Absolute Zero Tolerance Stop Shot

[Crispy Fish]

Anyone else here have trouble with the Absolute Zero Tolerance Stop shot from Black Belt Billiards? For those of you who aren't familiar with it, see the attached diagram... You have to not only make this shot (easy enough), but the cue ball has to stop ABSOLUTELY dead. No movement at all... and to advance to the next drill, you have to make this 7 out of 10 shots.

I can get really close to dead most of the time, but usually I'll get some movement, maybe an 8th of an inch or so.

Any tips for nailing this shot and building consistency?

 

[mnShooter]

Hit very firm so cloth doesn't have a chance to affect the shot. Center ball maybe a tad below. Don't jump up.

 

[Donovan]

I put lots of low on it and hit fairly soft. I like sliding it in there. The reason for this is when the back spin runs out, there is a decent enough time where the cue ball is not rolling forward or backward, but sliding along and contact will be precise and give it a full and complete stop. Once you get a feel for this, you will be able to duplicate it often with ease. I use it a lot in 14.1.

 

[Brian in VA]

Zero Tolerance Stop

Fish,

This one took me a while but for me, it involved a pocket speed (that's one length of the table and back) hit, dead center on the cue ball. Once I got this one down, it was all about developing the rhythm for the hit. It really makes you learn to hit the absolute middle of the ball if you shoot it this way rather than the slider another poster was talking about. Not saying this is better, just different. I'm trying to learn how to make my stroke truly repeat and this drill is a big help for that.

Brian in VA

 

[henho]

You can make this shot either sliding the ball with low english or using a slightly below center stun stroke. I prefer sliding the ball so that you can shoot into the side pocket with less speed.

 

[TheConArtist]

what i do for stop shots is i move my bridge hand back a little more and that baby stops on a dime for me. Give it a try move it back just a little more then normal and hit a nyce firm shot using a little low and it should stop. On my cloth its hard to judge the roll then skid cause it is very worn out so i have to hit this shot just a little bit harder then normal.

 

[Colin Colenso]

I'm a slowish slider too for this shot.

Even if some draw remains on the CB, the movement will be minimal.

I'll play the shot firmer and higher if I want to play a slight stun through. The drag slide stun through is much trickier to judge the friction on.

 

[Cane]

I do many drills in my practice routines, but by far, my favorite is a Stop, Draw, Follow drill, where I stop, draw and follow the cue ball on straight in shots at different distances. The original drill, I got from Pool School, but I've changed it a little. I now do it at different speeds throughout the spectrum and do it successfully at all of the different speeds.

Many great players will tell you that the stop shot is the most important shot in pool, and I agree (not counting myself among great players, just happen to agree with that thought! ). A dead, true stop shot makes predicting the tangent line much more accurate on angles or cut shots, so you need to learn to dead stop the ball at ALL CB speeds. Mastering the stop shot makes precise postition play a LOT easier.

Later,
Bob

 

[jwpretd]

.... a pocket speed (that's one length of the table and back) hit ....
Brian in VA

Brian, just a minor thing, but I believe that the term "pocket speed" more commonly means a hit where the object ball is hit just barely hard enough to reach the pocket and drop. One length of the table and back would be a "lag speed" shot.

-- jwp

 

[Crispy Fish]

Thanks for the tips guys. I've been hitting it slightly below center with a medium-soft stroke. I'll try the firmer and softer options the next time I do the drill.