Motivation is definnny up there. Sleep is a big problem too. The consistency is not automatic anymore. The priorities shift toward the conservative and reliable. THEN the young guys show up and start kicking your butt.
Is This A Difficult Shot For Most?
- Thread starter DrCue'sProtege
- Start date
Wow, this is very interesting. Let me see if I've received/interpreted your thoughts in such a way that I understand what your intent is. You seem to be saying that anytime anyone posts something on a pubic forum they (the poster) is responsible for the way in which everyone who reads it (which could be hundreds of people) are interpreting the intent of their words. Are we going by the letter or the spirit here? Are emotions allowed or disallowed?
And what about the fact (I think I'm correct when I use the word fact here) that there's a large disparity in intelligence levels and reading/language skills amongst the readership group. Should we take that into account when offering further/different explanations or can we just assume that our words/message/point will be largely understood by those of average intelligence, life experience and reading skills.
I consider myself to be of reasonable intelligence and took both post 83 and 84 not by the letter but in the spirit and saw absolutely nothing wrong/negative or controversial about either of them. I'm most likely misinterpreting things I guess.
So here we are, typical day on the forum. BBB's upset at JV for bashing Mika. Fran's upset at JV for dissing her "opinion" and possibly not taking Mika's life travails into consideration. 007's wants JV to back off, for what?
I'm not here to defend JV. He's more than capable of handling that all by himself. His posts on this thread are no different than dozens on this forum every day where people express their viewpoints/opinions to the best of their knowledge and ability.
And along comes someone stating that when posting, if your message is not understood the way you intended then it's your responsibility, not the readers.
I'm sorry but if we had to worry about that then this forum would be burdened with many 5K word posts which no one would read and the forum would disappear.
Deciding to be devils advocate with every post is not communication. I was just responding to JV thinking we should be able to decipher his intent.
The most unfortunate part is there is no reason I should have to defend myself, and even if I felt the need at this point, I know it would fall on deaf ears. I pointed out realities, regardless if people want to believe them or not. I was accused of something I'm not, and did at that time attempted to clear the air. Regardless of those efforts, the blood was in the water and the feeding frenzy unsued.
Meh whatever... An otherwise good conversation down the drain. I'm only posting again because you made the effort to shine some light on my thoughts rather than assume the worst. Till the next time.
Alright BBB, I have a little free time, let's analyze this situation "Is this a difficult shot for most?" was the question. I'm going to go over options here but before doing that I want to ask you, Dr Cue and others to consider another aspect. If you really want to improve at this game then you must "do the work".
How many times and how many ways should someone try shooting this shot before asking for help? That's up to you. Myself I'd start with at least 25 each of every way I could think of which, for me, is 4 unless we want to get crazy. I already know this, some of you may not.
Of course if you've read this thread then you know the 4 that have been mentioned. But that might be (in the future) a good question to ask about a different shot.
Put a diagram up and ask "how many ways are there to shoot this shot and get this position"? Then get on the table and try each way however many times you choose.
My point is that the best way to learn this or any shot is to experiment on the table. It's the quickest way to understand and get a feel for the dynamics of the shot. What's possible and what isn't. If you take that approach I guarantee you'll not only have a better understanding of the shot but also a better grasp of any advice that may be dispensed here on the forum by more experienced &/or knowledgeable players.
Beyond that, it might be a big help in the construction of the diagrams. This is JMO but there's a bit of a problem with the diagram that was initially posted.
As everyone probably knows, move one ball an inch or so and what was is no longer possible. Or, as in this case, what was relatively easy has become extremely hard.
Where the CB starts is fine but to end up stopping where Dr Cue wants to is a nightmare. To obtain that position requires extremely fine control of both speed and direction.
It's no surprise Dr that you're having trouble with speed here. Guess what? You have trouble, I'd have trouble, even SVB would have trouble. Let me amend that. He wouldn't have trouble because he would not try to attain that position.
Speed and direction. Controlling those two things is the key to position, right? Yes and no. Ideally, you try to control one of those variables (direction) in such a way as to minimize the impact of the other (speed). Or vice versa but usually controlling the direction is preferable. Every position play and decision should be approached with the goal of maximizing MOError.
Back to the shot in question. This is when a lot of intermediate players will say "hey, this is why I'm asking because I don't know which way is best". Probably not but trying to figure it out on the table could produce some results that may surprise you. If you were to try each of the 4 shots even say 10 times each you'll most likely realize very quickly that "Oh, there really aren't 4 shots available here because 2 of them just don't work at all" So without any help, in half an hour you've narrowed the options down from 4 to 2.
That's not all you've accomplished. You've acquired knowledge which can be applied to similar situations in the future. This game isn't about increasing your options, it's more about decreasing options, the result of which is maximizing MOE. When good players approach the table, 99% of the time they know there's really only one viable option. This allows them to shoot with zero conflict in their mind which is a beautiful thing for a pool player.
So, we're now down to 2 ways of playing this shot. Maybe it's time to shoot each 25 or even 50 times and see which we like. I'll leave it up to you but make some general observations.
