The ONE idea to keep in mind that will MOST improve your game!

I love some of the contributions in this thread!

I just got back home and checked this thread to find some GREAT contributions! Thanks to all who have taken the time to put down what works for them. There's an excellent chance that what works for you will help someone else out there in AZ land. A couple of thoughts occurred to me as I read over the responses. First, isn't it remarkable (or maybe it isn't?) that even the greats (Varner, Fisher, & others) still work on keeping their head down and keeping still over the shot? It's like you NEVER really master it, you have to keep on it, keep diligent as long as you play the game. Reminds me of something Buddy Hall told me years ago (1980) - he said that people had the misconception that pool had become easy for him, maybe because of that precise position play of his where he rarely got out of line. But he said that, in fact, "EVERY SHOT is a struggle." Yep, those were his exact words. The second thought I had (I only have about 3 thoughts an hour these days) is that I should wait about a day and then compile a new list of ideas that include all the wonderful new contributions that have been made in this thread. And that's just what I intend to do. Gee, now that's TWO things to burden my poor memory with because I also have to remember to do a countdown on sjm's posts when he gets to 4,990 (he's at 4,977 right now).:D
 
BillPorter said:
I. But he said that, in fact, "EVERY SHOT is a struggle."
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BP,
In case you hadn't heard these 2 quotes from Luther Lassiter.

In his book, he describes the apparent simplicity of the game (no huge physical requirements) as being misleading; saying, "This game is tough as a cob."

He also addresses the observation that the skilled players do not miss the easy shots as much as the amateur players; saying, "I quit missing those shots when I came to the realization that there is no such thing as an easy shot."
 
I am always telling a friend who gets kinda wrapped up in how he might do in tourneys before they start.. "Forget about that crap, just worry about making one ball at a time and having fun." Works for me anyway:)
 
Island Drive said:
Getting my students to quicky understand a natural rolling cue ball, and where it will go once it strikes an object ball. This is the foundation for understanding making balls and getting shape with speed control only, KISS.
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I think this deserved to be said again, louder. :D

I am of the belief that one should not use side, draw or follow unless a suitable shot using natural roll is unavailable. (not an absolute rule, but a general rule of thumb)

Good Rolls,
Rasta
 
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Two more words...

"Bear down".

It's mymain mantra, as bearing down tends to work my fundamentals into shape as well..

Russ
 
If I have to pick just one thing that helped my game the most it's.

ALWAYS STEP INTO YOUR SHOT. DO NOT PUT YOUR FOOT IN THE BUCKET.

I can't help it - Notice where your tip lands. POST SHOT ROUTINE.
Light grip on the cue.
 
BillPorter said:
For me, since I am not a pro and don’t NEED to make money at this game, enjoyment or having fun is my number one goal.
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I agree that having fun is the most important thing on your list, but if you pick the one thing that will help YOU make balls and get shapes constantly the fun is sure to follow.
For me that one thing to focus on is stay down and follow through. Yes I consider that to be one.

Steve
 
Joe Koontz said:
For me, if I focus on a nice light grip and staying down on my shot, I tend to do pretty well. I have struggled in the past with trying to think about too many things while shooting. That does me more harm than good while playing. I like to focus on one thing at a time while practicing.
While playing competetively, I try to simply focus on enjoying myself and the rest "usually" takes care of itself.
As I get older, I place much less importance in winning. As a result, I win more often because I don't put as much pressure on myself. That makes the game a lot more fun. YMMV

Nice thread, BTW.. Joe
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where you at in ohio joe, i'm in chillicothe. by the way go bucks!!!
 
BillPorter said:
Some years ago I was involved in developing a mission statement for a college. As I sat with some board members and the president, we discussed the issue of how many ideas we could incorporate into a short version of the statement and still have a version that people could commit to memory. We agreed that people could remember and keep in mind THREE key ideas, but a couple of years later we had to admit that three was too many for most people!

When it comes to pool, we have all heard one or more of the following recommendations: Stay down on the shot, follow through, never take any shot for granted, grip the cue lightly, etc., etc. How many ideas can YOU keep in mind as you begin a pool session? For me, ONE is about it. I can, if I bear down, go through most of a pool session keeping ONE important idea cooking on the front burner. So, if I am going to be limited to just one theme or one thought for a pool session, what would it be? (And I know that if I am lucky enough to get in the “zone,” there won’t be ANY ideas floating around in my mind.)

Here are some that have worked pretty well for me at one time or another.

1) Be still – I think I got this from Patrick Johnson on RSB. It covers a lot of stuff to be just two words!
2) Watch the cue ball contact the object ball – Nick Varner
3) Have a plan – Nick Varner once said he never executed a shot without a plan in mind.
4) Mike Sigel claimed that he never pulled the trigger on a shot without believing the ball would go in.
5) The “granny mode” – Someone once advised that when you are not playing well you should put your game in the “granny mode.” By this he meant you should slow WAY DOWN. Slower movements around the table, taking more time with your decisions, taking more warm up strokes, etc.
6) Full backstroke – I have noticed that when I get nervous at the table, my backstroke shortens. At times I have been able to correct this by consciously making a full backstroke.
7) Have fun! – This is from several people including Bob Fancher’s book “Pleasures of Small Motions.” There have been times that my game improved dramatically after reminding myself that I am playing pool primarily to have fun.
8) Stay down – Jimmy Reid once said he could tell who the good players were in a pool hall within a few minutes of entering the room. He said all he had to do was watch to see which players stayed down on their shots.
10) Most shots or missed because of INDECISION – I think I got this from Dr. Dave on CCB. The more I thought about it, the more correct it seemed to be.
11) Focus on the one shot right in front of you; success should be defined in terms of the percentage of shots during the session that you give your best to. Delivering a quality stroke on a shot where you have a clear plan and have made a commitment to play in a given way is ALL YOU CAN DO. If you do this shot after shot, you are playing your best, right?

