How to find a good Pool instructor?

I built my first pool table using plans in Popular Mechanics magazine. I started building my pool game using a pamphlet authored by Willie Mosconi. The table build was much quicker than the game build. 🤷‍♂️
The input from a qualified instructor is Huge. My first hint at the instructor qualifications would be, does he or she want to Go Back to the Basics?
I have a similar experience, I am not at your level yet but there were things I could never have learned from just watching, think about it, all athletes have coaches, golfers, basketball players, baseball players, the list is long, the coaches are not necessarily better than the players they coach but what they do offer is an understanding of the sport they coach and can spot deficiencies the athlete may be missing, I would love to see more pool in schools and less video games.....
 
Jerry Brieseth live down road from me, people come to Jerry to improved their Pool Game. Recall one guy he was retired from IBM, he spent though and with Jerry to fix bad habits. Guy never practiced what Jerry taught basic, so the money was blown. No way Jerry problem, it was student with think head, and no practice effort.

Cannot fix broken, if broken don’t want fix. Money spent and it learned is money blown.
My instructor Kim Young just won the Jerry Brieseth PBIA instructor of the year, Jerry is a legend...
 
Have you read, 'the inner game of tennis', and 'sports psyching'? Both of those books not only got me back on track, but changed my attitude. 'sports psyching' went deep into the different reasons people complete and what type of performer a person is. I found that I tended to put looking good over winning. If I made an awesome shot or great shape in a game I had accomplished my internal goal. Knowing this made me change my conscious goal and my subconscious goals to better align. I learned to be okay with an ugly win, or even playing to not lose when necessary. I cut down on the hero shots and started winning... And being happier when I lost.

Learn to enjoy it for the process, not the result.

And I'm not a damn hippy, even if this post makes me sound like one
Just read The Inner game of Tennis, using what I learned from that book every day now, Mark Wilson talked about doing all your thinking before getting down to take your shot, this book really drives this point home.
 

Have you read, 'the inner game of tennis', and 'sports psyching'? Both of those books not only got me back on track, but changed my attitude. 'sports psyching' went deep into the different reasons people complete and what type of performer a person is. I found that I tended to put looking good over winning. If I made an awesome shot or great shape in a game I had accomplished my internal goal. Knowing this made me change my conscious goal and my subconscious goals to better align. I learned to be okay with an ugly win, or even playing to not lose when necessary. I cut down on the hero shots and started winning... And being happier when I lost.

Learn to enjoy it for the process, not the result.

And I'm not a damn hippy, even if this post makes me sound like one
Sports Psyching is a great book. I got it after seeing it mentioned on this forum. Maybe it was you who brought it up. The personality test was tremendous. It doesn’t really tell you something you don’t know about yourself, but seeing it on paper and then seeing how your problem areas affect performance- AND practice- is valuable.
 
What have you been working on. How's it going?
One of the first things we worked on is MY vision center, if I sight down the shaft with my nose over the center MY brain interprets that as just right of center, to me it looks like I'm dead center but the cue ball doesn't lie, I am unintentionally putting RH English on every shot! My vision center is in the corner of my right eye, about 1/4" to the right of my nose, it's taken 5 months of work to get used to this change but now when shooting a stop shot the cue ball doesn't spin at all, I'm more aware of the object ball hitting the center of the pocket, I figure it will take another 6 months or so for this change to be the "norm" for me, without understanding MY vision center I believe I would have continued to be just another ball banger who can't believe I missed that shot.
 
Was that German champ Gunter?
I never thought of his heritage. He was a bar box scuffler in Tacoma in the '80s. He introduced me to 3 ball at a tavern near the Boeing plant in Renton. The Royal Bear or maybe Golden? With a huge field the dollar game produced hundreds of dollar pots. With a dozen entrants 3s were tied more often than not. I hit a 2 when the pot got big, only to have it tied by a guy that hadn't made a ball all day. 🤷‍♂️
IMHO well Shaw states the importance of the break in Nine ball. So for that quick moment rack 3 balls and break 'em. There's a way to make 'em all fall in one. Oh that's fun. Practice practice practice.
 
