Just started practicing 14.1. Do you keep shooting after miss or start over?

J

justinb386

Banned
I just started playing 14.1, and really do not know what I am doing.

Someone on here advised me to start playing 14.1 to overall make me a better player .

Well, after an hour of practicing, I still can't get out 2 racks, and get really bummed out when ever I miss a ball.

I wish I could learn to not let my emotions affect my game, because then I just start missing everything, lol.

I am mainly just curious to learn more about the game.

To be honest , I have played maybe 10 hours of pool in the last year, but really want to get back into playing again.

I thought maybe playing 14.1 would get me back in stroke the fastest.

When you practice 14.1, do you start over after missing a ball, or do you just keep shooting (like pretend that you are playing yourself )?

I grew up playing 9 ball by the way, and never really played anything else.

I played 1 pocket every now and then, and really love that game, but never really got good at it.

I always just loved 9 ball.

I wish to become a stronger all around player.
 
I keep going, otherwise I'd spend way too much time racking, sadly. I think it's useful to keep going as Bob said so you can work through your planned pattern, key ball, etc.
 
I'd have bloody knuckles if I kept re racking. It's one damn hard game! The key is knowing where the cue ball is destined, so you can continue to break apart the stack, and balls close together which are in clusters.

I can much more easily run an occasional rack of 9 ball, but even an excellent 9 ball player, is gonna have major trouble ending up with a viable break ball and cue ball position to have any hope of getting past the first 14.

Definitely not a banger's game, nor something learned overnight, but a game in which you'll eventually master all your skills.

If memory serves, in The Color of Money, the reserected Eddie Felson likened 9 ball to playing Cribbage or Handball.
 
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I keep going, usually. Sometimes I'll start over. You're beginning to see just how hard it is to shoot any ball in any pocket at any time;) It ain't easy, brother!!
 
Thanks for your helpful replies. I know the patterns just fine, and how to get shape on that last key ball. My issue is focus and consistency , and letting my emotions get me down. I know I have a lot to learn about 14.1 though , because I am clueless about mastering the stack, if that makes sense. And I am sadly just not a very consistent player. I really like the game though . it would be great to someday run 100 balls. Curious what your high runs are? Mine is currently like 28, lol.
 
If you just want to practice, keep going. But, if you want to gauge your progress and keep a measure of your high runs, of course you start over.

Not to mention, practicing the break is an important part of controlling your emotions in the game.
 
help

So many of your questions are answered in your own statement,

( I HAVE ONLY PLAYED 10 HOURS IN THE PAST YEAR )

And you get upset when you miss a ball, LOL
 
I practiced on Thursday for 3 hrs and the best I did was 17 balls. And I had to bank 2 balls.
Haven't played 14.1 since 1987.
The table and balls were filthy and my cue ball kept getting stuck in the rack or on other balls.
My high run before I quit in 1987 was 75.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N910A using Tapatalk
 
For emotional control, I would re-rack after every miss. Take the time it takes to cherish my mistake, accept what it has to teach me, and get back into a calm happy mood, before my next shot.

Thank you kindly.
 
3andstop said:
If you just want to practice, keep going. But, if you want to gauge your progress and keep a measure of your high runs, of course you start over.

Not to mention, practicing the break is an important part of controlling your emotions in the game.
Click to expand...

You can still keep track of your runs without starting over. I've actually found it useful to take a pen and a small notebook with me and write down each run length. It keeps you from getting sloppy when you know you're going to be writing the number down. It also lets you keep playing through from mid-rack points which is what you'll face in a playing situation when your opponent misses the ball.

While practicing the break is important, we don't always get the ideal break shot we setup for ourselves when reracking. That is another reason I like to keep going. Makes me focus on picking a good key ball and getting right for the break shot....but I don't always get it as perfect as I'd like so I end up having to work with some different break shot situations, which I think is helpful too.
 
If you average over 5 balls, you should always rerack after your miss. Benefits:

-reliable data on your runs (write them all down, calculate average and HR!)
-you'll have at least something at stake, you have to rerack if you miss
-you'll have to concentrate and focus, otherwise the constant racking will get on your nerves :)
-you'll get a chance to practice different breakshots from ball in hand, don't always go with the standard side of the rack breakshot!
 
justinb386 said:
I just started playing 14.1, and really do not know what I am doing.

Someone on here advised me to start playing 14.1 to overall make me a better player .

Well, after an hour of practicing, I still can't get out 2 racks, and get really bummed out when ever I miss a ball.

I wish I could learn to not let my emotions affect my game, because then I just start missing everything, lol.

I am mainly just curious to learn more about the game.

To be honest , I have played maybe 10 hours of pool in the last year, but really want to get back into playing again.

I thought maybe playing 14.1 would get me back in stroke the fastest.

When you practice 14.1, do you start over after missing a ball, or do you just keep shooting (like pretend that you are playing yourself )?

I grew up playing 9 ball by the way, and never really played anything else.

I played 1 pocket every now and then, and really love that game, but never really got good at it.

I always just loved 9 ball.

I wish to become a stronger all around player.
Click to expand...

You aren't going to like this - the advice you got was... incomplete.

You've started at chapter 3 or 4. Go back to page one.

1. Beg, borrow, or steal a copy of George Fels' "Mastering Pool". Read the section on 14.1
at least twice. before you hit another ball.

2. Look up Bob Byrne - Dr Dave, and Bob Jewett's resources for DRILLS esp
Cue Ball control - The infamous "L" drill is a good start.

4. Learn everything you can about patterns. This will also help your 8 Ball.

5. Youtube is your friend - there are a gazillion good videos about 14.1. Watch the
instructional ones as well as top players in competition. Jim Rempe's 'How to Run a Rack' is excellent.

Dale
 
I feel strongly that practice HAS to be made enjoyable in some way,
or tweak a certain aspect of your personality... for example,
the "high score" aspect some people have that inspires them
to want to beat a previous numerical record.

If practice doesn't push any of those buttons, it might still be effective,
but you won't want to do it very often. You might think "I should" or even
"next saturday I will"... but you just won't.

You have to enjoy it on some level.

So if racking fifteen balls, missing after 6 shots, and reracking feels shitty and boring, DON'T.
It's not gonna help you. You're not gonna wanna practice.

Find a drill that you personally can enjoy. If it's 20% less "effective" than some other drill,
but makes you want to practice 400% more often, then obviously it's the right drill for you.

For straight pool specifically, I think it's useful to do those "final 5 ball" type of drills
where you plan for a breakshot, and get good on it, and then see if you can actually
splatter the rack. If you do that, you accomplished a specific goal
and anything beyond that (like running another 5 balls) is just gravy.

It's also a more realistic way to start a session than ball in hand on the break ball.
That's just not gonna come up in a real match. Whereas working from your own leave
after a run of several balls should come up EVERY match.
 
That all depends at in which point of a rack i miss.

If i already have the table figured out i mostly will continue shooting, to see if i can play it out as i pictured it. though i will remove the ball that i missed. starting the count over.

if it is a mess of a table with not alot of options and there is no viable way to to resume the table from that point i will just re-rack and setup a new breakshot.

You should post this question in the 14.1 Forum to get some good opinions from the 14.1 Junkies in that group !!!

-Steve
 
Wanna get better at 14.1?

Get a copy of "Play Your Best Straight Pool" bd y Phil Capelle.
Lots of illustrations and a comprehensive explanation of all aspects of 14.1.

Read it, study it, take it with you to the pool hall........it will help elevate your game.
.

Matt B.
 
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