intermediate players: who many times can you run 6 balls in rotation ?

yes bob. when I put the 6 balls in pre determined spots, I can easily make all 6 balls. your right, when I throw them out in a scatter pattern, thats when It gets difficult.

I will now start breaking each time and removing balls. thanks for the advice.

That is great advice Bob gave. When I do similar run out drills, if I happen to throw the eight out, the 8 automatically is the last ball, regardless of other balls are a higher number, because I'm an 8 ball player.

If you struggle w 6 then go to 5, if you can make five, go back to six. Again, great video T Lowry put out on that.

That's what I've been working for the last couple months.
 
Can make them more often than not. My issue is the simple things that I get lazy about.
 
I do a similar drill, but I plan it all out before the first shot... which rails I wanna hit,
which pockets each ball will go into, etc. Then I try to do the run exactly as I imagined it.

Doing it this way, I'm not allowed to hit extra rails or play balls into the wrong pocket.
I can't do 'recovery shots'.

If I succeed 3 times, I add a ball.

I've gotten to 6 balls before doing it this way, but getting to 7 is tough.
In fact I'm not sure I've ever gotten to 7 this way.

I've run 6 balls, at least 3 times in a row, doing some recovery shots after playing bad position.
But that's in games, not in a drill.

If you did it 6 times before, that's pretty good.
 
my priorities are somewhere between having fun, and getting better. that said, I often throw out 6-7 balls and play rotation.
I like the number seven, so sometimes I'll throw that one on the spot and see if I can get there.
bob's idea about breaking and pulling balls off is neat, gonna try that one-
 
IMHO I don't think that you get better forcing yourself to play it in the pocket that you pre determine.

There was a format where you called your next pocket before you shot, and it died a horrible death.

Being able to come with a shot is what makes pool great.
 
Here’s a drill I endorse because it gives you feedback every time you attempt it and you instantly know
whether you are playing up to your average or better. it is the same principle as a established golf index
or handicap. You can do this once a month to establish your best average and you always compare your
current practice session to your best average.

Just do this drill 10x and come up with your average score. Scatter 15 balls around the table and use ball
in hand to start and see how many balls you can consecutively pocket. Write down your score for 10 tries
and come up with your average. For the next month, every time you try this drill again, your goal is to beat
your average score and do it consistently so that the following month when you repeat this process (ten
drills to arrive at a new average), it should be a greater number than the prior month. If it isn’t, then you
have done something wrong since you didn’t get better.

If your new monthly average does not increase, then you keep your old average and hopefully by the
3rd month,you’ll be able to produce a higher average when you repeat the drill. If not, you had better go get
some professional instruction if it is the same after two months. Every time you do this drill, you know the
goal is to run all 15 balls but your average is only x.....so when you see how you do, you can see if you are
playing at or near or better than your average score. This drill becomes a yardstick drill or better put, you
get immediate feedback on how well you are playing that day.

It is easy to average 5 & 6 balls or even 7 or 8 balls. However, running double digit average requires that
you run the table a few times which is always fun to do. I think this practice approach allows you to not
only work on a wider variety of shots & position play but also offers instant comparison with your average
score that lets you know if your game is on or off. A good goal is to reach an average above a dozen balls.
 
I love this drill, (I guess its a drill). just throw 6 random balls on the table and start with ball in hand, and shoot in rotation. sometime I only get one rack, sometimes two or three.
I think my best in 6 in a row before a mistake In position.

just wondering how my fellow intermediate brothers do in this drill:)

Have you been doing this skill test?

https://youtu.be/AgdrAwaaCBU

I do a similar drill, but I plan it all out before the first shot... which rails I wanna hit,
which pockets each ball will go into, etc. Then I try to do the run exactly as I imagined it.

Doing it this way, I'm not allowed to hit extra rails or play balls into the wrong pocket.
I can't do 'recovery shots'.

If I succeed 3 times, I add a ball.

I've gotten to 6 balls before doing it this way, but getting to 7 is tough.
In fact I'm not sure I've ever gotten to 7 this way.

I've run 6 balls, at least 3 times in a row, doing some recovery shots after playing bad position.
But that's in games, not in a drill.

If you did it 6 times before, that's pretty good.
op throwing 6 balls out and running them is easier than doing it the tor lowry's way
which is similar to what creedo is doing
if you can do it tors way
it makes you a strong player
tor lowrys skill test grades.jpg
 
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I love this drill, (I guess its a drill). just throw 6 random balls on the table and start with ball in hand, and shoot in rotation. sometime I only get one rack, sometimes two or three.
I think my best in 6 in a row before a mistake In position.

just wondering how my fellow intermediate brothers do in this drill:)
Perhaps silly novice question, when you shoot in rotation you mean sequentially 1-6?
 
Been stuck on six ball for a couple months. Easy going through 5 balls. Drives me NUTS! The rules of the drill state you must beat the ghost back to back in a race to 10, but the ghost gets 5 on the wire! (at least that's how I've been doing it...so 10-4 is a win, 10-5 is a loss.

I usually do pretty well the first set, usually winning 10-3 or 10-2. The second set is where I struggle for some stupid reason.
 
Here’s a drill I endorse because it gives you feedback every time you attempt it and you instantly know
whether you are playing up to your average or better. it is the same principle as a established golf index
or handicap. You can do this once a month to establish your best average and you always compare your
current practice session to your best average.

