Looking for a mentor/teacher

PayasoRF

PayasoRF

Registered
Newbie here have been reading tons of post but never posted anything. I am in the Dallas, Texas area and I am having a hard time finding a mentor/teacher to help me take my pool game to a new level above pool halls. I am not a top notch player but I do know some fundamentals but that is my personal opinion on myself. I really need someone who can really teach me and show me cue ball control and position play. I am not looking for someone to show me for free I will pay for weekly lessons I know time is money and I am willing to invest money in myself to learn the game of pool (8 ball,9 ball, or 10 ball). Thanks for reading and if this is not the right area for this post could the moderators please move.
 
I don't quite understand your whole post but welcome. Find a poolroom with 9 footers. Become a regular at this poolroom, meaning go play there at least 3 or 4 times a week. The players will get to know you and eventually you will be able to get into games with them. You get better by hitting lots and lots of balls and playing better players and never forget to just watch. Take lessons if that's your thing. You tube has tons of videos.
 
I am looking for a more of a one on one learning session. The pool hall I like to go to has a lot of good players but to me it seems like pool hall players are willing to teach much so that you do not get the upper hand on them. I definitely do watch a ton of videos on cue ball control but it is different watching and trying to figure out my mistakes by myself. I would prefer someone with a high level of skill to watch how I play and tell me the nuisances of where my mistakes are that way I sort of shortens my learning curve.
 
Search for Randy Goettlicher, I think he had a private teaching facility in the Dallas area. Also, CJ Wiley teaches, and frequents this forum. I'm sure there are other teachers, probably just have to ask around at the various pool halls.
 
BrianaBrown13 said:
Search for Randy Goettlicher, I think he had a private teaching facility in the Dallas area. Also, CJ Wiley teaches, and frequents this forum. I'm sure there are other teachers, probably just have to ask around at the various pool halls.
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+1 to Randy or Scott Lee if he is in the area
 
Before proceeding too far: CB control and position play are some of the hardest things to teach because everybody sees the table differently and you can't really teach somebody to see the table in a certain way.

For 2 years I worked on ball pocketing and getting my fundamentals tight and consistent (with the help of many fantastic players), and I only just recently started to be able to focus on CB control and position play and it's improving fast.

Anyway, my point is that CB control and position play are things you really learn as you continue to play. It's beneficial to play with strong players not so that they can directly teach you but so that you can see what they do to move from ball to ball. As they're running out, compare their shots to what you would have done, and try to understand why there are differences.

Just my two cents ;)
 
Zphix said:
Before proceeding too far: CB control and position play are some of the hardest things to teach because everybody sees the table differently and you can't really teach somebody to see the table in a certain way.

For 2 years I worked on ball pocketing and getting my fundamentals tight and consistent (with the help of many fantastic players), and I only just recently started to be able to focus on CB control and position play and it's improving fast.

Anyway, my point is that CB control and position play are things you really learn as you continue to play. It's beneficial to play with strong players not so that they can directly teach you but so that you can see what they do to move from ball to ball. As they're running out, compare their shots to what you would have done, and try to understand why there are differences.

Just my two cents ;)
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What he said. Some people don't take to lessons as some people don't take to school. They learn by doing. There is no substitute, in my opinion, to playing better players. That's how you learn to SEE the table.
 
Zphix said:
Before proceeding too far: CB control and position play are some of the hardest things to teach because everybody sees the table differently and you can't really teach somebody to see the table in a certain way.

For 2 years I worked on ball pocketing and getting my fundamentals tight and consistent (with the help of many fantastic players), and I only just recently started to be able to focus on CB control and position play and it's improving fast.

Anyway, my point is that CB control and position play are things you really learn as you continue to play. It's beneficial to play with strong players not so that they can directly teach you but so that you can see what they do to move from ball to ball. As they're running out, compare their shots to what you would have done, and try to understand why there are differences.

Just my two cents ;)
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CB control, positional play, and seeing the table in a certain way are definitely things that can be taught. It is done all the time.
 
randyg said:
Randy Goettlicher is one of the top ranked Instructors around.

