Stick Aim

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straightline

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Hi. Looking for stuff to bump. Saw this:
https://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=514059

Caught my eye because I use stick aim. Not that ^ convoluted stuff but actual aiming with the stick.

Simply, start with the ghost ball. Instead of getting down immediately, sight and stroke the shot in the air. I don't mean that warrior schtick of stroking 45 degrees out into space and then swooping in for the kill. What's that for anyway? I mean stroking at the actual shot except above the cue ball. From here you can establish your actual cue line, carom line, secondary collisions, whatever you need to know about what you are about to shoot, without committing. If you feel like a tard doing this, here's the retarded part: You can actually practice the shot in this manner till you're confident you got it. (don't worry your brain will catch on quick) If you get far enough to get the hang of it - 2 minutes maybe?, you can look for contact points or fractions or sex math - whatever floats your boat. No one will ever call foul and you might actually start making stuff that's been giving you trouble.
 
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Imac007

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
straightline said:
Hi. Looking for stuff to bump. Saw this:
https://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=514059

Caught my eye because I use stick aim. Not that ^ convoluted stuff but actual aiming with the stick.

Simply, start with the ghost ball. Instead of getting down immediately, sight and stroke the shot in the air. I don't mean that warrior schtick of stroking 45 degrees out into space and then swooping in for the kill. What's that for anyway? I mean stroking at the actual shot except above the cue ball. From here you can establish your actual cue line, carom line, secondary collisions, whatever you need to know about what you are about to shoot, without committing. If you feel like a tard doing this, here's the retarded part: You can actually practice the shot in this manner till you're confident you got it. (don't worry your brain will catch on quick) If you get far enough to get the hang of it - 2 minutes maybe?, you can look for contact points or fractions or sex math - whatever floats your boat. No one will ever call foul and you might actually start making stuff that's been giving you trouble.
Click to expand...

I also stick aim. I start by finding the line from contact point to contact point then parallel shift to center ball. That takes me to ghost ball center. At some point you need to move the cue. The linked post by imac007 tackles the air stroking issue you have raised. Thought it might offer some insight.
https://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?p=6200705#post6200705
 
BilliardsAbout

BilliardsAbout

BondFanEvents.com
Silver Member
Imac007 said:
I also stick aim. I start by finding the line from contact point to contact point then parallel shift to center ball. That takes me to ghost ball center. At some point you need to move the cue. The linked post by imac007 tackles the air stroking issue you have raised. Thought it might offer some insight.
https://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?p=6200705#post6200705
Click to expand...

Port arms position is used by some players for varied techniques:

* Holding the cue perpendicular to the shot line, ensuring you are standing perpendicular to the line, head/body in an optimal position to sight the upcoming shot (most amateurs are anxious to shoot and eye the shot with one foot forward, placing the head/eyes in various random positions)

* Stroke the shaft through the hand bridge to check for any snags/chalk/dirt

* Practice the approximate speed of stroke

* Set the hand bridge for the upcoming up to bridge more accurately to the ball in the stance (without sliding in and changing the angle of the stroke arm) - pros do not get down faraway from the cue ball and slide in the way amateurs do - for example, place the bridge hand about a foot from the cue tip then bring the cue tip down to the cue ball and you're "on it" with a foot of cue length so that the body/feet need not be adjusted while down in the stance

* Practice approximate length of backstroke and follow through in the air
 
S

straightline

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Imac007 said:
I also stick aim. I start by finding the line from contact point to contact point then parallel shift to center ball. That takes me to ghost ball center. At some point you need to move the cue. The linked post by imac007 tackles the air stroking issue you have raised. Thought it might offer some insight.
https://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?p=6200705#post6200705
Click to expand...

Surprising to find such a detailed approach on air shooting. Of all the people that have approached me about aiming in general, none have adopted the air practice PSR. lol

Congrats on your good sense. :D
 
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Imac007

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
straightline said:
Surprising to find such a detailed approach on air shooting. Of all the people that have approached me about aiming in general, none have adopted the air practice PSR. lol

Congrats on your good sense. :D
Click to expand...

Every detail of what a player does from match prep through post match debrief needs to be considered by aspiring players. Just because a verbal description can take you through details doesn’t mean they are part of a conscious PSR. in fact in order to be part of a player playing in the zone they must be on a subconscious plane, not a conscious one. It’s part of what I call the stance trance where the player positions himself and aligns to the shot line. Except for minor situational adjustments, the whole process happens on a near automatic level, including the adjustments. The stroke that emerges to produce the intended outcome operates at a similar level. Depending on the player there will be points where one aspect of the performance transitions to the next. The flow may stop physically but the underlying rhythm of the activity continues. The mental/physical sync include all the fluid motions through the air.

Just as we take the air we breath or gravity for granted, motions through the air, without awareness, go unnoticed. Awareness, being in the moment, lays at the heart of that subconscious flow. Only when something isn’t right should it bubble to the surface of consciousness, letting us stop and start over or simply pull ourselves back on course.
 
