That would be the one, but I would have described Tugboat as in his 60s in the 60s.
do I need professional lessons
- Thread starter judochoke
- Start date
Yes, about then Tugboat would have been in his 60's.
He'd sometimes play at my home room, just outside of San Francisco and I mention him in passing in an old post here:
https://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=210602
He was a charming fellow, quite the player, and I believe later on was a referee of note at Johnston City and other events. He's also mentioned in John Grissom's "Billiards."
Lou Figueroa
Attachments
People that think a coach is a necessity would be wrong.
People that think you cannot get to a high level ("A" speed or shortstop) by playing "mostly" at home would be wrong.
I'm proof of this. I came back after almost three decades of no pool and within a couple of years of table time at home I now go out ever so often and beat my share of mid-level to strong shortstops in what I consider cheap sets.
Point being, a good coach is a great idea to learn fundamentals without developing bad habits. From that point on watching pros play on YouTube is your best bet to help learn pattern play, saftey play and break techniques for particular games and situations.
On the other hand, I would never suggest to try and copy any pros stance or stroke.
For a long time now, my best offensive practice tool is the ghost. He never misses, he never sandbags or trys to hustle me. He does however beat my a55 every single time I miss a shot or scratch on a break.
The ghost is no help with safety play but there are drills to help with that.
All in all ......, there is only one thing you MUST have that you cannot have by yourself (or at least I couldn't) and that is PRESSURE UNDER THE GUN.
No matter how much you practice you will choke under pressure.
Myself, lol.... I just THOUGHT I was ready to gamble with a mid level shortstop just because I was able to beat the 10 ball ghost at home.
I'm talking beating 10 ball ghost 11 - 3 at times. Lol..... first several times out in public I had my a55 handed to me by much lesser players simply because I was not use to the PRESSURE.
Oh yeah, did I mention PRESSURE?
BTW, invest in recording device. Something cheap is fine. Record your sessions and evaluate yourself from one session to another.
I have found the best way to hold myself accountable is to post ghost vids in the ghost challenge thread. Try to post one video every month or even once a week. It's fun and it's very helpful for others to see your game to give or even ask for advice.
Rake
Before you go hog wild with an instructor, I am suggesting the following.
Buy a copy of Bert Kinister's 60 minute workout for 9-Ball (I think you can download it from his site by paying a fee). The principles inculcated therein apply to ALL games.
Spend 6 months of darn hard WORK with it. I'm talking about 4-5 hours a day with that CD only. (then go out and play people after you've worked out with it if you want to do so).
I was one of his first customers way back around 1992, I think, and if you're like I was, the first thing you will say about Shot #1 is this......."I've been ripped off. I paid good money for this fat buzzard to show me how to shoot a straight-in shot?"
How wrong I was...how wrong I was.
I worked with that shot #1 until I could hate it and Kininster as well...........but, he is absolutely right. That shot will create a stroke where there is no stroke. (I had some stroke errors from childhood that needed cleaning up. I'd been told this by top action gambling players, but none could steer me in the right direction.) Even Mosconi...yes, I played him a few times back in 1961 and 1962 and he was astonished at how I seemed to miss so many routine shots while having great form, great follow through, and keeping my head down. He couldn't pin it down either. Neither could Buddy Hall, or Danny Jones,or Long Beach, or Beanie Staton, or Ralph Guest, or Billy Johnson, or Tony Ellin, although Billy J. came VERY close to nailing it.
That silly ass Shot #1 from Kinister's tape WILL create a perfect stroke where there is no stroke. He gives you the tools..........YOU GOT TO DO THE WORK.
And avoid listening to pool players with that "hit a million balls stuff". That is so dumb. I've always asked..."what if the guy is hitting the million balls the wrong way?...that is so shallow and ignorant".
Give Kinnister a try.
Then if you've still got trouble, maybe hunt up an instructor (make sure he can play though...those that are all mouth don't mean too much to me)
Good luck and enjoy the game. I've been at it for 65 years...eyes and nerves are still good too.
However, if you don't like to train or won't train................then forget everything I've written in this post.
:thumbup2:
Last edited:
Since your retired and have unlimited time on your hands, I would research all tips provided here on azbilliards. Watch endless YouTube videos of all the greats.
Since your only a couple months into the game, I would put all my work into my stance, stroke and pre shot routine. No point in putting any work into anything else if you can't shoot straight consistently.
Video recording yourself and reviewing yourself is a must to find any flaws. After recording myself after a 10 year layoff of the game, I found many flaws which is expected. My form at the table I have to compare to a bow legged woman, sliding my bridge hand into the cloth when going down into the shot and a choppy stroke. If I didn't record and review, I wouldn't have recognized my faults otherwise. This video was a couple months after playing again about 2 years ago and you can see what I mean about my form. Thankfully I fixed all those things since then after many hours of workouts.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1petjYwIJiEVAYJjD4VnN-SxOJhbiO8B0/view?usp=drivesdk
Since your only a couple months into the game, I would put all my work into my stance, stroke and pre shot routine. No point in putting any work into anything else if you can't shoot straight consistently.
Video recording yourself and reviewing yourself is a must to find any flaws. After recording myself after a 10 year layoff of the game, I found many flaws which is expected. My form at the table I have to compare to a bow legged woman, sliding my bridge hand into the cloth when going down into the shot and a choppy stroke. If I didn't record and review, I wouldn't have recognized my faults otherwise. This video was a couple months after playing again about 2 years ago and you can see what I mean about my form. Thankfully I fixed all those things since then after many hours of workouts.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1petjYwIJiEVAYJjD4VnN-SxOJhbiO8B0/view?usp=drivesdk
You don’t .... and that’s good fortune. However some do and I did. It was money well spent. Quality cost.
No names mentioned ...but a certain (Scott Lee) instructor charges about $300 for 4 hour course. If the course exceeds 4 hour there is no extra charge. He is a dedicated instructor/teacher. His goal is to TEACH POOL not look at his watch or charge for every nut and bolt. His lessons are worth more.
Last edited:
