My aiming system, no voodoo or scams in this post

[henho]

IMMSHARMA'S comedic posts got be thinking about my aiming system and I thought I would share it. I used to line up shots using the line of the cue on the line of the shot and have my body lined up, and just trust that everything was straight, then fire away. A while ago I began focusing on the point I am hitting on the cueball (rather than sort of drawing a line from the cue through the cb to the ob). If I stare at this point for a second I see a line form mentally for the cueball to travel. This has helped alot with compensating for English. I am not positive what is going on mentally, but really focusing on that actual point I am hitting on the cb helps aiming immensely.

I started doing this after reading that the reason some of the filipino players were not adressing the cb on the point they were going to hit on their practice strokes was because they were looking at the point they were hitting on the cb, and if they addressed that point and were lined up the cue would be in obstructing their view of that point.

Come to think of it, this post did sound a bit like IMshwarma's. Oh well, no scam here, hope it is helpful to someone.

 

[CaptainJR]

IMMSHARMA'S comedic posts got be thinking about my aiming system and I thought I would share it. I used to line up shots using the line of the cue on the line of the shot and have my body lined up, and just trust that everything was straight, then fire away. A while ago I began focusing on the point I am hitting on the cueball (rather than sort of drawing a line from the cue through the cb to the ob). If I stare at this point for a second I see a line form mentally for the cueball to travel. This has helped alot with compensating for English. I am not positive what is going on mentally, but really focusing on that actual point I am hitting on the cb helps aiming immensely.

I started doing this after reading that the reason some of the filipino players were not adressing the cb on the point they were going to hit on their practice strokes was because they were looking at the point they were hitting on the cb, and if they addressed that point and were lined up the cue would be in obstructing their view of that point.

Come to think of it, this post did sound a bit like IMshwarma's. Oh well, no scam here, hope it is helpful to someone.

WOW, Are you going to get beat up on this one!

A while back there was a post about maybe, just maybe, looking at the cue instead of the object ball on the break shot. Not that they were disagreeing, but there were a few players that said they seem to do better on the break by looking at the object ball. The reason this thread was started is because everyone knows that when your trying to make an object ball, you look at the object ball not the cue ball. So, with that said. Let's assume that you, for whatever reason, were in such a pool slump that looking at the cue ball instead of the object ball helped you for the time being. Now that your out of the slump. Go back to looking at the object ball and see if you don't start to do better.


This would be so off the wall to me that it just crossed my mind, it could be helpful momentarily. Something like the opposite of being in the zone. If your in an extended slump, sometimes it can be frustrating waiting to get out of the slump. So you practice and play and practice and play hoping that what ever it is that is screwing up your game will go away. Maybe by playing a couple games looking at the cue ball when shooting would feel so weird that when you went back to looking at the object ball everything would fall into place and the slump would be gone. Maybe.

 

[Kerry Impson]

With all due respect, Captain, I'm not sure henho's really talking about looking at the object ball last, just using a different method for lining up the shot. I could be wrong, but that was my take on it.

 

[CaptainJR]

opps, I was thinking he was talking about looking at the cue last. If not, than please forgive and ignor my reply.

Sorry

 

[drivermaker]

opps, I was thinking he was talking about looking at the cue last. If not, than please forgive and ignor my reply.

Sorry

If you want forgiveness, go to a church and see a priest. We don't cotton to them thar reading disabilities in these here parts. Ye'll be walkin' the gangplank soon, matey!

 

[henho]

I was actually just referring to the warm-up strokes, I still look at the ob last when pulling the trigger. However, your misread of my post did raise an interesting observation.

 

[Renegade]

I don't even understand the way the Filipinos aim! They wind up the cue all over the place! Watching them on TV you'd never know where they were aiming to hit the CB until the final stroke. Or maybe it's just me?

