Little known fact

It doesn't...

Practicing position helps you play better position..

Thank you, thats kinda what I thought but one never knows where there may be some hidden secrets. If I am in line on the 1 and I can get get to where I want to be on the 2 so I can get on the 3 & 4 I couldn't imagine how cheating the pocket will help me stay in line unless I screwed up somewhere along the line. Everyone probably knows after their first year that you never want to be straight in unless you have a COM run out going. :eek:
 
Pool players are so shady they even have to cheat the pockets?!

That right there is funny :rotflmao1::rotflmao1::rotflmao1::rotflmao1:

At the start of a Winston Cup race many years ago the drivers were waving at the fans on the warm up lap and some lady commented "Look at that SOB Darryl Waltrip, even his gloves are dirty!!"
 
So, beginners won't benefit from this information?

Worth taking a second look...you people that are having fun with this.....
...from a man who has taught beginners...and won world championships.

I've had to tell many people over the years which end to rack the balls...
...and where to spot the colors at snooker...
...doesn't make anyone of us dumb.
 
I am just a noob and a banger, with that out of the way can someone please explain to me how cheating the pocket help position play?????:confused::confused:

An obvious ;) example is when you have a short, straight-in shot to the side pocket. You can take the cue ball anywhere on the table without hitting a cushion from this position but for anything other than straight forward and straight back you will need to cheat the pocket.

For cut shots in general, sometimes you can cheat on the fuller side and slow the cue ball down. Sometimes you can cheat on the thinner side and speed the cue ball up. This is also obvious to anyone who has spent any time thinking about playing position.:D
 
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And a little more of the obvious.....

I don't think that what I said is so obvious to many. A lot of people think you have to play position by cheating the pocket. Also, my post was counterpoint to the OP's post.

If you agree with what I said, great! I'm sure you already know the benefits.

KMRUNOUT
 
To add....in my pool world, there is no such thing as cheating the pocket. There is only putting the OB where I want in the pocket with the CB going to a position I determine.

The next series of shots, not just the next one, but the next,at least three shots, determine where in the pocket I put the first OB in the start of that three ball series.

It's all about angles off the OB and where I need to put the CB that guides me to where to put the OB in the pocket.

I hear what you're saying. But this actually somewhat contradicts what I was saying. I was saying that I'd rather put the ball right in the center of the hole almost every time, and use accurate cueing on the cue ball to achieve my desired position. The same angle I would get from cheating the pocket, I could in most cases also get with a tiny adjustment to where I hit the cueball. There are of course exceptions. However I'm talking about the majority of shots.

KMRUNOUT
 
I am just a noob and a banger, with that out of the way can someone please explain to me how cheating the pocket help position play?????:confused::confused:

Basically, the pocket is much bigger than the ball. The angle into the pocket determines the "effective opening". For example, if you are cutting a ball down the rail into a tight corner pocket, the effective opening might not be much bigger than the ball. Shooting straight into a loose side pocket, there is lots of room to either side of center pocket where you will still make the ball. Where the object ball is aimed effects the trajectory of the cue ball after contact (the tangent line). So by choosing what part of the pocket you shoot the object ball into, you can alter the path of the cue ball. This can be an effective strategy for playing position. A great example is when you have a ball near the side pocket, and if you shoot it in the center of the hole your cueball would head down and scratch in the corner. You can overcut the ball sometimes, so that it goes into a different part of the pocket, and your cueball now goes to the side rail before the corner pocket...for example.

The idea is that cheating the pocket allows more options for where to send the cue ball.

While this is true in most cases, I believe that a more effective strategy to build your position play is to learn how to create the same changes in cue ball path with more accurate cue tip position on the cue ball. By learning to be very precise on the vertical axis of the cue ball, you can really alter the cue ball path in very tiny increments. this provides the added benefit of still shooting the ball into the center of the pocket, which obviously increases one's shotmaking %.

Hope this helps.

KMRUNOUT
 
Worth taking a second look...you people that are having fun with this.....
...from a man who has taught beginners...and won world championships.

I've had to tell many people over the years which end to rack the balls...
...and where to spot the colors at snooker...
...doesn't make anyone of us dumb.

True stuff.

But what really stood out to me about your post was the phrase "won world championships"....Say what?!?!?! You have won a world championship? Which one? Who are you? This is very interesting!

KMRUNOUT
 
True stuff.

But what really stood out to me about your post was the phrase "won world championships"....Say what?!?!?! You have won a world championship? Which one? Who are you? This is very interesting!

KMRUNOUT
Member "ghostball" is Ray Martin, who taught the pool world about "ghost ball" methods. I think member "ghost ball" is someone else.
 
Sometimes, not often, if I'm straight in I'll cheat the pocket to get position. If I have an angle I use English to move the cue ball.
 
Correct, Mr Jewett. Ray Martin came into the forums after I did. It's unfortunate we have similar screen names.. it's even more unfortunate for all those poor souls who have PM'd me for advice thinking I am the great Ray Martin.

At any rate, people in this thread who say it's so obvious, blah blah blah, must have PERFECT play and never miss, get out of line or lose a game.
 
You may be confusing "ghost ball" and "ghostball". A tiny little space changes everything.

True stuff.

But what really stood out to me about your post was the phrase "won world championships"....Say what?!?!?! You have won a world championship? Which one? Who are you? This is very interesting!

KMRUNOUT

Member "ghostball" is Ray Martin, who taught the pool world about "ghost ball" methods. I think member "ghost ball" is someone else.

I think the biggest problem was the space between my ears....duh

I hope that 'ghost ball' will put a disclaimer in his sig
 
An obvious ;) example is when you have a short, straight-in shot to the side pocket. You can take the cue ball anywhere on the table without hitting a cushion from this position but for anything other than straight forward and straight back you will need to cheat the pocke
t.

For cut shots in general, sometimes you can cheat on the fuller side and slow the cue ball down. Sometimes you can cheat on the thinner side and speed the cue ball up. This is also obvious to anyone who has spent any time thinking about playing position.:D

Years ago when I gave pool lessons i would set up a straight in side pocket shot and ask my student to pick a spot on the table for the cue ball to end at after pocketing the object ball to demonstrate how to cheat the pocket.
Now the disclaimer is I rarely hit the spot exact but usually with in 6 inches or so. It was just a teaching tool.
That was before i got the cure not to teach anymore.
 
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