Aiming Carom Shots for Accuracy

CJ Wiley

CJ Wiley

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Becoming accurate with caroms is very important, especially when playing safeties and in the game of "One Pocket".

I like to practice caroming all 15 object balls off the cue ball (one by one of course) into the pocket as a drill to improve "carom accuracy".....what other drills do you know of for this purpose?

Are there any Systems that can be shared to improve accuracy in caroms.....maybe some of the billiard players would be the best ones to give recommendations, I like what Willie Hoppe wrote in his book on the subject.
 
Hey CJ.

I saw Whitey Walker and Farmington Joe playing sets of 9 ball like this back in the early '90's. The QB was the common ball and all balls had to be caromed off of it.

Not only do you have to play the carom but you also have to play the QB for the next shot in rotation.

Pretty interesting.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.

John
 
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Great question, subscribed. I´m quite handy doing them but it´s always nice to fill up the knowledge bank even more:thumb up:

Chrippa
 
How about systems for caroming balls, is there any really good ones out there?

One Pocket John said:
Hey CJ.

I saw Whitey Walker and Farmington Joe playing sets of 9 ball like this back in the early '90's. The QB was the common ball and all balls had to be caromed off of it.

Not only do you have to play the carom but you also have to play the QB for the next shot in rotation.

Pretty interesting.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.

John
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Yes, I'm not sure if there's a name for this game, I just use it as a practice drill. I came close to running all 15 balls one time, but it's very difficult to do. The best I've done is all 15 with two misses.

How about systems for caroming balls, is there any really good ones out there? I'm just using the one out of Hoppe's book, and it appears to be mostly about touch and practice.

That's right, the game is the teacher, isn't it. :D
 
I was watching a Tor video and it goes into safety play by drawing a line to straight to the object ball then drawing a line straight to where you want your cue ball to go then hitting the object ball between those lines. Its not something that I have committed to practicing but did try it out and was surprised by how accurate it was. I use the old half ball hit to get whitey where I want him to go...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pm-VDuGzJS4 about 149.00 into it.
 
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Have been trying to find a good aiming system for caroms for quite a long time .
Also a system for 3 rail kicks :)
 
There was a TAR interview with SVB and Efren where Efren was showing SVB a carom game: pocket object balls by caroming them off the CB.

Efren missed all but the easiest shots, while SVB made nearly every shot he tried. I think Efren was setting him up for future action :grin:
 
Question is CJ, how do you aim caroms ?
Some argue the tangent line is an invisible imaginary line and it doesn't exist .
 
.like most other aspects of the game, feel/touch is the essential quality

JoeyInCali said:
Question is CJ, how do you aim caroms ?
Some argue the tangent line is an invisible imaginary line and it doesn't exist .
Click to expand...

I've been using the system described by Hoppe in his book. The factor that must be taken into account is the speed, spin, and angle, so there is no exact "system" without practice.

The best advice I can give is to practice these shots for a few minutes every day to enhance your "feel" for the shots.....like most other aspects of the game, feel/touch is the essential quality to play at the highest level.
 
This is my "check and balance" when shooting this type of shot.

JoeyInCali said:
How about that combination ?
You bent over and looked at something .
What were you looking at ?
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
I was looking at what angle I had to create to make the combination - then picturing where the cue ball would hit the back rail (after contact). This is my "check and balance" when shooting this type of shot.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=2BnTHfZ-tMk#t=86
 
CJ Wiley said:
I've been using the system described by Hoppe in his book. The factor that must be taken into account is the speed, spin, and angle, so there is no exact "system" without practice.

The best advice I can give is to practice these shots for a few minutes every day to enhance your "feel" for the shots.....like most other aspects of the game, feel/touch is the essential quality to play at the highest level.
Click to expand...


For billiards, Hoppe is as good as it gets IMHO. For a number of years, I have developed basic carom skills by playing an occasional session of straight rail on my pool table. I purchased a solid red ball and an additional cue ball and went to work. For the purpose of developing billiard skills for pocket applications, there is no need to seek out a billiard table or use the larger, heavier billiard balls; to me keeping the mass and size of the balls the same as pocket games made more sense. This ongoing effort has resulted in a dramatic improvement in billiard skills. Although basic, the skills definitely lend improvement to one's overall pocket game. Another cool book to read and study is Daly's Billiard Book. The first section is some of the most fascinating billiard reading you will ever undertake. The players therein described are beyond amazing...Hoppe being but one of them.
BTW, I received your TOI DVDs this week. Being that defection is a well developed notion in my game, I am committing to full implementation of TOI and anxious to get at it.
 
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I suggest using TOI on ALL shots for 3 straight hours.

rikdee said:
For billiards, Hoppe is as good as it gets IMHO. For a number of years, I have developed basic carom skills by playing an occasional session of straight rail on my pool table. I purchased a solid red ball and an additional cue ball and went to work. For the purpose of developing billiard skills for pocket applications, there is no need to seek out a billiard table or use the larger, heavier billiard balls; to me keeping the mass and size of the balls the same as pocket games made more sense. This ongoing effort has resulted in a dramatic improvement in billiard skills. Although basic, the skills definitely lend improvement to one's overall pocket game. Another cool book to read and study is Daly's Billiard Book. The first section is some of the most fascinating billiard reading you will ever undertake. The players therein described are beyond amazing...Hoppe being but one of them.
BTW, I received your TOI DVDs this week. Being that defection is a well developed notion in my game, I am committing to full implementation of TOI and anxious to get at it.
Click to expand...

That's great, let me know how it goes with the TOI and if I can be helpful. It takes a few serious hours on the table and I suggest using TOI on ALL shots for 3 straight hours....still play shape the same, just use TOI....it will show you some new things that can't be learned any other way. . . Play Well
 
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