I think improving speed control is a greater necessity than sidespin,
Learning to walk before run is how I think of it. 👍Watching Ray Martin play 9 ball was a true pleasure. His cueball control was impressive. His falling on the angles that facilitate center ball made the equation simple addition or subtraction. Start adding side and multiplication or division would be the analogy. 🤷‍♂️
 
I never thought of his heritage. He was a bar box scuffler in Tacoma in the '80s. He introduced me to 3 ball at a tavern near the Boeing plant in Renton. The Royal Bear or maybe Golden? With a huge field the dollar game produced hundreds of dollar pots. With a dozen entrants 3s were tied more often than not. I hit a 2 when the pot got big, only to have it tied by a guy that hadn't made a ball all day. 🤷‍♂️
IMHO well Shaw states the importance of the break in Nine ball. So for that quick moment rack 3 balls and break 'em. There's a way to make 'em all fall in one. Oh that's fun. Practice practice practice.
Now that I think about it the guy's name was Werner. Pre Souquet IINM.
 
I would really like some lessons on using English.

I am acquainted with a couple of instructors just from frequenting my local pool hall. I have talked to them sometimes but not inquired about lessons. When I mention BHE, FHE, Parallel, I kind of get blank stares. Maybe they are old school and these are new terms?

What is the best way to seek out an instructor? What kind of questions should one ask? Or do you just take a lesson to decide if you like the instructor or not?

See:
 
If you keep "doing" the wrong thing at the table, you are just reinforcing problems.
This should be bold Ed, bold did, uh er it's huge.

study practice enjoy
I enjoy learning. 🤷‍♂️
Barry Stark is my favorite youtube contributor.
Lacking an available coach.....use your camera. The files can be studied.

Teaching "the other hand" is a place to get back to the Basics. My Left hand was pretty Goofy at the start. That did provide entertainment though. 🤷‍♂️
The Right giggle button learns to improve as well.
Finding weakest link and reinforce the structure or mechanics. The mental......well it changes under pressure in competition. 🤷‍♂️
A big part of recovery in competition was being able to identify if my miss was mental or physical mistake. While sitting getting My Mind right was the task. Hope for one more chance at the table. 🤷‍♂️ ☺ it helps to smile. 🤔 I did earn the football nick Smiley. I made all league that way. 🤷‍♂️
 
The right instructor, (I prefer Coach) will help you establish a training program. The program will be geared to your goals. That conversation with Backward Jan came right after go back to the Basics.
My budget
allowed for an hour every morning. Following a program or prescription. My goal was and is recreation. Banging balls for the same time is going in the wrong direction by reinforcing less than optimal methods and habits.
 
If and when you find an instructor. It is important to keep the lessons to yourself. Sharing with other "top players" can lead to derision. Give the method an honest chance. There are many paths that reach the same goal.
 
Nothing to add, except I once took lessons from an older guy who could play really well. He watched me play a while, then proceeded to tell me what he does. Turns out he was a much better player than instructor. There are instructor associations, so that might be a start.
 
Life's lessons
Are the important ones. Be a survivor is my pool strategy.
Think of Cool Hand Luke, "I got my mind right" 🤷‍♂️
Or as Yogi Berra said, "Half the game is 85 percent mental."

The Butch Cassidy and Sundance jump.

It took a leap of faith for me to switch from object ball to cueball last. 🤷‍♂️ it works best for me, uh Now. 🤷‍♂️ I did earn titles (sometimes Asshole(:) the other way.
Never back a rat into a corner is my analogous thought. Pretty sure McGoorty book covers the playing on your nerve. A quick glance for my copy reminds me of the lend that became a gift. 🤷‍♂️
 
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