The First Shot in One Pocket

[senor]

I missed this one

Yeah Cornerman.. I just tend to lose it when I see people give bad advice, and attach the "no pro would shoot your shot" label to someone else's shot, in order to denigrate the shot.

They mislead developing players in order to inflate their own ego.

Let me be clear. My shot is just the one I prefer. It may not be the "best" shot, but it is a common shot played by the pros. I am not making any statements that my shot is the "only" shot, but I do take exception to someone who obviously hasn't seen 50-60 top one Pocket players play, saying the pros would never shoot my shot. When I have seen them do so many, mnay, many times.

Just because they have seen ONE good One Pocket player in their area, who has an unorthodox, insanely aggressive style, does not qualify them to pass judgements on a shot they never saw their man take.

Russ

It's hard to communicate effectively in writing. I never intended to say that ducking behind the 10 should not be considered. For me, it is last resort. I think for most of the top players it is a last resort shot. When you are looking at the situation that "she" has put you in, your first thought should be "How can I move the 10 and not sell the game off?" Although my idea of trying to move the 10 with the 4 does leave room for error, I think (from experience) the benefits far outweigh the risks. The sweet spot on the left side of the 10 ball is fairly large. It looks like the worst thing that could happen is the 4 either does not fall in her pocket or does not vacate the area. It happens, bad roll, what are you gonna do?

And about the DVD's versus real life experience, to each his own, I guess. I have run the gauntlet, my friend. Others like to sweat it from the sidelines.

 

[senor]

Thanks for the thoughts, senor - that's what I wanted to hear about.

I like the fact that you prioritize: (1) what's easiest? (2) what's safest? (3) what's most productive? And I like the reminder to look at all the possibilities before making a decision. We too often focus on the obvious and miss the better shot.

pj
chgo

Your welcome, pj. I usually don't conjure up situations like this for discussion, but always look at the one-hole threads and usually respond to them.

Thanks