How Do the top Filipino players aim?

Pushout

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I think the top filipino players play alot. so they probably aim like all the other pros in the world: BY FEEL

Nobody aims by feel. If that were true, you could play with your eyes closed. It may seem like feel after hitting thousands and thousands of balls but you still have to aim at something, even if it's unconsciously.
 

djpstacked03

Student of Billiards
Silver Member
You also might find this article interesting:

Regards,
Dave[/QUOTE]

Interesting how no pro gave any useful information. I guess they would'nt want to tell anyone. All repetition, memory, ghost ball hits, fractional but no aiming system....... cough....... cough.......
 

genomachino

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
They just do it. Most don't really know.

You also might find this article interesting:

Regards,
Dave

Interesting how no pro gave any useful information. I guess they would'nt want to tell anyone. All repetition, memory, ghost ball hits, fractional but no aiming system....... cough....... cough.......[/QUOTE]

If you were a profesional would you want to say I don't know. I just do it. Most of the players in the article say just that. There are a few that do know and those few teach and are very successful. They have pool schools and the players get their moneys worth there.

Many of them couldn't teach anyone what they don't know. They just naturally do what they do well from repetition. Play,play,play and play some more.

Before I show Perfect Aim to Rodney Morris he told me he had asked about 6 of his buddies that play on the tour if the knew how he could aim better. They really didn't know and 2 of them have their own pool school. That is a fact.

In 99 when I played on the tour a little I asked about 15 of the players how they aim and they couldn't really give me an answer. At this time I was already teaching Perfect Aim for about 8 years. I had no name for it at that time. Or answers like my dominenet eye. Or I aim with both eyes. Or I just aim. Some would just back up and show how they put the stick down and figure the angle by looking before they got down. It was kind of comical.

The article kind of says the same thing. That's pretty obvious.

Have a great day Geno.......................
 

themack

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Actually that "How the Pro's Aim" article is right. The first few pics the people say "its instinct" and "trial and error." That's how it is. I've seen the same shots so many times over and over that i just go up to the table and i know where to hit the ball. There's no aiming by fractions of the ball or 1/4 1/2 ball hit stuff. You just go up to the table and you KNOW where to hit it, and it goes in. It's pretty simple.
 

JAW725

Southpaw
Silver Member
Interesting how no pro gave any useful information. I guess they would'nt want to tell anyone. All repetition, memory, ghost ball hits, fractional but no aiming system....... cough....... cough.......

If you were a profesional would you want to say I don't know. I just do it. Most of the players in the article say just that. There are a few that do know and those few teach and are very successful. They have pool schools and the players get their moneys worth there.

Many of them couldn't teach anyone what they don't know. They just naturally do what they do well from repetition. Play,play,play and play some more.

Before I show Perfect Aim to Rodney Morris he told me he had asked about 6 of his buddies that play on the tour if the knew how he could aim better. They really didn't know and 2 of them have their own pool school. That is a fact.

In 99 when I played on the tour a little I asked about 15 of the players how they aim and they couldn't really give me an answer. At this time I was already teaching Perfect Aim for about 8 years. I had no name for it at that time. Or answers like my dominenet eye. Or I aim with both eyes. Or I just aim. Some would just back up and show how they put the stick down and figure the angle by looking before they got down. It was kind of comical.

The article kind of says the same thing. That's pretty obvious.

Have a great day Geno.......................[/QUOTE]

Gene, Perfect Aim seems to be a sighting method not an aiming system. How again does Perfect Aim assist a player in finding the contact points and then the correct aim points?
 

itsjustagame

Registered
Of course there is a system behind it. but in fact to pot a ball is very complex. depending on deflection, throw and spin the path of the cue and object ball will alter. If you shoot a fairly easy half ball hit, the object will change its way to the pocket depending on the spin or speed you gave the cue ball.
You can not think about that all the time. And definitely the PROS do it neither. So I ll stick with my opinion that they aim BY "FEEL". ALTOUGH THEY GAIN THEIR "FEELING" FOR THE SHOTS through PRACTICING a SYSTEM.
 

SK Custom Cues

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Buddy taught me his aiming system, and I bet everyone uses the same thing or a variation of the same thing.

1. First figure out where you want to go.
2. Then, figure out where on the OB u need to hit.
3. Step into the shot with one step from 'behind the CB'
4. Stroke through the CB hitting the entire shot and 'feeling the CB destination at the end of your stroke.
5. Always look at the OB's contact point when you stroke the CB as if there were no CB.
 

Patrick Johnson

Fish of the Day
Silver Member
As soon as someone starts telling you about an aiming or banking system, then says, "now you have to adjust...", it will immediately tell you it doesn't work.

No, that tells you they know what they're talking about.

Most aiming systems can only give an approximate alignment - getting closer to the final alignment so the adjustment is smaller is how the systems work; it's not a flaw. Many system users don't know this, but that's also part of how the systems work.

pj
chgo
 

Pushout

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Of course there is a system behind it. but in fact to pot a ball is very complex. depending on deflection, throw and spin the path of the cue and object ball will alter. If you shoot a fairly easy half ball hit, the object will change its way to the pocket depending on the spin or speed you gave the cue ball.
You can not think about that all the time. And definitely the PROS do it neither. So I ll stick with my opinion that they aim BY "FEEL". ALTOUGH THEY GAIN THEIR "FEELING" FOR THE SHOTS through PRACTICING a SYSTEM.

I guess that "feel" doesn't come through to me that way, although I do agree that it may come about by practice. They don't think about aiming, I guess, they just do it and that may be what you mean by "feel". I still have to think about it, but I changed the way I aim about a year or so ago.
 

