It's a secret:
Play more pool.
Quit watching videos, buying books, reading magazines, and posting to forums. Spend that time playing pool. You might say, "I'll do it in addition to playing pool", and I say spend that additional time playing more pool. Don't get me wrong--there are some great sources of information available...but none of them will do you as much good as practicing a shot you miss until you can't miss it.
A lot of stuff is fun to see or read about, but is pretty much useless when it comes to real play, For instance, the importance of a pendulum stroke. Willie Mosconi ran 526 balls without one. How about low deflection shafts? Or shaft diameter? None of that really matters. What really matters is picking a stick and sticking with it. Quit wasting time and money on new, "magical" sticks and shafts. Humans are very versatile. Efren shot some of his best pool with a cue that no good player would ever use. Just ask JoeyA. Talking (arguing) about this stuff on forums all day long will not help your game one bit--compared to playing more pool for the same amount of time.
You know, you could read some books about the physics of bicycle riding. And there are a few magazines. And videos. But nothing compares to actually getting on one.
For instance, let's talk about bank. Pretty hard stuff to do. It's easy to get caught up in reading about or watching videos showing you how to make 4- and 5-rail shots. But that's not important. Bank is won by consistently making 1-rail shots and getting shape for the next one. You hope you never have to shoot a hard shot, and instead you should probably play a safety, anyway.
Same thing is true for regular pool. My sig here used to be:
"Make every easy shot.
Make every shot easy."
Trick shots are cool, but almost never come up in a game. And so, you should spend almost all of your time practicing the easy shots we all miss all the time.
How about coaching? There are some great coaches. But ask yourself this: Who were Earl, Efren, and Willie's coaches? Or most other great players? Sure, they learned from other people--we all do...but a dedicated coach isn't needed to be successful.
How about talent? Some people do start out with a better chance at succeeding. But that's it--talent is just the start--not the whole story, Work is what counts. A hard worker can beat a lazy, more "talented" player.
So...
Play more pool.
Play more pool.
Quit watching videos, buying books, reading magazines, and posting to forums. Spend that time playing pool. You might say, "I'll do it in addition to playing pool", and I say spend that additional time playing more pool. Don't get me wrong--there are some great sources of information available...but none of them will do you as much good as practicing a shot you miss until you can't miss it.
A lot of stuff is fun to see or read about, but is pretty much useless when it comes to real play, For instance, the importance of a pendulum stroke. Willie Mosconi ran 526 balls without one. How about low deflection shafts? Or shaft diameter? None of that really matters. What really matters is picking a stick and sticking with it. Quit wasting time and money on new, "magical" sticks and shafts. Humans are very versatile. Efren shot some of his best pool with a cue that no good player would ever use. Just ask JoeyA. Talking (arguing) about this stuff on forums all day long will not help your game one bit--compared to playing more pool for the same amount of time.
You know, you could read some books about the physics of bicycle riding. And there are a few magazines. And videos. But nothing compares to actually getting on one.
For instance, let's talk about bank. Pretty hard stuff to do. It's easy to get caught up in reading about or watching videos showing you how to make 4- and 5-rail shots. But that's not important. Bank is won by consistently making 1-rail shots and getting shape for the next one. You hope you never have to shoot a hard shot, and instead you should probably play a safety, anyway.
Same thing is true for regular pool. My sig here used to be:
"Make every easy shot.
Make every shot easy."
Trick shots are cool, but almost never come up in a game. And so, you should spend almost all of your time practicing the easy shots we all miss all the time.
How about coaching? There are some great coaches. But ask yourself this: Who were Earl, Efren, and Willie's coaches? Or most other great players? Sure, they learned from other people--we all do...but a dedicated coach isn't needed to be successful.
How about talent? Some people do start out with a better chance at succeeding. But that's it--talent is just the start--not the whole story, Work is what counts. A hard worker can beat a lazy, more "talented" player.
So...
Play more pool.
Last edited:
