How To Improve Speed Control?

Pidge

Pidge

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I've been working with a buddy of mine that started playing league a while back. First time he had played the game where he cared about the outcome. He started out not being able to make 3 balls in a row. I've worked on getting him to pocket balls and now he's a half decent ball pocketer. Only thing that's letting him down is position, mainly he leaves him self a tougher shot mostly because he hits the ball 100mph every time.

Speed control is something that never got taught to me in my younger days. Playing snooker it was taught that you can either judge speed or you can't...same with pocketing balls; you can either naturally see the shot line or you can't which if you can't, no one was willing to help you.

Now, my buddy can't judge speed control but I'm not giving up. I'm sure he can be taught it.

I've been keeping it simple. Just getting him to pocket a ball and get back to centre table off 1 or 2 rails. Some days are better than others but mostly he runs right through centre table by 3ft some times. Never underhits a shot.

Any advice? I'm a little bit stuck as to how to help him.
 
Pidge said:
I've been working with a buddy of mine that started playing league a while back. First time he had played the game where he cared about the outcome. He started out not being able to make 3 balls in a row. I've worked on getting him to pocket balls and now he's a half decent ball pocketer. Only thing that's letting him down is position, mainly he leaves him self a tougher shot mostly because he hits the ball 100mph every time.

Speed control is something that never got taught to me in my younger days. Playing snooker it was taught that you can either judge speed or you can't...same with pocketing balls; you can either naturally see the shot line or you can't which if you can't, no one was willing to help you.

Now, my buddy can't judge speed control but I'm not giving up. I'm sure he can be taught it.

I've been keeping it simple. Just getting him to pocket a ball and get back to centre table off 1 or 2 rails. Some days are better than others but mostly he runs right through centre table by 3ft some times. Never underhits a shot.

Any advice? I'm a little bit stuck as to how to help him.
Click to expand...

Well, it's quite easy not to blast the CB at full power. You simply don't. Teach him to shoot light first and just pocket balls that way. When he gets used to that, then start with more advance position training. It's just my opinion. I'm personally eager to blast away whenever I get the opportunity, but I don't rely on position play so your friend shouldn't follow my steps. Still, remember it's all about how he wants to play and what style and strategy works best for him. Each player is different, so don't try to develop his skills the same way yours developed. Pay attention to his strong points and weaknesses and work on his talents. Let him develop his own playing style, and you can serve him as a guide. Good luck ;)
 
High gear - hit above centre line
Low gear -hit below centre line

Where does he hit contact the cue ball?
Video his shooting from the side

Do speed control drills

Simplify the problem - cue ball speed
So ...
Start out with only the cue ball
Shoot the cue ball up and down the table, cue ball stopping on the baulk line
Then progressively change the target to different diamonds, add more end rails, or none, until he can shoot the cue ball any length on demand

Shoot an object ball straight into a pocket and have the cue ball stop dead
Run one diamond further, then two, etc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LMlducBnCw

Set up shots using those sticky circle protectors for 3 ring binders. That way he can place a missed shot back in the exact location.

More stuff that may be of interest
http://www.youtube.com/user/kevy62/videos
 
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Cheers for the advice guys.
He hits where ever he needs to hit to gain position. He rarely uses side, but it varies on the vertical axis.
He's fine with drawing straight back and following on thick shots. Nothing wrong with his speed there. Problems arise when he has to contact a rail. If he has to hit 2 rails for position he will hammer the ball 100mph and end up hitting 3 or 4 rails.

I've shown him what pace to hit on some shots, then he's tried it and over hit it. I've had him just picking a spot for the white to end up, perhaps I'd be better off getting him to visualise the CB traveling along its path and end up landing in the spot he's chosen.
He doesn't have a pause at the end of his back stroke either. That's where I get my speed control from so I might get him to try pausing at the end of the back stroke.
 
Hey Pidge,

In addition to the excellent posts above your friend is going to have to start feeling the cue ball and shot with his grip hand. If he is having issues with doing this then some work will have to be done on his grip pressure on the cue.

Its like a basketball player getting ready to size up a free throw. The player is feeling the ball and distance to the hoop.

If you watch the pros that's what they appear to be doing.

Hope this helps :smile:

John
 
I look at speed control as how much do I accelerate my cue through whitey, and from what distance. Much like putting a golf ball on a green.
If I want to hit the cue ball harder I draw the cue back farther and accelerate faster through the stroke. For a softer hit I do the opposite. With lots of play, and practice, the subconscious will provide the proper speed.
If the player is completely un-athletic, however, then all bets are off. :)
 
I'll be interested in seeing more responses to your thread.

A woman on my teams really overhits almost everything, almost every time.

I would love some good examples to use to try and slow her down some. I've tried getting her to slow down her backswing some, which helps occasionally.

Problem we have is limited time to actually work on this stuff. Still, I'm looking forward to hearing what has helped others, so I can try and help her.
 
Slow is the game changer

I'd just have your friend hit shots softer and softer with slower strokes until the balls just barely fall in the pocket and then have him hit balls approximating a medium level of speed. That medium level is most commonly referred to as pocket speed and most used by advancing players. Once he knows how slow he can go and still make a shot scaling up from there will be much easier. Additionally, knowing medium speed will give him a clear midpoint for reference and of course he knows what fast is.

Hope that helps. Helped me put the ball where I wanted it.
Good shooting to you and your friend,

Kevin
 
There are a lot of things that have to be factored in to determine the speed needed for any given shot --- The overall condition of the table, cushions, cloth, brand of balls and the weight of the cb vs. the weight of the object ball. Sometimes there's a significant difference between both balls. The amount of moisture in the room is also a significant factor.

