"Aim Small" on the Cue Ball

i am always rolling PJ :grin: Now do you have any personal technique for this small aiming? Do you do any personalized visuals of the cue ball?
 
Pay Up Sucker said:
...do you have any personal technique for this small aiming? Do you do any personalized visuals of the cue ball?
Click to expand...
Not visuals of the cue ball exactly, but I try to notice where my tip is pointing on the ghost cue ball (out where the OB is) for alignment and aiming purposes. Nothing fancy, just try to line my tip up with the ghost ball center as I get into shooting position (before adding any sidespin) and then try to stroke my tip at a specific spot on (or near) the ghost ball when I aim and shoot. I think this is more helpful for aligning my stance and stroke than for aiming, but it helps with all those things.

pj
chgo
 
interestingly when I play three cushion i aim really small on the cue ball to the point that small imperfections on the tip of my cue bother me and I have rotate my cue. Also small variations of English make a big difference on the outcome of the shot.

Playing pool on the other hand i focus more on the object ball but I know a few players that look at the cue ball last.

eventually i'll find some middle ground for both games.
 
Patrick Johnson said:
One of the most important (and most overlooked) ways to improve your game is also one of the simplest to understand and do: hit the cue ball more precisely.

Most of us tend to hit the cue ball with "high right" or "a little left" or "lots of draw" without paying really close attention to exactly where our tip is making contact on the ball. After all, "a little left" isn't really that much different from a little more or less, is it? Yes, it is - in spades.

The obvious reason is that small changes in where we contact the CB make significant differences in where the CB goes after making the shot. There are also less obvious, but maybe ? Definitely ! even more significant, impacts on the effectiveness of our stroke and even on shotmaking itself.
Ever notice that when you're "in stroke" it seems almost effortless to make the CB do things that you usually struggle more with? And that you can see and hit cut angles much more accurately, also with less effort? Hitting the CB precisely where we intend to is a big part of why this is so (I think the biggest part).

It isn't so much that things are really easier; it's that things are more often turning out just like we intended them to - because we're giving the cue ball precise "instructions", not just general "suggestions". This closer relationship between what we want and what we do also increases the speed at which we learn - in the same way that we learn to aim more quickly as our stroke gets more reliable: things happen the way we intend them to, so we can more quickly and accurately identify the source of problems and ways to improve.

The quickest way I've found to elevate my shotmaking and cue ball control, both immediately and permanently, is to focus more intently on exactly where I'm hitting the cue ball.

pj
chgo

P.S. This also has many beneficial "side effects", like being more aware of the straightness of your stroke (because you're looking at it), seeing more clearly the precise alignment of tip/CB contact point and CB/OB contact point (especially good for aiming with spin), etc., etc.
Click to expand...

This is a really nice post PJ. We did not agree on another issue, but I totally agree with you here. Those "beneficial side effects" are icing on the cake.
 
Pay Up Sucker said:
you know when this aiming small really comes in handy is when playing safeties.
Click to expand...

Absolutely, because you need the precise control of the cue ball and you only get that by hitting it exactly as required. Some players get lazy, taking the cue ball "somewhere up the table" instead of parking it on the nameplate.
 
Bob Jewett said:
I think this is true. A very good drill for precise low/high positioning is the Wagonwheel Drill which was promoted by Ted Brown. With a short, easy shot almost straight into the side pocket, try to put the cue ball on each diamond you can get to without touching a cushion. Here is Joe Waldron's description of it: http://billiards.colostate.edu/PBReview/CBControl1.htm
Click to expand...

@Bob

The small book Ted released (Wagonwheel System) is still a very great book! and the drill is very challenging-- people who really play this drill seriously will benefit from it dramatically and increase their skills. Just by varying how to hit the cueball on the vertical axis opens the eyes for many players.


@Patrick Johnson: Great thread and great statement!

lg
Ingo
 
Hector3cushion said:
...i focus more on the object ball but I know a few players that look at the cue ball last.

...

eventually i'll find some middle ground
Click to expand...
I think you can increase the precision of your tip-CB contact point no matter where you look last.

I look at the OB last but try to keep as much of the shot as possible - stick > tip-CB contact point > CB-OB contact point > pocket - in my field of vision.

pj
chgo
 
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Patrick Johnson said:
One of the most important (and most overlooked) ways to improve your game is also one of the simplest to understand and do: hit the cue ball more precisely.

Most of us tend to hit the cue ball with "high right" or "a little left" or "lots of draw" without paying really close attention to exactly where our tip is making contact on the ball. After all, "a little left" isn't really that much different from a little more or less, is it? Yes, it is - in spades.

The obvious reason is that small changes in where we contact the CB make significant differences in where the CB goes after making the shot. There are also less obvious, but maybe even more significant, impacts on the effectiveness of our stroke and even on shotmaking itself.

Ever notice that when you're "in stroke" it seems almost effortless to make the CB do things that you usually struggle more with? And that you can see and hit cut angles much more accurately, also with less effort? Hitting the CB precisely where we intend to is a big part of why this is so (I think the biggest part).

It isn't so much that things are really easier; it's that things are more often turning out just like we intended them to - because we're giving the cue ball precise "instructions", not just general "suggestions". This closer relationship between what we want and what we do also increases the speed at which we learn - in the same way that we learn to aim more quickly as our stroke gets more reliable: things happen the way we intend them to, so we can more quickly and accurately identify the source of problems and ways to improve.

