I believe he is saying it is possible to practice 4-6 hours a day on average even with a 75 hour a week job ... in response to Mr. Lee. I don't think he was answering his own original question regarding becoming an A player.
from D- to A
- Thread starter Papa Lou
- Start date
I believe he is saying it is possible to practice 4-6 hours a day on average even with a 75 hour a week job ... in response to Mr. Lee. I don't think he was answering his own original question regarding becoming an A player.
4-6 hours of practice every day is enough to improve your game as far as you are willing and your talent allows. But probably not enough to go from beginner to A player in less than a few years. The only people who make it there that quickly are the ones who essentially live breath and eat pool for an extended period of time.
I agree with Masayoshi. It might be possible to feel like you're an A player according to some particular ranking system, but that doesn't mean you're a true A player. Playing "like" an A player in practice can be a lot different than being able to perform "as" an A player in all situations. I could be wrong, but I don't think there has ever been a player in the history of the game that has become a true A player in less than a year. Somehow, I just have my doubts that you will be the first.
If you're really serious about becoming an A player, do yourself a big favor and get lessons ASAP from someone like Scott Lee or Randy Goettlicher, and then be ready to practice what they teach you for several years, and then get out and play everyone in every game for several more.
Roger
If you're really serious about becoming an A player, do yourself a big favor and get lessons ASAP from someone like Scott Lee or Randy Goettlicher, and then be ready to practice what they teach you for several years, and then get out and play everyone in every game for several more.
Roger
I don't know. It's different for everybody.
There are certainly more difficult things to accomplish.
I simply wouldn't discourage the attempt.
Obviously he would lack experience. There is simply no replacement for that.
But the way I see it, if he pulls off a single A player performance after his goal date, then he made his goal.
I would like to encourage him to try that, I have no reason not to.
.
.
The fastest I know of would have been George SanSouci (Ginky). Ginky was a true A player after his second year of playing. Keep in mind, Ginky also played 10-14 hours a day, every day, for the first 2-3 years. He also had a top player that took him under his wing.
I felt Ginky was very talented, but according to George, he used to deny that. He felt that he was an ordinary guy that worked extremely hard.
I'm curious to see Papa's video.
Eric
I think it is possible, but you would need a very high aptitude, and more than 4-6 hours daily.
If you cannot get past one rack in str8 pool, then you are definitely not B level.
I don't understand the need to set a time period for improvement.
How about striving to learn/master 1 new thing each day.
If you cannot get past one rack in str8 pool, then you are definitely not B level.
I don't understand the need to set a time period for improvement.
How about striving to learn/master 1 new thing each day.
This is, in essence, what I was saying Matt. The OP is, imo, totally unrealistic in his goals, and it was the statements that he made that made me think he is another weirdo poster like PP or Poolkiller. I think a goal of trying to learn something new every day is admirable, and possible. Mastering it in one day is not. The other basic premise of "wanting to get better", that has been posted by several posters here already, is that you can be champion of the world in your basement, but until you measure yourself in serious competition, all the practice in the world won't matter to a huge degree. I would be the absolute last person to put someone down for wanting to get better at pool. I would also be one of the first to try and suggest realistic ways to approach and achieve those goals.
Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com
Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com
At the end of the dayit comes to talent level just like any sport every one has a ceiling where they can no longer get better
If practice and playing were the only deciding factors , lots of guys would playlike Eferen and shane , some guys could play 24hrs and day and never get past B
1
If practice and playing were the only deciding factors , lots of guys would playlike Eferen and shane , some guys could play 24hrs and day and never get past B
1
Another one that comes to mind is Mike Coltrain. He became very good, very fast, and was under Johnny Archers wing for a period of time.
I don't know if he matched Ginky's rise though, it might have taken Mike a little longer than 2 years.
I don't know if he matched Ginky's rise though, it might have taken Mike a little longer than 2 years.
Ginky was also humble. All you have to do is watch the rhythm he had at the table to recognize that he was very talented.
The higher you go the more time it will take for you to get to the next level. Most pool players eventually settle to a B~B+ level after years of playing. It's not easy to get to a true A. When I was able to play consistently 20~30 hours a week, I was getting close to an A. But then I finished school and had to start a career. Now I'm happy to play at a decent B+ on a good day. But this is after a few a few years layoff and averaging less than 4 hours a week for the last year or so.
It's going to be a full year since I began playing pretty soon. A full 365 days. I've been attacking it pretty hard. In a couple of days I'll post a video of me doing the 10ball ghost rating drill I described above. I hope I fall on an A- since my goal was A category. I won't be too pissed off if it's B+ though I guess. I hope I can impress the nonbelievers.
