The most common flaw in pool fundamentals...

Final back stroke. How long is yours? If you have a pause in your stroke. Is your stroke a forward motion only?
I was setting up the same spot shot over and over for my wife. Very inconsistent. On her back swing, the tip came back to her bridge hand. So I basically had her shorten her back swing and stop/pause. Shots lines up. From there she only had a forward stroke to the cue ball. She was then making about 8 out of 10 spot shots.
 
First a beginner or intermediate must find the solution

Pidge said:
Im not sure if pulling the cue back too quick is the most common, but it is definitely a major problem.

I think pulling back too slow also creates tension. It is about finding your own ryhthm. A rythm in which everything feels natural and not forced, doesnt give you chance to tighten or loosen the grip and one that allows you to hit where you want. Some can do this pulling back at the speed of light, others have to slow it right down.
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I agree, this is more of an advanced problem.

First a beginner or intermediate must find the solution of how to structure their pre-shot routine so they can get down on every shot as if it's already been made....this takes some training and some knowledge of how the body aligns to the shot line and the cue.
 
Ak Guy said:
That reminds me of hand gun shooting. The best sight picture in the world won't help if one has poor trigger skills. Many anticipate the shot, so they rush the trigger press at the end and wonder why the got a poor hit. I will check your observations out.
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At the rifle range in the Marine Corps they taught that the round going off should be close to a surprise. they taught us to gently squeeze the trigger not jerk it.
 
Practicing this will show if you're having issues at a deeper level fundamentally

I'm not sure what the most common flaw in pool is, there's probably several.

With beginners it's probably related to their stance, bridge, and upper body angles.

With Intermediate and advanced it's probably too loose of a grip and too long of a follow though. These can both lead to a lot of miss guided shots with no apparent cause.

To compete at the highest levels in pool the contact must be at the moment of highest acceleration, and this is much easier said than done. The best way to fix it is to play with a tighter than normal grip and practically no follow-through......this may seem strange at first, but it will show if you're having issues at a deeper level fundamentally.
 
I think one of the biggest flaws in pool play is actually showing up at the pool hall in the first place. Think how better off you'd be if you didn't.
Your son could finally get that new catchers mitt he's been wanting for so long. He's twenty-three years old now.
Your daughter would finally get that Schwinn bicycle with that big white basket on the front that's big enough to hold her daughter.
Your wife could get a new washer and dryer instead of a Cannon towel and a bar of soap.
Don't you think they're worth it? Huh? :)
 
Tramp Steamer said:
I think one of the biggest flaws in pool play is actually showing up at the pool hall in the first place. Think how better off you'd be if you didn't.
Your son could finally get that new catchers mitt he's been wanting for so long. He's twenty-three years old now.
Your daughter would finally get that Schwinn bicycle with that big white basket on the front that's big enough to hold her daughter.
Your wife could get a new washer and dryer instead of a Cannon towel and a bar of soap.
Don't you think they're worth it? Huh? :)
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Every cent, every day!

randyg
 
Solartje said:
colin, yes i hit almost a half tip of left side on every shot if i don't concentrate and use a long backswing. :mad: i have very very very bad basics, but i do play ok and pockets are big in pool if you aren't shooting 8ft shots. (probably my memory and aiming compensates this partially? no idea, i don't think about it, i just do) its just that all the rest of my game has improved so much , i never payed attention to basics as i was improving allround.

even during long warmup strokes in noticed in the video's that my albow goes outwards a bit on every warmupstroke (probably why i play better with no warmup stroke at all). I could block the movement by blocking my elbow or only using short backstroke shots, but then everything feels blocked and I don't get the cueaction i want.

