Hot and Cold and Hot and Cold
- Thread starter Plagueis
- Start date
im not an instructor
but if you re read fran's posts (plural) you will find several of them has usefull advice/assistance
I found this Fran, it pretty much says it all in a nut shell. Thanks for the article. 
Hope this helps the OP to be the best.
http://www.pooldawg.com/article/pooldawg-library/tips-for-better-all-around-pool
John
Hope this helps the OP to be the best.
http://www.pooldawg.com/article/pooldawg-library/tips-for-better-all-around-pool
John
Ya know Fran, your post in bold really strikes home with me
This game is really about who you are. Its a reflection of your personality and what you are made of.
If you strive for perfection then this game will be never ending, that's what it is for me.
I know learning is never going to end that's what makes it so interesting for me. Ever since I shot my first ball back in 1963 nothing has changed for me. I still stand in wonder.
The Op seems to think that there is some kinda magic practice routine that is going to help him play really well all the time.............it ain't gonna happen my friend. The only thing that is gonna help you is many hours of practice. Identify your weaknesses and practice some more..........in 4 or 5 years you should improve. Good luck.
Thanks for your post.
John
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Thanks John and bbb,
I do remember that article, John. Haven't seen it in awhile. Thanks for the link.
I understand that some players like advice laid out for them in a nice orderly fashion, tied up in a neat bow. They follow the directions from A to Z and, voila! They've improved!
I guess that approach helps somewhat, but that's not the meat and potatoes of how you get better at this game. You have to dig in and work hard to try to figure things out for yourself --- One painful shot at a time.
That's how you get to know yourself at the table --- one painful shot at a time. My goal as an instructor is to help players learn how to think for themselves and to feel comfortable in that process. And yes, there will be times when you feel like you can't do it, or times when you feel like quitting. You just have to pull yourself back up off the floor and try again.
I do remember that article, John. Haven't seen it in awhile. Thanks for the link.
I understand that some players like advice laid out for them in a nice orderly fashion, tied up in a neat bow. They follow the directions from A to Z and, voila! They've improved!
I guess that approach helps somewhat, but that's not the meat and potatoes of how you get better at this game. You have to dig in and work hard to try to figure things out for yourself --- One painful shot at a time.
That's how you get to know yourself at the table --- one painful shot at a time. My goal as an instructor is to help players learn how to think for themselves and to feel comfortable in that process. And yes, there will be times when you feel like you can't do it, or times when you feel like quitting. You just have to pull yourself back up off the floor and try again.
---- To add to my post:
Take the best players in the world for example: They know exactly who they are at the table. They know themselves so well that when they make a mistake, they immediately know what happened because they've learned what their tendencies are. This enables them to correct their errors much quicker than average players because they put in the work to understand who they are at the table.
Every one of those players went through the process I described of figuring out who you are at the table. You can't escape it if you want to become a better player. So why not do what the pros did on their way up and embrace the process and enjoy the ride?
Your first step in the right direction is to quit looking for the brass ring. You're wasting valuable time. Get to work.
(The "You" I'm referring to is anyone reading this who is looking to improve but doesn't know how.)
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This may help. Just an idea.
In my area we have Mark Wilson.
I asked Mark what he would charge for instruction, he gave me the price and it was also high.
Then I asked him if he gave evaluations and he said "yes just come by Lindenwood University any Tues, Wed or Thurs I would be happy to". This evaluation was to be free of charge.
You might want to ask the instructor in your area if he provides this type of service. He may have you shoot some balls around for a while so that he can make a list of areas that can be improved on. Its worth a shot.
$300 or $400 for a days worth of instruction will knock years, yes years off of you trying to fix any fundamental issues you may have.
Just trying to help.
John
See above, Plagueis. I do the same with free evaluations, but it sounds like you have a great local resource also. Someone reviewing your fundamentals can help you target the issues and begin to fix them concretely, but no pool lesson will work the way it's supposed to unless you drill some to lock in what a good teacher like Fran Crimi or Mark Wilson will show you. Both are highly regarded teachers.
So I seem to be two different people when I'm playing pool.
Yesterday at my local pool hall I started playing great, I was patient and took my time on each shot carefully deciding how I wanted to play the shot and where I wanted the CB to go. Although I wasn't perfect in my shape or even my shots, I was playing above my average.
At some point my playing got sloppy, I was missing easy shots and not taking my time. Eventually I realized this and went back to basic stop shot drills and that helped to steady myself. But I realized that when I get sloppy I tend to play with instinct or memory, I know how to shot so I "just do" and tend to miss.
I'm not sure when or why I stopped taking my time and I'm not sure how long it will take to unlearn this thoughtless shooting but I guess that's the next step. The only thing I can think of as a trigger is that I started playing a friend who isn't as good as myself, although I did win against him I wasn't playing as well and that showed against everyone else I played that night. I think I played "down" to his level and that's somethign I've been aware of for awhile and am trying to unlearn.
Yesterday at my local pool hall I started playing great, I was patient and took my time on each shot carefully deciding how I wanted to play the shot and where I wanted the CB to go. Although I wasn't perfect in my shape or even my shots, I was playing above my average.
At some point my playing got sloppy, I was missing easy shots and not taking my time. Eventually I realized this and went back to basic stop shot drills and that helped to steady myself. But I realized that when I get sloppy I tend to play with instinct or memory, I know how to shot so I "just do" and tend to miss.
I'm not sure when or why I stopped taking my time and I'm not sure how long it will take to unlearn this thoughtless shooting but I guess that's the next step. The only thing I can think of as a trigger is that I started playing a friend who isn't as good as myself, although I did win against him I wasn't playing as well and that showed against everyone else I played that night. I think I played "down" to his level and that's somethign I've been aware of for awhile and am trying to unlearn.
