Practicing on Coin-op tables
- Thread starter Mrdodd72
- Start date
Ask the owner of the table if they can open the table up for $5 an hour maybe even $10 an hour.
Edit. Use object balls to shoot in the cue ball on tough practice shots.
After you play 9-ball, use the remaining balls for 6-ball.
Does the owner of the table care if you don't put money in the table? I've seen guys too cheap to pay, and just practice their stroke using the cue ball alone. If I had to go that route, I would buy the appropriate cue-ball for that table, so now I can practice follow and draw shots.
Does the owner of the table care if you don't put money in the table? I've seen guys too cheap to pay, and just practice their stroke using the cue ball alone. If I had to go that route, I would buy the appropriate cue-ball for that table, so now I can practice follow and draw shots.
The cue ball issue is a big one. If you are going to be playing competition in the future with an oversized cue ball, then practice with the oversized cue ball. But if you will be playing in tournaments and leagues and such that uses a normal size cue ball, you should practice with that size. Many of the pool halls that operate coin-ops have the normal size ball if you ask them for it. But you have to work out a deal with the room operator to allow you to play with the table unlocked. In other words, rent the coin-op by the hour. Otherwise you'll have to get someone to come over and open up the table every time you scratch.
Practice your kick shots. How many shots does it take to kick in a ball off the foot spot taking the cue ball three cushions (or more) each shot? (Leave the object ball where it's knocked to and cue ball in hand each shot.)
The cue ball is sized the same as the object balls; which is good because I wouldn't even bother otherwise. I have been told that the owner/management will not open the tables. But I will check anyway. What I have usually been doing is breaking 9/10 ball over and over until I have 9/10 balls left, then run out from there. Just trying to see what ideas are out there. Thanks for your replies.
If the owner will not open the table practice kicks as mentioned above, banks, and Jump Shots. These are the harder ones to make so your money will stretch further. Still you will need to expect to pay around $10 or $15 per hour of practice. When practicing jumps and banks you might want to lay a house cue across the holes you aren't aiming for so as to prevent pocketing balls in the wrong pocket.
some strange advice in this thread.....
to practice on coin op tables, after shooting in 15 balls, all you have to do is pay to get them back out. Seems simple enough to me.
to practice on coin op tables, after shooting in 15 balls, all you have to do is pay to get them back out. Seems simple enough to me.
I was in a situation at one time, when I had time but limited funds. So for practice on the bar table I would rack 3 ball and break which gave me good practice for my 9 ball break. Then I would kick the balls in. I got to where I was running 3's and 4's. The skills I developed improved my game greatly. I was playing lots of ring games at the time and "Kicks like a mule" became my pool name.:thumbup:
MikeTheKite
Registered
Play a safety game or Philadelphia(shoot every object ball off the cue ball) to work on your caroms. You could also work on your long banks and grab the ball ball before it goes in.
Its a little unscrupulous but i was playing with a young kid whos mom worked in a bar. He puts cups in the pockets and the balls wont go down.
Simple...yes that is the simplest suggestion. But what is was looking for was creative way to "maximize" each rack for practice. I appreciate all the constructive suggestions, I'll probably do a mixture of most of them. I wanna stay in the bars good graces, so I probably steer away from attempting to catch or block balls from going. I may just have to wear down the owner till he lets me rent time.
Banks
Banned
I typically try to run out an 8b rack in the first inning. After that, i switch to something like banking the remaining balls. When i want to focus on particular shots that im having trouble with, I'll just shoot those afterwards.
Four ball billiards on a coin op
I am a snooker player by nature, spend very little time on an actual pool table. When I do, it is invariably on a coin op, generally because something in my home situation sent me to the bar. Enough said about that.
So I am there to drink, not pump $20 or $30 an hour into a pool table; that money is much better spent on beer. But since I like to poke little balls into holes on a flat surface with a stick and I am not interested in sharing my story with strangers at the bar, I have developed a routine which usually results in one rack lasting about twenty minutes, same as a good frame of snooker.
