To play pool well one must remember how to execute the shot. In this sense memory is one of several keys to playing well. These memories are not conscious in the sense that we can tell another person what we do. For instance, try to tell another person what you do to coordinate your eyes with the pendulum swing of your arm and the loose grip of your hand to execute a shot. Simply stated, you cannot. However, you do recognize the need for a 33 degree cut with above center follow and slight right English to make X shot and get position on the next ball. Some place in your head is a representation of prior shots and the ability to adjust the current shot for good control of the game. Some pros have exquisite control.
Is there a way to stuff these types of memories into your head so that they can be easily and quickly recalled? I am not sure, but there may be a way to improve the ability of the mind to connect all of the dots as needed.
We all seem to have an ability to remember traumatic events in glaring detail years after the event. Listen to someone tell about their near fatal car accident that they had 20 years ago and they can often tell the story like it happened yesterday. I wonder if we could not get something like this with regard to the ability to naturally, unconsciously, remember how to play different pool shots.
The near fatal accident situation involves an extremely high state of attention and probably the flow of different chemicals in the body at the time. None-the-less, I wonder if we can take a lesson here. It seems to me that if one were to get hyper-emotional immediately after making a shot that is considered well executed that this emotionality might help to set the memory in the unconscious. The idea would be to "jump and shout, knock yourself out" when you make the shot exactly as you wanted it. This might set the memory pattern by highlighting it to the brain as something to be remembered.
For those who are not experts at banking here is a way to test the idea that emotional reactions may help remembering how to play a shot. Set seven object balls one diamond off the long rail. With cue ball in hand, bank each object ball to the nearest pocket. Do this two times and you will have 14 shots.
Count the number of times you made the object ball. This is the number of correct attempts or CA. CA divided by 14 is the percentage of correct attempts.
Now practice banking balls using any system that suits you. Ray Martin's system is particularly effective (99 Critical Shots page 68 ? 71). Every time you make the bank shot, "run and shout, knock yourself out." Or, more specifically, get emotional, yell clap your hands, laugh and in general make a big deal about it. The more emotional you are the better the test will be. You better be at home on your private table or the hall owner might call the nut squad. Continue in this manner until you have made about 20 bank shots.
Now you have to wait one week. This allows the effect of any prior training to wear off. In general, after a week your silly one afternoon session should not have changed anything.
So It's Monday again and now you go set up 14 balls as described in the beginning of this post. Play each shot again with your usual approach to playing pool and calculate the correct percent as indicated above. If the new training method worked you could expect about a 20 - 30% change in your ability to make banks.
If the system does work it could be used for many other aspects of learning to play well. Of course you might look like a nit but it about pool playing - right. It makes no difference if you are here or in a psych ward.
From another perspective, I wonder how many excellent players (in whatever sport) have been using something like this. The joy might not be externalized for some but I would bet that some sort of emotionality (maybe even anger) is involved when learning to play well.
A true story.