Darren Appleton explains aiming

It's ghost pockets for me, at least playing 9B. If it's call pocket anything I have to have a pinpoint contact point on the OB. You don't have to trust/see a blind pocket if you have a pinpoint contact aim on the OB. You see it or you don't. I can't explain it in fractions or any other aiming systems. Play more pool. :) The more I play, the luckier I get! ;)

Depending on how froggy I'm feeling I might just pick a pocket zone, usually center, and shoot it without ever looking closely at the OB. How can a guy explain it? It splits the pocket but I'd be hard pressed to explain it in 10,000 words. Pool is easy, you see it or you don't. Aiming systems are for fish.

DA is close. Better than I could explain it.

I was trying to explain this to someone a while back - we program ourselves to hit center of pocket but that’s not a good thing, it’s more about CB/OB control. You hit the CB to control the OB.

When practicing start hitting OB’s to specific spots on the rail, not a specific pocket.
 
Depending on how froggy I'm feeling I might just pick a pocket zone, usually center, and shoot it without ever looking closely at the OB. How can a guy explain it? It splits the pocket but I'd be hard pressed to explain it in 10,000 words. Pool is easy, you see it or you don't. Aiming systems are for fish.
I have that squared away - to me. It's about locking the shot in and pulling the trigger. Without that leap of faith, where you gonna stop aiming?
 
maybe boogieman just lets his subconcious shoot????
Could be. I go with what's tangible and practical. I don't live in pool rooms anymore so that automatic winning vibe - isn't. To me shooting straight is a function of knowing what you're shooting at, doing the arithmetic, and then getting into position and doing it; analogous to maybe a store clerk ringing up a purchase and tendering the money. Sure, if the opportunities are coming in sets (like surf) then most would fall into some kind of rhythm and give it some throttle but even that will eventually fail.
 
Hey Larry...I'm not a math guy when it comes to MAKING balls. It's really about visual linkage from one ball to another using centers and edges.

But here's a video of a guy BUSTING balls, and the arithmetic has something to do with 4 - 6 inches. So, I guess math has its place in pool.

 
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Hey Larry...I'm not a math guy when it comes to MAKING balls. It's really about visual linkage from one ball to another using centers and edges.

But here's a video of a guy BUSTING balls, and the arithmetic has something to do with 4 - 6 inches. So, I guess math has its place in pool.

hope it only took one take to film that..... 😂 😂 😂
 
Hey Larry...I'm not a math guy when it comes to MAKING balls. It's really about visual linkage from one ball to another using centers and edges.

But here's a video of a guy BUSTING balls, and the arithmetic has something to do with 4 - 6 inches. So, I guess math has its place in pool.

And the “targets” are celebrating afterwards for being hit in the groin. WTF?!?
 
Not really. It’s not a trick and it’s applicable to other shots as well.
It is possible to pick out a spot on the rail to send the cue ball towards so that the cue ball happens to hit the right amount of the object ball to send it into a pocket. That spot is easiest to visualize if the shot is straight in.

In The 99 Critical Shots in Pool, Ray Martin suggests shooting spot shots by sending the cue ball to a diamond rather than aiming the normal way:

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I tried Ray's method briefly. I prefer the half-ball method for spot shots.
 
It is possible to pick out a spot on the rail to send the cue ball towards so that the cue ball happens to hit the right amount of the object ball to send it into a pocket. That spot is easiest to visualize if the shot is straight in.

In The 99 Critical Shots in Pool, Ray Martin suggests shooting spot shots by sending the cue ball to a diamond rather than aiming the normal way:

View attachment 652044
I tried Ray's method briefly. I prefer the half-ball method for spot shots.

I'm with you on this. I don't see why anyone would want to aim at a spot on a far rail when a spot on the ob is closer and can usually be narrowed in on much more accurately.
 
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It is possible to pick out a spot on the rail to send the cue ball towards so that the cue ball happens to hit the right amount of the object ball to send it into a pocket. That spot is easiest to visualize if the shot is straight in.

In The 99 Critical Shots in Pool, Ray Martin suggests shooting spot shots by sending the cue ball to a diamond rather than aiming the normal way:

View attachment 652044
I tried Ray's method briefly. I prefer the half-ball method for spot shots.
I prefer the 1/2 ball hit as well but Ray‘s 99 Critical Shots should be every beginners handbook.
 
I'd rather suss out cue/shot coherence separately and shoot at the object ball. Speed control would be less likely to fail.
 
It is possible to pick out a spot on the rail to send the cue ball towards so that the cue ball happens to hit the right amount of the object ball to send it into a pocket. That spot is easiest to visualize if the shot is straight in.

In The 99 Critical Shots in Pool, Ray Martin suggests shooting spot shots by sending the cue ball to a diamond rather than aiming the normal way:

View attachment 652044
I tried Ray's method briefly. I prefer the half-ball method for spot shots.
Let me add this Pearl. If you play and watch golf on television you will notice that shots into the green are often visualised and aimed at a target behind or near the green. Therefore from time to time you aiming at a diamond or spot on the rail is not unique to billiards.
 
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