I'm watching a WPBA event right now and saw one of the players attempt a jump-shot. She scratched and I immediately noticed that the next ball was on the opposite-end of the table and the shot was over 6 feet and dead-straight.
In otherwords, had she made her jump-shot, she would have had no shot on the next ball. This has to be one of the most common strategical errors I come across on a nearly daily basis in my local room. I even had a player push to a jump-shot that required pocketing a ball 7-feet away, going two rails for position and hitting a window one foot wide. I passed. He missed and I ran-out.
The underlying problem with the jump-shot (jump-cue or not) is that you are forced to ht the shot with some speed and minimal spin. Hit it too hard and you risk flying off the table. Hit it too soft and you might hit your obstruction. Any spin and you fall into the territory of unfamiliarity, risk missing the shot or not jumping the ball. Your posiiton-play is at the mercy of the shot.
Whenever you're faced with a scenario where you are obstructed, you must evaluate the entire situation before getting your jump-cue. Although pocketing balls usually is a winning strategy, playing the percentages is always winning form. There will always be situations where jumping is the correct shot but you never want to voluntarily push to these scenarios (unless YOUR OPPONENT is a jumping-freak) and when safe, you want to weigh the risk versus the reward. When in doubt, ask yourself, "What would Efren Reyes do?"
In otherwords, had she made her jump-shot, she would have had no shot on the next ball. This has to be one of the most common strategical errors I come across on a nearly daily basis in my local room. I even had a player push to a jump-shot that required pocketing a ball 7-feet away, going two rails for position and hitting a window one foot wide. I passed. He missed and I ran-out.
The underlying problem with the jump-shot (jump-cue or not) is that you are forced to ht the shot with some speed and minimal spin. Hit it too hard and you risk flying off the table. Hit it too soft and you might hit your obstruction. Any spin and you fall into the territory of unfamiliarity, risk missing the shot or not jumping the ball. Your posiiton-play is at the mercy of the shot.
Whenever you're faced with a scenario where you are obstructed, you must evaluate the entire situation before getting your jump-cue. Although pocketing balls usually is a winning strategy, playing the percentages is always winning form. There will always be situations where jumping is the correct shot but you never want to voluntarily push to these scenarios (unless YOUR OPPONENT is a jumping-freak) and when safe, you want to weigh the risk versus the reward. When in doubt, ask yourself, "What would Efren Reyes do?"