The quickest way I've found to elevate my shotmaking and cue ball control, both immediately and permanently, is to focus more intently on exactly where I'm hitting the cue ball.

pj
chgo

P.S. This also has many beneficial "side effects", like being more aware of the straightness of your stroke (because you're looking at it), seeing more clearly the precise alignment of tip/CB contact point and CB/OB contact point (especially good for aiming with spin), etc., etc.
Click to expand...

What do you think the pros are doing in that last 1-2 second pause before they pull the final trigger? Like John Schmidt says: "they all do it". This is a related subject that should not be ignored when mentioning aiming to a point on the object ball in a non-sloppy manner.
 
whitewolf said:
What do you think the pros are doing in that last 1-2 second pause before they pull the final trigger? Like John Schmidt says: "they all do it". This is a related subject that should not be ignored when mentioning aiming to a point on the object ball in a non-sloppy manner.
Click to expand...
I have no way of knowing what the pros do, but I pause at the CB on every stroke, not just the last one, for more than one reason: to confirm aim and speed, to re-visualize the shot, to let my brain "develop" the picture, to separate the strokes into stand-alone actions... maybe more I'm not aware of.

pj
chgo
 
Patrick Johnson said:
I have no way of knowing what the pros do, but I pause at the CB on every stroke, not just the last one, for more than one reason: to confirm aim and speed, to re-visualize the shot, to let my brain "develop" the picture, to separate the strokes into stand-alone actions... maybe more I'm not aware of.

pj
chgo
Click to expand...

First...great thread PJ. A very underrated topic. Re: stopping at the CB on every practice stroke...not just the last one...of course, whatever works for each player is exactly what they should do.

One issue on stopping at the CB every time is that one of the things that is being "grooved" (if you will) is DEcellaration which, of course, you have to do to accomplish stopping at the CB.

Of course, the cue stops near the CB on every practice stroke (or it does for all practical purposes) in order not to hit it but for some, the emphasis on a dead stop every time might unconsciously "groove the flaw" of cue decelleration on the actual shot stroke.

Does stopping on just the LAST practice stroke instead of on all of them cause less grooving of decelleration than doing so every time? I have no clue...and for you, I'm sure it doesn't.

Just throwing it out in hopes of getting MUCH more discussion of this critical topic which I thank you again for starting.

(-:
 
Patrick Johnson said:
One of the most important (and most overlooked) ways to improve your game is also one of the simplest to understand and do: hit the cue ball more precisely.

Most of us tend to hit the cue ball with "high right" or "a little left" or "lots of draw" without paying really close attention to exactly where our tip is making contact on the ball. After all, "a little left" isn't really that much different from a little more or less, is it? Yes, it is - in spades.

The obvious reason is that small changes in where we contact the CB make significant differences in where the CB goes after making the shot. There are also less obvious, but maybe even more significant, impacts on the effectiveness of our stroke and even on shotmaking itself.

Ever notice that when you're "in stroke" it seems almost effortless to make the CB do things that you usually struggle more with? And that you can see and hit cut angles much more accurately, also with less effort? Hitting the CB precisely where we intend to is a big part of why this is so (I think the biggest part).

It isn't so much that things are really easier; it's that things are more often turning out just like we intended them to - because we're giving the cue ball precise "instructions", not just general "suggestions". This closer relationship between what we want and what we do also increases the speed at which we learn - in the same way that we learn to aim more quickly as our stroke gets more reliable: things happen the way we intend them to, so we can more quickly and accurately identify the source of problems and ways to improve.

The quickest way I've found to elevate my shotmaking and cue ball control, both immediately and permanently, is to focus more intently on exactly where I'm hitting the cue ball.

pj
chgo

P.S. This also has many beneficial "side effects", like being more aware of the straightness of your stroke (because you're looking at it), seeing more clearly the precise alignment of tip/CB contact point and CB/OB contact point (especially good for aiming with spin), etc., etc.
Click to expand...

I agree. I think many shots are missed by mis-hitting the cueball.
 
i teach to vary the focus time on OB and CB depending on the shot. mostly, players need stimulation to look longer at CB...for example on spinshots, where a lot of feel is needed to judge how much the CB breaks out
or safeties, or kicks, or Cb on rail and OB far away
peripheral vision plays a big role here and the trust therein.
...in golf they speak about putting with soft eyes: not a fixed gaze on one target but a more peripheral gaze
...Vickers' research about the quiet eye is also interesting....imy conclusion is that the question is not to CB or to OB, but to focus on a truly tranquille and focused gaze followed by a smooth transfer to the other ball (and point thereon) or subsequent final stroke
 
Bob Jewett said:
I think this is true. A very good drill for precise low/high positioning is the Wagonwheel Drill which was promoted by Ted Brown. With a short, easy shot almost straight into the side pocket, try to put the cue ball on each diamond you can get to without touching a cushion. Here is Joe Waldron's description of it: http://billiards.colostate.edu/PBReview/CBControl1.htm
Click to expand...

... and here's a video demonstration of one variation:

Great thread.

Regards,
Dave
 
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