what i have learned shooting 14 months, 3 hours a day

J

judochoke

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
started as a true beginner at age 61, with no natural talent,(in my opinion). i have been practicing for 2 to 3 hours a day for the entire time, 14 months. in this time, i had a lot of problems in the beginning, and had a lot of help from this forum. i have watched videos, bought books on pool, had instruction, bought different cues, ect.

but in my humble opinion, this is what i have learned: (maybe this will help out another struggling beginner)

what you don't need:
the newest cue, the newest chalk, new cloth on your home table, newest glove, newest tip, coolest cue case, strongest powerful break, ect ect ect.

WHAT DO YOU NEED???????? VERY SIMPLE- A GOOD STROKE

thats it. you need a smooth stroke, a smooth backstroke, a smooth delivery to the cue ball. with this stroke, you will learn not to overpower the shot, when the cue hits the cue ball with a perfect stroke, it makes the most pleasant sound.

with a smooth stroke, you can relax, practice stroke for two or three nice easy strokes, and then with the same smoothness, just stroke threw the cue ball. no hearky-jerky motion.

with a smooth stroke, you can easily draw the cue ball,(i used to blast the cue ball, totally unnecessary).

my game has improved in leaps and bounds by finding and using this smooth stroke.

sorry if im ranting or sounding like a tough guy. but i can see how important a good stroke is to the game, and im excited that i finally figured it out. :cool::cool::cool:
 
sjm

sjm

Older and Wiser
Silver Member
Congrats on the progress you've made and thanks for sharing your story.

You are, of course, correct that a good stroke is the key to playing well, but don't overlook that the decision making part of the game is nearly as important.

Good Pool = Good decision making + Good shot execution

Make sure you are developing as a decision maker as well.

Wishing you continued success with your game.
 
E

EddieBme

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
judochoke said:
started as a true beginner at age 61, with no natural talent,(in my opinion). i have been practicing for 2 to 3 hours a day for the entire time, 14 months. in this time, i had a lot of problems in the beginning, and had a lot of help from this forum. i have watched videos, bought books on pool, had instruction, bought different cues, ect.

but in my humble opinion, this is what i have learned: (maybe this will help out another struggling beginner)

what you don't need:
the newest cue, the newest chalk, new cloth on your home table, newest glove, newest tip, coolest cue case, strongest powerful break, ect ect ect.

WHAT DO YOU NEED???????? VERY SIMPLE- A GOOD STROKE

thats it. you need a smooth stroke, a smooth backstroke, a smooth delivery to the cue ball. with this stroke, you will learn not to overpower the shot, when the cue hits the cue ball with a perfect stroke, it makes the most pleasant sound.

with a smooth stroke, you can relax, practice stroke for two or three nice easy strokes, and then with the same smoothness, just stroke threw the cue ball. no hearky-jerky motion.

with a smooth stroke, you can easily draw the cue ball,(i used to blast the cue ball, totally unnecessary).

my game has improved in leaps and bounds by finding and using this smooth stroke.

sorry if im ranting or sounding like a tough guy. but i can see how important a good stroke is to the game, and im excited that i finally figured it out. :cool::cool::cool:
Click to expand...

Sounds like you're well on your way to the top :). Did you have an professional billiards instructor to work with you? Just out of curiosity, what cue do you use, and just a maple shaft,
or (LD) low deflection shaft, or a carbon fiber?

Eddie
 
J

judochoke

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
i just finished up some lessons with calvin coker out of orange country, ca. very well spend money for me. he really opened up my eyes to what i was doing wrong. namely hitting the cue ball way to hard. a)nd i olny play on bar tables, so he stressed that the longest shot i have to get position for is 3.5 feet. made thinking alot simpler.

i went from throwing 6 or 7 balls on the table to throwing 9 balls and now im doing really well on running them out.

i use a lucasi butt with a predator 314-3 shaft. works well for me

my only goal when i started was to be able to play 9 ball for 5 bucks a game. ( kind of a weird goal) and im almost ready to start winning some money. :grin::grin::grin::grin::grin:
 
Bavafongoul

Bavafongoul

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Sure.....Okay......Yeah.....But..

