Lessons during a steep learning curve OR wait for a plateau?

[michael4]

Put a pool table in the house a few months ago, and “bang balls” almost daily.
I have never played regularly before, so as you might expect, I’m rapidly improving and expect to keep rapidly improving over the next several months.

I have a strong desire to get better, and want to take a lesson in the near future, but I can only afford one lesson in the budget, so the question becomes: get a lesson now, OR get it after my improvement rate slows down?

My thought is to wait, because 50% of the lesson I would receive today would be things I will soon figure out on my own through practice and reading the internet. I think I will get a more meaningful lesson once my learning curve has slowed down and I actually need outside help to get to the next level.

What are your thoughts?

(I have a feeling you guys are going to tell me to get lessons now, so that I don’t develop/reinforce any bad habits)

 

[West Point 1987]

IMHO, if you're of a mind to go to an instructor at some point, do it now to get some good fundamentals and tools; it's easier to adjust stance, stroke mechanics, etc. now rather than later, and you'll make a faster transition and progress going forward.

 

[michael4]

By the way, if my skill level matters to this question, I have never played in a league so I dont know, but my best guess would be:

Before getting table: APA 3, meaning having the ability to make balls, but WILDLY inconsistant.
Currently: APA 4, meaning MUCH improved consistentcy and starting to work on position play and breaking up clusters. Have run a rack before if table is wide open.
3-4 months from now with no lesson: hopefully APA 5 or close to it?
And if not, then able to indentify what part of my game is holding me back..

 

[TBON21]

A lesson now can help you get rid of bad habits that will be extremely hard to rid once you've been playing for a while. Just my two cents

 

[dcb1]

I am in a similar situation as you. I got a table about 7 months ago and play practice everyday. I hit a plateau and then video taped my stroke and realized I had a stroke mechanics issue. This forum was fantastic and helped me troubleshoot. My stance was too open and my wrist was too flexed. Once I fixed those errors, now my game is improving again everyday.

My point to the story is I took a lesson a few months before that but in hindsight, it wasn't worth much because we really didn't focus too much on stroke mechanics. If I had it to do over again, I would find an instructor who was really good at stroke mechanics and who could video my stroke. I think a lesson like this early on would have saved me a lot of time. The second thing I would focus on in the lesson is how to practice. This could save a lot of time as well.

So I guess my opinion is I would take a lesson from a good instructor early on and focus on stroke mechanics (alignment, stance, grip, etc.) and how to practice. Then I would work on that for a long time and slowly introduce some other stuff like English, patterns, and strategy. These things are easier to learn from reading the Internet or a book once you have solid stroke fundamentals.

You don't want to start with bad mechanics and then have to relearn it again once you can't get any better. The trick is finding a great instructor...

 

[randyg]

Put a pool table in the house a few months ago, and “bang balls” almost daily.
I have never played regularly before, so as you might expect, I’m rapidly improving and expect to keep rapidly improving over the next several months.

I have a strong desire to get better, and want to take a lesson in the near future, but I can only afford one lesson in the budget, so the question becomes: get a lesson now, OR get it after my improvement rate slows down?

My thought is to wait, because 50% of the lesson I would receive today would be things I will soon figure out on my own through practice and reading the internet. I think I will get a more meaningful lesson once my learning curve has slowed down and I actually need outside help to get to the next level.

What are your thoughts?

(I have a feeling you guys are going to tell me to get lessons now, so that I don’t develop/reinforce any bad habits)

What area do you live in?

Maybe Scott or I could help.

randyg

 

[Cameron Smith]

Put a pool table in the house a few months ago, and “bang balls” almost daily.
I have never played regularly before, so as you might expect, I’m rapidly improving and expect to keep rapidly improving over the next several months.

I have a strong desire to get better, and want to take a lesson in the near future, but I can only afford one lesson in the budget, so the question becomes: get a lesson now, OR get it after my improvement rate slows down?

My thought is to wait, because 50% of the lesson I would receive today would be things I will soon figure out on my own through practice and reading the internet. I think I will get a more meaningful lesson once my learning curve has slowed down and I actually need outside help to get to the next level.

What are your thoughts?

(I have a feeling you guys are going to tell me to get lessons now, so that I don’t develop/reinforce any bad habits)

On the other hand a lesson in a few months from now may revolve primarily around fixing bad habits you spent the last few months developing. It's better to have someone qualified set you on the right path to improvement. Figuring stuff out on your own is a very tricky route to take, one which I wouldn't recommend to anyone.

 

[chevybob20]

On the other hand a lesson in a few months from now may revolve primarily around fixing bad habits you spent the last few months developing. It's better to have someone qualified set you on the right path to improvement. Figuring stuff out on your own is a very tricky route to take, one which I wouldn't recommend to anyone.

I agree with this. It take longer to stop bad habits than to learn it correctly the first time.