My quest for Easter Eggs...fundamentals DO matter!

Tin Man

Tin Man

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It's hard to explain how this could happen, but I spent the first 25 years of my pool career oblivious to most of the fundamentals. I learned to play in the mid 90s in a relatively small town of Rochester, MN. The top players in town weren't elite, and they certainly weren't fundamentally sound. The players I usually got to play were B and C level. There was no streaming tournament coverage or instructional videos (unless you want to count 'How to Hustle Pool'). And no one ever worked with me on how to play the game.

So I did what any 14 year old that wants to be a world champion would do. I rented and re-rented the same 8 VHS Accu-stats tapes from the local pool room until I knew every word Billy or Grady would say before they said it. Most of what I learned was from books. Byrne's Standard Book and Fel's Mastering Pool were tremendous helps to me. And of course I played pool 8-10 hours a day, sometimes more, every day of the year including holidays and weekends.

Through years of hard work I found ways to overcome some of the defects in my fundamentals, but my lack of exposure to top level competition left me short of pro level. When I was 17-18 I was definitely a tough player, but I was no threat to win major events. Based on this, and my growing understanding of what the pool road looked like, I decided not to pursue pool for a living any longer. I got a job, started a family, etc. Pool has remained a major part of my life, and I still love to play, compete, and of course try to get better.

For many years I did so many things wrong I just always thought I'd be one of those guys with screwed up fundamentals. But for some reason I finally opened my mind to the idea of relearning a few things, and now I can't remember why I waited so long. After 15 years of painstaking incremental progress, my game has suddenly gotten stronger and more powerful in real time. Almost overnight. It turns out there is a correct way to play, and if you learn it the balls will disappear from the table.

Here are some of the things I have learned in the last 12 months:

Backswing: My stroke and back swing used to be rushed and jerky. I would get my cue moving back and forth, and my final stroke seemed to start from the cue ball where I'd whip it back and then immediately fling it forward in what appeared to be one rushed motion. I took a lesson from Jerry Briesath after the US Open last year and he opened my eyes to the slow back swing. Lazily bringing the cue back to a hesitation, then letting it swing smoothly forward. Some nuances I've picked up since then are to really pause at the cue ball before the last shot, and then after the back swing and as you shift into the forward swing to make sure you start the swing smoothly. In other words even on a shot requiring maximum power, start the stroke slower and then pile in behind it, letting the cue pick up speed as it swings instead of trying to generate it all at once. Trust that it will get there.

Eyes: Last year I went to a number of tournaments with Jesse Engel who is a top young player that possesses the knew school knowledge and he helped clue me in to many little nuggets. He taught me to stare at the contact point on the object ball as I sink into my stance, and not to look away until my body stopped moving and I felt locked in. In fact he went so far as to say there are some shots he never looks away from the object ball, he feels he knows where the cue ball is and can see it peripherally so he just stares the ball in the whole way. Not the norm, but he was making the point. This helped me a ton. In addition he taught me that on extremely elevated shots (including some jumps) to find the line of the shot level, then as I elevate pick a spot on the table a few inches in front of me on that line and try to drive my stick through that point. I have made more jumps in the last month than in my prior 25 years.

Stance. Yesterday I got my daughter a lesson from CJ Wiley. I didn't realize I was getting one for me too! We really worked on stance, getting on the ball correctly. I thought I had a good stance and had no idea what I didn't know. When I grew up it was 'be comfortable'. What a laugh! I was walking into my shots sideways like a crab, twisting over my body to form a stance around my cue stick! He showed us how to stand square to the shot and move the left leg over to allow your shooting side to lower perfectly onto the shot. Again, I really felt like I was doing this, but without a professional coach you just don't know how it actually looks and where it's actually off. He also talked about something he calls "See, feel, hear", which has to do with aiming standing up, then shifting to feel down on the shot, then listening for the sound of the ball hitting the pocket upon striking. The idea is that you can only focus on one thing at a time. Sight should be the focus standing up, but the mistake too many players (ME!) make is continuing to try to use sight once they get down. But your perception down on the shot isn't the same, and you start second guessing yourself. It's not the time to use sight anymore, it's time to shift to 'feel', or using your gut. If you aimed right then you might still fine tune, but it's using your feel, not your sight. This is something I've done incorrectly all of my life, and it has hindered my confidence and my flow tremendously. Thank you CJ!

