Shooting good one day and bad the next?

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Digger0038

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I am just getting back into pool after many years of not playing. I get to practice 2-3x a week for a few hours each time. My question is how can my game change so drastically from one week to another?

Last week I was shooting fantastic (for me anyway) I ran a few 9 ball racks, made many bank shots and left great position for many of my shots.

Today I go and play/practice for about 3 hours and I just could not see the angles, I could not seem to get position or even make more than a 4 ball run. What are some things that can change your game that much from week to week?
 
welcome to the club....except mine c an change from day to day, and did this week. sunday afternoon, shooting the lights out. monday night shooting like a beginner......but there is a whole list of what can go wrong so i will let the more expert shooters chime in....i.e. attitude, not focusing on game, stressed out, not good psr, to name a few. hang in there
 
Method to the Madness

Digger0038 said:
I am just getting back into pool after many years of not playing. I get to practice 2-3x a week for a few hours each time. My question is how can my game change so drastically from one week to another?

Last week I was shooting fantastic (for me anyway) I ran a few 9 ball racks, made many bank shots and left great position for many of my shots.

Today I go and play/practice for about 3 hours and I just could not see the angles, I could not seem to get position or even make more than a 4 ball run. What are some things that can change your game that much from week to week?
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Digger, this is very normal for a player to experience these swings. Especially after a layoff.

A helpful tool is to start developing a routine when you are practicing or playing. How you approach the table,what do you see,are you thinking and moving too fast,etc.

Set a rhythm that is comfortable to you. Remember one shot at a time, and always stay positive. Right now,you know you can aim and shoot with a comfortable stroke. Build on those.

Keep Shooting.
 
Pool and life are nearly identical, some days are good others are bad. In your case I would add in like others mentioned your layoff and redeveloping your concentration your game and some practice routines. I would work mostly on my swing rhythm and swing and ''expect nothing'' and hope for the best. Commit 100% on ea shot, remember your misses and work on em. Anyone that expects this game to come together quickly find out life doesn't work this way, its NOT a mouse click, its just the opposite, there is NO magic pill cept hard work and dedication.

And one other Major concern, you need a GOOD reason to keep at it for years because when it comes it doesn't stay without keepin' at it.
 
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I have analyzed this phenomena with my own play and that of others. What I have found out and can attribute it to, is overconfidence. After a particular session where I didn't miss a ball for hours against my opponent and gathered up all the cash, the next day I could'nt hit the end rail. I took a break, thought about what was happening, and realized that I still had to aim, concentrate, and execute.

After playing so well, I would get a bit lacksidasial and expect to play just as good as the day before. I was waaaaaaaay overconfident.

To counter this, I would get into tough action every other day (on the days I was in the zone), and look for easier action after playing like god the previous session.

To overcome this good day, bad day curse, I would just slow down my game, and wait for dead stroke to take over. Betting higher also seems to help.
 
Digger0038 said:
I am just getting back into pool after many years of not playing. I get to practice 2-3x a week for a few hours each time. My question is how can my game change so drastically from one week to another?

Last week I was shooting fantastic (for me anyway) I ran a few 9 ball racks, made many bank shots and left great position for many of my shots.

Today I go and play/practice for about 3 hours and I just could not see the angles, I could not seem to get position or even make more than a 4 ball run. What are some things that can change your game that much from week to week?
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There is a lot of steps sequences to remember in pool, if you missed one, you will miss the shot. You need to find out why you miss, for example are you doing warmup all the time. are you looking at the pocket and OB while warming up, is your tip hitting the exact spot at CB, you pull slow, and smooth follow through, you applied all the theoretical stuff to find where to aim ...and the list goes on and on. It is not what you ate or how you feel, or pressure. Best of luck.
 
Digger0038 said:
I am just getting back into pool after many years of not playing. I get to practice 2-3x a week for a few hours each time. My question is how can my game change so drastically from one week to another?

Last week I was shooting fantastic (for me anyway) I ran a few 9 ball racks, made many bank shots and left great position for many of my shots.

Today I go and play/practice for about 3 hours and I just could not see the angles, I could not seem to get position or even make more than a 4 ball run. What are some things that can change your game that much from week to week?
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I think this is normal unless you're a natural high level player. Yesterday I played 9-ball against someone who has played a lot of snooker in the past. We played three sets of race to 10 but only got about halfway through the last set. I lost 10-4, 10-7, and I think we were about 6-3 when I had to go. Today I beat him 10-2, 10-4, 10-9. I attribute his better showing in the last set with his greater effort after losing two sets pretty bad and my getting tired. We were playing on a table with 4" pockets.

