Before I get started, let me set the mood.
I'm not interested in arguing with anyone about anything.
This thread is about my personal experience with CTE/Pro One and the lesson that I got from Stan Shuffett.
The reason for this thread is to shed some light on what I have gone through and experienced while using CTE/Pro One.
My posts may vacillate from one end of the spectrum to the other but my intent is to give you a very up close and personal perspective about pool in general.
For those of you that don't know me, I'm a slightly above average pool player who enjoys learning new things about pool.
While I don't plan to discuss how CTE/Pro One works, I am going to tell you some things that I have perceived about myself, not just since I started using CTE/Pro One but before that and maybe, just maybe you will see a little bit of you in me. Hopefully, it will enable you to have more fun in your journey, knowing what I see and what I experience.
I've played pool seriously for the last 15 years, trying to improve my game rather than my wallet. I used to gamble more than I do now but it was more hustling than it was gambling. It is and was what it was. Today, I am more likely to be seen practicing on a table by myself than to be in action. It's actually more important to me to practice than to make some extra dough at the expense of someone else who miscalculated my speed.
I've read a lot of books, seen a lot of instructional videos, watched a lot of matches and even done some pool commentary which really helps to sharpen your game, if you take it seriously.
I believe that all of the instructional videos have some benefit and you never know where the next nugget of information is going to come from.
I've had a problem for years with making balls consistently. I've missed a lot of important shots in my life and for a variety of different reasons, far too many to list here. However in recent years, my stroke has improved and I do practically everything better. My pre-shot routine is relatively solid. My game is improved by the teaching that I do with students at my local pool room. It seems to help some of the students and I enjoy helping others to improve their game.
CTE/Pro One is an aiming system that is different than a lot of aiming systems and has been surrounded with controversy for years. CTE was started by Hal Houle, who isn't that far off from being almost a hundred years old. He's more likely close to 90 by now but I didn't ask him about his age when I spoke to him recently.
Hal Houle has taught a lot of people CTE and one of the people who took it a lot more seriously than the rest of the people is a guy named Stan Shuffett. He is a rather famous pool instructor who teaches pool to professional pool players and amateurs alike. Stan's previous occupation was that of a teacher and he is a natural at teaching pool. Stan's skill level at pool is just under a professional's speed but he is subject to beat anyone in tournament play. Most of his time though is spent teaching his foundation course and now CTE/Pro One, his own refined and defined version of CTE.
Hal had shared some of his secrets of CTE with me in past years and I never really "got it" but enjoyed his company and talked to him for the last several years and occasionally listened to his stories about legends like Ralph Greenleaf and such. Hal's been around a LONG, long time and has lots of great stories. What Hal taught me about CTE was just enough to get me into trouble, so for the most part, I avoided discussing CTE with anyone. I always thought CTE was a GREAT ALIGNMENT SYSTEM because it forces you to get into a familiar and consistent position right off the bat.
I had never met one CTE player who could beat me at any game consistently and so I never really wanted to learn much more about CTE and I stayed away from the discussions for years. It didn't make any differnence to me if someone liked it or didn't like it. It wasn't that big a deal to me.
Stan offered to teach me CTE/Pro One, his own refined version of CTE and I jumped at the chance to learn about it. I had met Stan at tournaments in past years and enjoyed his company and his game. I also enjoyed hearing him talk modestly about his famous son, Landon Shuffett, a fantastic pool player in his own right and at only 16 years of age, he continues to impress players everywhere.
I'm going to list a few things that are misconstrued or things that are false or things that have been talked about but that need clarification. All of these things are just my personal perspective and not that of Stan Shuffett or anyone else; just myself.
First off I don't believe CTE/Pro One will make anyone a great player. It takes a lot more than an aiming system to make you a great player.
CTE/Pro One may or may not be a better aiming system. What makes a better aiming system varies from person to person, imo.
Many great players do not use CTE/Pro One.
Some great players do use CTE/Pro One.
I'm not sure who would benefit from using CTE/Pro One.
I'm not sure if a person will "get it" when they view the video or if they will need the lesson from Stan. Stan's version of CTE/Pro One is unique and different than what I have seen bandied about on websites and forums.
When I first learned CTE from Hal, it seemed that I was doing a lot of adjusting and sometimes, it just plain didn't work on certain shots. I didn't know why it didn't work on some and it worked so great on others but it is what it is. Anyway, after I took the lesson from Stan, I viewed his rough draft video of CTE/Pro One and I have to confess, I was so tired, I could barely keep my eyes open. It seemed like a good video and it seemed like the same material that was covered in the lesson from Stan but like I said, I was tired and it was Stan's first rough draft of the video and he wanted me to see it. I believe Stan plans on having the video completed in December and have to guess that he is hoping to have it ready for Christmas shoppers.
