need REAL advice

[tim913]

I'm 54, and I still haven't run 100 balls. My high is 78, and last night I hit 56, but time is running out. Is there something out there that takes you from where I'm at to where I want to be. I practice all the time, but I make no visible progress. I've been to Madison pool school with Jerry, and
Rockford with Bob, but I still suck!! Are there drills or something that really work? I know we can't all be pros, but we should still make progress. How did the pros go from bad to BAD? They had to find something other than the drills, drills, drills. I'd like to hear from some 100 ball runners about what REALLY works..

Thanks

 

[pooltchr]

Straight pool is as much about knowledge as it is skill. You already have the skill to run through multiple racks, so you know how to transition from one rack to the next. You know how to make shots and get position. So what is it that stops you after 3 or 4 racks? I suspect it is more a matter of mental focus than anything. If you can run 50, there is no reason you can't run 60 or 70 or whatever, as long as you keep doing the same things. If something is happening and you aren't doing the same things, it's most likely a mental breakdown, and not a physical one. Treat each shot with the same amount of respect.

Steve

 

[Scott Lee]

tim913...Pooltcher's advice is good. You might also take a look at your eye pattern movement. It's possible that when you reach a certain plateau, in your runs, that your eye pattern changes, and you get "lazy", or "tired". Either way, it could cause small errors, ending your run. We want whatever eye pattern we use, to be so ingrained, that you do it exactly the same way, every time, on every shot...automatically. Then, even if you get tired, you still continue to operate subconsciously, with what you programmed yourself to do. However, for most of us, we don't know what we do with our eyes (meaning we do it without conscious thought process). So, you have to analyze it, and make yourself practice that pattern, until it's a habit. Just a thought...not saying this is why you're not running more racks.

Scott Lee
www.poolknowledge.com

 

[Wity]

I'm 52 next week and still haven't made a snooker break above 50

mebbe i should take up pool ?

 

[mfinkelstein3]

Running 100 balls

One thing you haven't mentioned is why you miss. Are you getting out of line? Stuck behind balls? Leaving yourself no break shot? Analyzing why your runs stop is one way to improve your ability to run balls.

Next some things to think about. Are you hitting your break shots too hard and sending the balls all over the table? Are you playing stop ball patterns or moving the cue ball a lot? Are you keeping in the center of the cue ball or using a lot of English? Are you bumping balls too much and creating problems? Can you bump balls to make break shots? Are you breaking up clusters with control or are you just hitting them?

Mentally, are you trying too hard? The graduation line for good players has always been 50 balls. So you are a good player. Now relax and enjoy your game. Trying too hard to run 100 just makes it that much harder. Get lost in the patterns.

What are you practicing? How much do you practice? Are you just playing straight pool, or do you do drills? After you do your drills and work on your weaknesses, are you running your 50 balls at least once per week?

Johnny Holiday wrote two books years ago that you may be able to get at Amazon. Really good stuff on patterns and break shots. Bert Kinister has some good DVD's on pattern playing and exercises. I don't know which ones, but you could ask him. David Sapolis has some stuff on You Tube that talks you through some patterns and is really good. George Fels has a good book with a lot on straight pool.

Do you take lessons routinely or have you just taken a seminar or two? I used to play once or twice a week with George Mikula in Chelsea years ago and ran my first 50 with him. Years later I was working weekly with Abe Rosen at Amsterdam Billiards in NYC and hit 97 and got stuck in the rack. Johnny Ervolino and others tried to find a shot, but no luck. A few days later I ran 104.

Are you familiar with the little ways to manipulate the cue ball in close to keep angles and hold the cue ball? Jack up soft draw? Throw shots? Spin shots?

Are you watching straight pool matches? Cuetable.com and AZBilliards and other sites has lots of great footage on straight pool. Great stuff.

Hope that helps. If I can help you, please don't hesitate to send me an email.

Mark Finkelstein
BCA Advanced (soon to be Master) Instructor.