The Physics of Pool

Patrick Johnson said:

I'll bet you had to think about lots of things back when you were learning them that you now know and do without thinking - that was "the science" back then.

Something new may not interest you, but that doesn't mean it would paralyze you (or anybody else) to learn it.

pj
chgo

Click to expand...

Don't recall using a descriptor like "paralyzed" but if that kind of drama is what you need to make your case goferit.

Lou Figueroa

dr_dave said:

It sounds like he might be trying to practice shots or techniques he is not yet ready for. But having said that, I don't see anything wrong with learning techniques or shots from well-done instructional videos (if I may say so myself :embarrassed2; although, time spent with a qualified and experienced instructor can probably be more helpful for many ... as can putting in 10,000 hours of smart practice over many years.

Regards,
Dave

Click to expand...

I did not say there was anything wrong with attempting to learn from video.

What I did try and point out, as ridiculous as it might have been to you, is that guys can have a poor experience attempting to think about too many elements when it comes to shooting pool and that that could be counter-productive.

Lou Figueroa.

ShootingArts said:

Lou, one of the funnier moments in a pool hall: I had carefully digested how an aiming system was supposed to work and I headed off to the pool hall to implement it. Object ball two diamonds up the rail from the corner pocket and an inch off of the rail. As you know, you can miss a ball on the rail pretty badly and still have the ball fall in the hole so I never freeze balls on the rail to practice. Then I put the cue ball about ten inches behind where a center spot on the table would be.

I then proceeded to carefully go through the aiming routine over and over and miss the ball! For the next fifteen minutes I missed the same shot over and over. Finally a guy came stomping over, "let me show you how to make that shot." He proceeded to pocket the ball a few times and then had me try despite me explaining to him over and over that the idea wasn't to pocket the ball, it was to pocket the ball using a certain aiming technique. After he left I went back to missing the ball that I had pocketed a few times to make him happy.

I am sure he never grasped why a damned fool would try to pocket a ball another way when ghost ball or opposite side aiming would always pocket the ball. I forget the aiming system I was trying but I hit the ball thin over and over. Had I frozen it on the rail the cue ball would have skidded a bit on the rail and pocketed the object ball making it seem that the aiming system worked.

I never forgot the look on the man's face while he was trying to figure out why I didn't just pocket the ball. I'm quite sure he was convinced I was at least a half bubble off plumb!

Hu

Click to expand...

lol, funny stuff, Hu.

Lou Figueroa

4pointer said:

thank you lou .

and about science , modern technology shafts , and well made instructional videos to became a better pool player , i have to say :

who cannot think for himself , must believe what others say .

nobody can practice for you .

and you get out , what you put in .

keep in stroke everybody

Click to expand...

Well said.

So, here's one more oldie from my RSB days. Perhaps it will help some up the mountain.

#####
I played pool for a long time looking for "The Secret."

I knew that if I could just discover The Secret I would play great pool. For the longest time, I thought The Secret might be a certain grip, a certain bridge, a particular approach to the table, maybe just the right head height or position over the cue. But The Secret always eluded me.

Now I've come to understand that The Secret, as a single entity, doesn't really exist. Instead I've learned that success at pool is contingent on at least three general principles.

Lou's First Principle of Pool:
Playing great pool is the result of reliably reproducing the same mechanical setup every time you approach the table. In turn, the same mechanics will produce the same stroke each time you shoot. You can't learn to play great pool if your mechanics are different each time you setup. It's not a certain grip or head height, it's a process that starts with how you hold your pool cue and ends with your final shooting position. The problem with concentrating on and changing one particular element in the process is that, if you're not paying attention, you can easily alter something else, and change your results. Or, if you're not setting up in a consistent manner, there's no way to directly attribute any improvement to a particular modification, like a higher or lower head position.

We've all had those sessions when, for a brief moment in time, we thought to ourselves "I'm in dead, mortal punch." Balls go in from everywhere and we effortlessly move the cue ball around the table with astounding ease. It's because, I believe, we all have a great stroke inside us. But, we don't do things the same every day, or even from shot to shot. The Secret, such as it applies to a great stroke, is to find the process that creates those great results and repeat them consistently.

Lou's Second Principle of Pool:
Great pool is a result of setting up and executing your stroke with great precision. Perhaps many of you have seen the poster "View of a Cue" which is basically a foot and a half cue ball overlaid with graph lines that breaks the cue ball down to something like a 120 spots. The Secret is not about hitting the cue ball low or high or to the side -- it's about consciously choosing one of those 120 spots and shooting at it with the right speed and elevation to produce exactly the results you want.

Lou's Third Principle of pool:
Great pool players have great memories. Each and every shot, you've got to hypothesize what's going to happen with the object ball and cue ball. Then, you execute and pay attention and see if your results matched your hypothesis. And, if they didn't, how they differed. The Secret is to then remember all of that for the next time.
#####

Lou Figueroa

Well it certainly didn't take long for the "elitist disdain" I alluded to at the front of this thread to surface courtesy of the pocket protector set, lol.

So, like I said up front, I like the science and have wrestled my way through most of the major scientific works on pool. But I also know this: when I think of what has helped me learn to play pool and made me a better player it goes like this:

1. Time on the table practicing.
2. Gambling.
3. More time on the table after losing my lunch money.
4. Tournament play.
5. Lessons from great *players.*
And a far, far distant 6th would be science.

I sometimes wonder what Efren would say if you asked him his thoughts on Wayland's, "The Physics of Pocket Billiards. Or maybe Tony Chohan about Jack's, "The Science of Pocket Billiards." Maybe it would be good to know if Shane felt he was helped along by Ron's APAPP or how many Dr. Dave DVDs Earl has watched.

I will mention that the funny thing about lessons from great players (Dallas West, Ray Martin, and Steve "Cookie Monster" Cook) was that in the 20 hours or so I spent collectively with them not a one utter a

single

solitary

itty-bitty

word about the science.

Lou Figueroa
go figure

vinay said:

Yup, it's 2019, so of course things have to devolve to calling someone "elitist" followed by childish insults because they disagree with you.

Click to expand...

Try following along.

My original post was from RSB around 20 years ago and the elitist stuff was happening back then. So now, I have propeller-heads in this thread telling me that views such as mine are "ridiculous," "cartoonish," and suggest such opinions are held because "analysis is difficult for you." That goes beyond disagreement.

Lou Figueroa

ribdoner said:

They didn't mention science because, in all probability, your lessons were before Al Gore invented it

Click to expand...

No, actually post-Al Gore.

Lou Figueroa
though that
might not stop him

Patrick Johnson said:

Probably inevitable since the thread started with "Luddite disdain" courtesy of the count-on-your-fingers set.

pj
chgo

Click to expand...

I may count on my fingers... but I seem to recall that the times we played the slide rule guy got beaten like a rented mule ;-)

Lou Figueroa

Patrick Johnson said:

Well, maybe like a borrowed mule...

But I think the only way to really know who's right is to arm rassle.

pj
chgo

Click to expand...

Borrowed mule?!

oh no. I went straight to the Windy City Rent-to-own.

Lou Figueroa