Drills specific for 14.1...

I don't know any 14.1 drills, but it's a game requiring very precise speed control. Developing your own speed control oriented drills should be easy enough. Also a good idea to work on your break shots, above and below the rack as well as side pocket break shots.

mjdoutdoors said:

Durning this time of no competition, due to covid, I have made it a goal to break my high run of 65. I am looking for drills specific for 14.1 or ideas of what to focus on.
I have 2 hours or so each night after work to workout on my table. I spend my time doing lots drills and focused practice. I have had several mid 50's but braking that high run seems elusive. Ideas on how to get there?

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My runs end because I'm not very good at pool but a video or two of you playing would allow people to critique your play and perhaps give constructive advice.

One thing you need in 14.1 is the ability precisely control the cue ball going one rail getting the exact angle you need off the rail. If you aren't already able to do that then put an object ball near the short rail beneath the rack. Put another object ball in the rack area. Practice pocketing the ball near the rail and running into the ball in the rack area. Change the angle and location of the balls. It sounds simple but you'd be surprised how many people can't do it consistently.

Jerry Briesath's advice

I had a group lesson with Jerry Briesath a few years ago during DCC. Once I told him of my interest in 14.1 and he saw my level of play (high run of 51) he hit the nail right on the head when he said that most players at my level have the most trouble getting from one rack to the next.

He spent a few minutes explaining how I should practice by setting up a break ball of my choice, a key ball and a few random balls. Then take the cue ball in hand and pocket the random balls, then the key ball in order to get good shape on the break ball.

This is the best 14.1 advice I've ever gotten.

Here... I just dreamed this one up:

Place a ball in what would be the center of the rack. Now place two balls at equal height 2" off the opposite long rails. Now place a ball at the center of the bottom short rail, 2" off.

With CB in hand, try to pocket one of the rail balls and carom into the rack ball to generate a break ball. Success is measured by your own honesty.

There's lots of ways to hit these shots. Will teach you precise weight, angle, spin.

It’s quite labor intensive, but I usually practice the side break (and then re-rack) to insure I always choose the correct english depending on where the CB will strike the rack (so as to avoid a scratch and end up in the center of the table). Too many times over the years I forgot to check the carom angle, and using a lot of follow on the acute angle break STILL put whitey down the hole.

Another situation where advising is difficult due to little knowledge of how you play. If I had to give any general advice to players running in the 30-60 range it would be the Brainwash drill.

Bob Jewett said:

Here's a drill from Alex Lely ("plague" on AZB) for working on the last five and the break shot.

Set up a typical break shot. Shoot it. Now, remove object balls leaving only 5 on the table plus the cue ball. Then run off 4 balls and get on your chosen break shot. This helps you recognize and play good end patterns. Hint: if there is a nasty cluster after the break shot, remove balls from it until it is not nasty. Hint 2: sometimes there will be no good break shot and you will have to manufacture one. Plan which 5 balls will allow that.

You get cue ball in hand only at the start (anywhere) and if you leave the cue ball in the rack for the break shot (behind the line).

Repeat. Continue with your break shots and removing all but five balls until you have done enough or reached your limit or had five misses, or....

I think this drill is suitable for players who can usually do the five balls as they planned. If, instead, you find yourself doing OK on the first ball but playing catch up shots and position the rest of the rack with no recognizable key ball at the end, you should not do this drill and instead work on much more basic skills like getting the desired position for your next shot.

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I have done this to my 14.1 students a long time. It is really good way to improve. I also did shoot 10 times example runs with this method and tried to always have different way so they can then recognize those patterns with their own practice.

Something else to think about... Keep your table and the balls clean. I've been doing more drills than anything lately and have gotten lazy about cleaning everything. When I started running balls I was having trouble getting a run going. Threw the balls in the machine for 10 minutes and ran a few racks right off the bat. That tiny bit of separation you can get from clean balls can make a world of difference.

big part of the game is "recognizing" and playing the right pattern. This is something you can study off the table.


I read once, that the biggest factor to predict, how good a chess player becomes is the amount of time he spends on studying the games of grandmasters. Study position, think of the move you would take, than see, how the master played. Do you see the reason, why his choice is better?

I think it applies very well to straight pool. Study runs from great players, pause after break ball and identify the best and easiest pattern for the next few balls and what you want to accomplish (mostly to solve the problems as fast as possible, so you also learn to recognize problem balls). Than get immediate feedback, how the masters do it. Normally you plan for 4-6 balls before you have to go into a cluster and than reevaluate.


Can you predict, how the cluster will open up? Immediate feedback once again watching the actual video after making your prediction.



Than pause again after breaking the cluster, identify the problems and your next few balls. Check again if and why the grand master took different approach.



And then on the last 5-6 balls when all problems are solved you can pause again and try to find the easiest end pattern and see if there is an easier way played by the pro. And so on.



I actually make flashcards of different patterns so I learn them by heart and with time am able to recognize similar situations and find easier solutions.

mjdoutdoors said:

Durning this time of no competition, due to covid, I have made it a goal to break my high run of 65. I am looking for drills specific for 14.1 or ideas of what to focus on.
I have 2 hours or so each night after work to workout on my table. I spend my time doing lots drills and focused practice. I have had several mid 50's but braking that high run seems elusive. Ideas on how to get there?

Click to expand...

Phil Capelle's book "Play Your Best Straight Pool" is a great resource. His chapter on "How To Run a Rack" breaks it down into 3 phases and pattern play. I also suggest watching Youtube runs by John Schmidt. He talks through his thinking on several of them.

Jim Rempe has a drill on tape that is excellent. You spread out a rack of balls, nothing closer than 4 inches from the cushion, nothing touching. Take ball in hand and run all the balls without letting the cue ball hit a cushion. He states that this is a "brainwash course" and after repeating over and over, the patterns begin to reveal themselves automatically. Great for cue ball control. At the end of this tape-


-dj