He teaches 7 days a week.

Contact him at

214 908 2908

goettlicher@verizon.net

Waiting to hear from you
randyg
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Here's your absolute best option. Randy is in Dallas, and one of (or maybe THE) best instructors in the country. You won't do much better than Randy
 
Neil said:
CB control, positional play, and seeing the table in a certain way are definitely things that can be taught. It is done all the time.
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I respectfully disagree Neil.

I looked all over for these answers and the general consensus was "you learn by doing it." I agree that you can teach people basic principles of CB control and position play but you can't do these things until you do them for yourself.

My opinion is that you can give people the puzzle pieces but you can't show them how to put them together.
 
Zphix said:
I respectfully disagree Neil.

I looked all over for these answers and the general consensus was "you learn by doing it." I agree that you can teach people basic principles of CB control and position play but you can't do these things until you do them for yourself.

My opinion is that you can give people the puzzle pieces but you can't show them how to put them together.
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Agreed Z. When it comes to speed, which is the toughest thing to master, it's all hitting a million balls and feel. You can't learn speed in a book or from a teacher.
 
Zphix said:
I respectfully disagree Neil.

I looked all over for these answers and the general consensus was "you learn by doing it." I agree that you can teach people basic principles of CB control and position play but you can't do these things until you do them for yourself.

My opinion is that you can give people the puzzle pieces but you can't show them how to put them together.
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Actually, it's a combination of the two. What you are taught, needs to be practiced hard at the table. Just going to the table just makes the process longer imho. I mean, 15 minutes in regards to the tangent line is going to do wonders for someone that lacks CB control, and then he can go practice it all he wants to refine it.

I can teach a kid to throw a curveball, and I do all the time, but they still have to go practice it to get good at it. But had I not taught the grip, the arm angle, the release, he would have wasted a LOT of time trying to figure that out !!

If you have nothing but time, then sure, take the long route and just shoot balls. Many, many really good players did well with that train of thought, but they also put in a lot of years developing it. Of course, many, many league players took the train of thought too, and we all know those guys, been playing pool or golf for years and never gets better ;)
 
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Zphix said:
I respectfully disagree Neil.

I looked all over for these answers and the general consensus was "you learn by doing it." I agree that you can teach people basic principles of CB control and position play but you can't do these things until you do them for yourself.

My opinion is that you can give people the puzzle pieces but you can't show them how to put them together.
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Of course the person has to learn to put them together. And, he has to practice a lot. No one is saying one doesn't have to practice. All the instructor can do is show one how to do something, it is up to the student to learn to do what he is taught.

Far too many seem to think that just going to an instructor is somehow supposed to automatically make one a better player. That is not how it works.
 
Seems like we all share the same consensus then.

The way you wrote your original reply, Neil, made it seem like you could be taught exact position play, and precise CB control. Now I assume you're talking being able to "teach" the same things that I think can be taught.

I never had formal instruction, I learned by watching players and I took heavily to the internet and I did nothing but put my time and energy into practicing what I was reading and seeing.

Take my words for what they are :P
 
Zphix said:
Seems like we all share the same consensus then.

The way you wrote your original reply, Neil, made it seem like you could be taught exact position play, and precise CB control. Now I assume you're talking being able to "teach" the same things that I think can be taught.

I never had formal instruction, I learned by watching players and I took heavily to the internet and I did nothing but put my time and energy into practicing what I was reading and seeing.

Take my words for what they are :P
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One can be taught how to put the cb on a precise line. One can be taught how to read pattern play, one can be taught some speed control. For the student to be able to put it all together, takes much, much practice. But, as RJ stated, it takes much less practice when taught than to just figure it all out on your own, if one ever does.

For example, ever seen the wagon wheel drill? Extremely tough drill, if one only goes by feel. However, once one is taught how to aim to get the cb to go where one wants to, it becomes much easier to do correctly. The student still has to learn by experience to do what he is taught to do, but it sure does shorten the learning curve by a mile.
 
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