How to get back in stroke

[DRW]

Lay offs

A lot of great replies in this thread. Most of the people I talk to about this have a preconceived notion that they are going to play bad because of the lay off. That alone will keep you from playing like you normally would. Try to avoid negative thinking and follow these great tips given in this thread.

 

[WoodyJ]

When getting back in stroke I like to spread all the balls out (not touching)
and practice not missing. It gives me a chance to get back in a rhythm
without any negativity . But that's just me lol

Same here.

Now that I finally have a home pool table I try to look forward to my personal time at the table as an action meditation rather than doing drills, etc.

My goal is to pocket 100+ balls a day and to do so I spend 2-3 times a day shooting 30-40 balls at a time. Spread the balls out (3-15 at a time -- as many as you are comfortable running) with no clusters and take ball in hand and put full focus into every shot with same pre-shot routine.

It usually becomes a fun action meditation for me especially when I can get to the end of a run and then wonder what it was that I just did? Oh well, time to spread them out again. Much more fun for me than structured drills or other things I've tried that get old quick.

I prefer to just keep knocking balls into the holes one at a time again and again and again until I'm not thinking about anything else.

 

[pfduser]

Same here.

Now that I finally have a home pool table I try to look forward to my personal time at the table as an action meditation rather than doing drills, etc.

My goal is to pocket 100+ balls a day and to do so I spend 2-3 times a day shooting 30-40 balls at a time. Spread the balls out (3-15 at a time -- as many as you are comfortable running) with no clusters and take ball in hand and put full focus into every shot with same pre-shot routine.

It usually becomes a fun action meditation for me especially when I can get to the end of a run and then wonder what it was that I just did? Oh well, time to spread them out again. Much more fun for me than structured drills or other things I've tried that get old quick.

I prefer to just keep knocking balls into the holes one at a time again and again and again until I'm not thinking about anything else.

Play some sets with the 9 ball ghost or play like a 5 ahead against the ghost.
I really helps me bear down because I try to trick myself into thinking I'm really playing a champion.I focus so hard while doing this that I can hardly talk when I'm finished.My throat locks up or something,lol.Good luck with your practice!

 

[Cameron Smith]

This is largely a personal thing. It's important to know your own mechanics so you can easily address issues. But mostly, I just throw the balls on the table and run them. Essentially I'm just trying to get comfortable at the table and get a feel for the speed. It's also important to not see your self miss, or not see it often. It brings an extra confidence into matches.

The biggest thing is to address stroke and alignement issues as for me, that's what suffers most when I don't play over an extended period. I just do some long straight ins on a snooker table. Takes about 10 min to get tuned in (feels like an hour though).

 

[skip]

Sorry to reply twice, but I just have to say are we pool people or what? This place is just too cool. Simply my kind of people. Man I put AZ on before I have my first cup of coffee in the morning. Were else but here would grown men be discussing what Fats told him to get at Johnny's. By the way I hope all you guys and gals had a safe and happy 4th. Skip :thumbup:

 

[seanjonsean]

Ok been playing all day , i have been staying down practicing missed shots over and over , doing drills and , what do u knnow i can break and run! , its scary to think u can lose it if u dont use it , and yes Eric clapton song is in my head , i play 8 ball then switch to 9 and 10 ball and last but not least one pocket, i got more into my rythem after i got the satisfaction or gratification of runing balls

 

[Morgantownfats]

Normally I throw balls out just play to get a little confidence then I like to do drills to fine tune things. I use a lot of Bert Kinisters drills. So much better now that my back pain is lessened

 

[real bartram]

i guess its not like riding a bike huh, i do not know how some peop do it they hardly ever play but when they do it looks like they never missed a beat , they are beatable but it takes longer to win against , , i practice evryday for at least 3 hours and weekends almost 6 hours im in the APA ranked as a 6 and can hang with 7 all day i think im a good six but weak 7 the thing about 7 is they can break and run but when they fail i just try my best and hope my nerves dont get to me alot of luck and i run my balls and try to win thats how i see it ......

damn you prac 3 hours a day thats hard to do.
when i take time off the first thing that goes is
my cue ball.
just hit balls to get back in stroke.

 

[seanjonsean]

yup 3 hours depending what time i get home from work , i love to play what can i say, i started playing in 05 i kept losing of course , had zero cue ball skills didnt run one ball , then i bought a pool table, it helpedbut not enough till something made pool fun , i saw a youtube vid of Efren and then i loved pool couldnt get enough of it then winning meant something ,practice went from 20 minutes to hours losing wasnt a factor anymore it was strange but hey thats the poolbug now if i do lose its ok before i knew it was totally my fault for not puting the time in not concentrating ,i just want to play :smile:

 

[bigstick]

how to get back in stroke

neil has a good point i would like too add the broblem getting back in stroke is your rhytheyou need to slow down you are probably shooting at same speedwhen you were in stroke this is huge your rhythem will pick back up automatically when in stroke

 

[Neil]

..........

 

[Fatboy]

After a week off i knew id be a hair off , whats the best way to get back in stroke ? Should i just do some drills , or run a few balls ,i have been shooting straight in shots and i noticed i have to bear down a bit i can make them all but it takes some concentrating if not i will miss, before it was like no big deal its a hanger, what am i missing?

i'm not being a smartass with this answer, i'm out of stroke right now, the answere is simple play everyday. Thats it. Practice drills, action, it really dont matter as long as your NOT "Just banging balls"; If you do that you'll never get instroke.

Focused play of any kind everyday is the fastest way back. Simple as that.

 

[catscradle]

Good advice, Randy. I haven't had a cue in my hands for a month, and last night went out for a couple of hours. Shot a couple racks of 9 ball, and was really off. Did about 20 minutees of MDs, then went back to playing and the results were much better. Gotta keep those stroke drills handy!