 

[CaptainJR]

I was actually just referring to the warm-up strokes, I still look at the ob last when pulling the trigger. However, your misread of my post did raise an interesting observation.

henho
I do think the second paragraph of my response has merit. If you get into a slump where you are missing slightly more difficult shots, you wonder just what you can do about it. This reminds me of the scene in 'Tin Cup', at the driving range when Roy 'Tin Cup' McAvoy (Kevin Costner) was shanking the ball. Romeo (Cheech Marin) his caddie made him turn his hat around backwards, put a tee in his ear, move his change in the opposite pocket, etc. He stepped up and hit the 7 iron down the middle. Of course that was in a movie, if this would help in real life would be an individual thing. But if your in that predicament, your usually ready to try anything.

This would be so off the wall to me that it just crossed my mind, it could be helpful momentarily. Something like the opposite of being in the zone. If your in an extended slump, sometimes it can be frustrating waiting to get out of the slump. So you practice and play and practice and play hoping that what ever it is that is screwing up your game will go away. Maybe by playing a couple games looking at the cue ball when shooting would feel so weird that when you went back to looking at the object ball everything would fall into place and the slump would be gone. Maybe.

 

[Rickw]

I remember reading something quite a while ago addressing how the pros aim. This article claimed that all the pros focused on the ob just before pulling the trigger with one exception, Earl Strickland. According to this article, Earl focuses on the cb before he pulls the trigger. I don't know how true this is, just thought I'd pass it along. I focus on the ob before I shoot except when jacked up over a ball or up tight against the rail. In those situations, I focus on the cb just before I shoot. I think that as long as you line up on the shot first, it doesn't make that much difference but that's just me.

 

[JoeyInCali]

I don't even understand the way the Filipinos aim! They wind up the cue all over the place! Watching them on TV you'd never know where they were aiming to hit the CB until the final stroke. Or maybe it's just me?

They start pointing at the very base of the cb ( the darkest shadow should be the center).
Then they go up to the point where they want to hit the cb.
Bustamante is a freak. He comes up on the cb on the last stroke.

 

[CaptainJR]

...... I think I'll start a new thread. As said above, What your looking at during contact wasn't what henho was talking about in this thread anyway.

 

[lewdo26]

Aiming at cb base on first warm up stroke

They start pointing at the very base of the cb ( the darkest shadow should be the center).
Then they go up to the point where they want to hit the cb.
Bustamante is a freak. He comes up on the cb on the last stroke.

Is it the shadow or is it because where the base of the cb touches the cloth is where you'll find the central axis on the cb? Incidentally, on shots that require sidespin, I do not know how focusing your first warm up stroke at the base helps you; but people do it anyway. Is it a matter of habit? But you're right Joey, Bustamante has a freaky, circular stroke... and a very intimidating one.

 

[onepocketchump]

At the point in my pool playing life where I had 18 years of experience I had two things happen that changed my game for the better. #1 is that I met a man named Hal Houle who had some "unconventional" aiming systems which are unexplainable by me but they work. The second thing is that I took some lessons from a semi-pro who immediately realized that I was not aiming where I thought I was. He taught me an easier way to aim that has brought my game up by three balls at least.

I can't explain why Hal's systems work but they do. When I show them to people I very often get a reaction of surprise when the balls begin to split the pocket. Old timers and very good players recognize some of Hal's systems from things they learned from other people.

What I learned from the semi-pro is a way to approach the shot that puts the cue on the correct aiming line. This is the biggest thing that has improved my game. Now, for the first time in my pool playing life, I can line up on a ball and shoot it with the confidence that if I miss it it is not because I am not aiming correctly. I make more shots, more tough shots with ease than I ever did before.

So, given what I personally have learned about aiming over the last three years, I am a firm believer in systems. I do not think that they should be a crutch but instead a basis for a good game. No system makes up for a shaky stance or jumping up or any number of other bad habits. I used to believe that just being devoted and hitting a million balls would make me a good player. I hit a million balls in 18 years and I became an okay player with flashes of brilliance. At times I fell into the zone and that euphoria is what kept me playing in the face of inconsistency.

Now, with the insight I have gained about aiming, I am able to focus on the nuances of the game and enjoy it all the more. I may never become a great player due to the rest of my bad habits but I definitely know how to aim and it is not what is commonly taught in most books and videos that I have read or seen.

John