slower cloth maybe?

[CaptainJR]

Keith
I had a thread on the main forum about this but I'd really appreciate your opinion on this. I really do have a problem of coming up short on my position, but being aware of it doesn't seem to help.

Here is the quote from the main forum..

I'd like to expound on what I was talking about a little. What I'm looking for at home on my 7' table is......... given the same shot, for example

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%KJ5P7%LJ5N2%MK6Q4%NJ5R0%OJ5M0%P[3U7%QZ1L4%U\4L0%Vf7C8%Ws2\3
%Xh4V6%Yf3U6%Z\8U6%[r6L0%\g8U2%]h3D2%^r4J9
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http://endeavor.med.nyu.edu/~wei/pool/


One ball is two dots length ways and one dot width from the corner. Cue ball one dot toward center from the side pocket. Dots on a 7' table are not as far apart as on a 9' table. So on a 7' table this would be a shorter shot.

To get the cue ball to position 'A', I want to use as close to the same stroke speed on my 7' table at home as I'd use on the 9' table at the pool hall. This would mean the 7' table would have to have slower cloth.

You see when I'm shooting on the 9'ers I have a tendency to come up short and I'm thinking it is because I practice on a 7' table so much.

Do you think having slower cloth on my 7' table at home would make my practice at home more valid practice for the pool hall 9'ers?

It's like when I'm trying for position half a table away, I roll the cue ball half of a 7' table because that is what I'm use to. And if I happen to be playing on a 9', that isn't far enough.

Or maybe I need to think of my position differently. When I'm playing position, I'm thinking of any area I want to get to rather than how far I want the cue ball to roll?

 

[Keith McCready]

CaptainJR, sometimes the humidity out there will have a tendency to make the tables play funny. I have a table in my basement, and even though it has brand-new Simonis cloth, it still rolls kind of slow for me. Basements can be humid.

I would think if you were to practice on a 9-foot table with newer cloth, it would help you to get your ball speeds down better.

The thing about the bar tables, a lot of players will try to play too perfect a position. I like to go into the balls with a little more authority on the bar box. If you can see the ball, you should be able to make it from anywhere, but it's always nice to be able to get the cue-ball as close as possible to the next shot, if you can.

Try to lengthen out your stroke when practicing. This will help with the ball speeds, too.

 

[CaptainJR]

Thank you Keith
If I could bother you with just one follow up question. I think I'm following you on your answer and I do use a dehumidifier in my basement.

On the position play. Do you think you think about the area your trying to get to, or do you think more about how far the cue ball has to roll to get there? I don't even know if I'm making that question clear enough. I just think about where I want the cue to end up and I'm wondering if I need to change this a little and think more about how far I have to go to get there. Sort of back to the 'by feel or by plan issue'.

Thanks again

 

[Keith McCready]

Thank you Keith
If I could bother you with just one follow up question. I think I'm following you on your answer and I do use a dehumidifier in my basement.

On the position play. Do you think you think about the area your trying to get to, or do you think more about how far the cue ball has to roll to get there? I don't even know if I'm making that question clear enough. I just think about where I want the cue to end up and I'm wondering if I need to change this a little and think more about how far I have to go to get there. Sort of back to the 'by feel or by plan issue'.

Thanks again

CaptainJR, when I'm looking to get position on a bar table, I'm just looking for an area, and then I go with my "feels" after that.

On the 9-footers, when I'm surveying the table layout, there's one shot that I know I'm going to have to make, or get on, to run out. I'm usually looking to get the right angle on the first couple balls I shoot.

Each table plays different. It helps to be able to evaluate the ball speeds beforehand. Playing on a table that is wet compared to fast is two different things. It's taken me a lot of battle scars, and a lot of money, to recognize the difference.

 

[CaptainJR]

Thank you Keith

My teacher, Fred McCann, reads what I write on here so of course when I went for my lesson last week he had a lesson plan that included some time on this issue. It went very much along with what you are saying here. To the tune of - 'You (me) need to pay more attention to what will hurt you or kill the run out.' In other words, if short will doom me but a little long is OK, make sure you at least get there. I think this goes right along with what your saying about table speed. Think of the table speed, think of what will and won't hurt you and play the shot accordingly.

Thanks again
John