So I finally went to an instructor

gunzby

gunzby

My light saber is LD
Silver Member
Last week I went to see Steve Jennings (aka pooltchr) and I have to admit that it was worth every penny spent.

First off I would have to say that I have never considered taking lessons as I believed that I can logically learn anything that I put my mind to. I also used logic to realize that I can't see what I am doing wrong while I am doing it and that is where Steve came in.

He explained things in an easy to understand manner, pointed out some problems and pointed out things that I was doing perfect, or near perfect which was really encouraging. I would really recommend seeing Steve, or another instructor if you are thinking about it.

Btw Steve I just got back from Ohio and this was actually first on my to do list ;)

Thanks again,
Chris
 
LPHooper03 said:
Congratulations! Do you want to share your weak and strong points?
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Initially my eye patterns were perfect, my elbow stayed at a 90 degree angle every time and my rhythm was near perfect. Really my setup was near perfect.....it was my delivery that was terrible especially when shooting hard.

I would say that the thing that will take the most work is power shots. On those my elbow would drop, I would tighten my grip and twist my wrist sometimes.

I rarely shoot power shots and anytime I am faced with one I opt to use english to move the ball instead of speed, but I'll work on making it happen.

On day two even I was impressed with the difference. The elbow drop was a hundred percent better, but I was still clutching on hard shots and sometimes twisting.

It was really encouraging to see things that I was nailing from the get go as well as needing to work on some things.
 
Glad to hear of this positive experience. St Louis is lucky to have Mark Wilson as a local instructor. I hear people talk all the time about wanting to get better but choke when it comes to spending money and hiring a pro. When people find out Mark charges $200 for a lesson, they freak out a little. But they will spend $1000's playing poorly for years. Yeah, doesnt make sense. One thing is for sure. EVERY SINGLE PERSON that has taken a lesson from Mark that I have recommended comments it was worth every penny. The good instructors are worth it not only to your game, but to your enjoyment. Having fun goes up when you get better at something. Whether that is pool or something else. Guess this makes me want to take some target shooting lessons. I might learn something...lol.
 
TheConArtist said:
also glad to hear this, i have always wanted to go to a pool school or see a instructor myself.
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You just missed a great Pool School this month. It was held at the immpressive Fargo Billiards. 9 students and 4 Instructors....sweet.....SPF=randyg
 
I have worked with Steve Jennings several times and I find Steve to be a excellent Instructor. You made a great choice....SPF=randyg
 
Steve is a great guy and a great instructor. I'll be doing some lessons with him in the next month or two. Don't want to do them before APA regionals as I don't want to screw my game up right before hand, as you almost always get worse before you get better after lessons as you figure out the right way :)

Brian
 
I have always been on the fence when it comes to spending the $$$ on instruction. Mainly because I know I'm probably only going to ever play here locally for the most part over the next several years due to family and job obligations and although I'm a very competitive person by nature and I always like to win, I'm fairly (but not completely) content with my level of play at this time.

I know I could be better with more practice and playing time but I'm a little afraid that if I got to the Master level it would take a little more of the fun out of the game because I'd have to play fairly seriously in any real tournaments and I would probably have less opportunities locally for tournaments/etc and I would have less people that want to play with me just for fun's sake. There's already a few people that don't want/like to play me as it is, but these are just the casual player types for the most part anyway.

Still on the fence I guess. :confused:

Unless I suddenly become independently wealthy. :rolleyes:

Trevor
 
Me too but the instructor came to me. :grin:

I was playing league 9 ball and what I was really doing was practicing what I was taught. That's my plan for the next few months. I didn't care too much about the win. I still went 6 for 12 that night.

When asked why I was playing differently I mentioned I had gotten instructions and was surprise to find out this other player had the same instructor. I was also surprised he said he got nothing out of it. When I asked why he said it was too hard to change after playing for 10 years. :confused:

Best money I ever spent and hope to do it again next year.
 
Fenwick said:
When I asked why he said it was too hard to change after playing for 10 years. :confused:
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The #1 issue people have with lessons is they think that just taking the lesson will make them better... You have to commit to practicing and doing the drills they teach you. I don't know why people seem to always want the magic solution in pool... No one expects to take piano lessons and become a great player without practicing what they teach...

Brian
 
Chris.
Thanks for the kind words. It was a pleasure working with you last week, and I believe you will see the results of the class fairly quickly. I must agree that you may have been the first student I have had who required absolutely no work on PEP from the very beginning. The video does not lie!