Now I'm on an Easter Egg hunt! I am looking for more nuggets that will help me take the effort I've put in (which I KNOW exceeds that of many top players) and close the gap. I am already excited to play again. I'm not a morning guy but I'm up early today thinking about it, and I'll make sure I put in a few minutes on my practice table before work. I feel like I was just given super powers! But I have more work to do. My BREAKSHOT is off. I have talked to many players and still haven't nailed this. Anyone that thinks they can coach me into a top breakshot over a day or two should make plans to get to Minneapolis. I'd like to lock myself into a room and not come out until I'd stuck the cueball like SVB every break for an hour. I'm not sure I'm exaggerating that. But my real point is I've learned that it's not that there's something wrong with me, it's not that I don't deserve to be a champion, it's not that I just don't have 'it'. This is simply a game, there is a way to play it, and if you learn that way and put in the time to master it, you will get results.

Hopefully this passes on either some knowledge or inspiration to someone. In the meantime I'll recommend both Jerry Briesath and CJ Wiley as instructors. My only regret is that the game doesn't allow me to pay them about 20 times more than they charge which is what they are worth.
 
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Nice post. I also got couple really good lessons from Cj Wiley. They were here on AZ. Just reading his posts and trying stuff what he said.
Never met him.
If one wants to improve read his posts with open mind and try it with yourself.
Best thing was to get away habit of using(almost always) outside english. Now I can see the difference with and without it a lot better. Also speed control got better because less english is easier to control and conditions changing does not affect so much me anymore. Still working on it.
Definitely I would never made 147 without his shared thoughts here.
 
Tin Man said:
It's hard to explain how this could happen, but I spent the first 25 years of my pool career oblivious to most of the fundamentals. I learned to play in the mid 90s in a relatively small town of Rochester, MN. The top players in town weren't elite, and they certainly weren't fundamentally sound. The players I usually got to play were B and C level. There was no streaming tournament coverage or instructional videos (unless you want to count 'How to Hustle Pool'). And no one ever worked with me on how to play the game.

So I did what any 14 year old that wants to be a world champion would do. I rented and re-rented the same 8 VHS Accu-stats tapes from the local pool room until I knew every word Billy or Grady would say before they said it. Most of what I learned was from books. Byrne's Standard Book and Fel's Mastering Pool were tremendous helps to me. And of course I played pool 8-10 hours a day, sometimes more, every day of the year including holidays and weekends.

Through years of hard work I found ways to overcome some of the defects in my fundamentals, but my lack of exposure to top level competition left me short of pro level. When I was 17-18 I was definitely a tough player, but I was no threat to win major events. Based on this, and my growing understanding of what the pool road looked like, I decided not to pursue pool for a living any longer. I got a job, started a family, etc. Pool has remained a major part of my life, and I still love to play, compete, and of course try to get better.

For many years I did so many things wrong I just always thought I'd be one of those guys with screwed up fundamentals. But for some reason I finally opened my mind to the idea of relearning a few things, and now I can't remember why I waited so long. After 15 years of painstaking incremental progress, my game has suddenly gotten stronger and more powerful in real time. Almost overnight. It turns out there is a correct way to play, and if you learn it the balls will disappear from the table.

Here are some of the things I have learned in the last 12 months:

Backswing: My stroke and back swing used to be rushed and jerky. I would get my cue moving back and forth, and my final stroke seemed to start from the cue ball where I'd whip it back and then immediately fling it forward in what appeared to be one rushed motion. I took a lesson from Jerry Briesath after the US Open last year and he opened my eyes to the slow back swing. Lazily bringing the cue back to a hesitation, then letting it swing smoothly forward. Some nuances I've picked up since then are to really pause at the cue ball before the last shot, and then after the back swing and as you shift into the forward swing to make sure you start the swing smoothly. In other words even on a shot requiring maximum power, start the stroke slower and then pile in behind it, letting the cue pick up speed as it swings instead of trying to generate it all at once. Trust that it will get there.

Eyes: Last year I went to a number of tournaments with Jesse Engel who is a top young player that possesses the knew school knowledge and he helped clue me in to many little nuggets. He taught me to stare at the contact point on the object ball as I sink into my stance, and not to look away until my body stopped moving and I felt locked in. In fact he went so far as to say there are some shots he never looks away from the object ball, he feels he knows where the cue ball is and can see it peripherally so he just stares the ball in the whole way. Not the norm, but he was making the point. This helped me a ton. In addition he taught me that on extremely elevated shots (including some jumps) to find the line of the shot level, then as I elevate pick a spot on the table a few inches in front of me on that line and try to drive my stick through that point. I have made more jumps in the last month than in my prior 25 years.