I call it four ball billiards though that is a misnomer since it is a pool game by nature and I believe there is already a "four ball billiards" game played in Korea if I am not mistaken. Nonetheless, it saves me dropping quarters in the machine every three or four minutes and I can belly up to the bar for another round with each rack.
The concept is similar as it is for English Billiards for those familiar with that game. You can score points in two possible ways: caroms (cannons), and potting (pocketing). In English Billiards, a scratch (in off) will also score points but in four ball billiards, a scratch is a foul. All fouls result in ball in hand. So I will try to lay down the basics as concisely as possible.
Under normal conditions, there will be four object balls and the cue on the table surface. You must play a fair stroke, otherwise, it is a penalty and your opponent receives ball in hand (if just practicing alone, of course, you will just be constantly trying to break your record for high run, like practicing straight pool or 3 cushion). To define a fair stroke is simple: do not scratch the cue, and at least two of the object balls must be moved from their current position in the course of a stroke. If you want, you can also add to that the standard American rule that a ball must be driven to rail after contact. To be specific about "moving two object balls", that simply means that, to not be foul, with every stroke, you must successfully play a combination of one ball into another (does NOT need to drop into pocket), or else successfully play a carom of the cue off one ball into another. If not, incoming player gets ball in hand.
Scoring is based on a points system and points are accumulated in several ways. We will define all possible "point events". EVERY point event MUST include a carom which can be intended or accidental (there are never any calls required). In general, an easy way to discern a point event is if you can move at least three of the four object balls including a carom in the stroke, it is one point. That is the basic scoring stroke....play the first object ball into the second object ball (pretend like the second object ball is your "pocket") and figure the carom of the cue ball onto the third object ball. From there, a stroke may gain greater points if more point events occur. For instance, moving the fourth object ball and pocketing object balls are also point events AS LONG AS the basic scoring stroke is completed. Example: play first object ball into second object ball and that ball falls into pocket (a basic combination), meanwhile, the cue ball caroms into third object ball (basic scoring stroke complete) and that ball also falls into a pocket, and in the course of the stroke the fourth object ball is also moved (can be contacted either by any other object ball or the cue ball...basically it just gets contacted through any sequence of events. Described in the example is a stroke value of four points: the basic scoring stroke (1 point), the first ball falling into the pocket (as long as basic scoring stroke is complete) (plus 1 point), the second ball falling into a pocket (plus 1 point), and the fourth ball being contacted whether by cue ball ball or another object ball (plus 1 point). So a "perfect stroke" would earn six points....basic scoring stroke, contacting fourth object ball, and all four balls end up in pockets.
To try to simplify how to think of scoring:
1) If you contact zero object balls (miscue) or contact only one object ball, it is a foul stroke, opponent gets ball in hand. (It sounds like it should be damn easy to simply make two object balls move, but if the four object balls are separated toward the corners and the cue is somewhere around center, even this can be tricky.)
2) If you contact two object balls whether by combination or carom, fair stroke, no score, other player's turn. Note that if you play a combination and pocket a ball, it is NOT necessarily a score....to be a scoring event, the stroke must also include a carom. So if you play the combo, pocket the ball but MISS the carom, it is a fair stroke, but no points scored and it is the other players turn.
3) If you contact three object balls total and include at least one carom, one point scored (plus any other scoring event). This can be a two ball combo and a carom, or two caroms. It is NOT a point to play a three ball combo if no carom is involved. It is also NOT a point if the carom is made on a ball involved in a previous point event. (Example: play a combo, then one of those balls comes back and makes contact with the cue ball. This is NOT a point as the carom involved a ball already in a point event...simply put, three balls did not move. Also, it is NOT a point if the carom is made to the original object ball: example, play combo of ball A into B into C, meanwhile A comes back to make contact with cue ball again. No point. Had it been B or C that made contact with cue ball, carom is complete, 1 point scored.)
