Straight Pool practice

[hobokenapa]

I've been playing Straight for about six months. My high run is 47, but I am targetting 100. I want to use my practice time as effectively as possible (since I have nowhere near as much as I'd like). Could some of you 100+ experts please give some guidance on constructive, efficient practice games or drills to build the Straight Pool skills I need to jump to the next level. I have a lot of patience, I want to put a lot of hard work in, but I want to practice the right things. I am thinking that I should get a lesson to make get my fundamentals correct, then the rest should be just practice.

Thanks!

 

[bruin70]

,,,,,,,,Could some of you 100+ experts please give some guidance
Thanks!

well,,i was going to offer some advice, but,,,,,,that leaves me out.

i will ask one q, though. what do you NORMALLY run when you run good? i'm gonna guess teens with an occasional 20.....and are you missing your breakshots

 

[mjantti]

I've been playing Straight for about six months. My high run is 47, but I am targetting 100. I want to use my practice time as effectively as possible (since I have nowhere near as much as I'd like). Could some of you 100+ experts please give some guidance on constructive, efficient practice games or drills to build the Straight Pool skills I need to jump to the next level. I have a lot of patience, I want to put a lot of hard work in, but I want to practice the right things. I am thinking that I should get a lesson to make get my fundamentals correct, then the rest should be just practice.

Thanks!

Throw 15 balls to the table, but make sure no ball is near a cushion, let's say 6"-10" away. Then try to clear the table without having the cueball touch any rail. With this exercise you'll learn or make yourself learn to read patterns and running out without moving the cueball too much and taking balls down by groups. Also, you should learn how to "kill" the cueball and reading proper angles how to get more easier to the next ball.

 

[bruin70]

ohhh,, what da heck.

the concept of the "insurance" ball is quite significant in 14.1, but everyone only uses it when talking about breaking up a cluster. i think you should also use the insurance ball concept in negotiating the table. say, if you expect to get rid of some balls at the other end of the table, it's a good idea to have a ball somewhere in the center of the table that will allow you to get uptable to "the pack".

what you have, then, is a strategy somewhat like connect the dots........you DON'T want to "pinball" your cb all over the place.

and since the breakshot is key,,,,drop 5 or 6 balls in the front half of the table and run them to the designated breakshot. i think you will find the setup ball into the sidepocket is the cleanest route.... and the most important ball is not the setup ball, it is the THIRD ball.

14.1 is about the choices you make and knowing yourself. do you like coming off one rail or two for position. stuff like that will determine your strategy, but only you know what's best for you

 

[hobokenapa]

Thanks for all the suggestions!

What do you NORMALLY run when you run good? i'm gonna guess teens with an occasional 20.....and are you missing your breakshots

I've taken to videotaping my sessions recently so I can analyse what I need to work on. What I noticed from reviewing my two hour session last night (where I only had two 20+ runs) is that I am going too quickly in the first rack. I am not doing my normal pre-shot routine. This is causing me to make errors. It seems my concentration only 'kicks-in' during the second rack. I need to avoid 'going for high run' practice sessions. The last two sessions I had one 40+ in each. This is probably the cause of the poor session last night.

From the last three sessions, I found I never missed a single break shot with the final ball on the left hand side of the pack (looking down the table from the kitchen to the head ball) but missed about half the other side. The difference is (as a right handed player) I am on the side of the table for the ones I never miss, but at the top of table for ones I do. I need to figure out what is happening here.

Also, you should learn how to "kill" the cueball

Can you please explain what you mean by that.

and since the breakshot is key,,,,drop 5 or 6 balls in the front half of the table and run them to the designated breakshot

Will do that..

you DON'T want to "pinball" your cb all over the place.

I absolutely want to learn this game the classic way, and not the 9-ball way.

Two drills I'm currently doing. First the classic long straight shot. Object ball in center of table, cue ball right near the corner pocket. I do this until I get all 15 in and count the misses. Apart from one session, this has always been betwen 4 and 7. Which puts me in the 68-78% range for this shot. I believe I need to get this to 90-95%.

Second, I do the L drill with 13 balls. Practice both sides. Usually takes me about 10 attempts to do each.

 

[bruin70]

i never said anything about killing the cb. that was mjantti.

