Hey buddy, long time no see. I've lost a ton of games leaving a ball 1/2" from my pocket.
Onepocketghost, Chicago. He's been around a long time.
Not sure about lessons from the other great players mentioned
I will strongly second jtompilot's recommendation of the One pocket ghost.
I have known Bruce aka One pocket ghost for about 35 yrs. now, and he knows the game of one pocket more thoroughly than anyone I've ever been around, and I've been around the poolrooms and many, many top players over the past 40 yrs. He's also a very intelligent guy and an excellent teacher who knows how to communicate clearly. He's taught a lot of players one pocket, and along with Bill Incardona he's the person who Chris Gentile learned his one pocket from. He has posted up a written overview of his one pocket philosophy over at onepocket.org. It gives a good idea of his vision of one pocket. Here's a copy of it >
To start with I would like to say that I feel gratified to be part of the pool-playing brotherhood (past, present and future), who feel as passionately as I do, as to the absolute magnificence of the game of One Pocket. I think that One Pocket is one of the very greatest games/sports in the world, and all pool players who come to understand, appreciate, and seriously play One Pocket are blessed - and it’s a shame that outside of our small One Pocket subculture, no one in the outside world even knows that there is a game called One Pocket, and how significant of a challenging/complex/fascinating sporting endeavor it is.
Starting out in the late 1960's, I first watched and studied many of the great One Pocket players of that time: Ronnie Allen, Jersey Red, Bugs, Boston Shorty, Harold Worst, etc...then, just after that, when I was 19-25 yrs.old, living and growing up in (the pool halls of) Chicago, I was fortunate to have the opportunity to watch, up close and personal, Artie Bodendorfer (one of the best One Pocket players of all time, and a master of defensive One Pocket play) and top-speed One Pocket player Leonard 'Bugs' Rucker play many, many times - and this was at the time when Artie was playing his very best....and Chicago was also a bank pool mecca back in the 60's-70's, enabling me to play with, and learn from, great bank pool players like Bugs, Youngblood, Tough Tony, Freddie the Beard, etc. etc....then, in the ensuing 40-45 years since that time, I’ve both watched and played One Pocket against: Grady, Jack Cooney, Cliff Joiner (many times), Bugs (many times), Steve Cook, Alan Hopkins, Cornbread Red, Miami, Buddy Hall, Nick Varner, Efren, Jose Parica, Alex Pagulayan, Rodolfo Luat, Santos, Shannon D. Jeremy Jones, Rafael Martinez, Billy Palmer, and many more top players both past and present.
So, with the knowledge gained from 45 years of intently studying the game of One Pocket and it's top players, along with having countless gambling sessions/tournament matches against shortstop to top speed players myself (and having won my share of them), combined with my own strategy analysis, shot formulating, and overall visualizing of the game, I feel very strongly that I have ascertained the optimum methodology for playing the game of One Pocket at it's highest level....and I have, and currently do, teach/give One Pocket lessons according to my concept of the game, including having taught two of the top 20 One Pocket players in the world today....also, for the record, my One Pocket teaching, knowledge and visualizing of the game were highly spoken of by acclaimed Billiards Digest editor/columnist George Fels in one of his Billiards Digest 'tips and shafts' columns several years ago.
Ok, I need to say that I’ve been exteremely annoyed for years by all of this clueless, idiotic debating about which is right, or better, the supposed Chicago/Philly/East coast, strong defense/low risk/trapping/squeeze style of One Pocket - or the so-called modern/left coast/aggressive/ball running style of One Pocket...Well, the two reasons this foolish debate, and incorrect positing annoys me are these...#1. This constantly parroted claim of there being a rigid geographic distinction re. the two styles of play, is untrue...and #2. Because this ongoing debate speaks as if these are the only two philosophies/styles of One Pocket play to subscribe to...when in fact, playing just one of either of these two styles, is not playing optimum One Pocket –
why in the world would anyone want to limit themselves to just one of those styles, rather than employing the full spectrum of productive One Pocket play...meaning ----->
When playing/thinking at the very highest level of one pocket, the only correct way to play One Pocket is within a matrix whereby you are at all times during the game, ready and able to draw upon either of the two aforementioned styles: Relentless, aggressive, fear-inducing offense, or, lockdown, trapping, table-controlling, suffocating, precision-defense...deciding which of these style's to employ will be correctly analyzed and determined in every different inning/shot of yours when at the table...
and whenever possible, like a master alchemist, you should forge both styles together on the same shot - thus creating - One Pocket gold.