Now if i want to move beyond this level i'm stuck in for some time now, i need to improve my basics to get more precise on everything else. i have to watch my wrist, forearm, elbow, shoulder, pullback movement, body alignment and its a nightmare mentally. (its not simple pulling the arm back slowly so no jerky backswing movement is done) its just that everything is aligned incorrectly. pulling back slowly, trying to use only one muscle isn't going to solve that if your shoulder-elbow is not aligned. If i train it A LOT i can get it all working straight for a day or 2-3. BUt thinking of ALL that + patterns, positions, tactics etc + position + stress factor is just impossible and i have been playing a lot worse but i know this is a temporary setback if i want to improve.

a simple lag shot back and forward with center hit, comes back to my top maybe 3/10 if i don't concentrate on it and just hit it firm. when i concentrate and play slow maybe i can get it to 6/10. it's just SO many things aligned wrong, that its very hard to get them all working correctly aligned together. I'm a natural player. i feel the ball, i feel the angles, i feel the speed, I just know when i'm on, but my technique is very very bad. My best game is 14-1 and my worst is 9ball, why? simple the further the shot, the more important fundamentals become. i play a mean 7ft Barr table pool but i can't pot a single snooker ball. fundamentals. and every shot that needs a bit of more power or a longer backswing is just *crossing fingers and hoping i'm not misaligned to much* wich is a nightmare in straightpool when you are king at solving problems, bumping balls in position, opening racks, clusters etc (making the hard points), but you miss 80% of your breakshots/longshots due to unwanted movement due to increased speed (and leave open tables, the easy points).

but i'm working on it for 2years now, and wish i had an assistant behind me who could check everything for me :D but it's improving, i just need to shoot A LOT of balls for it to become naturally, but often it feels like shooting with the opposite arm. very awkward, but when its all aligned it just feels like floating.


i'm thinking of investing in a webcam and a tv so i can watch myself on tv from behind and the side when shooting.
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Hi Solly,
Sounds like you really have developed a bad habit if your natural shot comes across the line you're trying to hit.

Joe Tucker's 3rd Eye Stroke Trainer could help train you into a better habit. Info here: http://www.joetucker.net/store/stroke_trainer.htm

But it sounds to me like your stance is an issue, as it cramps your body close to your grip hand, making it want to go right (away from the body) to get room for the stroke.

A quick fix is to stand with your body a little higher. A better fix is to get more of a snooker style stance, where the right hip is rotated away from the cue and the shoulders can then twist more clockwise, which tends to align head, shoulder and elbow in a more linear mechanical position as well as provide more room for the cue to move unobstructed by the lower chest and hip.

It also wouldn't hurt to spend 10-30 mins a day cueing in and out of a bottle, sometimes bringing the cue back to full swing position. Doing this in front of a mirror can be even more educational.

Another trick is to get a laser pen and use some blutak (putty) to stick it on your cue. Align the dot with the cue and then point it at a line on a wall in the distance and cue back and forth trying to keep the laser dot as close to that line as possible. This is like the bottle drill on steroids. It shows up all tendencies very clearly.

The laser can be placed about mid cue, just that it is near the chin on full backswing. Wrist twisting can distort the perception of sideways movement, so be aware of that. You can try to get the lase to point downward a touch, such that the cue and laser point to the same spot at the distance the line is from the cue. This will reduce the affect of cue twisting, such that the dot position relative to the line quite accurately reflects the direction of the cue.

Good luck mate,
Colin
 
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CJ Wiley said:
To compete at the highest levels in pool (Claim to Authority Fallacy) the contact must be at the moment of highest acceleration (Proven Falsehood), and this is much easier said than done(Understatement of the Year). The best way to fix it is to play with a tighter than normal grip and practically no follow-through.(Just as the world's best potters don't).....this may seem strange at first,(And at Last) but it will show if you're having issues at a deeper level fundamentally.(Begging the Question Fallacy)
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You're a very entertaining fellow CJ! :)
 
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Colin Colenso said:
Hi Solly,
Sounds like you really have developed a bad habit if your natural shot comes across the line you're trying to hit.

Joe Tucker's 3rd Eye Stroke Trainer could help train you into a better habit. Info here: http://www.joetucker.net/store/stroke_trainer.htm

But it sounds to me like your stance is an issue, as it cramps your body close to your grip hand, making it want to go right (away from the body) to get room for the stroke.