Stance. Yesterday I got my daughter a lesson from CJ Wiley. I didn't realize I was getting one for me too! We really worked on stance, getting on the ball correctly. I thought I had a good stance and had no idea what I didn't know. When I grew up it was 'be comfortable'. What a laugh! I was walking into my shots sideways like a crab, twisting over my body to form a stance around my cue stick! He showed us how to stand square to the shot and move the left leg over to allow your shooting side to lower perfectly onto the shot. Again, I really felt like I was doing this, but without a professional coach you just don't know how it actually looks and where it's actually off. He also talked about something he calls "See, feel, hear", which has to do with aiming standing up, then shifting to feel down on the shot, then listening for the sound of the ball hitting the pocket upon striking. The idea is that you can only focus on one thing at a time. Sight should be the focus standing up, but the mistake too many players (ME!) make is continuing to try to use sight once they get down. But your perception down on the shot isn't the same, and you start second guessing yourself. It's not the time to use sight anymore, it's time to shift to 'feel', or using your gut. If you aimed right then you might still fine tune, but it's using your feel, not your sight. This is something I've done incorrectly all of my life, and it has hindered my confidence and my flow tremendously. Thank you CJ!

Now I'm on an Easter Egg hunt! I am looking for more nuggets that will help me take the effort I've put in (which I KNOW exceeds that of many top players) and close the gap. I am already excited to play again. I'm not a morning guy but I'm up early today thinking about it, and I'll make sure I put in a few minutes on my practice table before work. I feel like I was just given super powers! But I have more work to do. My BREAKSHOT is off. I have talked to many players and still haven't nailed this. Anyone that thinks they can coach me into a top breakshot over a day or two should make plans to get to Minneapolis. I'd like to lock myself into a room and not come out until I'd stuck the cueball like SVB every break for an hour. I'm not sure I'm exaggerating that. But my real point is I've learned that it's not that there's something wrong with me, it's not that I don't deserve to be a champion, it's not that I just don't have 'it'. This is simply a game, there is a way to play it, and if you learn that way and put in the time to master it, you will get results.

Hopefully this passes on either some knowledge or inspiration to someone. In the meantime I'll recommend both Jerry Briesath and CJ Wiley as instructors. My only regret is that the game doesn't allow me to pay them about 20 times more than they charge which is what they are worth.
Click to expand...

A great post. Thanks for sharing your experiences.

Here is a thread that may have a few nuggets of information you may want to use or at least try. If you don't care for the information, as CJ would say is "just put it on a shelf"

https://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?478553&p=6196813#post6196813

Have fun, pool is a great game with a never ending learning curve. :)

John
 
Tin Man said:
It's hard to explain how this could happen, but I spent the first 25 years of my pool career oblivious to most of the fundamentals. I learned to play in the mid 90s in a relatively small town of Rochester, MN. The top players in town weren't elite, and they certainly weren't fundamentally sound. The players I usually got to play were B and C level. There was no streaming tournament coverage or instructional videos (unless you want to count 'How to Hustle Pool'). And no one ever worked with me on how to play the game.

So I did what any 14 year old that wants to be a world champion would do. I rented and re-rented the same 8 VHS Accu-stats tapes from the local pool room until I knew every word Billy or Grady would say before they said it. Most of what I learned was from books. Byrne's Standard Book and Fel's Mastering Pool were tremendous helps to me. And of course I played pool 8-10 hours a day, sometimes more, every day of the year including holidays and weekends.

Through years of hard work I found ways to overcome some of the defects in my fundamentals, but my lack of exposure to top level competition left me short of pro level. When I was 17-18 I was definitely a tough player, but I was no threat to win major events. Based on this, and my growing understanding of what the pool road looked like, I decided not to pursue pool for a living any longer. I got a job, started a family, etc. Pool has remained a major part of my life, and I still love to play, compete, and of course try to get better.

For many years I did so many things wrong I just always thought I'd be one of those guys with screwed up fundamentals. But for some reason I finally opened my mind to the idea of relearning a few things, and now I can't remember why I waited so long. After 15 years of painstaking incremental progress, my game has suddenly gotten stronger and more powerful in real time. Almost overnight. It turns out there is a correct way to play, and if you learn it the balls will disappear from the table.

