Mark Wilson & Don Wardell, M.D.

[nobcitypool]

I'm big on books and DVD's. My personal pool library for both is reasonably big. Interestingly enough, far and away the highest rated DVD's for me are Jerry Brieseth and Dr. Dave's VEP's both of which are recommended in the book. I'm about 1/3 of the way through the book and can safely say this is far and away the finest overall pool instructional publication I've read. Take those two DVD sets and this book, put in the time on the practice table and I believe you can be just about as good as you want to be.

 

[fd_colorado]

FWIW, Once you see the scope and depth of of this brilliant book you'll have to have one too.

I brought my copy of the book with me to the pool hall last night. Both of my shooting buddies were very impressed with the book and said they will be placing orders.

Thanks a bunch, Mark and Don, now I'll have to work even harder to stay ahead of my friends! :frown:

 

[Scott Lee]

Fred...Great to see you posting! I'm getting Mark's book for Xmas, so I'm excited to read it too! Hope you and your family have a Merry Xmas, and best wishes for a happy, healthy New Year! Sure hope I can make it up to Aspen the next time I'm in CO! :grin:

Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com

FWIW, Once you see the scope and depth of of this brilliant book you'll have to have one too.

I brought my copy of the book with me to the pool hall last night. Both of my shooting buddies were very impressed with the book and said they will be placing orders.

Thanks a bunch, Mark and Don, now I'll have to work even harder to stay ahead of my friends! :frown:

 

[fd_colorado]

Fred...Great to see you posting! I'm getting Mark's book for Xmas, so I'm excited to read it too! Hope you and your family have a Merry Xmas, and best wishes for a happy, healthy New Year! Sure hope I can make it up to Aspen the next time I'm in CO! :grin:

Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com

Hi Scott, -- and Merry Christmas to you too!

Please do take a couple of extra dsys while you are CO next time to come up into the mountains and visit. As you know you are always welcome here any time.

If I know when you are coming, I can try and put together some students for a class or two.

Cheers, Fred

PS. Apropos of nothing, as of the first of the year, CO will have legal pot for everyone.

 

[Williebetmore]

Personally, under those circumstances, I'd go with "Play Great Pool," "King Lear" and "The Grapes of Wrath," but wouldn't the typical prison library have these obvious classics anyway?

sjm,
Yes, you are correct, any self-respecting prison library will have a good selection of Billy Shakespeare.....you can tell by all the bi$chin' King Lear tattoos you see in the yard!

 

[Williebetmore]

Take those two DVD sets and this book, put in the time on the practice table and I believe you can be just about as good as you want to be.

ncp,
The primary premise of the book is to convince people of the last part of your sentence, "...you can be just about as good as you want to be." No excuses anymore.

As Mark often states, "don't say you can't be good, just admit you don't want to do the work." I do believe there are adequate resources nowadays for every player to get as good as they want (and as good as their time allows). It wasn't always the case in the days when players jealously guarded their "secrets," and when really good instructional material was unavailable. In those days a player COULD practice long and hard and not reach their potential. JMO.

 

[victorl]

I received Mark's book last week and would like to revive this thread to give a short review. I have to say I am really impressed with the quality, and having read a fair amount of the instructional material out there, this has to be far and away the most complete and in-depth pool instructional to date.

For advanced players a good portion of the material will be vaguely familiar, but the systematic and detailed way in which each bit of information is presented makes it clear why and how each item should be incorporated into one's game.

Also, this book defines the difference between pro and amateur play in terms of quality and precision of stroke, and provides a concrete (and daunting) plan for reaching the professional level. After reading and understanding what it takes to play pool at the highest levels, anyone would have to agree that pool is a legitimate sport.

I also have some questions regarding a couple of points in the book and think it may be nice to have a place where we can have some civil, intelligent discussion about the topics in the book and maybe pick up some ideas from each other.

Cheers,
Vic

 

[jazznpool]

I am greatly enjoying this well crafted book!

Martin

 

[DaveK]

I'm sending your book to St. Louis this week, then Mark will sign it and send it to you...first available dog sled.

The dogs arrived right around Christmas :thumbup: .... the reading has started ... the re-work will begin immediately after league ends in a couple of months. My first impression was "wow, this guy knows of what he speaks" (not you Don, the other guy ) . Curiously the very first illustration in the book is exactly how I explain to people the difference between skill levels (and why lesser players have great difficulty with consistent draw action).

Dave

 

[Williebetmore]

..... each bit of information is presented makes it clear why and how each item should be incorporated into one's game.

Cheers,
Vic

Vic,
Many thanks for the kind remarks.

Our desperate hope was that players would pick up on these important points.
In the past 150 years, instructional books tell you the basics of grip, bridge, stance, and stroke WITHOUT telling you why. As a result, many books propose a shooting system with major problems that would add thousands of hours to a students training if he tries to imitate it.

Mark wanted it to be CRYSTAL clear that he proposes this method as the easiest (NOT the "only" way) way to become proficient. He wanted to make sure the reader knows WHY his recommendations are made. Without the "why" there is little incentive for any student to change. He doesn't want you to do things because they are "his way," he wants you to do them because they are the quickest and easiest way to proficiency (though not quick, and not easy). If you do them his way, he knows you will improve. If you stick with the unorthodox techniques, you might throw thousands of hours at it and not get much better. It's hard. I am very glad you picked up on this - I worried that people might read and not be persuaded. In my view it is nearly impossible to argue with his positions....he's lived it, and has seen what happens when students pursue unorthodox technique.

 

[Williebetmore]

The dogs arrived right around Christmas :thumbup: .... the reading has started ... the re-work will begin immediately after league ends in a couple of months. My first impression was "wow, this guy knows of what he speaks" (not you Don, the other guy ) . Curiously the very first illustration in the book is exactly how I explain to people the difference between skill levels (and why lesser players have great difficulty with consistent draw action).

Dave

DK,
Those damn dogs were SLOW!!!

I love that photo of the cue ball with the distribution patterns of impact points. In 150 years of literature, I've never seen it. Books imply that you hit a lot of balls and you'll get good - but THAT photo gives a powerful demonstration of what you really need to achieve.

Not only that, but with the lack of feedback in a pool stroke, how in the hell do you develop that type of precision??? Mark's training program is designed to improve your precision, but it will take WORK...nice to know though that if you do the work you will improve that precision. Now get back to your beer and hockey game eh...

 

[bellinom]

I've just ordered this book. I have to say, I'm pretty excited about it. Sure the price is higher than I've paid for any other pool book, but from the reviews I've seen here, it sounds worth it.

What attracts me most about the book is the very structured, logical approach to developing your game. I have a degree in Computer Science and am a very logical, methodical person, so a structured approach, presented in a textbook format, is very appealing. I've yet to find a book that presents concepts in this way. The closest I've seen is Phil Capelle's Practicing Pool. However, it provides a structured approach to practice, rather than including mechanics, technique, etc. as well.

I'll provide a review when I've received and read through the book.

 

[musicmanryann]

I just placed my order, based on the reviews on this thread and other threads on AZB. I am not new to the game, but new to being a student of the game, and it sounds like this book is the perfect start!