I often don't show well when I first play someone then run over them the next day. I think most errors can be attributed to bad aim or bad stroke and both are a result of inattention, even if very slight. Attitude makes a big difference in that.

One other really important factor is how well you slept the previous night.
 
risky biz said:
I think this is normal unless you're a natural high level player. Yesterday I played 9-ball against someone who has played a lot of snooker in the past. We played three sets of race to 10 but only got about halfway through the last set. I lost 10-4, 10-7, and I think we were about 6-3 when I had to go. Today I beat him 10-2, 10-4, 10-9. I attribute his better showing in the last set with his greater effort after losing two sets pretty bad and my getting tired. We were playing on a table with 4" pockets.

I often don't show well when I first play someone then run over them the next day. I think most errors can be attributed to bad aim or bad stroke and both are a result of inattention, even if very slight. Attitude makes a big difference in that.

One other really important factor is how well you slept the previous night.
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how well you slept the previous night is important for the thinking process and determining the right shot and how to shoot it (where to aim, hard soft, english, pivot..etc), as far as the physical action, the mechanics, i do not think it effect it. I sight an example, i had the spot shot, i attempt it 10 times a day right after i wake up, one day good others are bad, but finally find out i was not doing proper warming strokes on every shot, now i am making it from 1st shot, and if i miss it would be due to a smudge / dirty ball.
 
Thank you all for taking the time to answer my question. I think that I need to practice more drills. I tend to get bored with the drills and go right into games. Also I think your right, sleep must have a lot to do with it. I have a very phisical job and I ALWAYS play bad when I have a bad nights sleep and a rough day at work.
 
First, figure out if you're really that inconsistent, or if it was just one bad day (or maybe last week was a good day).

If it's not a fluke, ...maybe you just cared more when you shot well? Were you practicing with someone? Was someone watching? Were you determined to get out, or hit some practice goal? Trying something new that you were excited about, but now you're maybe getting a little bored?

I find that my consistency is mostly determined by how much I care about the outcome.

Beyond that... I think people are more consistent when they truly know and understand what they're doing, and not just going by feel and subsconscious motions. I'm talking about having an understanding of why the balls react the way they do, knowing why spin helps this shot or makes that shot hard, having a system for your banks or kicks or even 2-3 rail position... etc.

In other words, being analytical about the game.

Those who play more on feel and self-confidence, seem to go up and down a lot, because some days they tell themselves "today the pool gods hate me" or "I'm just not feeling it". Whereas the analytical type is more likely to say "statistically, if I just keep doing what I always do, the same way I always do it, this little slump's gonna end."
 
Develope a solid preshot routine. Focus on your alignment and mechanics.

When I play poorly it is because I am paying attention to detail. I have a tendency to take "easier" shots for granted, get sloppy and miss. Do that a couple times and start worrying about what you're doing wrong instead of focusing on doing it right, make for a bad night at the table.

:cool:
 
First, as others have said, your overall condition and mood matters alot.
Secondly, the overconfidence thing mentioned above can't be stressed enough. I do this all the time. I couldn't miss yesterday so i don't need to take my time and aim today... To recover from this I have a cheat sheet in the notepad of my phone with the simple things I often neglect to do. Things like watching the OB all the way to the pocket or leaving my cue out at the end of my follow through once the CB has left my tip. I almost always see something on my list that my stupid subconscious had forgotten. After concentrating on the missing step my game improves immediately. Good luck, and I hope all of the good information in this thread helps.
 
This will probably be the 10,000th time I have answered this question. It is one of the most said things about any ones game right up there with “I make the hard ones and miss the easy ones”.

Ok so you say “I shoot great sometimes and then turn around and shoot terribly” in other words “I lack consistency” so the chances are 99.99% that you don’t do everything consistently because if you did you would have more consistency. Do the same thing every time and it will come together for you.

I am talking about doing the same thing from the time you get out of your chair to the time you sit back in it. By same I mean exactly the same. How exact? Taking exactly to the zenith of its literal meaning; your consistency will go up if you do things more consistently it can not fail.
 
I understand where you are coming from. I layed off for 25 years, then got divorced and started playing again. I have made a lot of progress, but still have a long long way to go to get back where I was. Good instrucion and drills that were given helped me a lot. It's good to have the basic foundation in place and go from there.
 
I often fall into the trap of thinking my best game is my typical game. Leads to lots of sell outs, particulary in straight pool. You need to realistically evaluate your capabilities and play accordingly. That said, all these ideas about developing consistancy will then bring up your typical game and your overall results.
 
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