Anyway, you have a plan to get where you want to go. And I am always available if you need any more help along the way.

Good luck next week and remember about separating practicing from playing. You don't want to be practicing out there at the expo!!!!!

Steve
 
Also thinking about pooltchr

I have also been thinking about getting some instuction from Steve and the rest of the guys up there. Im not sure what class would be best for me. I'd like to think that I have the fundamentals down but probally in a pros eyes I'm sure I would still have some things to work on. For that reason I not sure if the beginner course or advanced course would be right for me. What class did you take or does he offer private lessons? But its good to hear such positive reviews and I'll definitely check them out soon.
 
The beginers class I teach is just fundamentals and basic aiming.

The advanced level class covers much more, but it starts with the video taping of the fundamentals, and a review and discussion of the good and not-so-good things we see. Once we have this, we can develop a plan that will address any issues.

To put it in perspective, if you are a brand new player, just joined a team for the first time and don't want to be embarassed, the beginners class is fine. If you want to get serious, go for the advanced.

Give me a call. I would be happy to discuss it with you whenever you are ready.

Steve
 
pooltchr said:
Chris.
Thanks for the kind words. It was a pleasure working with you last week, and I believe you will see the results of the class fairly quickly. I must agree that you may have been the first student I have had who required absolutely no work on PEP from the very beginning. The video does not lie!

Anyway, you have a plan to get where you want to go. And I am always available if you need any more help along the way.

Good luck next week and remember about separating practicing from playing. You don't want to be practicing out there at the expo!!!!!

Steve
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Thanks and I think I'll start up with the drills after next week. I am doing the SPF stroke now just because it's already ingrained in me actually. That alone has made a very positive difference just because it has slowed me down a bit. It's pretty impressive to see positive changes that fast.

I'm pretty excited to start in with this since I have a feeling that it will make a huge difference with my 14.1 game.
 
I think it is hard (at least for me) to change something in my game when I have been doing the same thing for the most part for 12 years because my brain has it programmed as routine or normal. I have regionals in t-minus 11 days and I know and accept that I am most likely royally screwed with the changes I am trying to make to my game or basically almost a complete overhaul (bad timing huh). Seeing yourself on video is a real eye opener if you haven't done it already. There is a very good chance lessons are just what the doctor ordered.

Matt <---- Horrible mechanics as an APA 7 working on changing just about everything in his game.
 
Spimp13 said:
I think it is hard (at least for me) to change something in my game when I have been doing the same thing for the most part for 12 years because my brain has it programmed as routine or normal. I have regionals in t-minus 11 days and I know and accept that I am most likely royally screwed with the changes I am trying to make to my game or basically almost a complete overhaul (bad timing huh). Seeing yourself on video is a real eye opener if you haven't done it already. There is a very good chance lessons are just what the doctor ordered.

Matt <---- Horrible mechanics as an APA 7 working on changing just about everything in his game.
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Nobody ever said it would be easy. You have to decide if the end result justifies the investment. You can continue to do the same things you have always done, and continue to get the same results. Or, you can embrace changes that you know will benefit you in the long run.

You have to be able to leave your comfort zone in order to make any dramatic improvement. But you have to be committed to it. Otherwise, you miss out on much of the benefit of lessons.

Steve
 
Spimp13 said:
I think it is hard (at least for me) to change something in my game when I have been doing the same thing for the most part for 12 years because my brain has it programmed as routine or normal. I have regionals in t-minus 11 days and I know and accept that I am most likely royally screwed with the changes I am trying to make to my game or basically almost a complete overhaul (bad timing huh). Seeing yourself on video is a real eye opener if you haven't done it already. There is a very good chance lessons are just what the doctor ordered.

Matt <---- Horrible mechanics as an APA 7 working on changing just about everything in his game.
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You'd be surprised as to how quickly you can change something just by practicing it for a few days.
 
There is an old saying.

THOSE WHO CAN DO.
THOSE WHO CAN"T TEACH.
THOSE WHO CAN"T TEACH, TEACH TEACHER HOW TO TEACH.

My point is a good teacher has the power of obviation to see your mistakes. What knowledge they have in their head and the ability to train you is more important than their actual playing ability. Case in point is a guy I have taken lessons from. I can run him off the table, but he has the technical knowledge and ability to teach it. If in fact Tiger Wood's teacher-trainer was better than him, He would be on the tour.

PS You can't tell someone how to shoot. They have to ask for help first. People have to get passed their ego in order to ask for that help we can use.
 
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