Also, take note that to play top speed one pocket, you need to: #1. Have a very high level of creativity/imagination/vision to be applied to all phases of the game...#2. You must be an excellent banker, proficient at all one rail and multi-rail banks - along with having a locked-in muscle memory for hitting banks at precisely 'pocket-speed'...#3. You need to have extensive knowledge of kick shots, combination shots, carom shots, carom angles, deflection angles, and multi-rail billiard angles...and #4. You must have the strategic capabilities and mind set of a military General or a Chess Grandmaster, and #5. You must be a Wizard of Odds.
Your shot choice should always be predicated on the correct analysis of several factors - the primary ones being: Table layout, ball score, match score, pocket size, table conditions - and also the One Pocket playing style, knowledge, skill set, heart, and ego tendencies of your opponent....and of course, all shot choices must factor in your own skill set/ability.
So, all of that said, every time that you step to the table (unless you have an obvious ball to make, you have a significant ball-count lead in the game, or you're in a trap) you should be determinedly, unrelentingly, looking to aggressively attack...but if you can’t find a viable offensive shot of any type, then you don’t force the issue – that’s where the smart part comes in…..Instead, you play a suffocating safety/put your opponent in a trap - this most often meaning: leaving your opponent frozen against a ball or balls so that he has nothing but negative or low percentage shot options available to him...and if that’s not possible, then you at least will re-position the ball layout in some way that helps your cause - i.e. move balls as close as possible to your pocket, or move balls from near his pocket or on his side of the table over to your pocket's side of the table, or tie up balls on his side, or open up balls and banking/shooting lanes on your side of the table - and/or leave him facing balls from a snookered position, jacked up, or with an awkward angle...and while doing any of this, if possible always endeavor to leave the cueball frozen on the rail - don‘t under-value this - it severely limits your opponents options and execution when he can only address the top of the cueball...
Ok, more moving, but on a smaller scale - often referred to as "simple shots"...but when given proper consideration, and then executed precisely - they're really not simple shots at all ----->
One Pocket is very often not about having the opportunity to pocket a ball, run balls, bank a ball in, or shoot appealing, gratifying power shots...you must also give total-focus attention to the countless 'small shots' of One Pocket - and have the limitless patience, desire and work ethic required to do this...meaning that, there will be many many games, where you have nothing else available to you for 5, 10, or 15 straight innings other then to bunt balls, or to glance the cueball off of balls to have it only travel a few inches -but to a very specific place...
and when you are in those types of situations -> you should patiently and intently shoot these 'seemingly' simple little shots as perfectly as you possibly can every time, striving to gain a strategic edge on your opponent in these intense miniature battles...
And let me also stress this...before playing any important safety, it's crucial to analyze precisely, the very best place to leave the cueball in order to leave your opponent in the toughest possible return shot position...that said..before you shoot, whenever this can't be accurately determined from your shooting position..walking over to where you are thinking of leaving the cueball, and correctly envisioning your opponent's responding options is something that you should always do.
Now I’m an NFL fan, and as such, I’ve always drawn some parallels in my mind between One Pocket and pro football/One Pocket players and pro football quarterbacks.....so obviously football teams have to score (with a variety of plays, like One Pocket's variety of shots) and also they have to defend against the other teams offensive attack.....and just like in One Pocket, football teams also play the score..i.e. - 'playing safe' (running the ball/short conservative passes) when being a fair amount ahead, and conversely going for lower % but high yield plays when a fair amount behind in the score...and quarterbacks have to read the field like we read the table and then make a decision to act…a quarterbacks ‘opponent’ is the cornerbacks, safeties, and linebackers - so, as a good One Pocket players should analyze his opponents skill set, mind set, and tendencies, a quarterback needs to know the tendencies/abilities of the different defensive backs and the defensive schemes being used against him…..and maturity is key - i.e. a young quarterback who throws 25-30 picks in a season, from forcing passes into double coverage, or not correctly reading the defense, is just like the overly aggressive young One Pocket player, who much too often goes for risky, low percentage shots, misses them too often and sells out…..To keep my football analogy going, if you want to play One Pocket at the highest level and as it should be played - just play it the way Joe Montana played quarterback back in the day - or like Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, and Aaron Rodgers play nowadays - very, very smart.
Back to shot choices…Your first desired shot choice of course, is to make a ball in your pocket.…but if you have the opportunity to pocket a ball, and the shot is not a ‘hanger’ - then whether you should choose to shoot this shot in a given situation will depend partially on all of the factors that I mentioned a few paragraphs earlier -
but it will primarily be based on two factors: the ‘makeability’ percentage of the shot combined with the risk/reward equation - of which there are countless variations…obviously there’s no time here to go into this at great length, covering all of the countless percentages and risk/reward probabilities..but to cover this a little, here are a few interesting risk/reward comparisons interconnected with the makeability factor - and we'll use mathematical/strategic One Pocket-thought-processing in considering the following three situations...
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