What Does This Tell You?

DrCue'sProtege said:

Playing racks of 9-Ball here.

On Saturday I only ran out once and hosed up about a dozen other spreads I felt I should have gotten out.

On Sunday I got out five times and only hosed up two racks I felt I should have gotten out.

Today (Monday) I only got out three times and hosed up about nine other racks I felt I should have gotten out.

What should I take from all of this? Other than a serious lack of ability, of course.

r/DCP

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What hurt your outs? Shot choice? Wrong spin/speed? Bad stroke? Start there and you might identify and repair the problem on your own.

I'll watch students who miss and tell them they have the tools but were not choosing sure-fire shots that pros would choose to make life simpler...

Mike...I think your last statement covers it quite nicely!


Scott Lee
2019 PBIA Instructor of the Year
Director, SPF National Pool School Tour

DrCue'sProtege said:

Playing racks of 9-Ball here.

On Saturday I only ran out once and hosed up about a dozen other spreads I felt I should have gotten out.

On Sunday I got out five times and only hosed up two racks I felt I should have gotten out.

Today (Monday) I only got out three times and hosed up about nine other racks I felt I should have gotten out.

What should I take from all of this? Other than a serious lack of ability, of course.

r/DCP

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“I felt I should have gotten out”

DrCue'sProtege said:

Playing racks of 9-Ball here.

On Saturday I only ran out once and hosed up about a dozen other spreads I felt I should have gotten out.

On Sunday I got out five times and only hosed up two racks I felt I should have gotten out.

Today (Monday) I only got out three times and hosed up about nine other racks I felt I should have gotten out.

What should I take from all of this? Other than a serious lack of ability, of course.

r/DCP

Click to expand...

“ I felt I should have gotten out.” This assumption stops you from narrowing issues. The objectives are to get yourself in position to finish, then finish. Too many players look at the first part in too much isolation.

The ghost, as practice, has a fault. The player navigates a few balls, then after a miss, re-racks. When using the ghost, as practice, reset the balls to pre-miss position. Now think about what the shot looks like when executed properly. Look at the shot from both ends. The ob end lets you look at where the cue ball center contacts the ball and where from the ghost ball position it travels after contact. Mentally rehearse a few successful executions, then start over. Shoot the shot and finish the run. Don’t convince yourself that you “shoulda”, “coulda”, without actually doing it.

Missing the shot a second time, can point to an issue with a fundamental. Make sure to back up a shot or two mentally and think about whether the issue is a result of missed position, the snowball effect. Identifying the “real problem” will help you generate solution options. I feel like I can make nearly every shot. Losing position on a future shot is the usual eventual outcome of a wayward cue ball landing spot.

Maybe your miss position is near the end, a 3 or 4 ball pattern to finish. If you always re-rack after a miss you are practicing the opening part of the game more than finishing. Reset and finish to get a better feel for normal positioning without interfering balls forcing alternate shooting pattern dynamics.

If you find an earlier shot lead to an eventual breakdown, set up and execute the shot as envisioned. Too often that “missed” position was because a player imagines an impossible shot that would make Effren cringe. Sometimes a reality check needs to become a bigger part of the planning.

Just some perspectives that lead to expert problem solving/self analysis.

DrCue'sProtege said:

I think its two-fold.

First, missing shots is probably the main culprit. I think that's caused - perhaps - by a faulty stroke. I haven't played much the past year and only in the past couple of weeks have I started playing a lot again.

Second, my Gold Crown IV has typically been a bad breaking table over the years. So when I break 15-20 times and get really impossible spreads or no balls down I start to get that sh!tty attitude, where I think to myself "WELL, HERE WE GO AGAIN, NO CHANCES!" Then when I do finally get a chance I am so honked off and cant focus or concentrate.

The last few days I have had more chances than I typically get. Like I have said over the years I can rack and break 50 times and typically I will be lucky to get 3-4 decent chances to runout.

Perhaps I need to work on some stroke drills and see if that makes a difference.

r/DCP

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I suggest you use a Magic Rack or Accu-Rack for racking. Using either of these templates will give you a clear indication of how you are breaking. Some times when we rack for ourselves when practicing alone we accidentally "slug" rack it and end up with clusters that are difficult to get out from.(which could be a good thing to practice once in a while).

DrCue'sProtege said:

Playing racks of 9-Ball here.

On Saturday I only ran out once and hosed up about a dozen other spreads I felt I should have gotten out.

On Sunday I got out five times and only hosed up two racks I felt I should have gotten out.

Today (Monday) I only got out three times and hosed up about nine other racks I felt I should have gotten out.

What should I take from all of this? Other than a serious lack of ability, of course.

r/DCP

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take 2 weeks off and find another hobby
you have been beating your head against the wall for years
perhaps you can relate to this thread i started 3 years ago
i havent re read the replies or conclusion
https://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=452376

bbb said:

take 2 weeks off and find another hobby
you have been beating your head against the wall for years
perhaps you can relate to this thread i started 3 years ago
i havent re read the replies or conclusion
https://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=452376

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yo larry!
I scanned the thread you posted
you had issues..then cracked some code
wondering how you'd assess your play now
relative to then?
I'm sure there are many variables involved
but did the "big change" you experienced
stick?

DrCue'sProtege said:

Playing racks of 9-Ball here.

On Saturday I only ran out once and hosed up about a dozen other spreads I felt I should have gotten out.

On Sunday I got out five times and only hosed up two racks I felt I should have gotten out.

Today (Monday) I only got out three times and hosed up about nine other racks I felt I should have gotten out.

What should I take from all of this? Other than a serious lack of ability, of course.

r/DCP

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for sure not an instructor
but I've seen you lament here over time
I can relate some..pool's a tough game!
clearly you've got a bit of experience
you've spent time gleaning from azb
had lessons, done drills
have you improved over time?
have you stayed the same? gotten worse?
you can ask anybody what they think
and you can learn from that
but nobody knows your game better than you
the power of self-awareness and self-reflection
is crucial to personal growth
those things, just like how to pocket balls, can be learned
but just like learning how to pocket balls, etc.
if you want to improve
you have to be committed to some degree

I would add that doing any work is much less rewarding
if you don't enjoy what you're doing in the first place
so if you're not getting paid to play
I hope you find the game otherwise fulfilling

you need to be able to assess your state of mind when you miss. Most likely it was because doubt crept in at the last second and that exerted unwanted body movement or you weren't fully committed.

DrCue'sProtege said:

Playing racks of 9-Ball here.

On Saturday I only ran out once and hosed up about a dozen other spreads I felt I should have gotten out.

On Sunday I got out five times and only hosed up two racks I felt I should have gotten out.

Today (Monday) I only got out three times and hosed up about nine other racks I felt I should have gotten out.

What should I take from all of this? Other than a serious lack of ability, of course.

r/DCP

Click to expand...

What I get from this is that we really need other players asking questions around here because your stuff is just brutal.