Hei there!
i pm you with answer.
Thank you, it was very informative!
Autist...Wow! I am very impressed at your progress! I hope my instructional dvds helped you to create that nice pendulum stroke...it sure looks good! The 'sound' of the hit, just like the "feel" of the hit, is very subjective to, the individual, and as others have mentioned, can be changed with the tip, ferrule, shaft, or joint. It's still subjective. One person loves the sound/feel of the cue, while to another it's like fingernails on a blackboard (bad). LOL If you don't "like" it, you should try something else. Since you're constrained geographically, it may be hard for you to be able to try out different things, other than tips (and it sounds like you've tried different tips...make sure to try different brands, rather than just different Elkmasters). A LD shaft may make a huge difference to you, but you have to invest a significant amount of money ($200+, in most cases). I might write a letter to one of the cue companies, like OB Cues in TX. Since you are helping others to learn, there is a possibility that they might "sponsor" you with one of their shafts, at no charge. I don't know this for sure, but they are good people, with good products, and they are out to promote the game. OBC (Royce Bunnell) here is someone you might correspond with.
Now, about your other question regarding missing something. Here's my observation, as an instructor. You have vastly improved your process overall. You have a great stroke, and make great use of cue weight and timing, from what I can see. What I notice is that your warmup cycle is not consistent, and that you don't stop long enough at the CB, before you pull the trigger, on a lot of shots. The warmups need to be consistent for a couple of reasons...1) so that you can do your process, set at the CB (for at least 1/2 second), and let your subconscious "decide" if you're 'ready or not'. When you don't stop long enough, sometimes you will rush the stroke. This can cause small errors that result in a miss. This is particularly important on shots where you're stretched out over the table...but important on all shots, especially easy ones (where we are most likely to rush); and 2) when you have a consistent warmup cycle, normally we will do the process once, stop at the CB, decide to go, and take that final stroke. If you stop and you're just not quite ready (for any reason), you can just stay down on the shot, and repeat your warmup cycle again (with another stop), until your brain say "green light/go". If your warmup cycle is not consistent, your subconscious can't ever figure out if you're ready or not...because it's never the same. Other than that, I sure like what I saw in your video. You're making great progress, and I hope you get a chance to compete in some higher level events in your country. Keep up the good work, and good luck with sharing your knowledge with others!
Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com
Hey Mr. Lee! Yes, the instructional DVDs you sent to me for free have been a huge part in my learning proccess, as for some of the youngsters I am trying to teach. One of them, a 13-year old boy, has actually made two or three break and runouts in 8-ball already.
Yep, I am limited in trying out new things. I have tried Kamui black SS, some rock hard tip that came with the cue, pressed Elkmaster, and regular Elkmaster.
I sure would appreciate if you sent that letter, I am not trying to get free stuff for doing nothing, but if it would help my game, I am sure I would be a better "instructor" for the kids with heightened motivation.
Thank you for the instructional notes, you are, as always, extremly observant and helpful! I am going to work hard on being able to perform consistent warmup cycles.
About competing in higher levels - I am. We have this league where all the top players compete, in which I decided to compete. I knew I was going to get beat, HARD, but I have a friend to go with, he is a lot better player than me.
We have 4 tournaments per year - 14.1, 8-ball, 9-ball, 10-ball. So far, I was demolished in 14.1(races to 75, lost all matches like 25-35/75), and also lost all matches in 8-ball, although managed to win some racks. I feel like I am playing at least 25% better now than in the last tournament, which was a few months ago, so I may have a shot at winning at least one match during the coming 9 ja 10 ball tournaments.
Ferrule all day, it sound like a slip on but im guessing its not, Im guessing its just a crap soft plastic thats just not doing its job IMHO.
Butt is fine, shaft is prilly rated medium, tips just fine... Just change the ferrule.
k:
Yeah, it probably is some soft plastic thingie, but I don't think I have the ability to change the ferrule myself.
Good luck!
