Does watching pro matches help you?

hang-the-9

hang-the-9

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Aside from just the pleasure of waching some great pool, what do you try to take away from a nice match, and does that help you in your games that day or shortly after. Have you said to yourself "tomorrow, I'm going to play that safe I just saw" and it worked? Have you felt all pumped up to get to a table after a video, then could not put a 3 ball run together?

I watched an 8-ball match (accu-stats invitational with Rayes and Bustamante) and learned a couple of things that I was able to use the very next tournament. 1. Don't try to run out too hard (although I knew that down inside, I did not practice it till I saw Efren miss on purpose) 2. Try to move balls to the side of the table with clusters you need to break up when playing safes. I have also watched some 9-ball matches, thinking, heck I just need to break in a few balls and I can string 7 as well. Seems even if you make 3 on the break, the pockets don't just allow things to fall in, you need the aim and focus part :( :o .
 
Watching a good match is fun & educational. I've even taken a small spiral notebook, so I can sketch some things I see.

If you are watching a video, you can use the replay feature, to watch the shot over & over. Afterwards, you can practice the shot on your table.

The are hundreds of pattern shots, which look simple but require some practice to install them into your game. These can be learned, by watching videos & then learning the application skills.
 
At the Straight Pool event in NJ this past year

I relearned how important it is to play the half table game as well as getting the rock(cue ball)back to center table. It also showed how important it is to be paitent and precise at the same time.


I was impressed on how Jasmine (sp) was able to break the rack up at such extreme angles and still pocket the break object ball. It was beyond my current understanding watching how Mr. Hopkins pocketed a ball from the center of the rack. So there is still and always will be something to learn and improve my game watching players of that caliper.

I look forward to attending the event this year and would highly recommend it to all who enjoy the game. Keep the following link in your favorites list, the 2008 schedule in not posted yet, but will be soon.
http://www.dragonpromotions.com/
 
Before watching professional pool I didnt realize how to break big, I didn't realize certain ways to get through a rack, and watching always helps my game tremendously.
 
Every time I watch Efren Play, I play like superman.. No joke, and I dont know why, I just do, so you can imagine I watch EFREN ALOT!

SPINDOKTOR
 
Sitting and watching top player play in a poolroom was just about the only way to learn new stuff years ago...unless you wanted to play them. Johnnyt
 
I changed the way I use the crutch recently from watching a video of Irving Crane. I tried it his way and it worked a lot better for me.
 
I'll always remember

Ran into a guy in San Francisco in 1967, name was Paul Silva. He played at The Palace on Market Street, and across the street at Cochran's.

What I'll always remember is the way he moved whitey around the table -- in my memory, the cueball never touched the rail. Everything was shot with precision low english. Runouts seemed automatic. He played cheap, so I had the privilege of getting robbed by him. But what a wizard he was with that low english of his. Never forget it.

As noted previously, my screen name is this guy's old nickname.
 
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Never learned anything from watching pool on ESPN. One of the announcers would say watch how the cueball will get to the position needed for the next ball and then they switch to that stupid pocket cam and show the ball dropping into the pocket.

Watching good players at a live tournment does help or on good tapes such as Accustats.
 
I have at least 50 pro matches on video and have watched virtually every televised pro match over the last 15-20 years.

The ones I own I have watched AT LEAST 10 times each, so that's A LOT of matches.

I study the entire range of mechanics and cueing but most of all, I study PATTERNS and MANY times, the pros use routes that I would never have thought of.

Some of those routes are only possible with the use of inside english which opens up entirely different CB paths and I have spent a LOT of time practicing inside english...sometimes (in practice only) shooting entire racks with inside english ONLY...which often requires attempting RIDICULOUS routes but it is fun and instructive to see what you can pull off that way.

When I watch new matches where the shooter has a shot after the break, I pause TIVO and try to predict the way the route will be played.

Ditto with push outs and safeties.

I would say that of all the ways I have attempted to learn the game, high quality personal instruction is #1 but watching the pros OVER AND OVER again is certainly #2.

Regards,
Jim
 
I have learned alot from watching players and videos,i think about what they are going to do before they do it position wise and im usually right on with what they are going to do,so atleast i know my pattern play is good when im playing. :)
 
hang-the-9 said:
Hey I was looking for some stories here, lazy writer you. :p

grats on 1k posts BTW
Click to expand...

Sorry.......OK, I'll elaborate! I believe that I made huge improvments in my game when I started watching Accustats videos while also reading books and practicing alot.

So........Yes........I firmly believe that watcing them will improve your game if you watch and learn from them.

Thanks fo the congrats on the 1000 useless posts!!!

Russ......
 
About 5 years ago I bought an acu-stats match between A. Fisher and Vivian because I was missing a lot of long straight, to almost straight shots. I tried to copy A. Fisher's snooker stance and stroke. By the second day I was walking around in her stance...I could hardly straighten up. I was making a lot more of those shots but where my face was when I was talking to people made me quit it.

But all kiding a side it does help to watch a pro that has a stance and stroke close to your own. Johnnyt
 
I learned 75% of my one pocket watching Efren, and Ronnie Allen! the rest came from playing. Most of my 9ball came from watching Earl back in the day. I agree that you should try to watch players that have a similar style to your own then things make sense IMO. I just wish there was more video of Scott Frost playing one pocket! :D Can you tell I'm a lefty, and VERY aggressive?:o
 
sure thing!

watching pros on tape usually just helps a bit to satisfy my need for pool...sometimes i happen to see a shot or a pattern, i wouldn't have thought of otherwise, but thats about it.
if i play better after watching a pro match it's mostly because it made me hungry...;-)

watching them in real is a totally different story:
i absorb the concentration and the smoothness of their stroke and i play on a higher level for at least a while - too bad, i don't get to see the likes of souquet more then 2-5 times a year :(
 
9BallPaul said:
Ran into a guy in San Francisco in 1967, name was Paul Silva. He played at The Palace on Market Street, and across the street at Cochran's.

What I'll always remember is the way he moved whitey around the table -- in my memory, the cueball never touched the rail. Everything was shot with precision low english. Runouts seemed automatic. He played cheap, so I had the privilege of getting robbed by him. But what a wizard he was with that low english of his. Never forget it.

As noted previously, my screen name is this guy's old nickname.
Click to expand...
'67 was the era that I was popping into Palace and Cochrans. I recall those days fondly. Do you remember this one-pocket player with buffed-out arms whose cue had a large weight disc connected at the balance point?
I learned a lot on the rail at those two places.
For a one-pocket player, accustats tapes are both crucial and entertaining .
The favorite thing ever for me to watch was the old match between Ronnie and DiLiberto in Ariz.
 
Sometimes I learn new shots. Sometimes I'm reminded of how I want to shoot. (sometimes I'm reminded how I don't want to shoot).
 
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