Another concept you must understand for this is the snooker concept of "spots". There are three basic spots on the table: 1) foot spot, 2) head spot, and 3) center spot (exact center of table between side pockets) and that is also their order of priority meaning that when balls fall into pockets, they must be replaced by balls from the tray until there is again four balls on the table. Say in a particular shot, two balls were pocketed (doesn't matter if points were scored or not). Spot one new ball on the foot spot if it is available. Spot second new ball on the head spot if available. If any spots are unavailable, go to the next spot in the priority list. If NO spots are available, the next stroke is just played with whatever balls are on the table and the new balls will be spotted when spots become available. For instance, say a shot is played, in the end, two balls are pocketed, the cue comes to rest on the foot spot, an object ball comes to rest on the head spot, and the second object ball comes to rest on the center spot. The next shot must be taken from that position; no point can possibly be scored because all you can do is play a fair stroke by driving one object ball into the other. Then, the following stroke, place new balls accordingly until four are on the table.
Which brings us to the opening stroke of the game. Simple. Put three object balls on their spots. Player playing first stroke, simply attempts to play a legal, fair stroke and hopefully even score. The best way to attempt to score is place the cue ball somewhere along the head string, strike the ball on center spot on a straight path to strike the ball on foot spot, meanwhile, draw on the cue ball to bring it back to the kitchen side side cushion rebounding (hopefully) into the object ball that is on head spot for a carom and a point. It is NOT legal to play directly at the ball on head spot on opening shot. Next stroke, a spot will likely be open so put up a fourth ball and keep four balls on the table from that time forward (if possible). Note that all fouls are ball in hand anywhere on the table so the restriction of not playing directly at the ball on head spot only applies on the opening stroke.
If you play this against an opponent, it can finish in two different ways: 1) set a final score as a target. 25, 50, 75, whatever you want. As balls disappear, just keep putting up the quarters as required and keep the four object balls on the table. Or 2) play the rack and winner is whoever has the most points when the balls are all gone. Note that when twelve balls have disappeared so there are only three balls left on the table, you can play on because it is still possible to score points. Once there are only two balls left, game is over because no one can score a point.
I have never run a perfect six point stroke at this but I have gotten five a couple times. I think my high run so far is probably about 23 or 24, but I am sure a good player can probably run a hundred or more. Many points are made without pocketing balls so like I said one "rack" will probably last 15, 20 minutes or more. Many people look at me very odd when I do this in a bar, but they almost never ask for a game.
I believe this exercise improves skills in several areas: 1) you are essentially using a ball instead of a pocket for your first target but this will obviously help your aiming, alignment and pocketing skills, 2) you will learn better cue ball control as you cannot score anything unless you can consistently complete the carom with your cue ball, 3) you will begin to see lines on the table that you never saw before because you will have to play bank shots (but again, banking one ball into another ball...smaller target than banking a ball into a pocket) and you will also have to learn to bank caroms taking the cue ball off cushions first to complete caroms, 4) you will learn a soft touch when necessary...when three balls are clustered near a cushion, you don't want to necessarily break them up but just nudge them around stringing together a bunch of scoring strokes in a row, and 5) you should gain a much better understanding of how NOT to scratch. Since the main component of this game is making the carom, you can't help but gain a better understanding of how the cue ball is going to move and you will develop a much better eye for those shots where a scratch is a strong possibility and thus avoid them. Also, the venue owner will be happy because you are giving him a fair return and you are not trying to cheat the system by catching balls going into the pockets, etc., etc.
I am sure this sounds complicated trying to describe it in just a couple of paragraphs but like so many other great games, the premise is simple but difficult to describe simply. If you want more drawn out boring details, feel free to PM me.
I am a snooker player by nature, spend very little time on an actual pool table. When I do, it is invariably on a coin op, generally because something in my home situation sent me to the bar. Enough said about that.