Steve

I agree. I do the MDs a few times a week anyway, but when out of stroke go back to them daily focusing (don't like what the word "concentrating" implies) on SPF. Additionally a lot of straight shots starting easy and increasing difficulty, always focusing on SPF. Then on to routine cut shots. Finally to shooting mock games by myself.
Lessons for Randy & Scott were the best things that ever happened to my game.

 

[seanjonsean]

well i think i may know what happend , when i got back i went mountain bike riding and had a sore neck but thought nothing of it , a week later i am playing a lot better i ran a few racks but they where all easy balls were open up and pattern that even a 3 could close out, but hey a win is a win , if i missed a shot i would set it uo and nail it, fast and slow , i do practice a few drills , and i like shooting Earls powershots , THANK U ALL for ure replies i was in a bind and u all answered!:thumbup:

 

[whitewolf]

If you normally don't really conciously aim then you are likely very much a feel player and the best way to get back in stroke is to simply run balls. Throw 15 on the table and shoot them down, fiddle with the siding, play all the different variations of siding, spin balls in, eventually it will start feeling natural again.

Yes, this is the best way. Throw in a few ghost ball games to simulate game conditions - but not too many this early. And drills.

You want to fire as many balls as you can in. IMHO, every player should have his own rhythm. Mine is 1-2-3 pause shoot. Try to do this every shot. The point here is to try and get relaxed. Let the right side of your brain take over. You should incorporate this into your real game.

Throw 15 balls out. Should with all top right, then all side right, then bottom right, etc etc etc. Hit lots of cut shots. I set them up along the rail 1/8 inch and fire them in.

Most importantly, fire in shots while closing your eyes on the last stroke. This will force you to depend upon your stroke and make you 'feel' the shot.

Mike Sigel told me that he uses English on EVERY shot. I started doing this and my game went up 20%. I think this is why it is so importing to incorporate spinning the shots into your routine, just like Celtic said.

 

[randyg]

Yes, this is the best way. Throw in a few ghost ball games to simulate game conditions - but not too many this early. And drills.

You want to fire as many balls as you can in. IMHO, every player should have his own rhythm. Mine is 1-2-3 pause shoot. Try to do this every shot. The point here is to try and get relaxed. Let the right side of your brain take over. You should incorporate this into your real game.

Throw 15 balls out. Should with all top right, then all side right, then bottom right, etc etc etc. Hit lots of cut shots. I set them up along the rail 1/8 inch and fire them in.

Most importantly, fire in shots while closing your eyes on the last stroke. This will force you to depend upon your stroke and make you 'feel' the shot.

Mike Sigel told me that he uses English on EVERY shot.

I started doing this and my game went up 20%. I think this is why it is so importing to incorporate spinning the shots into your routine, just like Celtic said.

Me thinks Mikey pulled the wool over your eyes.....randyg

 

[walrus_3d]

I agree. I do the MDs a few times a week anyway, but when out of stroke go back to them daily focusing (don't like what the word "concentrating" implies) on SPF. Additionally a lot of straight shots starting easy and increasing difficulty, always focusing on SPF. Then on to routine cut shots. Finally to shooting mock games by myself.
Lessons for Randy & Scott were the best things that ever happened to my game.

what're MD and SPF?

 

[seanjonsean]

on evry shot use english ?even a stopshot????i thought u were only to use english when needed , i have read to hit the ball in the center only use a tip here a tip or two of english there, .....

 

[Ratta]

Yes, this is the best way. Throw in a few ghost ball games to simulate game conditions - but not too many this early. And drills.

You want to fire as many balls as you can in. IMHO, every player should have his own rhythm. Mine is 1-2-3 pause shoot. Try to do this every shot. The point here is to try and get relaxed. Let the right side of your brain take over. You should incorporate this into your real game.

Throw 15 balls out. Should with all top right, then all side right, then bottom right, etc etc etc. Hit lots of cut shots. I set them up along the rail 1/8 inch and fire them in.

Most importantly, fire in shots while closing your eyes on the last stroke. This will force you to depend upon your stroke and make you 'feel' the shot.
Mike Sigel told me that he uses English on EVERY shot. I started doing this and my game went up 20%. I think this is why it is so importing to incorporate spinning the shots into your routine, just like Celtic said.

@Whitwolf:

I think perhaps you missed some words in your discussion with Mike
Mike Sigel told several times for sure, that he is using english on almost "every shot which has an ANGLE" <---- he (and some others also) callin it *helping english* to avoid the throw-effect-nothin else.

lg
Ingo

 

[Ratta]

what're MD and SPF?

Hi Walrus,

S-P-F = Set-Pause-Freeze, it s a acronym invented by Randy Goettlicher.
He created also the SPF Family- it s a group of wellknown instructors who are teaching the all using the same *concept/general orientation*.
The most stuff are methods Jerry Briesath started to teach long time ago and furthermore Jerry Briesath was the Mentor of Randy Goettlicher (if i remember correctly). SPF defines 3 stops/points during your job at the pool-table.

MD= Mother Drills - these are just drills which you have to execute. They re used by the SPF Family, too. With the help of these drills you can work on your technical abilities to become a repeatable and straight stroke. With the also from the SPF Family used video-observation, which you usualy will get after lessons it s an amazing help to help you through the process getting really good fundamentals.

hope i described all good enough- if not..it was just about low english

I for myself am also a big friend of this concept. It simplifies a lot to include it into pre-shot-routines and let you room to pay attention to other important things after you have built your own bulletproofed pre-shot-routine

lg from overseas,

Ingo