The things that I experience and the things that I perceive may not be the same things that others may see and experience with CTE/Pro One. This is just my perspective.
I've always had a little trouble, keeping my cue tip at the center of the cue ball and really never learned just how important it is to be able to hit the center of the cueball. I have missed a lot of shots just using a center ball hit on the cue ball.
Since using CTE/Pro One, I am continuously pivoting to center when I do the manual version of CTE/ProOne. ProOne is more of an automatic version of STAN's CTE which is different than what I have seen described by others who claim that they know what CTE is.
I've been at this for a week or two now and it seems to get easier to use it each time I go to the table. It wasn't always this easy as in class, I stumbled repeatedly but in all fairness, i stumbled because I wasn't aiming precisely while I used CTE/Pro One. There is a learning curve to CTE/Pro One and I think I am finally "getting it".
Some of the benefits of using CTE/Pro One are that I seem to have BETTER FOCUS. Also, I seem to hit the cue ball MORE ACCURATELY. I also seem to have MORE CONFIDENCE. I also seem to be playing better. I am pocketing balls better and I am playing better shape. Those who watch my game closely can attest to what I am saying. I probably still can't beat the GINGERBREAD MAN but I would be willing to take a shot at him. :wink: I also seem to be able to find a MORE ACCURATE CENTER OF THE CUE BALL.
I don't think CTE/Pro One is something that is relative to how old you are. I'm no spring chicken but I do play a lot of pool so it hasn't been hard for me to practice using CTE/Pro One. The same thing may be different with other people. I just don't know.
Also, just for the record, Stan has never asked me to promote his video or his CTE/Pro One lesson. I have no financial stake in Stan's video.
I believe that some people have made assumptions about how STan's CTE/Pro One works and they have made some rather embarassing and incorrect statements about CTE/Pro One. That will be apparent when the video comes out.
Truthfully, I don't care if the math can be proven that CTE/Pro One is the most accurate aiming system in the world OR NOT.
I am now POSITIVE that my game is improving and it is a direct result of learning CTE/Pro One, but some of the improvements can be traced to an increased amount of time on the table but that isn't the only reason.
I'm getting tired of typing. It's late and I need to sleep so I'll fill in some additional perspectives tomrrow or later on today I should say.
G'nite.
I'm not interested in arguing with anyone about anything.
This thread is about my personal experience with CTE/Pro One and the lesson that I got from Stan Shuffett.
The reason for this thread is to shed some light on what I have gone through and experienced while using CTE/Pro One.
My posts may vacillate from one end of the spectrum to the other but my intent is to give you a very up close and personal perspective about pool in general.
For those of you that don't know me, I'm a slightly above average pool player who enjoys learning new things about pool.
While I don't plan to discuss how CTE/Pro One works, I am going to tell you some things that I have perceived about myself, not just since I started using CTE/Pro One but before that and maybe, just maybe you will see a little bit of you in me. Hopefully, it will enable you to have more fun in your journey, knowing what I see and what I experience.
I've played pool seriously for the last 15 years, trying to improve my game rather than my wallet. I used to gamble more than I do now but it was more hustling than it was gambling. It is and was what it was. Today, I am more likely to be seen practicing on a table by myself than to be in action. It's actually more important to me to practice than to make some extra dough at the expense of someone else who miscalculated my speed.
I've read a lot of books, seen a lot of instructional videos, watched a lot of matches and even done some pool commentary which really helps to sharpen your game, if you take it seriously.
I believe that all of the instructional videos have some benefit and you never know where the next nugget of information is going to come from.
I've had a problem for years with making balls consistently. I've missed a lot of important shots in my life and for a variety of different reasons, far too many to list here. However in recent years, my stroke has improved and I do practically everything better. My pre-shot routine is relatively solid. My game is improved by the teaching that I do with students at my local pool room. It seems to help some of the students and I enjoy helping others to improve their game.
CTE/Pro One is an aiming system that is different than a lot of aiming systems and has been surrounded with controversy for years. CTE was started by Hal Houle, who isn't that far off from being almost a hundred years old. He's more likely close to 90 by now but I didn't ask him about his age when I spoke to him recently.
Hal Houle has taught a lot of people CTE and one of the people who took it a lot more seriously than the rest of the people is a guy named Stan Shuffett. He is a rather famous pool instructor who teaches pool to professional pool players and amateurs alike. Stan's previous occupation was that of a teacher and he is a natural at teaching pool. Stan's skill level at pool is just under a professional's speed but he is subject to beat anyone in tournament play. Most of his time though is spent teaching his foundation course and now CTE/Pro One, his own refined and defined version of CTE.