That list reminds me of an incident that occurred about 45 years ago as I watched a local shortstop who was playing badly. At one point, he stopped shooting, walked a few feet away from the table and pull a little slip of paper out of his billfold. When he came back to the table, his play improved and IIRC, he won the match. I later asked him what was on that slip of paper and he told me that when he was playing badly it was always because he wasn’t doing something on his checklist. Stuff like staying down on the shot, picking an exact spot for the cue ball to end up, etc. Not a bad idea, in my opinion. Maybe someone should sell a little plastic card with the top ten or top twelve reminders to check on when our play has gone south.

If I had to pick JUST ONE for an important match or session, which would I choose? Looking over the list just now, I decided on #7 AND #2. I know, it wasn’t fair for me to pick two, but hey, it’s my post and I can do what I want with it. For me, since I am not a pro and don’t NEED to make money at this game, enjoyment or having fun is my number one goal.

Now it’s your turn to contribute the idea that has worked best for you in the past. Maybe you’ll pick one from my list or maybe you will post something that was not on the list. Either way, I’d like to hear what you have to say.:)
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I haven't read the other posts but the one thing that you must remember to do is the one thing that is causing you to miss at the time you are getting ready to shoot. Now don't laugh too hard but you do not have to remember to stay down if you are staying down nor any of the other items on your list. The one thing you have to remember is the thing you or someone else has noticed that you are doing or not doing. A "watcher"/coach can often observe and report minute movement or other miniscule things that you are doing that could cause you to miss. I once had a guy watching me play pool and he saw that when I had a difficult long shot that I loosened my grip on the cue substantially. That observation blew me away as I thought no one would ever know that I was in fact loosening my grip for those long difficult shots.

Right now if you wanted me to add to your fine list I would add: Reduce back and forth eye movement. A reknown instructor noticed this in me at a tournament and once I corrected it, I went on to beat some very good players. So for me-Reduce back and forth eye movement.
JoeyA
 
Rasta said:
I think this deserved to be said again, louder. :D

I am of the belief that one should not use side, draw or follow unless a suitable shot using natural roll is unavailable. (not an absolute rule, but a general rule of thumb)

Good Rolls,
Rasta
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"Using Natural roll"? What about using Natural "slide"? "Side-spin" (English) is what creates most problems for new players. What I like to tell them is, "You can learn to use English, when you can run the table without it!";)
 
Hard to pick ONE thig to keep in mind. I have nothing new to add to all the great information above but, after I have decided on the shot, gotten the line and am down over the ball, the last three things I try to think of are
1. Light Grip
2. Follow straight through the shot
3. Stay down

One thing I picked up recently from watching Wang Ming, a very strong young Chinese player, has helped my make percentage on long cuts. He will walk behind the object ball to look exactly down the line to the pocket and carefully choose the exact point to strike the object ball. Then he walks back behind the CB never taking his eye from that spot on the OB as he aligns himself and gets down over the shot. If unsure he might repeat this procedure a couple times on a difficult shot.

I was having a terrible time with long back cuts so have implemented this process and it has helped tremendously when combined with improved fundamentals also. Some people can just "see" these things without doing this, but I can't. I also now do it on the shorter "easy" shots and have reduced my brain fart "easy shot" misses.
 
The 2 points I would add are:
Quiet eyes! You need to look at the cueball only once, then NEVER take your eyes off the object ball.

All too often I see inexperienced players shoot defensively in a casual game. Casual games are practice time, learn to shoot aggressively when you can AFFORD to lose. The only people who cannot make the difficult shots are the people that never try.
 
8ball said:
The 2 points I would add are:
Quiet eyes! You need to look at the cueball only once, then NEVER take your eyes off the object ball.

All too often I see inexperienced players shoot defensively in a casual game. Casual games are practice time, learn to shoot aggressively when you can AFFORD to lose. The only people who cannot make the difficult shots are the people that never try.
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I disagree. I have alot of respect for players that play like they are playing Efren when they are just practicing with a partner. You should always play like you have something on the line, that's how you get that killer instinct.

Shooting crazy and low percentage shots are best learned when practicing by yourself, so you can shoot them over and over again.

And I really don't agree with looking at the cueball only once. Where did you get that from???
 
cuetechasaurus said:
I disagree. I have alot of respect for players that play like they are playing Efren when they are just practicing with a partner. You should always play like you have something on the line, that's how you get that killer instinct.

Shooting crazy and low percentage shots are best learned when practicing by yourself, so you can shoot them over and over again.

And I really don't agree with looking at the cueball only once. Where did you get that from???
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"Shooting crazy and low percentage shots are best learned when practicing by yourself, so you can shoot them over and over again."

No...it's not that you need to learn to shoot "them over and over" because seldom are games won by shooting hard shots! You just need to learn to make some of the hard shots against other players because it builds your confidence and more importantly it makes you focus on winning! Games are mostly LOST by people missing easy shots/position!

As far as where did I learn about quiet eyes...besides 51 years of playing you can read the research for yourself: "GAINESVILLE --- When it comes to games such as pool and darts, people with the quietest eyes will play the best, a University of Florida researcher has concluded." I'm sure you can find the report on the internet yourself! People who move their eyes the most (looking back and forth) are the ones who are the most inconsistent shot makers!
 
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