Drills? Self-paced improvement tips?

Drew79

Drew79

New member
Hi all, first post in the main area!

As I talked about in the introduce yourself thread, I’ve recently started playing again after a long hiatus. I was lucky enough to get the table installed before the pandemic, but it has killed my ability to play regularly with a couple of buddies who live in the neighborhood. I have been playing about two hours a day, usually 8 ball against myself. I feel I am getting better with ghost ball aiming and banks and kicks, but consistency is still pretty bad, usually from a fundamentals standpoint. I’ve been trying to incorporate stuff from Dr. Dave’s videos, etc., but am still searching for a way to improve my game without actually playing against someone. How often should I be doing drills and for how long? Should I be doing them as opposed to just playing from a break? Any good recommended sources on where to get some training materials (with drills/instructions/scoring)? I had planned on taking some lessons locally from a certified instructor, but the lockdown suspended that indefinitely. Any help/advice would be appreciated!


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Dr Dave

Drew79 said:
Hi all, first post in the main area!

As I talked about in the introduce yourself thread, I’ve recently started playing again after a long hiatus. I was lucky enough to get the table installed before the pandemic, but it has killed my ability to play regularly with a couple of buddies who live in the neighborhood. I have been playing about two hours a day, usually 8 ball against myself. I feel I am getting better with ghost ball aiming and banks and kicks, but consistency is still pretty bad, usually from a fundamentals standpoint. I’ve been trying to incorporate stuff from Dr. Dave’s videos, etc., but am still searching for a way to improve my game without actually playing against someone. How often should I be doing drills and for how long? Should I be doing them as opposed to just playing from a break? Any good recommended sources on where to get some training materials (with drills/instructions/scoring)? I had planned on taking some lessons locally from a certified instructor, but the lockdown suspended that indefinitely. Any help/advice would be appreciated!


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Find the drills and advise from Dr Dave, start there and you can't go wrong.
 
Two things that really helped my game.

99 critical shots in pool. I did two or three of them a day and randomly went back to some of the shots every so often.

Tor Lowery pattern puzzles. Again two or three a day. I really like these because you learn to pocket balls and play position. The different patterns really teach you what you can make the cue ball do.
 
I’m a fan of progressive drills - they make your progress visible, giving you incentive to improve and the means to set realistic incremental goals. Bob Jewett’s SF Billiards Academy has lots of ‘em.
http://www.sfbilliards.com/Misc/progpract.pdf
pj
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I like throwing 3 or 4 balls or whatever your level is on the table, and marking them with doughnuts. Then taking ball in hand and try to run out over and over again. At least 10 tries on the same layout. You will teach yourself the best percentage way to run the balls. This could work for 8 ball or 9 ball (probably any game really).

Whatever drills you do, whether from an instructor or something you make up yourself, I find it motivating to keep a score sheet, and always try to best your record for said drill.

Ps I’m not an instructor, just a pool nut:)
 
Patrick Johnson said:
I’m a fan of progressive drills - they make your progress visible, giving you incentive to improve and the means to set realistic incremental goals. Bob Jewett’s SF Billiards Academy has lots of ‘em. ...
Click to expand...
Thanks for the reference. The URL is missing a colon, though, and should be: http://www.sfbilliards.com/Misc/progpract.pdf The drills in that handout are fairly basic and are useful for developing basic position play and pocketing.

In the long run I think progressive practice will benefit the OP the most if he figures out which shots during actual play he has trouble with -- either pocketing or position -- and figures out how to make his own drills for his own specific weaknesses. Unfortunately it is often hard to analyze your own faults but if you keep track of all the errors that end your runs a pattern of problems may emerge.
 
The right drill really depends on your level of play.

My gauge on your game based on what you describe is that you're still learning the game a bit. If you're still learning how the cue ball works and getting dialed in with tip accuracy then I'd recommend the following:

Joe Tucker's "5 hit drill". Set up a straight shot, shoot it in the following ways: Stop shots, punch follows (cue ball forces forward 2 diamonds, not rolling, but with a firm center ball stroke), punch draws where it comes back to where you start, follow shots where you scratch after it, and draw shots where you come back to the rail you're shooting from. Adjust the shot difficulty to your level. Focus on hitting each one the same swing speed and just adjust your tip position.

The wagon wheel drill. This is really good and can be found on YouTube.

Bert Kinister's 60 minute workout. This will teach you sidespin and give you a tool box full of key shots needed to assemble run outs.

First you have to pocket balls, then you learn the tip accuracy needed for draw, then side spin. Patterns come later.
 
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