playing bad

justadub

Rattling corners nightly
Silver Member
For me, I have found that it is always best to quit on a high note, not a low note. The low will carry over to your next session. The way I learned to overcome the lows was to tell myself that at some point I will be in a money match or a tournament, and I will have to find my way back to top form.

What I would do is just really bear down and shoot 3 or 4 good racks, then quit for a while. 99% of the time I find myself playing poorly is just because I am not motivated enough to work that hard. Always try and quit on a positive feeling!

Agreed!

When this happens to me (a regular occurrence, heh) I make it a point to grab at least a few balls and shoot them directly into a pocket. No big production, I just want to reassure myself that when I shoot the ball, it goes in. Then I call it a night, already looking forward to coming back to shoot again.
 

West Point 1987

On the Hill, Out of Gas
Silver Member
Shoot your way out of it. Quitting when you think you've got a problem will just get in your head. Go ahead and take a break, but relax, slow down and work your way back into it...be deliberate and think through your fundamentals to see if you are making some minor error that's throwing yourself off...you don't have the luxury of calling it a day if your matching up against someone, you still need to be able to find your way out of trouble. You need to be able to reach down and find that gear. I always try and quit a practice session on a break/run of whatever game I'm working on--or at least a good strong rack that I feel would beat whomever I'm gunning for. Leaves me cocked in a gear for the next session!
 

pooltchr

Prof. Billiard Instructor
Silver Member
what to do when practicing and just playin bad, quit or try to shoot out of it?

As Scott's reply suggests, unless you can identify WHY you are shooting bad, you are fighting a losing battle. Continuing to practice when you don't know what you are doing wrong will just mean you are practicing doing something wrong!

You need to learn how to break your game down to the smallest parts, in order to fix the real problem.

If your car stops running, do you try to keep driving it, or do you try to find the problem? Do you just decide that the engine is not running right, and hope it will fix itself, or do you try to find out WHICH PART is not working, and fix or replace that part?

Now, think about your pool game. You have to know what is broken before you can attempt to fix it.

Steve
 

Johnny 8Ball

New member
Identify the Problem

As stated previously identify the problem first. Is it a physical problem(poor stroke, poor stance) or a mental problem(lack of concentration, motivation). It could be as simple as you have been trying too hard and have burned yourself out. If it is something on the mental side a break usually helps. If its not something to do with your mind then set up long straight shots to see if your stroke mechanics are correct. If your mechanics are not correct then you wont shoot good. You may have to get someone who knows what they are doing watch you shoot some shots to see what you are doing incorrectly if it is a mechanical problem. Experienced players develop bad habits over time. Mechanical problems can usually be remedied by focusing on the basics.

Hope this helps
 

RWOJO

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Off night

If I'm a little off I tend to do this:

Step away from the table for a few minutes. Clear your mind. Grab a beer.

When you come back to the table clear the table (practice table that is). Shoot 10 short straight in shots where you take your time and focus on the small things - lining up, practice strokes and smooth final stroke with follow through. After those add a little distance and shoot a few from a few diamonds away. And after that shoot a few more from a little farther away. If you are more confident now then Throw all 15 balls out on the table and shoot any ball into any pocket. Don't worry about position but rather just pocketing balls to build confidence. Don't worry about missed shots, just move on to the next. After that rack throw 15 balls out and shoot and plan simple position shots for each shot.

Essentially when you are off you need to go back to basics, keep it simple. If you know an instructor or good player you can ask them to watch you to see if they can point out what your doing wrong. If your slump lasts more than a couple nights you should see an instructor for a lesson to analyze what is really going on.
 
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