So I am there to drink, not pump $20 or $30 an hour into a pool table; that money is much better spent on beer. But since I like to poke little balls into holes on a flat surface with a stick and I am not interested in sharing my story with strangers at the bar, I have developed a routine which usually results in one rack lasting about twenty minutes, same as a good frame of snooker.
I call it four ball billiards though that is a misnomer since it is a pool game by nature and I believe there is already a "four ball billiards" game played in Korea if I am not mistaken. Nonetheless, it saves me dropping quarters in the machine every three or four minutes and I can belly up to the bar for another round with each rack.
The concept is similar as it is for English Billiards for those familiar with that game. You can score points in two possible ways: caroms (cannons), and potting (pocketing). In English Billiards, a scratch (in off) will also score points but in four ball billiards, a scratch is a foul. All fouls result in ball in hand. So I will try to lay down the basics as concisely as possible.
Under normal conditions, there will be four object balls and the cue on the table surface. You must play a fair stroke, otherwise, it is a penalty and your opponent receives ball in hand (if just practicing alone, of course, you will just be constantly trying to break your record for high run, like practicing straight pool or 3 cushion). To define a fair stroke is simple: do not scratch the cue, and at least two of the object balls must be moved from their current position in the course of a stroke. If you want, you can also add to that the standard American rule that a ball must be driven to rail after contact. To be specific about "moving two object balls", that simply means that, to not be foul, with every stroke, you must successfully play a combination of one ball into another (does NOT need to drop into pocket), or else successfully play a carom of the cue off one ball into another. If not, incoming player gets ball in hand.
Scoring is based on a points system and points are accumulated in several ways. We will define all possible "point events". EVERY point event MUST include a carom which can be intended or accidental (there are never any calls required). In general, an easy way to discern a point event is if you can move at least three of the four object balls including a carom in the stroke, it is one point. That is the basic scoring stroke....play the first object ball into the second object ball (pretend like the second object ball is your "pocket") and figure the carom of the cue ball onto the third object ball. From there, a stroke may gain greater points if more point events occur. For instance, moving the fourth object ball and pocketing object balls are also point events AS LONG AS the basic scoring stroke is completed. Example: play first object ball into second object ball and that ball falls into pocket (a basic combination), meanwhile, the cue ball caroms into third object ball (basic scoring stroke complete) and that ball also falls into a pocket, and in the course of the stroke the fourth object ball is also moved (can be contacted either by any other object ball or the cue ball...basically it just gets contacted through any sequence of events. Described in the example is a stroke value of four points: the basic scoring stroke (1 point), the first ball falling into the pocket (as long as basic scoring stroke is complete) (plus 1 point), the second ball falling into a pocket (plus 1 point), and the fourth ball being contacted whether by cue ball ball or another object ball (plus 1 point). So a "perfect stroke" would earn six points....basic scoring stroke, contacting fourth object ball, and all four balls end up in pockets.
To try to simplify how to think of scoring:
1) If you contact zero object balls (miscue) or contact only one object ball, it is a foul stroke, opponent gets ball in hand. (It sounds like it should be damn easy to simply make two object balls move, but if the four object balls are separated toward the corners and the cue is somewhere around center, even this can be tricky.)
2) If you contact two object balls whether by combination or carom, fair stroke, no score, other player's turn. Note that if you play a combination and pocket a ball, it is NOT necessarily a score....to be a scoring event, the stroke must also include a carom. So if you play the combo, pocket the ball but MISS the carom, it is a fair stroke, but no points scored and it is the other players turn.
3) If you contact three object balls total and include at least one carom, one point scored (plus any other scoring event). This can be a two ball combo and a carom, or two caroms. It is NOT a point to play a three ball combo if no carom is involved. It is also NOT a point if the carom is made on a ball involved in a previous point event. (Example: play a combo, then one of those balls comes back and makes contact with the cue ball. This is NOT a point as the carom involved a ball already in a point event...simply put, three balls did not move. Also, it is NOT a point if the carom is made to the original object ball: example, play combo of ball A into B into C, meanwhile A comes back to make contact with cue ball again. No point. Had it been B or C that made contact with cue ball, carom is complete, 1 point scored.)
