this has all been talked about before on here. You don't realize it, simply because if a known pro doesn't say it, you don't really listen, and if a know pro says something, you swallow it hook line and sinker without even giving it a second thought.

I can say that, and others have too, because all you have to do is actually read all the posts, and you will quickly see that almost 100% of the big advocates on here for it don't even understand it, and don't do it right according to the way CJ describes it. Of course, that's understandable, since CJ seems to keep changing what he is trying to describe.

The "heavy cue ball" when hitting firmer without english has been talked about on here for years. It's nothing new. It's the easiest way to play on fast tables. It actually slows the cb down whereas trying to slow roll actually makes the cb go farther. So, for you to say that others haven't even tried it, only shows your actual lack of understanding of it and your lack of what has been talked about on here many times by others.

If what you are doing now is working for you, great! But to say that CJ has revealed some hidden secret is just plain wrong. Actually, I'm sitting here getting a kick out of how many are lauding it when they openly admit they aren't even actually doing what he says to do. And, at the same time saddened by the total lack of understanding and utilization of all the great info on this forum.

Any instructor on here worth his salt can easily spend a little time to show where and why what CJ says is right and wrong. What actually is beneficial, and what is just plain nonsense and double speak and contradictory to what he has said the day before. But, if listening to a former pro makes you play better, have at it. Just please stop getting down on those that have enough sense to see things for what they really are.

 

[CJ Wiley]

Ironic isn't it?

There is "magic" to it. As the quote goes, "any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic". Here you have a top player who is also able to communicate who has put a professional level technique into the public realm.

If this were something common or known then it would easy to point to another source for it.

But you don't have another source because all the textbooks and all the instructors have always preached center ball and center pocket. They have always said just learn to adjust when you have to "cheat" the pocket, meaning play away from center pocket to get shape.

Now, CJ Wiley is turning all that over and saying no, you have to favor one side of the cue ball for most shots you will take and favor one side of the pocket to create a bigger zone and you will use power and very little side spin to move the cue ball.

And people are reporting that it works as described and works as advertised.

And of course this is going to mean that the conversation is going to come back to center ball and whether all we REALLY need is to focus more on center ball. And OF COURSE focusing more on center ball will yield results. And OF COURSE focusing more on hitting where you intend will yield better results.

As Efren said when asked what his number one piece of advice is he said focus. But to say that TOI is just about focus is just not right in my opinion. It's a way to play that makes a bit of a different connection to the shot and to the cue ball. The feeling when hitting the ball is different the reaction of the cue ball is different.

So if you don't "buy into it" you can't possibly know what it feels like. In fact I don't really understand the use of the term when talking about a method of playing pool. It's either something you try or you don't. Either something you put some effort into or not.

But making an equation to a known method, i.e. focusing on the place you want to hit the ball, is just not right if you haven't actually put in the time to learn it. That's like reviewing a movie based on the 3 minute trailer.

I have yet to see any critic of any of these "new" methods say that they put in the time and learned them and still find them lacking. I guess it's a catch-22 because if you already think something is crap then you aren't going to spend time learning it. But I'd be willing to bet that if people did spend the time with an open mind then they might just find that these methods do work as promised.

Careful JB, you're going to stir up my "passionate fans". :thumbup:

It's funny that the ones that kick and scream against my systems and techniques then step back and try to make statements that they are the ones that advocated them all along.

Ironic isn't it?

'The Game is Still the Teacher'

 

[Neil]

Careful JB, you're going to stir up my "passionate fans". :thumbup:

It's funny that the ones that kick and scream against my systems and techniques then step back and try to make statements that they are the ones that advocated them all along.

Ironic isn't it?

'The Game is Still the Teacher'

CJ, you just don't "get it" do you? If we were in person, I could explain it to you in 10 minutes, and you would agree with me. Trouble is, you only read what you want to read, and skip everything else. No one is kicking and screaming against your techniques, no matter how much you want to make it look that way. People are stating that what you are saying isn't consistent, and some of what you are saying is counterproductive and unreasonable.

I have found it interesting how many on here lauding you and actually describing what they are doing aren't really even close to what you are advocating, yet, you don't say anything about that, only point out how more people are praising you. I'm all for helping others. There are a number of pros that post on here and never get any flack. Maybe it's time for you to start asking yourself why YOU seem to draw conflict, and the others don't. Whether you realize it or not, you are not advocating ONE system, and a proper way to do it. What you have been saying is in conflict with other statements you have made and insisted upon. (hint- using two tips of inside, or however much inside you need to use, is NOT a touch of inside, it is using inside english, not using some system that defines that you only use a hair of inside. )

 

[Philthepockets]

Don't worry Neil, none of these guys on here could hit the same spot on the cue ball three times in a row anyway so it's irrelevant.

 

[ENGLISH!]