"killing the cb" means hitting the cb so that it "dies" after contact with the ob. this is good for steep angle shots when you don't want to run the cb around the table. you use a snappy little draw stroke that is hit ONLY hard enough to pocket the ob, but it(the cb) looses it's momentum after the contact and dies. i'm sure you've used it.

i think it's important to pocket difficult shots for confidence, but honestly other than that, i don't see the point in practicing a table length straight shot for 14.1

me personally,,,i would practice something i'd see on a 14.1 table,,,,,like tough cut shots to the side. or maybe, practice your cb speed by pocketing a ball in the corner pocket and running it two rails to the center of the table.

are you left with a right side break shot because you never had a left side shot to begin with,,,,or were you forced at some point to kill that left side break shot during the course of the rack?

i am partial to beneath the rack breakshots, and i don't know why i don't use them more often. they are EXTREMELY easy to set up,,,,they will always be 3 diamonds or less,,,,they break the rack away from the two corner pockets and result in less congestion,,,,in your case, you can use either pocket and not have to stretch. i think convention tells me not to go for that breakshot,,,and i've trained myself to break from above the rack.

 

[mjantti]

Can you please explain what you mean by that.

Killing the cueball means how to stop the cueball as soon as possible from a angle on the object ball, usually almost straight but not quite. You can cheat the pocket or use english and with a sort of a slow punch stroke with a quite short followthrough. This shot is especially useful when doing the 15-ball don't-touch-the-cushion exercise.

 

[JustPlay]

Jim Rempe's- how to run a rack of straight pool is really good and so is Mike Sigels videos on straight pool. If you can run 47, you can run 100. Focus and concentration and a good thought process will be a key factor to get you there. Don't focus on running 100. Just play one ball at a time and build up your run brick by brick. When those 100+ ball runners run 100+ balls, they really don't remember running most of those balls because, they were to focused and concentrating on each shot or pattern they played.

Dont over think it. It can stop you cold in your tracks.

 

[Mr441]

I've been playing Straight for about six months. My high run is 47, but I am targetting 100. I want to use my practice time as effectively as possible (since I have nowhere near as much as I'd like). Could some of you 100+ experts please give some guidance on constructive, efficient practice games or drills to build the Straight Pool skills I need to jump to the next level. I have a lot of patience, I want to put a lot of hard work in, but I want to practice the right things. I am thinking that I should get a lesson to make get my fundamentals correct, then the rest should be just practice.

Thanks!

Jim Rempe's tapes are excellent, espescially the one titled "How to run100 balls". Within 2 weeks of repeatedly watching it my high run went up over 50 balls! I still watch it all the time to keep my game in check.

.

 

[sjm]

Well, I've only run a 91, but I'll chime in anyway.

Straight pool is mostly about good habits. In Byrne's Standard book, on the subject of straight pool, there is a page called "advice for running the table" and I showed it to Mika Immonen once and its combination of simplicity and brilliance absolutely blew his mind. It has about a dozen principles that you should commit to memory. Repeat, commit to memory. Repeat, commit to memory.

The two most basic are:

1) you should try to clear your rails early in your run where possible. This will leave you far more options later in the rack.

2) when a ball is situated in a position where it is blocking the path of several balls to a given pocket, it's usually right to try to shoot it early in the pattern.

The two principles, familiarly known as "clear your rails" and "unblock blocked pockets" are adhered to religiously by top straight poolers.

Get Byrne's Standard book and you'll learn the other principles.

As an afterthought, straight pool is a game of creativity, finesse, and very accurate speed control. One pocket helps to develop these skills so essential in striaght pool. Play a little one pocket and watch your straight pool game improve.

 

[BillardBill]

I am interested in learning this game. I read a rules guide and am kinda lost on it.lol You go in order like nine ball calling your ball and pocket i understand that. It just seems like if i played a game with someone that knows it i would be like oh thats easy. How do you keep track of points? Also i dont understand the once you sink the fourteen ball rule. Someone care to give me the clift notes version of this game sounds great.

 

[bruin70]

I am interested in learning this game. I read a rules guide and am kinda lost on it.lol You go in order like nine ball calling your ball and pocket i understand that. It just seems like if i played a game with someone that knows it i would be like oh thats easy. How do you keep track of points? Also i dont understand the once you sink the fourteen ball rule. Someone care to give me the clift notes version of this game sounds great.

it's not rotation,,,you play any ball you want. you leave the last ball(the fifTEENTH ball, not the fifteen ball) on the table and rerack the other 14 balls, so that you can pocket it, break up the reracked 14 balls,,,,then continue on. see how easy it is

 

[BillardBill]

it's not rotation,,,you play any ball you want. you leave the last ball(the fifTEENTH ball, not the fifteen ball) on the table and rerack the other 14 balls, so that you can pocket it, break up the reracked 14 balls,,,,then continue on. see how easy it is

Ok what are the points per ball and scratching etc? Also how does player two step up to the plate so to speak. thanks thats pretty easy oh yeah what rack pattern do you use?