This is why speed control is one of the last things a player perfects in his game. The ability to adapt and change to different equipment conditions comes after a lot of trial and error experience.

There is no formula. The player must be observant and patient. Gauging the results and noting what he did wrong on a shot is key to improvement. Without that he will continue to guess at every shot. If the player acknowledges what he did wrong and is still unable to make a change, then his issue is that he is not exercising any conscious control over his arm movement.

Taking conscious control is the first step to improvement.

All you can do is to encourage him to keep at it and to remember what his tendencies are on certain types of shots as he continues to practice --- and remind him not to go mentally blank as he executes his stroke.
 
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Pidge said:
I've been working with a buddy of mine that started playing league a while back. First time he had played the game where he cared about the outcome. He started out not being able to make 3 balls in a row. I've worked on getting him to pocket balls and now he's a half decent ball pocketer. Only thing that's letting him down is position, mainly he leaves him self a tougher shot mostly because he hits the ball 100mph every time.

Speed control is something that never got taught to me in my younger days. Playing snooker it was taught that you can either judge speed or you can't...same with pocketing balls; you can either naturally see the shot line or you can't which if you can't, no one was willing to help you.

Now, my buddy can't judge speed control but I'm not giving up. I'm sure he can be taught it.

I've been keeping it simple. Just getting him to pocket a ball and get back to centre table off 1 or 2 rails. Some days are better than others but mostly he runs right through centre table by 3ft some times. Never underhits a shot.

Any advice? I'm a little bit stuck as to how to help him.
Click to expand...

Pidge,
I found out that aiming actually had a lot to do with speed control for me. If I was unsure of myself I wanted to get a good clean stroke and would over hit the ball.

What is missing is peace....if he is at peace with the aiming part he can learn that you don't have to get a good clean, fast stroke.

Play and have him practice all shots at pocket speed or as little speed as it takes to just get the shot there and make him do it a lot. Call that 1. He will never forget that speed he will learn to manipulate the drift of the cue ball depending on how thick he hits the ball.

Then he will start to realize how far it is from 1 to where he is now and he will discover other speeds.

That's my suggestion.
 
Push&Pool said:
Well, it's quite easy not to blast the CB at full power. You simply don't. Teach him to shoot light first and just pocket balls that way. When he gets used to that, then start with more advance position training. It's just my opinion. I'm personally eager to blast away whenever I get the opportunity, but I don't rely on position play so your friend shouldn't follow my steps. Still, remember it's all about how he wants to play and what style and strategy works best for him. Each player is different, so don't try to develop his skills the same way yours developed. Pay attention to his strong points and weaknesses and work on his talents. Let him develop his own playing style, and you can serve him as a guide. Good luck ;)
Click to expand...



Wait... what?
 
Yes, feel!

One Pocket John said:
Hey Pidge,

In addition to the excellent posts above your friend is going to have to start feeling the cue ball and shot with his grip hand. If he is having issues with doing this then some work will have to be done on his grip pressure on the cue.

Its like a basketball player getting ready to size up a free throw. The player is feeling the ball and distance to the hoop.

If you watch the pros that's what they appear to be doing.

Hope this helps :smile:

John
Click to expand...

I lIke your answer.

Some folks try to learn speed control with their mind only, and that doesn't work. When folks I teach really struggle with speed control, I have a method that often helps.

Have the player set up an easy shot, 1/2 ball hit, with the cue ball only traveling a couple feet for easy position. Make sure the cue ball is far enough from the object ball for it to begin its roll before contact.

Have them shoot the shot until they execute it several times successfully. Then immediately set the shot up again (use the little stick-on reinforcers to insure the set-up is the same) AND SHOOT IT WITH THEIR EYES CLOSED, concentrating on how it FEELS.

If on their first try they miss their position by a lot, it means they may be trying to control speed ONLY with their mind. You should not, and cannot play pool successfully by separating the mind from the body. The two work together...it's called "muscle memory".

Once they get the "feel" for simple shots, obviously move on to shots requiring varying speeds. Then do the same routine hitting various points on the vertical axis of the cue ball.

The player discussed here has a good thing going, if they are still using just the vertical axis of the CB. Best to learn cue ball control, including speed, with the vertical axis before learning to use side spin.

Of course, with all aspects of the pool game, having sound fundamentals makes all this stuff MUCH easier...
 
Few are willing enough to get better to actually do them, but drills are the best way to learn speed control. Do something like target pool, just put a piece of paper on the table, and have the cb land on it after making the shot. Keep doing it. Eventually, you will learn to gauge the speed to go to different distances.

Once you get decent at it, then you also know how to adjust to different tables. How to hit a little firmer or softer, how to use follow or draw or stun to get your position easier. You would be amazed what you can learn in just a half hour of doing drills.
 
Pidge said:
I've been keeping it simple. Just getting him to pocket a ball and get back to centre table off 1 or 2 rails.
Click to expand...

Not particularly helpful in this instance but being able to land the CB on the blue spot consistently is hugely advantageous in pool.

Locking it in his mind is the hard part.
 
zpele said:
Wait... what?
Click to expand...

I said was that if the guy wants to learn good position and use it regularly then he shoudn't be blasting around like half the time but performing most shots at low and pocket speed. I thought it would be obvious to most people so what's the fuss all about?
 
Push&Pool said:
I said was that if the guy wants to learn good position and use it regularly then he shoudn't be blasting around like half the time but performing most shots at low and pocket speed. I thought it would be obvious to most people so what's the fuss all about?
Click to expand...

You forgot your statement that you don't play for position.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk.
 
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