Wolven

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Majority of players aim by feel, which comes from repetition seeing the same thing over and over.
At first players will use some kind of ghost ball or a variation of it, nobody starts out with some complicated system and few will go there later in life.
They just refine everything through experience. The majority of thinking is a little less or a little more but it is all non-verbal it is feel.
I have asked many strong players and a former world champion and they all aim like that.
When you add a lot of English and various amounts of speed the systems become useless.
There are a lot of snake charm salesmen peddling the holly grail of pool ‘the secrect of the pros’.
Efren’s aiming system through the cue ball seems the easiest.
As for Gene and his perfect aiming system while it is not the holly grail he does present a way to get the picture the same way every time which makes the aiming by feel a lot easier.
 

dr_dave

Instructional Author
Gold Member
Silver Member
Majority of players aim by feel, which comes from repetition seeing the same thing over and over.
At first players will use some kind of ghost ball or a variation of it, nobody starts out with some complicated system and few will go there later in life.
They just refine everything through experience. The majority of thinking is a little less or a little more but it is all non-verbal it is feel.
I have asked many strong players and a former world champion and they all aim like that.
When you add a lot of English and various amounts of speed the systems become useless.
There are a lot of snake charm salesmen peddling the holly grail of pool ‘the secrect of the pros’.
Efren’s aiming system through the cue ball seems the easiest.
Good summary; although, the back-hand English "aiming system" can be very useful for aiming firm and/or close shots with English (e.g., a thin-hit rail cut shot with running English).

Regards,
Dave
 

336Robin

Multiverse Operative
Silver Member
How the Top Filipino Players Aim

This the statement is the one I think I dislike the most on that subject:

"After you hit about a million balls on the table something starts to click"

I dont think that Filipino Players have the corner on precise aim, I think they have some interesting strokes and I think a lot of them live for the game. I refer to what Dr.Dave said below.

I think "good shooters use all visual information available to them" to help see the required angle of the shot and the necessary line of aim. They might use any or all of: ghost-ball visualization, ball-to-ball contact-point visualization, impact-line (or "target line" or "line of centers") visualization, center-to-edge (CTE) 1/2-ball-hit line visualization, etc. Regardless, a good shooter doesn't need a mechanical "system" to do this, IMO.


If you really read what Dave just said a few times I know for myself that you have the answer. With a true line of aim acquired you are able to understand how adjust to play the ball with English. Cut systems in my opinion will not deliver that because you are devoid of knowing the line of aim.

If you cannot acquire the line of aim, in my opinion you have only so far you can take your game. I think the line of aim, is a pretty basic thing you have to learn to do in pool. There is no magic wand to wave--as much as I liked the post about the Filipino Shaman---Whoo Hoo.

The problem is that some of us want a quick fix for our misunderstanding of Aim or Angles. I think our perception of the ball leads us "if we are inquisitive and concerned" to find the contact point and around that all decisions can be made.

Talk about fundamentals: The Contact Point How do you possibly leave this great geometric anomaly out of pool? Surely Cut System Proponents make a lot of shots no doubt. But I can work on my lawnmower with an adjustable wrench but that doesnt mean its going to work for everything or work well with some things.

The Contact Point is the most beautiful sight in pool. Find it successfully and I think you will learn what to do the shot to make it score with Inside, Outside or Upside down English. Yep then you start playing the game with feel. Oh my God its scary out there, so lets not go outside in the rain, We might just get wet. How can we dodge all of those raindrops?

That is what I think all good players have, The feel for the game is based on what they have learned to do with the ball bending the aiming line information to hit the ball thick and thin so as to adjust the carom angle to suit what they are doing to the shot to get perfect on the next.

So in my humble opinion if you aren't seeing the line then you really arent seeing anything at all and if youre shooting a system that doesnt allow you to see something that is as basic and natural as the contact point and you argue youre rightness then im glad to let you do so but you wont affect my opinion.

Im not saying that training yourself to see the line is easy or learning how to apply the cue ball, Its not but like everything else in this game its Simple and Consistent once you see it and then you wonder--Why didnt someone tell me this before?

Well Johnny who started this thread--thats my answer-- when I asked it this is the answer I got---"Well you aim to see the Eye of Ball thats all you have to do"---For that sage advice it cost me $10. It was the best advice Ive ever gotten.

Have a good one!
 

cookie man

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Efron said it very simply when asked a question. There are 2 ways to aim. Through the center and with the edge. I never heard this before I came up with Perfect Aim. I read this when 2 people were arguing about who they would rather learn to aim from. One person said this certified teacher said it was one way with one of the aiming systems out there that nobody hardly understands and the other person said that they tended to think Efron knew what he was talking about more because obviously he can play and he know's what works. Who do you think would know more? Daaaa............

After that you can use fractional aiming or you can shoot with feel. By getting the eyes in the perfect position either way will work for you. If the eyes are not in the perfect position hardly nothing seems to work right.

If you shoot 7 days a week 8 hours a day your eyes will somewhat get in the perfect position. Eventually you can get there naturally with repetition. Any pro that plays good lives on the table for a week before the big tournament. Some live on it all the time. Or you can learn or be taught how to get the eyes in the correct position so you really have something to zero in on instead of guessing on so many shots.

Now you can actually work on the other parts of the game and be practicing aiming all the time because you know how to get there. But if you can't aim the shot perfect how can you put any english on the ball and shoot it.

Efron is right. This is what makes Perfect Aim work. All that's left is to know how to position the eyes. It's simple and easy after that.

Have a great day. Geno..............

Geno, sounds like you are a fan of CTE, after all EFRON said it.
 
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