CJ, you just don't "get it" do you? If we were in person, I could explain it to you in 10 minutes, and you would agree with me. Trouble is, you only read what you want to read, and skip everything else. No one is kicking and screaming against your techniques, no matter how much you want to make it look that way. People are stating that what you are saying isn't consistent, and some of what you are saying is counterproductive and unreasonable.

I have found it interesting how many on here lauding you and actually describing what they are doing aren't really even close to what you are advocating, yet, you don't say anything about that, only point out how more people are praising you. I'm all for helping others. There are a number of pros that post on here and never get any flack. Maybe it's time for you to start asking yourself why YOU seem to draw conflict, and the others don't. Whether you realize it or not, you are not advocating ONE system, and a proper way to do it. What you have been saying is in conflict with other statements you have made and insisted upon. (hint- using two tips of inside, or however much inside you need to use, is NOT a touch of inside, it is using inside english, not using some system that defines that you only use a hair of inside. )

Mr. Neil,

That would depend on the spin to speed ratio. Does one want to utiilize the spin factor or the deflection factor?

You now seem to only have a problem with the vernacular of calling it a 'Touch' of Inside & who should 'get credit' for bringing it to AZB.

Would you perfer it to be called a 'Multiple Array of Inside Tip Placement Locations for Utilizing Cue Ball Squirt/Deflection for the Purpose of Pocketing Balls & Getting the Cue Ball to Float After the Collision'? By the way, the process was first introduced on AZB by Mr. ______ on XX-XX-XX.

Are you aware of how you come across? I would be more interested in you taking the time to expain your take & understanding on the subject at hand rather than constantly jumping CJ for nit picking reasons.

Everyone was not on AZB from it's enception. I stumbled on in June of 2012. I have been using both outside & inside spin for 46 years. This technique on a conscious level is new to me. How many others out there on AZB are or were unaware of it & it is new to them, as well.

TOI is the one of the very very few things I have gotten from the now 8 months of my time on AZB. Everyone on AZB is not a beginner or a novice.

Why can't you engage in the converstaion & HELP instead of moaning like a female dog about who should get the credit.

I have been told by some that you have a wealth of knowledge. I have also seen almost none of such since you returned from your self imposed hiatus.

All I have seen is what appears to be a grumpy old man that is upset because the world is no longer paying any attention to him & he is not getting patted on the back. So...he sharks those that are.

I mean to be well intended here. I'm just being honest in my opinion. If you have a wealth of knowledge, why don't you share it in a forthcoming non condescending manner? Instead of making yourself to look as I have desribed above. It's your choose.

I for one am ready, willing & able to recieve any knowledge that you are willing to pass on. So far in my 8 months an AZB I have seen almost nothing but arguementative posts with no real specific usefull information.

If you can explain the TOI technique better than CJ, then please do so. Maybe you can help someone that can use it. Or...would rather hide under the guise that such things along with english are too complicated for most people so we have to put them down until they are ready for it. The problem with that is, who decides who is ready or not on sight unseen forum site.

I hope you see my points & take them with the good will as I intend. We need all of the useful information available. We don't need the crap put downs on a personal basis. You fire at CJ, I fire at you. Somebody fires at me. I fire back at them. etc., etc., etc.

Let's get to the nuts & bolts. You admit the technique exists but you then scold JB & others for 'arguing; with those that say it has no benefit. I'm confused. (opening for an insult or slur)

Best Wishes to You,

 

[TSW]

TOI is like a checklist for your shot

[Cross-posting from a PM]:

TOI works, but not for the reasons CJ et al say it does. "Touch of Center" would work just as well.

The brain is great at recognizing patterns and coming up with mental shortcuts that save brain power. This is a very good thing. This is what lets you walk around your neighborhood successfully without paying attention to where you are. This is also what lets you look at a pool table and recognize patterns and trouble spots quickly.

However, the execution of a pool shot requires precision, and this is where the mental shortcuts can hurt. You think "draw" and your brain goes into shortcut mode. You've hit thousands of draw shots. Your brain goes on autopilot. But, TOI tells you to hit with a fraction of a fraction of English. Your brain can't shortcut that. You have to bring your conscious mind to bear to define that amount of English. CJ is also telling you to define the part of the pocket you want to hit. That's another thing that forces your conscious mind to focus. "Corner pocket" encourages your mind to use a shortcut; "left side of the corner pocket" makes you stop and aim.

I think TOI is very similar to the checklists that pilots and surgeons use. They have done all of the steps a thousand times and know them by heart, but going down a checklist each and every time helps keep the mind focused. This is why TOI works. The advantage you gain from your focus is greater than any added complexity that the inside English brings.

There's also the "heavy cue ball" benefits that Neil mentioned. TOI keeps you from rolling the cue ball, which is generally a good thing.

 

[Philthepockets]

46 years.

Curious as to why you slip this in every other post?? and also include it in your tag line??

 

[TSW]

Curious as to why you slip this in every other post?? and also include it in your tag line??

Clearly the longer one has been playing, the more one knows. This is why Grady Mathews was such a smart player, and why the old guys at the rail always tell you what you did wrong after the shot.