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

My road to improvement:
1. Lessons by snooker coach (thereby learning 4 point contact)
2. Learning to keep my weight properly distributed between my hand and legs and keeping it throughout the stroke.
3. Learning to walk into the shot better, considering not only the line on which I walk but my bodys starting position and postion while going down(upper body).
4. Stroke mechanics.
5. CJ Wileys grip thread, developing my grip, making a "track" for the cue, thus eliminating twisting (more or less)
6. The most important thing: The eyes. Staring down the contact point, keeping my eyes on it throughout the stroke until it disappears. It now seems I have oceans of time while down on the shot, I used to always rush my shot, getting my eyes off the ball before the stroke was finished. I go down, I STARE at the contact point, do the practise strokes, and then, as I deliver my cue I keep my focus entirely on the object ball until it disappears. When I do this, everything else seems to fall in line. My stroke gets softer and softer, yet the cueball always makes it where it needs to go. It's almost mystical.

Still have a long way to go, but I really think I cracked it when I figured out the eye thing. I guess this years tournaments will show.
 
Can’t say this is necessarily correct but one thing I do to prevent steering ( especially on cuts) is once I aim I extend it to a spot in the rail and swing my cue towards that spot
 
Nice list Straightpool. Some things might not work for me or I might not be ready to change them yet (my grip is, well, different...). But while I already mentioned locking on the contact point on the way into the stance and again from before the final back swing, your passion about it makes me wonder if I haven't gotten sloppy. So easy to do. I remember it was a huge breakthrough to me earlier this year, I won a tournament in January in which I vividly recall making an end rail to end rail cut with a hair of inside english and just feeling like it was on train tracks. I couldn't remember anything like that prior to the contact point focus. I need to double check to see if I'm still doing that.

Visualization is right on. If you can't picture it, how are you going to make it happen? Both at the table and in terms of your pool journey. I remember someone asking me once if I could win the US Open. Not if it was likely. But if it was possible. Suppose I got great draws, good rolls, opponents dogged it to me at the right time. Would I be able to run the balls out and take the opportunity should it present itself? You know what? I couldn't even picture it. It was like a huge internal obstacle. Now, some take the approach that if you work hard enough your physical game will surpass your mental blocks and eventually you will break through and then your belief will follow. That's kind of been my road. But the people that seem to fly to the top are those with more confidence than they have any reason to possess, who's game then climbs to their level of self image.

So yes, visualization is very important on and off the table. For those serious about the game I recommend spending time away from the table really picturing yourself playing the level you want to play and getting the results you want to get. I find watching pool helps with that somewhat. I also have a customized hypnosis mp3 that I use periodically to calm myself and rejuvenate before big matches if I'm run down or anxious, and also just to help picture where I want to go.

Basement, thanks for your post. Trust me, I know how busy life gets. It's darned discouraging. I go to a tournament and I just have a laundry list of things I want to work on when I get back, but then WHOOMP! Work, kids, kids, kids (I recently concluded that with three children it's not fair to just say "kids", because each one is so demanding in their own way it's like having three separate jobs sometimes...), and all of the endless tasks that come up just knock the wind out of me. Before you know it a week has gone by and my cue case is still in my travel bag and I just feel heartbroken I can't follow through and finish what I set out to accomplish. Very discouraging and enough to make anyone feel hopeless at times. Why do these things have to keep interrupting my 50 year pool session?

What's helped me with that is a pool resource budget. I know that I have 'x' amount of time and energy to put into pool. So, for example, I am going to go to four major tournaments next year. Maybe DCC, Matchroom's US Open, Bar Box Championships, and something else. I'm also going to play some regional stuff. And I'm going to practice at home and spar with some local players. So that's scheduled in, not going to change it. What's nice about that is even when I feel like I'll never have a chance to play, I know that's not true, I just have to be patient, and prepared so when the time comes I am ready to use my time more effectively than full time players do who might take it for granted. In some ways it's like playing a match. No one likes being in the electric chair, but I have to stay in the moment and be ready for the next opportunity.