Just do this drill 10x and come up with your average score. Scatter 15 balls around the table and use ball
in hand to start and see how many balls you can consecutively pocket. Write down your score for 10 tries
and come up with your average. For the next month, every time you try this drill again, your goal is to beat
your average score and do it consistently so that the following month when you repeat this process (ten
drills to arrive at a new average), it should be a greater number than the prior month. If it isn’t, then you
have done something wrong since you didn’t get better.

If your new monthly average does not increase, then you keep your old average and hopefully by the
3rd month,you’ll be able to produce a higher average when you repeat the drill. If not, you had better go get
some professional instruction if it is the same after two months. Every time you do this drill, you know the
goal is to run all 15 balls but your average is only x.....so when you see how you do, you can see if you are
playing at or near or better than your average score. This drill becomes a yardstick drill or better put, you
get immediate feedback on how well you are playing that day.

It is easy to average 5 & 6 balls or even 7 or 8 balls. However, running double digit average requires that
you run the table a few times which is always fun to do. I think this practice approach allows you to not
only work on a wider variety of shots & position play but also offers instant comparison with your average
score that lets you know if your game is on or off. A good goal is to reach an average above a dozen balls.

Did that drill quite a bit last year. Didn't do a handicap, went for highest run. It is helpful in that it gets the player familiar with running many balls. But I feel it's a lot of simple stop shots. I posted a thread on it and ask if anyone can run endlessly, there were a couple here who said they could. My best is 70 balls. Haven't worked that drill since last fall.

Do the same drill but call the next shot after the one you're on. That will tighten your leaves up a bit.
 
I love this drill, (I guess its a drill). just throw 6 random balls on the table and start with ball in hand, and shoot in rotation. sometime I only get one rack, sometimes two or three.
I think my best in 6 in a row before a mistake In position.

just wondering how my fellow intermediate brothers do in this drill:)

It depends on the intermediates level ,
C level I would guess 4 out of 10 would be about right.
It would be fun to get some real solid data on it though.
The thing I notice with weaker players is not that they can't pocket balls , they just play themselves out of position so far, they have an almost unmakeable shot by about the 4th consecutive ball
i guess thats what makes a D into a C ,
They play position into the larger areas and are coming toward the next ball , not going past the face of it.
 
It depends on the intermediates level ,
C level I would guess 4 out of 10 would be about right.
It would be fun to get some real solid data on it though.
The thing I notice with weaker players is not that they can't pocket balls , they just play themselves out of position so far, they have an almost unmakeable shot by about the 4th consecutive ball
i guess thats what makes a D into a C ,
They play position into the larger areas and are coming toward the next ball , not going past the face of it.

This has been my experience as my own game has improved. And hand in hand with this is the mistake of leaving straight in shots. I see a lot of folks who play position to get straight in on their next shot because they feel more comfortable than giving themselves an angle. As shot making improves, you don't get so intimidated by angles and it gets much easier to play position.
 
This has been my experience as my own game has improved. And hand in hand with this is the mistake of leaving straight in shots. I see a lot of folks who play position to get straight in on their next shot because they feel more comfortable than giving themselves an angle. As shot making improves, you don't get so intimidated by angles and it gets much easier to play position.

Find an angle you like and can get anywhere on the table with and play for that , straight in limits what you can do so much it is usually fatal, unless on the last ball or 2. Although, even when you are straight in there are tricks like back hand English that will save you if you understand how it works. Which most intermediates do not.
 
Bob this compliments what I said about the randomness, I’ve seen too many people throw balls out then spread them out with their cue even more, random needs to be random

Agreed. When I'm just messing around I throw 9 or 15 balls out and try to spread them out, when I'm testing myself I will rack and break, this also gives you the opportunity to practice breaking. :thumbup:
 
Here’s a drill I endorse because it gives you feedback every time you attempt it and you instantly know
whether you are playing up to your average or better. it is the same principle as a established golf index
or handicap. You can do this once a month to establish your best average and you always compare your
current practice session to your best average.

Just do this drill 10x and come up with your average score. Scatter 15 balls around the table and use ball
in hand to start and see how many balls you can consecutively pocket. Write down your score for 10 tries
and come up with your average. For the next month, every time you try this drill again, your goal is to beat
your average score and do it consistently so that the following month when you repeat this process (ten
drills to arrive at a new average), it should be a greater number than the prior month. If it isn’t, then you
have done something wrong since you didn’t get better.

If your new monthly average does not increase, then you keep your old average and hopefully by the
3rd month,you’ll be able to produce a higher average when you repeat the drill. If not, you had better go get
some professional instruction if it is the same after two months. Every time you do this drill, you know the
goal is to run all 15 balls but your average is only x.....so when you see how you do, you can see if you are
playing at or near or better than your average score. This drill becomes a yardstick drill or better put, you
get immediate feedback on how well you are playing that day.

It is easy to average 5 & 6 balls or even 7 or 8 balls. However, running double digit average requires that
you run the table a few times which is always fun to do. I think this practice approach allows you to not
only work on a wider variety of shots & position play but also offers instant comparison with your average
score that lets you know if your game is on or off. A good goal is to reach an average above a dozen balls.

Bowlliards is another good game to track your progress. First year or two I couldn't get past 100, my average is now hovering around 210'sh. It was 230'sh but I recently put Simonis on my my table and I'm still getting used to it.
 
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