Hal had shared some of his secrets of CTE with me in past years and I never really "got it" but enjoyed his company and talked to him for the last several years and occasionally listened to his stories about legends like Ralph Greenleaf and such. Hal's been around a LONG, long time and has lots of great stories. What Hal taught me about CTE was just enough to get me into trouble, so for the most part, I avoided discussing CTE with anyone. I always thought CTE was a GREAT ALIGNMENT SYSTEM because it forces you to get into a familiar and consistent position right off the bat.
I had never met one CTE player who could beat me at any game consistently and so I never really wanted to learn much more about CTE and I stayed away from the discussions for years. It didn't make any differnence to me if someone liked it or didn't like it. It wasn't that big a deal to me.
Stan offered to teach me CTE/Pro One, his own refined version of CTE and I jumped at the chance to learn about it. I had met Stan at tournaments in past years and enjoyed his company and his game. I also enjoyed hearing him talk modestly about his famous son, Landon Shuffett, a fantastic pool player in his own right and at only 16 years of age, he continues to impress players everywhere.
I'm going to list a few things that are misconstrued or things that are false or things that have been talked about but that need clarification. All of these things are just my personal perspective and not that of Stan Shuffett or anyone else; just myself.
First off I don't believe CTE/Pro One will make anyone a great player. It takes a lot more than an aiming system to make you a great player.
CTE/Pro One may or may not be a better aiming system. What makes a better aiming system varies from person to person, imo.
Many great players do not use CTE/Pro One.
Some great players do use CTE/Pro One.
I'm not sure who would benefit from using CTE/Pro One.
I'm not sure if a person will "get it" when they view the video or if they will need the lesson from Stan. Stan's version of CTE/Pro One is unique and different than what I have seen bandied about on websites and forums.
When I first learned CTE from Hal, it seemed that I was doing a lot of adjusting and sometimes, it just plain didn't work on certain shots. I didn't know why it didn't work on some and it worked so great on others but it is what it is. Anyway, after I took the lesson from Stan, I viewed his rough draft video of CTE/Pro One and I have to confess, I was so tired, I could barely keep my eyes open. It seemed like a good video and it seemed like the same material that was covered in the lesson from Stan but like I said, I was tired and it was Stan's first rough draft of the video and he wanted me to see it. I believe Stan plans on having the video completed in December and have to guess that he is hoping to have it ready for Christmas shoppers.
The things that I experience and the things that I perceive may not be the same things that others may see and experience with CTE/Pro One. This is just my perspective.
I've always had a little trouble, keeping my cue tip at the center of the cue ball and really never learned just how important it is to be able to hit the center of the cueball. I have missed a lot of shots just using a center ball hit on the cue ball.
Since using CTE/Pro One, I am continuously pivoting to center when I do the manual version of CTE/ProOne. ProOne is more of an automatic version of STAN's CTE which is different than what I have seen described by others who claim that they know what CTE is.
I've been at this for a week or two now and it seems to get easier to use it each time I go to the table. It wasn't always this easy as in class, I stumbled repeatedly but in all fairness, i stumbled because I wasn't aiming precisely while I used CTE/Pro One. There is a learning curve to CTE/Pro One and I think I am finally "getting it".
Some of the benefits of using CTE/Pro One are that I seem to have BETTER FOCUS. Also, I seem to hit the cue ball MORE ACCURATELY. I also seem to have MORE CONFIDENCE. I also seem to be playing better. I am pocketing balls better and I am playing better shape. Those who watch my game closely can attest to what I am saying. I probably still can't beat the GINGERBREAD MAN but I would be willing to take a shot at him. :wink: I also seem to be able to find a MORE ACCURATE CENTER OF THE CUE BALL.
I don't think CTE/Pro One is something that is relative to how old you are. I'm no spring chicken but I do play a lot of pool so it hasn't been hard for me to practice using CTE/Pro One. The same thing may be different with other people. I just don't know.
Also, just for the record, Stan has never asked me to promote his video or his CTE/Pro One lesson. I have no financial stake in Stan's video.
I believe that some people have made assumptions about how STan's CTE/Pro One works and they have made some rather embarassing and incorrect statements about CTE/Pro One. That will be apparent when the video comes out.
Truthfully, I don't care if the math can be proven that CTE/Pro One is the most accurate aiming system in the world OR NOT.
I am now POSITIVE that my game is improving and it is a direct result of learning CTE/Pro One, but some of the improvements can be traced to an increased amount of time on the table but that isn't the only reason.
I'm getting tired of typing. It's late and I need to sleep so I'll fill in some additional perspectives tomrrow or later on today I should say.
G'nite.