1) Getting to the plain CB in the diagram is way too difficult. Landing somewhere on the line between the 2 side pockets is much better.
2) You need to be able to execute both because at times there will be an interfering ball.
3) One shot requires fairly equal control of both speed and direction. The other requires speed control but direction not so much.
4) One shot requires more precise cue tip placement than the other
5) Not an instructor and your results may vary.
There's nothing to be gained by shortening the resulting distance between the CB/OB if by doing so, you risk not landing on the necessary angle for the next shot.
This video struck me as a little simplistic. Yes I see the introductory aspect but that really isn't where my head or thirst for knowledge be. Coming across "the funnel" is not only done quite frequently, it's often your best option - even necessary. (invent own example if you need one) Growing players or even just poolists should have all the positional options at their disposal or at the very least, a working awareness of the possibilities.
Experts tend to sleight various elements to fortify certain other points. In this case speed control. Seriously. Why is technical competence so vital until you add the risk of losing? The approach then is akin to waiting for gravy. Just sayin the learners shouldn't play themselves into "the funnel" especially before they've learned. If they then find themselves prepared for competition and winning, they can follow a simple instruction set - coaching, as to what to do.
It is simplistic. The thread is about DrCue's issues with performing a shot. What Sparkle84 suggested, and what I reinforced with a video from a world champion, is that the problem isn't his ability to perform the shot, but his shot choice to begin with.
I don't know you from Adam, but I do agree that this video isn't necessarily for the advanced player. The ability to 'cross the funnel' with accuracy is a skill that intermediate players should work on and advanced players should have. Of course there are times wherein it is your best option. DrCue's example is one of those. That said, where he decides to cross the funnel to increase of odds of success is the key here.
I will say, that if for you personally, crossing the funnel is "often" your best option. That you reconsider your pattern play. Not suggesting you're doing anything wrong. Just that you may see some improvement if your pattern play supported more funneling types shots.
Break out the torches
Picking on the clip, not your motivation for posting it. As for landing on a postage stamp as opposed to the main runway, consider small table 8 ball or the British variant. Sooner or later you have to run those messes and it won't happen waiting for easy landings.
I agree with what you're saying... Just trying to keep it in context of the thread.
The 'problem' on ABZ is varying skill sets of the posters. What you can do with ease, may not be something DrCue will ever be able to accomplish. This also begs the distinction between practice and competition. Practice hard, compete easy...
I spout off on ideals but not to imply I'm ready for action. There are no pool facilities out here; just a scattering of bars so there's no way I'd even be in stroke. I find it puzzling that a Tom Rossman protege is challenged by the problems given but a good troll is worth the content. I don't dwell on it.
I'd make that my new signature if I could...lol
PoolHallPaul
Member
It's a lot easier to land in 2 foot circle than a 2 inch circle! Jmo.
word..and it seems many here would agree with that notion
but even as a relative nobody, I defend the og shot selection
if only as *a* shot
if the question were "which way would you play this?"
have at it- pick your medicine-
otherwise, who knows what the intent of the og poster is
maybe for whatever reason that's the only shot they had
maybe they just want to know the shot/see the shot done a certain way
but things here go off the rails quite easily when the og posts are ignored to begin with
I see it here and in other forums, and plenty
and don't get me wrong, great things can come from those diversions (and I cop to diverging)
but (and greedily, as a frequently un-hip poster myself), I would like to see og posts respected, too
anyway, it's generally all g to me. I get a ton out of this forum, any way the wheat is sliced
just posing what I see
appreciate you all.
True but I think it's important to leave the percentages out of the learning process. Consistency of speed seems to be mostly equipment related or rather if you have a consistent, friction-less delivery, (again the equipment) predictability of ball travel will be proportionate to the rail and cloth properties.
Drills are pretty easy to come up with. Lag the cue ball a foot - or a couple inches etc.
Shoot all shots as if you are lagging the cue ball a specific distance etc...
Practice (learning) is all about building consistency in habits not speed control. Ignoring likely percentages begets learning how to play the "right" way. I am making an assumption on what you mean by learning though. If it's just a matter of seeing what happens if you hit it 'this way'. Then sure throw percentages out the windows, because who cares. If by learning you mean to develop your ability to play the game effectively, then percentages matter a great deal.
As you said, you can't control conditions, so ideally you need to develop your game to be universal as possible. The original shot in the post is a great example of this. Once again, simply running the CB to the other side of the table makes the shot as 'universal' as possible. It just boils down to only CB speed control, which is dialed in by the player on the fly. Largest room for error, and doesn't require CB spin to interact with the cloth. Regardless if the table is fast or slow, if you play for the opposite rail, odds are you're not going to stuck to it, and we already determined that it provides the greatest opporunity to get a beneficial angle for the next shot.
Reduce uncontrolable variables, increasing your odds. Focusing on those two things is what the intermediate player needs to learn.
The conversation had narrowed to a remedial consideration of the likelihood of one type of position over another. Speed control is very much the academic issue there yet the argument is on the percentages.
You can lead a horse to water, but........