BilliardsAbout

BilliardsAbout

BondFanEvents.com
Silver Member
If you add one trigger to stance trance, make it "I will not step a foot forward but stand perpendicular to the line" when eyeing the upcoming shot.

No one regardless of eye dominance or even the loss of an eye walks sideways when they wish to step into a target. Why step forward with the head rotated and tilted?

Yes, pros often air stroke with a foot in but they're on a different plane in many ways, and they still walk into their shots from a distance overall.
 
S

straightline

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
It works 100% for me. What's more I was completely cordial to me and worked with me step by step to insure me got it right and didn't charge me a dime!
 
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Imac007

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
straightline said:
It works 100% for me. What's more I was completely cordial to me and worked with me step by step to insure me got it right and didn't charge me a dime!
Click to expand...

It’s what works, for each player. There is a fact/problem in motor skill acquisition called degrees of freedom. Simply put we are so dexterous that there are almost limitless ways to execute a skill. Problem is most compete for the same resources so can’t be used simultaneously. The solution is choosing one while constraining others. Once constraints are in place they become habitual. That is both a blessing and a curse. As technique evolves and learning takes place, habitual constraints often no longer fulfill their original intent. Enter the PSR. Previous constraints, now habits that are no longer serve their automatic purpose, are brought back into consciousness and overridden. This fits perfectly into our psyche for control.

The conscious mind disassembles into parts, the subconscious combines into chunks, the unconscious creates a flow once assembled chunks become wholes. A PSR short circuits the intention behind whole synchronized movements turning them back into parts in an act of control. Instead the subconscious needs to be able to pull resources into consciousness, without interference. That requires trust. A recent Golf YouTube Video on the PSR gives good insights and may help.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8v2F70sAJEo&feature=share

The video stresses that it’s what is in consciousness that is important because it drives the action. Functional intent needs to help decide what that should be. Control needs to be turned over to the subconscious which has already set constraints. The subconscious is where dexterity lives. It’s the situation and pattern recognition center. But it’s more, creativity is needed to coalesce. Watch someone like Alex P. He lets his subconscious pick the grip and stroke needed to create specific contacts. Often his fingers dance along the shaft as he feels specifics of the stroke he pieces together. Much like a piano maestro finding the fingering and timing for a virtuoso performance. He then trusts in the resources and feel dynamics he pulled into consciousness to produce the outcome.

This has wandered from the original post but seemed a relevant extension as a player progresses to expert level.
 
D

duckie

GregH
Silver Member
Gonna share something greatly overlooked..........muscle memory......which is why practice is so important....to build muscle memory.

I’m right handed. At one point in time I broke my right thumb requiring a cast that made the use of my right hand useless. It is for sure a right handed world.

Anyway, the real issue came about when I had to wipe my ass. Couldn’t do it right handed so had to use my left hand and arm for the first time in my life.

I knew what I wanted done, how to do it, but the muscle memory wasn’t there like for my right arm.

It was like learning to wipe for the first time ever. The motions were not smooth, nor fluid like using my right arm.

Overtime I got better, but never as good as using my right hand.

If you ain’t got the muscle memory, no matter what’s in your conscious and sub conscious ain’t worth shit.
 
S

straightline

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
duckie said:
Gonna share something greatly overlooked..........muscle memory......which is why practice is so important....to build muscle memory.

I’m right handed. At one point in time I broke my right thumb requiring a cast that made the use of my right hand useless. It is for sure a right handed world.

Anyway, the real issue came about when I had to wipe my ass. Couldn’t do it right handed so had to use my left hand and arm for the first time in my life.

I knew what I wanted done, how to do it, but the muscle memory wasn’t there like for my right arm.

It was like learning to wipe for the first time ever. The motions were not smooth, nor fluid like using my right arm.

Overtime I got better, but never as good as using my right hand.

If you ain’t got the muscle memory, no matter what’s in your conscious and sub conscious ain’t worth shit.
Click to expand...

Not everybody can walk a wire but most can walk. Pool is even simpler. You can prop yourself as required; take all the time you need. Pool will sit there and wait for you.
 
S

straightline

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
duckie said:
Gonna share something greatly overlooked..........muscle memory......which is why practice is so important....to build muscle memory.

I’m right handed. At one point in time I broke my right thumb requiring a cast that made the use of my right hand useless. It is for sure a right handed world.

Anyway, the real issue came about when I had to wipe my ass. Couldn’t do it right handed so had to use my left hand and arm for the first time in my life.

I knew what I wanted done, how to do it, but the muscle memory wasn’t there like for my right arm.

It was like learning to wipe for the first time ever. The motions were not smooth, nor fluid like using my right arm.

Overtime I got better, but never as good as using my right hand.

If you ain’t got the muscle memory, no matter what’s in your conscious and sub conscious ain’t worth shit.
Click to expand...

I wonder if muscle memory requires a process of remembering muscle. When learning stuff you get enthused about the experience and it's easy to hold the memory till the next time. When doing therapeutic stuff, you may begrudgingly just plug away till something improves. (?) :shrug:
 
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