Here are some of the things I have learned in the last 12 months:

Backswing: My stroke and back swing used to be rushed and jerky. I would get my cue moving back and forth, and my final stroke seemed to start from the cue ball where I'd whip it back and then immediately fling it forward in what appeared to be one rushed motion. I took a lesson from Jerry Briesath after the US Open last year and he opened my eyes to the slow back swing. Lazily bringing the cue back to a hesitation, then letting it swing smoothly forward. Some nuances I've picked up since then are to really pause at the cue ball before the last shot, and then after the back swing and as you shift into the forward swing to make sure you start the swing smoothly. In other words even on a shot requiring maximum power, start the stroke slower and then pile in behind it, letting the cue pick up speed as it swings instead of trying to generate it all at once. Trust that it will get there.

Eyes: Last year I went to a number of tournaments with Jesse Engel who is a top young player that possesses the knew school knowledge and he helped clue me in to many little nuggets. He taught me to stare at the contact point on the object ball as I sink into my stance, and not to look away until my body stopped moving and I felt locked in. In fact he went so far as to say there are some shots he never looks away from the object ball, he feels he knows where the cue ball is and can see it peripherally so he just stares the ball in the whole way. Not the norm, but he was making the point. This helped me a ton. In addition he taught me that on extremely elevated shots (including some jumps) to find the line of the shot level, then as I elevate pick a spot on the table a few inches in front of me on that line and try to drive my stick through that point. I have made more jumps in the last month than in my prior 25 years.

Stance. Yesterday I got my daughter a lesson from CJ Wiley. I didn't realize I was getting one for me too! We really worked on stance, getting on the ball correctly. I thought I had a good stance and had no idea what I didn't know. When I grew up it was 'be comfortable'. What a laugh! I was walking into my shots sideways like a crab, twisting over my body to form a stance around my cue stick! He showed us how to stand square to the shot and move the left leg over to allow your shooting side to lower perfectly onto the shot. Again, I really felt like I was doing this, but without a professional coach you just don't know how it actually looks and where it's actually off. He also talked about something he calls "See, feel, hear", which has to do with aiming standing up, then shifting to feel down on the shot, then listening for the sound of the ball hitting the pocket upon striking. The idea is that you can only focus on one thing at a time. Sight should be the focus standing up, but the mistake too many players (ME!) make is continuing to try to use sight once they get down. But your perception down on the shot isn't the same, and you start second guessing yourself. It's not the time to use sight anymore, it's time to shift to 'feel', or using your gut. If you aimed right then you might still fine tune, but it's using your feel, not your sight. This is something I've done incorrectly all of my life, and it has hindered my confidence and my flow tremendously. Thank you CJ!

Now I'm on an Easter Egg hunt! I am looking for more nuggets that will help me take the effort I've put in (which I KNOW exceeds that of many top players) and close the gap. I am already excited to play again. I'm not a morning guy but I'm up early today thinking about it, and I'll make sure I put in a few minutes on my practice table before work. I feel like I was just given super powers! But I have more work to do. My BREAKSHOT is off. I have talked to many players and still haven't nailed this. Anyone that thinks they can coach me into a top breakshot over a day or two should make plans to get to Minneapolis. I'd like to lock myself into a room and not come out until I'd stuck the cueball like SVB every break for an hour. I'm not sure I'm exaggerating that. But my real point is I've learned that it's not that there's something wrong with me, it's not that I don't deserve to be a champion, it's not that I just don't have 'it'. This is simply a game, there is a way to play it, and if you learn that way and put in the time to master it, you will get results.

Hopefully this passes on either some knowledge or inspiration to someone. In the meantime I'll recommend both Jerry Briesath and CJ Wiley as instructors. My only regret is that the game doesn't allow me to pay them about 20 times more than they charge which is what they are worth.
Click to expand...
I'm assuming that CJ still pockets balls with that "annoying" regularity. His basics are so solid and he's confident of his aim to the point that it looks like he might not miss for a while. He's a good guy and good for this game.
 
Good thread. I started playing around 1961. About 5 or so years ago I realized I’m nowhere. Cannot improve on my own. Same thing over and over. I contacted a stroke instructor and pool changed. My level changed. I moved away from my banger buddies. I’m having a blast. What you said is everything. Develop a stroke....Learn and practice the proper drills then take them to the game.
 
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great post
sorry i dont have an easter egg for you
but you will probably enjoy this article by nic barrow i posted in the instructor forum
(i am not an instructor) about the back swing and the pause
this line from the article i really liked
"The same care you would take walking a tight rope, is the care and control you need to bring the cue back and forwards in a straight line."
https://forums.azbilliards.com/showpost.php?p=6224103&postcount=1
 
bbb, Howdy;

Very nice article. Now I wonder how many folks are going to be thinking
"Strawberry" when they get the cue to the end of the backstroke? :wink:

hank
 
Tin Man, Howdy;

Very nice post. I'm in full agreement with ya.