Another concept you must understand for this is the snooker concept of "spots". There are three basic spots on the table: 1) foot spot, 2) head spot, and 3) center spot (exact center of table between side pockets) and that is also their order of priority meaning that when balls fall into pockets, they must be replaced by balls from the tray until there is again four balls on the table. Say in a particular shot, two balls were pocketed (doesn't matter if points were scored or not). Spot one new ball on the foot spot if it is available. Spot second new ball on the head spot if available. If any spots are unavailable, go to the next spot in the priority list. If NO spots are available, the next stroke is just played with whatever balls are on the table and the new balls will be spotted when spots become available. For instance, say a shot is played, in the end, two balls are pocketed, the cue comes to rest on the foot spot, an object ball comes to rest on the head spot, and the second object ball comes to rest on the center spot. The next shot must be taken from that position; no point can possibly be scored because all you can do is play a fair stroke by driving one object ball into the other. Then, the following stroke, place new balls accordingly until four are on the table.
Which brings us to the opening stroke of the game. Simple. Put three object balls on their spots. Player playing first stroke, simply attempts to play a legal, fair stroke and hopefully even score. The best way to attempt to score is place the cue ball somewhere along the head string, strike the ball on center spot on a straight path to strike the ball on foot spot, meanwhile, draw on the cue ball to bring it back to the kitchen side side cushion rebounding (hopefully) into the object ball that is on head spot for a carom and a point. It is NOT legal to play directly at the ball on head spot on opening shot. Next stroke, a spot will likely be open so put up a fourth ball and keep four balls on the table from that time forward (if possible). Note that all fouls are ball in hand anywhere on the table so the restriction of not playing directly at the ball on head spot only applies on the opening stroke.
If you play this against an opponent, it can finish in two different ways: 1) set a final score as a target. 25, 50, 75, whatever you want. As balls disappear, just keep putting up the quarters as required and keep the four object balls on the table. Or 2) play the rack and winner is whoever has the most points when the balls are all gone. Note that when twelve balls have disappeared so there are only three balls left on the table, you can play on because it is still possible to score points. Once there are only two balls left, game is over because no one can score a point.
I have never run a perfect six point stroke at this but I have gotten five a couple times. I think my high run so far is probably about 23 or 24, but I am sure a good player can probably run a hundred or more. Many points are made without pocketing balls so like I said one "rack" will probably last 15, 20 minutes or more. Many people look at me very odd when I do this in a bar, but they almost never ask for a game.
I believe this exercise improves skills in several areas: 1) you are essentially using a ball instead of a pocket for your first target but this will obviously help your aiming, alignment and pocketing skills, 2) you will learn better cue ball control as you cannot score anything unless you can consistently complete the carom with your cue ball, 3) you will begin to see lines on the table that you never saw before because you will have to play bank shots (but again, banking one ball into another ball...smaller target than banking a ball into a pocket) and you will also have to learn to bank caroms taking the cue ball off cushions first to complete caroms, 4) you will learn a soft touch when necessary...when three balls are clustered near a cushion, you don't want to necessarily break them up but just nudge them around stringing together a bunch of scoring strokes in a row, and 5) you should gain a much better understanding of how NOT to scratch. Since the main component of this game is making the carom, you can't help but gain a better understanding of how the cue ball is going to move and you will develop a much better eye for those shots where a scratch is a strong possibility and thus avoid them. Also, the venue owner will be happy because you are giving him a fair return and you are not trying to cheat the system by catching balls going into the pockets, etc., etc.
I am sure this sounds complicated trying to describe it in just a couple of paragraphs but like so many other great games, the premise is simple but difficult to describe simply. If you want more drawn out boring details, feel free to PM me.
I don't know your situation but the operative phrase in your post is "easy access." If you are serious about improving try driving further to find the best 9 footers you can. Takes more effort but that is what improving is all about. Effort.