 

[bruin70]

Ok what are the points per ball and scratching etc? ,,,,,,,,,,Also how does player two step up to the plate so to speak. thanks thats pretty easy oh yeah ,,,,,,,,,,,,what rack pattern do you use?

1,,,,,,,,,,,,when you miss,,,,,,,,,,,,east-west and a triangle pattern

 

[BillardBill]

1,,,,,,,,,,,,when you miss,,,,,,,,,,,,east-west and a triangle pattern

East to west? Not familiar with the term. I read somewhere where all the other balls can be where ever but you need the five ball in one corner and i forget the other call in the other corner. The thing i am most unclear on is ok the fourteenth ball is pocketed you rerack all the balls except the fifteenth? So you dont have a full rack i dont get this part. I wish i could play a game with someone that knows it.lol It sounds more confusing then it needs to be.

 

[Blackjack]

The problem many beginners have is the inability to "set up" for a break shot. Its one thing to leave a ball, but if you cannot get the correct angle, you'll end up playing safe eventually. Also, many beginners tend to try and rocket the break shot. If you make contact with the top 2 ball, or the rear corner balls at medium speed, you will get a decent spread. It's no crime to use a secondary break shot. Straight pool is not 8 ball and 9 ball where you blast the rack to bits off the break.

Last week, I was talking to The One about shooting most of the balls in the top corner pockets. Maybe I'll shoot one or two of the balls in the side pockets, very rarely will I have to shoot anything down in the opposite corners unless I really have to. By doing this I keep it simple. More times than not, on the break shot I will be shooting in that direction anyway. If I am shooting in the other direction, I usually try to get back in the right direction as soon as possible. That's how I play, others players may completely disagree with me. That's okay, I've been running a lot of balls like this for over 30 years.

 

[BillardBill]

The problem many beginners have is the inability to "set up" for a break shot. Its one thing to leave a ball, but if you cannot get the correct angle, you'll end up playing safe eventually. Also, many beginners tend to try and rocket the break shot. If you make contact with the top 2 ball, or the rear corner balls at medium speed, you will get a decent spread. It's no crime to use a secondary break shot. Straight pool is not 8 ball and 9 ball where you blast the rack to bits off the break.

Last week, I was talking to The One about shooting most of the balls in the top corner pockets. Maybe I'll shoot one or two of the balls in the side pockets, very rarely will I have to shoot anything down in the opposite corners unless I really have to. By doing this I keep it simple. More times than not, on the break shot I will be shooting in that direction anyway. If I am shooting in the other direction, I usually try to get back in the right direction as soon as possible. That's how I play, others players may completely disagree with me. That's okay, I've been running a lot of balls like this for over 30 years.

Makes sense to me. Sorry i asked how to play didnt mean to over wrap your thread original poster i was just thinking before i read your post i want to learn straight pool. sorry

 

[hobokenapa]

Get Byrne's Standard book and you'll learn the other principles.

I've got the book from my shelf. Page 155 is called Running the table - 13 rules to live by. I don't think these are specific to Straight Pool but it has your two examples so I think this is what you were referring to.

I'd also investigate the tapes mentioned in other threads. I definitely need to put time studying the game away from the table as well as practice on it.

If I do succeed in breaking 50, I'll post to this thread!

 

[cuejoey]

Throw 15 balls to the table, but make sure no ball is near a cushion, let's say 6"-10" away. Then try to clear the table without having the cueball touch any rail. With this exercise you'll learn or make yourself learn to read patterns and running out without moving the cueball too much and taking balls down by groups. Also, you should learn how to "kill" the cueball and reading proper angles how to get more easier to the next ball.

this is a great excercise ..i use it everyday..the only thing is i'm not good enough to NOT use the rail..

 

[bruin70]

I've got the book from my shelf. Page 155 is called Running the table - 13 rules to live by. I don't think these are specific to Straight Pool but it has your two examples so I think this is what you were referring to.

I'd also investigate the tapes mentioned in other threads. I definitely need to put time studying the game away from the table as well as practice on it.

If I do succeed in breaking 50, I'll post to this thread!

mizerak vs sigel,,,west vs zuglan....accustat