When I re-started my game a few years ago I realized that my Basics were weak.
I've adopted the name "The Basics" to remind myself that I have to know and practice
them ALL the time.

hank
 
I want to take my son for a lesson from Strickland, not for overall play, but I heard that he does a great job on teaching proper bridge and bridge hand placement. Get a bit of the best from different players. Got some lessons on the break already from Mike Dechaine and some other things from him, got some coaching on stance from a local instructor, build up to a solid player that way.

Almost all the issues I see in weaker players come from them now knowing the fundamentals. If you have no idea how to point the cue, body and tip to shoot in a straight line, you are not going past beginner stages.
 
Thanks for sharing, Tin Man!
These are, by far, my favorite types of posts to read on here.

Regards,
Koop
 
Yes Fundamentals Matter. Most people do fairly well when within one side of
the table or the other. When you start adding distance, you start needing better
fundamentals because the adjustments are so much smaller.
 
Marginal gains...at some point, it is just little things you can better.

A few little improvements compounded equals a notable jump in proficiency
 
One lesson I got from Kim Davenport : STAY DOWN. That's the one thing I
think helped me.. stay down until that ball hits the center of the pocket.
 
Thank you all for the replies, Koop, Basics, and the rest of you all!

ChrisinNC, I'm 39, I need to bust a move. I either need to put it together or die trying so I don't have regrets later on.

Scott, let's dance.

Poolmanis, I like your post about not using outside English on routine cuts. I have always done this. Mind you I'm not really 'spinning' the ball a bunch, I'm just adding a hair to help offset the friction induced throw. I'd like to hear more about this from anyone that's had experience with it. I've found it makes things easier to adjust because different equipment throws differently, so using outside has made that piece more consistent. I am pretty darn comfortable with it. And I prefer to use spin on the cueball versus speed with my stroke, so when possible I'd rather let the spin move the ball around.

For example, on a shot down the rail where I need to back the cueball up, I'd prefer to use a stun with outside rather than center ball draw. And when I need a combination of both I max the spin before maxing the draw.

How did you change this piece of your game? I'm not sure I'm ready to give it up, but I'm open to experimentation.

One last thought on fundamentals. I don't think they are the foundation of a pool game. I think the foundation is DESIRE. You have to want it. I see too many people working on fundamentals that don't have the fire in the belly and the attitude of "I may be broken, but I'm going to take these broken pieces together and find a way to get to the finish line no matter what!" Some people seem to think they can just work on fundamentals and their game will magically come together. And that can happen to a degree, but putting those pieces together and willing them into an oiled machine takes grit and will and desire. If I had to pick, I'd rather have the heart of a lion with a horrible game than a smooth game without a killer instinct. But in the end you need both.

I was talking to my best friend yesterday about "Digging it out of the dirt", the idea that sometimes you have to just shoot a million shots until you find a way to get it done. My point is that regardless of good mechanics, all champions have to dig their finished game and some of the pieces out of the dirt. That's great, but after a million shots, then what?!? That's where I'm at with my break. At some point if it's not working you have to get help. So I adjusted the phrase to "Desire is digging it out of the dirt, fundamentals are making sure you're digging in the right sandbox!"
 
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Tin Man said:
Thank you all for the replies, Koop, Basics, and the rest of you all!

ChrisinNC, I'm 39, I need to bust a move. I either need to put it together or die trying so I don't have regrets later on.

Scott, let's dance.

Poolmanis, I like your post about not using outside English on routine cuts. I have always done this. Mind you I'm not really 'spinning' the ball a bunch, I'm just adding a hair to help offset the friction induced throw. I'd like to hear more about this from anyone that's had experience with it. I've found it makes things easier to adjust because different equipment throws differently, so using outside has made that piece more consistent. I am pretty darn comfortable with it. And I prefer to use spin on the cueball versus speed with my stroke, so when possible I'd rather let the spin move the ball around.

For example, on a shot down the rail where I need to back the cueball up, I'd prefer to use a stun with outside rather than center ball draw. And when I need a combination of both I max the spin before maxing the draw.

How did you change this piece of your game? I'm not sure I'm ready to give it up, but I'm open to experimentation.

