how to get back in stroke?

Whatever you do, do it with a high degree of concentration and focus. Drills, competitive play, gambling, playing the ghost will all work. The worst thing you can do IMO is to just bang balls aimlessly.

What he said. Banging balls around is useless. Something that forces you to focus is the trick. Play the ghost and mark down your wins and losses. Do not let yourself lose a set to the ghost. You'll hit 'em as good as necessary to get that runout.

if you have a stroke to get back into... it could take less than an hour..

if you are the type who suffers consistent .. inconsistency.... it could take the rest of your life...


the best move I have made since taking personal instruction..... a year and a half ago..


was recording my practice.... I don't have a big money HD video camera.... actuallyy my camera produces old school you tube quality video...

but it is enough I got a 2 GB SD card at filling it with video is roughly the limit of the battery..


DECIDE on a workout... and keep it to an hour or less


record it daily... and then at the end of the day... review the video..... wait.. a while beforehand.. your review isn't as objective... if you do it immediately... you are still in the same mindset you had while shooting...


I like to record my drills early in the day preferably before everyone wakes up.... my kids wake up to the sound of breaking racks .. the last set in my workout...... then later that night after the kids go to bed..


I watch the video... and take notes.......

it's amazing what you can learn... I used to watch pro's play on you tube... now

I watch ME play for an hour... helps with rhythm helps with pre shot routine..

because I am watching and feeling MY routine... not someone elses..

once you have a routine... that you can identify... then you can Identify the strokes that didn't meet the requirements...

only then can you recognize and improve your flaws..

good luck:thumbup:

It doesn't take long to get the muscle memory back. An hour or 2. But it does take awhile to get the eyes back in the right position unless you know exactly where they should be.

This is why a pool player usually has to play so much to so call stay in stroke. In many cases it is not the stroke but the eyes. If you don't see the shot naturally you need to know which way to move your head so your lined up right.

When your eyes are in line, you will see the shot just fine............

Blind man once said, I can't see what I'm missing........If the eye isn't on the sight of the gun you might as well be blind because you ain't goin to hit nothin.

There's only one perfect spot to have the eye that's doing the shooting on every pool shot. An 1/8th of an inch this way or that and the shot still looks ok to shoot. In some cases 1/2 an inch. But the shot is doomed from the start because if the eyes don't see it perfect the brain is getting wrong info how can the body do what you want. And that is execute the shot.

Have a great day geno............

CreeDo said:

What he said. Banging balls around is useless. Something that forces you to focus is the trick. Play the ghost and mark down your wins and losses. Do not let yourself lose a set to the ghost. You'll hit 'em as good as necessary to get that runout.

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I think banging balls around is the FIRST thing you should do. This will get you loose.

But when you bang them, be sure and concentrate on fundamentals: rhythm, bridge, preshot rountine, consistent eye movement, keeping head still, set/pause/finish/freeze - etc. Personally, I believe in hitting a ton of cut shots. This will get your eyes used to seeing the ghost ball. Laying off for a while will cause you to hit the ball fat.

One more thing - if you jump right in to playing too serious, you will start off stiff and probably stay that way for a longer period of time vs. if you had gotten loose first.

Just MHO.

I'm thinkin focus drills,then you'll start to pay attention to your body mechanics,for me the 3rd eye stroke trainer gets me in line like now,then concentration drills like medium to long stop shots.

Try this---it takes 20 minutes.

Set up a straight in shot with the object ball 18 inches from the pocket and the cue ball 18 inches from the object ball. A very easy shot.

Now shoot it 50 times medium stroke at first and then gradually harder. Use a stop shot or draw. It will get the muscle memory going, build up confidence, and show you any flaws in your stroke.

Try it--it works.

seanjonsean said:

i was stuck in aspen snow weather for more than i wanted and didnt hit a single ball , now im a bit off , should i just bang balls around and or do some drills , i practiced today for about2 hours and feel much better but just wondering if theres a faster way

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I think it's better to play someone who's somewhere near your speed long races for a few dollars, or even play in some tournaments. It comes back naturally when there's purpose and helps shake off the mental cobwebs.

I notice after a long session my game is a sharper than I am when I just practice.

Chris

go back to fundamentals and mechanics. start there trying to beat the 6 ball ghost. works 60 percent of the time every time.

Shoot a couple games of your choice with your off hand. When you switch back it will feel so good you will not be able to miss. You can also practice a drill that really frustrates you. Both tactics work well for me.

I have my own personal regiment that I go through on every shot so I can figure out what I'm doing wrong very quickly. Of course, not everyone has a regiment like I do.

I suggest you practice more than you compete. Competition tends to tighten a lot of people up and sometimes your performance will suffer, even more, if you feel your not in stroke.

If you feel a need to compete, find someone your at least equal to or probably better than to play. Winning has a way of getting people back on track and in stroke again.

Just my opinion.

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