As for shot making, for me personally I couldn't agree more. At the end of the day the guy that shoots balls in better is going to get there. Those that can bomb balls in can climb to pro level and then look around and realize they need to play safe now and then to win more often. Meanwhile those that grind balls in gasping and panting, well, it's a long hard journey that will never lead to the highest levels. That's how it's been for me. I have worked very hard, developed great cue ball, mental game, pattern play, game management, speed control, and done everything else possible to take pressure off of my shot making. And against most competition that's enough. To play a great set or beat a champion or two that's enough. But to win set after set against top players and win tournaments, well, it just can't be a struggle to guide those balls into the holes.

I'm hopeful that this stance adjustment will help. I'm also playing around with the 'no outside english' thing. It's possible Poolmanis's suggestion is a good one. I'm not spinning the balls out of the hole ever, which I'd occasionally do when I used outside. More to come. And I'm getting rid of my beater table and getting a one piece diamond pro am next week. I can't wait. If nothing else works I'll dig it out of the ground. I don't know if I can reach the highest levels or not but I'm not going to decide that in my head; I'm going to work until I bleed and collapse, do it again the next day, and keep it up until my hands are too old to make a grip anymore. Then I'll look back and know what I could achieve. And whatever level it ends up being is irrelevant, because for me peace of mind comes from what you give and not what you get.

Cheers!
 
Oh, Basement, I didn't really get back to you about your pool journey. It does take a lot of time and we don't need to pretend otherwise. My friend and I joke about all of these guys that write books on how to get to the top, talking about balance and detachment. But all of them spent 10-20 years selling their soul to get there. Then they achieved success, chilled a bit, and now they want to talk about a 'systematic approach' and share it with the masses. Yeah, right. I've been told before I should write a book. I laugh. For who? What good will it do? I'm not much of a coach for people that want to play bar leagues, and for people that are serious the real answer is to put so much into it that you can write your own book!

But the consolation is something I finally figured out. It doesn't matter what level we play at, the quality of the joruney is the exact same. Whether it is Klenti in his first US Open finals, or a league player shooting a hill-hill game with his teammates watching, if that player is in the moment, giving their all, and transforming themselves to find a way to achieve the result they need...well, that's the same thing. The only thing we're missing out on is the ESPN coverage. Oh wait... ;)
 
Tin Man said:
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.
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One of the biggest things you can do for your game is to eliminate the habit of putting outside english on cut shots. It was necessary on older, slower cloth to move the cueball around the table, but in this age of Simonis 860, it introduces inaccuracy. The cueball also doesn't track sideways in the direction of english on slow cloth, so old time pros could get away with overspinning the CB..

Explanation: When you use outside english on cut shots, you introduce slight variance in the cut angle and which part of the pocket your object ball goes into. Slight overcutting, or slightly undercutting, results in up to a few diamonds less/more travel of the cue ball when traveling some distance with the cue ball.

The thing about using mostly center axis on the CB is that you can control EXACTLY the part of the pocket the object ball enters, leaving only one variable... Speed. Using outside english, your mind subconsciously knows it has to calculate both speed and direction, and it's not sure about either, due to the pocket entry variance. The mind also struggles with attempting to calculate the sideways movement of the CB in the direction of the spin..

This can create a hesitant stroke, and this hesitant stroke furthers compounds the negative impact of using english. A slow, hesitant stroke means the CB slows down on the way to the object ball, which allows it to curve out of the optimal path, creating either an undercut, or overcut, with the resultant inaccurate line/speed.

Given you have a built in habit of using outside english, I predict your most common positional error is running the cueball long. It COULD be because of "too much english", but it is just as likely that your cueball is moving sideways in the direction of the spin towards an overcut on most shots.

As far as to how to address this bad habit.. Just do it. Watch modern professional matches after about 2008 or so. This is around the time everyone really started simplifying their game due to the tighter ProCut Diamond pockets.
 
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!"
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Hey. ShorttBusRuss was spot on why not outside english. Simplify. Also I learned use draw more accurately because instead using side i try get right amount draw or slide. Basically, No outside = a lot more accurate consistent stroke and results. AND now when I do use it I will use it less with more focus on height on cue tip. Then there are shots where you simply have to have a lot side spin. Those shots I try practice separately time to time for fresh my memory.

It all came quite naturally because I play all days really tight equipment. If I would put sidespin still like younger me I just simply would miss too much shots. I also play snooker and Finnish Kaisa. Finnish Kaisa is 68mm balls and 72mm pockets. Normally just a tad tighter than Russian Pyramid. Those games need so accurate shooting that sidespin is luxury when one can use it freely :D
 
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