Playing by myself

[Andrew Manning]

More often than not I go down to the pool hall by myself and find there's no one to play against. Fair enough. I'll just play by myself. So I throw 9 balls out on the table over and over and run them out. This can't be the best way to improve my game. Could someone tell or show me some good drills or practise routines to go through when I'm at the pool hall by myself.

I agree with Hal that you need to rack them up and break instead of throwing them out. I know it's inconvenient to rack, but breaking well takes a lot of practice, and you'll end up with more game-like ball positions/clusters to practice.

I think practicing like this can be very effective, especially if you stop whenever you make a bad mistake (miss a ball, hook yourself, scratch, etc.) and practice the shot you messed up until you can execute it correctly several times in a row. I've heard multiple great players say that this is their primary practice method.

Once you've identified weaknessed in your game by doing this, you should figure out/search for drills that target these weaknesses. I don't think there's any complicated formula for how to improve. Practice playing the game, and take time out to target your weaknesses. If you suspect you have mechanical issues that hold you back, find an instructor who's qualified to help you correct them.

-Andrew

 

[CaptainHook]

I guess nobody liked my idea of getting in some practice at the local Winghouse. Oh well.

 

[supergreenman]

More often than not I go down to the pool hall by myself and find there's no one to play against. Fair enough. I'll just play by myself. So I throw 9 balls out on the table over and over and run them out. This can't be the best way to improve my game. Could someone tell or show me some good drills or practise routines to go through when I'm at the pool hall by myself.

Sniper dude, you should play in the Drivermaker classic tour with the rest of us esteemed AzBilliards deziens. http://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=45710

It's excellent practice, you get to keep score and the compitition is fierce.

Supergreenman

 

[cycopath]

Good solo 9 ball practice

If 9 ball is your game, an excellent game to play when you are solo is '99'.

You start with a standard 9 ball rack. Break. If you make at least one ball on the break you score 2 points (this is called your break bonus points). Ball in hand run the rack out. If you miss that's the end of that rack. You add up the total number of balls legally pocketed (include the total number of balls made on the break as well) and add your 2 break bonus points for your score. Balls pocketed are worth 1 point each. So if you broke and made a ball on 9 racks and ran out perfectly each time you'd have a grand total of 99 points.

If the 9 ball drops on the break it is not a game winning ball. It only counts as your break bonus points, you still have to run out for your total points.

If you scratch on the break you are not awarded any break bonus points, but the balls dropped on the break are included on the total points scored at the end of that rack.

It's a fun game, that really let's you see your progress... or regress (in my case).

Poolandbilliard.com use to have scorecards posted that you could print but I don't see them on their site anymore.

 

[Big C]

A little game I like to play...

I usually play at home by myself and I'm always trying to improve my position play. What I like to do is take a cocktail napkin and place it on the table as a target to where I want the cueball to land after making a shot. If the cueball doesn't touch the napkin after coming to rest, I set it up and shoot it until I get it right. I also like to play the ghost, straight pool and rotation.