A quick fix is to stand with your body a little higher. A better fix is to get more of a snooker style stance, where the right hip is rotated away from the cue and the shoulders can then twist more clockwise, which tends to align head, shoulder and elbow in a more linear mechanical position as well as provide more room for the cue to move unobstructed by the lower chest and hip.

It also wouldn't hurt to spend 10-30 mins a day cueing in and out of a bottle, sometimes bringing the cue back to full swing position. Doing this in front of a mirror can be even more educational.

Another trick is to get a laser pen and use some blutak (putty) to stick it on your cue. Align the dot with the cue and then point it at a line on a wall in the distance and cue back and forth trying to keep the laser dot as close to that line as possible. This is like the bottle drill on steroids. It shows up all tendencies very clearly.

The laser can be placed about mid cue, just that it is near the chin on full backswing. Wrist twisting can distort the perception of sideways movement, so be aware of that. You can try to get the lase to point downward a touch, such that the cue and laser point to the same spot at the distance the line is from the cue. This will reduce the affect of cue twisting, such that the dot position relative to the line quite accurately reflects the direction of the cue.

Good luck mate,
Colin
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I found tremendous improvement in my stroke when I set the bottle on my table so that it was on the shot line of a cut shot. Just using the bottle wasn't enough because I wasn't using my eyes as I would on a shot. Add an object ball.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
that's what makes this game fascinating (and confusing to some).

Straightpool_99 said:
As a guy that plays pool, carom and snooker I try to build a style that works for all games....I find that the traditional snooker style works best for me. That being said, I find your philosophy of play interesting.
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I have been greatly influenced by snooker, one instructor in Canada changed my stance and showed me the greatest "secret" to the stroke. imho

Everyone plays this game in their own unique way, however, there are common denominators that all the best players share. They still use their own personal style to accomplish these things, and that's what makes this game fascinating (and confusing to some).

Play Well.....'The Game (all games) is our Teacher'
 
One Pocket John said:
SP99, thanks for returning I enjoy your writings. :thumbup:

The triceps pull the cue back and the lower bicep closes the arm to bring the cue forward.
When pulling the cue back you have to give the triceps an opportunity to relax at the end of the backswing. At that moment the lower bicep will begin to load up to close the arm bringing the cue forward.

It is a rhythm issue I deal with all the time. One thing that has helped me, while practicing is to say to myself, while doing my warm up strokes, is to just say From the QB I say "1", bringing the cue back I say "and" "2" "and" "3". The word "and" is used during bringing the cue back. Kinda like dancing.

This method for me works well. When I do it I can feel the triceps relax and then start to feel the lower bicep begin to load.

I had to come up with something, I hate rushing the backswing.

Thanks for the post.

John
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Good stuff.
 
Pressure is what amplifies these issues and makes it very challenging to play

jburkm002 said:
Could one get away with most flaws if they only had to pocket the ball and not play position?
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Not really, although it depends what you mean by "get away with".

The issue with fundamental flaws is it forces the subconscious to use most of it's capacity just to correct these errors enough to make the shots......most of the time anyway. Pressure is what amplifies these issues and makes it very challenging to play for a lot of money, or against seasoned champion level players.

The result is often what we used to call "the feint factor," which enables us to give short stop players large handicaps and still win.
 
I tend to think I have good form (maybe I'm delusional or someone who has played me can chime in) this allows me to play once a week (or less) and keep in stroke.

Most people I play generally suffer from some or all of these:
1. Don't keep their head and body still
2. Like to spin in shots as opposed to playing natural angles
3. Rather hit the shot they like to hit instead of what's best
4. Over estimate their probability of making a shot
5. Would rather draw the ball than play through (drive for show, putt for dough)

Other notables but less likely:
6. Don't walk into shot / poor alignment
7. Don't come around and look at angle
8. Leave themselves straight in
9. Try to improve on shape they already have (See Buddy Hall quote)

Nick
 
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