One last thought on fundamentals. I don't think they are the foundation of a pool game. I think the foundation is DESIRE. You have to want it. I see too many people working on fundamentals that don't have the fire in the belly and the attitude of "I may be broken, but I'm going to take these broken pieces together and find a way to get to the finish line no matter what!" Some people seem to think they can just work on fundamentals and their game will magically come together. And that can happen to a degree, but putting those pieces together and willing them into an oiled machine takes grit and will and desire. If I had to pick, I'd rather have the heart of a lion with a horrible game than a smooth game without a killer instinct. But in the end you need both.

I was talking to my best friend yesterday about "Digging it out of the dirt", the idea that sometimes you have to just shoot a million shots until you find a way to get it done. My point is that regardless of good mechanics, all champions have to dig their finished game and some of the pieces out of the dirt. That's great, but after a million shots, then what?!? That's where I'm at with my break. At some point if it's not working you have to get help. So I adjusted the phrase to "Desire is digging it out of the dirt, fundamentals are making sure you're digging in the right sandbox!"
Click to expand...

Thank you for an inspirational post. Shows that no matter how good a player gets, they can always strive to improve. Good luck on your journey. I hope you keep us updated.
 
Tin Man,
I have been wanting to respond to this thread and the post you made regarding your experiences at Turning Stone but I just haven't had a second to sit down and give your post the time it deserves until now, although I'm bouncing around between that and getting my kids fed and helping them with their homework...

Anyway, your pool journey resonates with me and while I'm certainly not the same caliber of player as you, I still have my pool dreams even after having crossed the 40 year old threshold. I guess my only tangible goal other than just seeing incremental improvement in my solitary play and practice would be to get my Fargo Rating over 700, which I think I can do if I can get out and compete more, but I digress... My journey started a little later in life than yours did. I was first mesmerized by the game toward the end of high school but all of my school-aged pals thought I was nuts and so after a while I found myself playing all alone in my friend's pole barn on an old Sear's bar table. I did this for about a year or so before I headed off to college. I would even sneak over there in the middle of the winter and turn on their gas grill inside the barn for a few minutes to thaw out my hands (kids don't try this at home.....carbon monoxide is bad).

I guess the biggest difference between us, other than our level of play would be that there really wasn't a time where I was ever fully committed to the game. There was a couple year period in college where I was playing a lot, while not going to class but I guess I didn't really understand what it meant to be playing a lot back then. I played just enough to screw up my first chance at getting through college and ended up enlisting but this wasn't exactly the same thing as really playing and working on my game for 12 hours a day for several years like most truly great players have done. But enough about that...

Now, looking back I can say that my fundamentals are probably what prevented me from totally plunging in to the game head first back during my early 20's. This was probably a blessing in disguise as I'm pretty happy with how things have turned out on the home front. So I just did whatever felt right and the good players around me really didn't have much advice as far as technique was concerned. Now they ALL could and would give advice about how to spin this shot or that one, or how to bank a ball 3 rails, and how to play position. But that wasn't the stuff I needed help with back then.

Once I got my house in order and came back to playing even as more of a hobby quite a few years back I pretty much went entirely with a snooker approach to the game and I've been slowly improving ever since.

But to the Easter eggs...

The one thing that I am very stubborn about and I have consistently butted heads with people about on this forum is that what I think separates players at just about every level. That is -- I don't think it's the cue ball. I think it's shot making. I actually think I may have a better cue ball then some players in my area that are considered to be better players but it's my shot making that lets me down. So this has been my sole area of focus for several years. When I'm practicing that's pretty much what I'm focused on -- stretching my ball pocketing muscles. There's of course certain positional shots here and there that I have to work on because I discover that they are giving me trouble but for the most part -- it's ball pocketing. This sort of runs counter to the "if you have a good cue ball you don't have to shoot difficult shots" mantra that you hear often from many when talking about the game. Correct me if I'm wrong but I think I've sort of picked up on you having a similar viewpoint.

Another nugget, errrr ahhhh I mean egg that I think is gold is getting your cue on your chest. If a player can have that additional point of contact I really think it's like stealing when it comes to cueing straight. This is the one area that I've changed recently in my technique. I used to be quite rigid with keeping my base leg locked but I've now sort of moved in the direction of bending that back leg in order to get my chest on more shots. Although I'm really paying attention to whether or not this introduces a little bit of body movement. So it's something I'm sort of tinkering with.

Anyway great thread. I know I didn't actually offer many eggs here but I just wanted to chime in. Congrats on your success at Turning Stone. Many of us were rooting you on in our own way. There's so much about this journey that only pool players understand. So thanks so much for sharing your thoughts about your journey.
 
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