If you've made that much progress so far it's time for a trial by fire to see if you are as good as you think. Saunter down to your local bar on a Friday or Saturday night that has a table and offer anyone in the room the 7 out. Winner Breaks. If you rake in the cash do it again the next week and see how you come out playing for the cash. My guess is when money is on the line folks just might play a bit better than you think and perhaps better than you do. If you're giving up that spot and winning then yes you might have a chance. To Find out do the same thing in a serious pool room in 6 months and see where you stand.
I'm not sure how relevant it really is whether or not you've truly achieved the improvement you believe you have. I would bet it is safe to say you have improved a lot. I think what's way more important is that you love the game and are willing to willing/eager to put in the table time to improve.
With that said, I'll repeat what I believe are the two most important suggestions here. Get rid of the "I did it my way" attitude and get some qualified, quality instruction. You have aggressive timelines so use every possible tool available. Why learn the hard way when you can potentially make some big leaps by learning the right way. I started taking lessons a year ago from Scott Lee and can't say enough about how significant that has been to my improvement.
Second, find some quality competition to play on a regular basis. As regular as possible. You'll learn from it, it should be more fun and it will provide you a true metric of where your skill level really is.
Good luck!
With that said, I'll repeat what I believe are the two most important suggestions here. Get rid of the "I did it my way" attitude and get some qualified, quality instruction. You have aggressive timelines so use every possible tool available. Why learn the hard way when you can potentially make some big leaps by learning the right way. I started taking lessons a year ago from Scott Lee and can't say enough about how significant that has been to my improvement.
Second, find some quality competition to play on a regular basis. As regular as possible. You'll learn from it, it should be more fun and it will provide you a true metric of where your skill level really is.
Good luck!
I second this. I started playing seriously in 2009, receiving instruction from a japanese A player. Even though I've practiced everything he's shown me and have built solid fundamentals and a somewhat intimidating stroke(based on others' observations), my practice game and my competition game are two COMPLETELY different things. My speed goes down about 3 balls minimum when I play somebody else, and I realized that I just have to get out there and play people. Instead of throwing money to the vultures lingering in the pool hall, I've been going to bars and basically playing anyone who walks up to the table, and it's helped my mental game TREMENDOUSLY. I'm actually pretty quiet and antisocial in person, and it causes a lot of anxiety when I play someone else. Playing random people also helps, and I hate sitting around waiting for my next turn. PLUS the feeling of losing to a lesser player just pushes me to focus harder next time. If you don't want to gamble, find a weekly tournament, and see how you stack up. If you run into the same anxiety problems I did, try the bar thing.
Last edited:
thanks guys, those are great recommendations. I wanted to get to a practice level of "A" on the ghost drill before seeking professional help..I'm almost there. I talked to Max Eberle about getting lessons (I'm moving to Vegas). I know there's tons of great pro players who live there now so it should be meteoric improvement assuming I stick to it. My competition vs pratice games are totally different as well and I know that's from lack of exposure. In time as I play strangers my competition game will likely come up to be somewhere closer to my practice game (maybe a ball below will be the final resting place). Thanks for the support..Will post video Sunday or Monday 
Good luck with it. Let's just say that even if you don't yet reach someone else's arbitrary definition of an "A" player, you have an A player's mentality and practice habits. You're pretty much guaranteed to get there.
A lot of it being top tier is simply not missing, and I believe a lot of not-missing boils down to hitting a million balls. So that may be the main thing that will slow you down. I believe the concepts in pool aren't rocket science and can be learned in a year. And you can get a pretty repeatable stroke in that period. But you may need more time to see (and shoot) every conceivable cut shot, carom, combo, kick and bank many dozens of times.
A lot of it being top tier is simply not missing, and I believe a lot of not-missing boils down to hitting a million balls. So that may be the main thing that will slow you down. I believe the concepts in pool aren't rocket science and can be learned in a year. And you can get a pretty repeatable stroke in that period. But you may need more time to see (and shoot) every conceivable cut shot, carom, combo, kick and bank many dozens of times.
D to B in six months is no joke
I can play like a D player today then tomorrow play like a strong C low B player in 24 hours.
I'm like the OP self thought but with very valuable resources.
Take what you got keep running with it and see how far you got after your expected time frame is past.
I can play like a D player today then tomorrow play like a strong C low B player in 24 hours.
I'm like the OP self thought but with very valuable resources.
Take what you got keep running with it and see how far you got after your expected time frame is past.