Since this thread is about aiming, I think a pre-shot routine goes hand in hand with aiming. I don't mean to steal the thread, but I would like to know what pre shot routine many of you good Shooters in here have and use. Even mediocre Shooters I would love to hear from you as well.
Mine is a bit odd but has
a lot to do with making sure my back is somewhat tamed and keeping my ADHD brain from running in loops that sabotage me.
Shortened would be:
1. Chalk
2. Plan the rack/next few shots including leave while walking around the table and looking at the layout
3. Putz around with the stick getting feel and limbered up
4. Aim the OB to pocket and walk around to the shot/CB without losing perspective on OB. If OB "jumps" it's bad news and you gotta look again.
5. While upright and perpendicular to the shot Set grip hand/bridge length and feel the speed of the shot. Get your head in order and finalize decision on what shot you are shooting.
6. Get down on shot
7. Feather the stick. Take a few practice strokes. Final stroke is un-rushed at the transition.
8. Stay down until balls stop moving.
If at any time on steps 6 or 7 you have doubts or are thinking about anything from a scratch to should you be playing safe, should you use different spin, 2 way shots etc. or things don't look or feel right get back up and re-chalk and re-set on the shot. After step 5 thinking isn't allowed, it's only the execution phase.
Full color coded version if interested:
BODY or PAIN related,
FOCUS or MENTAL related.
1. With my stick upright I look at and chalk the tip.
This ensures my upper back and neck are limber enough to not impede shooting. It also lets me minimize distractions by knowing my tip is chalked and I can forget about this and focus on the shot.
As I do the following steps 2-5 I'm using my cue as a balancing stick. Feeling the weight of it. Sometimes I hold it out horizontally in front of me at the balance point, sometimes I point it like a dousing rod at the different balls. Is my shoulder stretched enough to raise the cue? Sure it looks funny but I'm really calibrating my screwed up back/shoulder/body and limbering it up while walking around the table. I'll probably air stroke some. I'd imagine it's quite the show to other folks but I don't really care anymore. It might even look like someone escaped from the loony bin but I honestly have to get my bones limbered up enough to count on them. It's like light stretching without looking like you're doing stretches.
2.
Take the template off the table (distraction). Walk around and look at OB and how to make it. Look at the next ball and go stand in the line I want to shoot it at to determine a CB leave.
3. Try to solve the rack, walk around, let the ball positions be programed into my memory/subconscious.
4. At some point be sure the rack is solved
or if my head's not up to it at least solve the next 3 shots.
5. Walk from where I'm seeing the OB into the pocket back to the CB without every letting the perspective change on the OB. It's like the world is rotating around the OB. I'm standing perpendicular to the shot line.
Realize I'm distracted and Move my opponent's 16 pieces of chalk that are in my line of sight. If you spend 1/10 a second seeing damn chalk on the rail you're distracted. This is how focused your aim must be. Get rid of visual distractions. Carry their chalk around the table with you and put it out of your sight. Do it every shot. They will either realize they don't need chalk everywhere or it might distract them as much as chalk laying everywhere distracts me. Repeat step 5 without all the sh## all over the table. And the sh## does matter. If I don't move the chalk I'll see my tangent line bend toward a chalk, end up in line with the chalk for my next shot, miss, If I'm using something my opponent put down for shape it takes away what I was wanting to do even if it's accidental. SOME high level players chalk with 3 pieces of chalk and think you don't see them putting chalk at aim points, tangent lines, cb routes to avoid scratches etc. Most people don't even realize it but you can be assured if a guy uses 3 different pieces of chalk on a single shot, he's up to something. At least make him walk to where all 3 are piled up in a pyramid where you couldn't see it on your turn.
6. Find the balance point of the stick. I'm still
focused on the OB and making sure it doesn't "move" on me. The perspective is locked. Feel my bridge on the stick and If I need a longer bridge for said shot I'll adjust. This is during air stroking to feel the speed of the shot. Mosconi said something like holding the cue 4-6" behind the balance point. It's no coincidence that they used 4-6" bridge length back then... BASICALLY I'm finalizing the grip location, bridge location for said shot, getting a feel for the speed of the shot and how my grip hand will feel.
7. Look at the shot, pay attention that the perspective on the OB hasn't changed. See it and aim it
fully upright, then transition down into the shot. Since the perspective on the OB never changed, I can
trust the fact that I didn't introduce errors or optical illusions.
You must start fully upright. If you're slouching around the table tired or leaning it's trouble. Pain can make it understandable or seem like a reasonable compromise, but you still introduced optical illusions and without 100% effort you can't get a perfect outcome.
8. I'm now down at the table. At this point I will feather the stick a bit (like short quick strokes). A half inch stroke will tell you if you're aligned. If it wavers much at all you're not lined up correctly. Might be bridge hand, might be angled wrong. If the feathering can't quickly get aligned you gotta get up, re-chalk and re-set.
9.
Think to myself "pro grade stroke" could be "pro grade follow" or "pro grade draw" etc. Basically a trigger to not piss-pound the ball and let the stroke do the work.
(Very important in competition when the adrenaline starts in.) Let the ring finger lead the dance of the grip hand. Take a couple practice strokes. Don't rush the final stroke. I don't try to pause or anything like that but a non-rushed transition from back to forward is where the subconscious takes full control.
10. Stay down until the balls stop unless one is going to hit you or the stick.
This sound ridiculously long but it takes a lot to type out. In practice it could be easily done with a 20 second shot clock once you've grooved it.