A fiddler and violinist both use a bowed instrument, often times the same one, but the music
produced sounds worlds apart. A good stroke will always serve you well. It is just a fundamental
to most sports and games like pool is. I think a great golfer using a set of standard loft clubs will
play a relatively good round of golf. The more he uses the clubs the better he’ll likely play too. But
he’ll likely never play as consistently good as when he plays with his custom fit golf clubs that is
matched to his swing. Cues are similar and knowing what you like helps ensure you get to play
a cue that matches your preferences. And don’t kid yourself for a sec. We all have cue preferences.
 
noMoreSchon

noMoreSchon

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
The sweet, sweet sound of good stroke. I can walk into a room, blindfolded, and listen

to the sounds of the cue hitting the ball, and know who can play, and who cannot.

(Or at least who has good stroke!)

I remember years ago, a commentator was describing the sound of Alison Fisher hitting

the cue ball. And had no idea why her cue was making that so distinct 'ping' sound. But

they legitimately thought her cue was broken...
 
T

tuffstuff07

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
This is what I've been trying to work on the most in my game lately.

I took a lesson years ago from one of the highly recommended instructors from here but didn't follow through on the practice.

Now I can't really grip a cue but even after only 3-4 days of practice I already can feel the benefit of it and even had no problem moving a mud ball around a worn out bar table tonight.

SPF is one of the best acronyms you can learn and slowing down especially on my transition has been huge.
 
jay helfert

jay helfert

Shoot Pool, not people
Gold Member
Silver Member
judochoke said:
started as a true beginner at age 61, with no natural talent,(in my opinion). i have been practicing for 2 to 3 hours a day for the entire time, 14 months. in this time, i had a lot of problems in the beginning, and had a lot of help from this forum. i have watched videos, bought books on pool, had instruction, bought different cues, ect.

but in my humble opinion, this is what i have learned: (maybe this will help out another struggling beginner)

what you don't need:
the newest cue, the newest chalk, new cloth on your home table, newest glove, newest tip, coolest cue case, strongest powerful break, ect ect ect.

WHAT DO YOU NEED???????? VERY SIMPLE- A GOOD STROKE

thats it. you need a smooth stroke, a smooth backstroke, a smooth delivery to the cue ball. with this stroke, you will learn not to overpower the shot, when the cue hits the cue ball with a perfect stroke, it makes the most pleasant sound.

with a smooth stroke, you can relax, practice stroke for two or three nice easy strokes, and then with the same smoothness, just stroke threw the cue ball. no hearky-jerky motion.

with a smooth stroke, you can easily draw the cue ball,(i used to blast the cue ball, totally unnecessary).

my game has improved in leaps and bounds by finding and using this smooth stroke.

sorry if im ranting or sounding like a tough guy. but i can see how important a good stroke is to the game, and im excited that i finally figured it out. :cool::cool::cool:
Click to expand...

Developing a smooth, consistent stroke is a great start. The really hard part comes next, learning to make all the shots from different angles and then most important of all learning to control the cue ball. When you can do all that consistently you will be a good player. At the pace you're on, that goal might be achievable in another 14-18 months.

My suggestion would be to find some good sparring partners (maybe someone a little better than you) and once every week or so play a long session with them. Playing six to eight hours straight will do wonders for your game.
 
Cadillac J

Cadillac J

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
ain't that the truth!

judochoke said:
WHAT DO YOU NEED???????? VERY SIMPLE- A GOOD STROKE
Click to expand...

Agree 100% my man! I'm 37 years old and have gotten more serious in the last year, and now I am relearning a few things to change habits...also learned that the grip was one of the most important things for me to have long-term consistency in a given stroke.



judochoke said:
what you don't need: the newest cue, the newest chalk, new cloth on your home table, newest glove, newest tip, coolest cue case, strongest powerful break, ect.
Click to expand...

Booyah! Couldn't agree more. If I received and took this advice, I'd likely be a better player and it could have saved me a ton of money in the long run; but I like having a wide variety of cues on hand at the moment (I just play at home, so not around others that would have cues to try in person).



The problem is most of us start playing pool using any technique that feels comfortable to hit the shot, and most would keep it the same for the rest of their life. Unless you have someone knowledgeable to show your flaws or give you advice, it is hard to really progress past a certain point.
 
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