Tips On This Shot?

[DrCue'sProtege]

ok, i was playing tonight, and ended up with the last four balls on the table as shown here. In case the cue ball doesnt show up its at Point A, and with the '9' Ball just behind it bridging wasnt easy.

i put some draw (6:00 as shown) on the shot, pocketed the '6' Ball, and draw across the rails for the '7' Ball. but the cue ball ends up right on the rail at Point B. just my luck, on the rail. so, i had to bridge over the rail to pocket the '7' Ball to come up for the '8', and i thought a half tip of inside english to lessen the angle on the '8' Ball.

but, i missed the '7' Ball. undercut it just slightly, and it wouldnt fall in. practiced this shot 10,000 times, but like seems to happen to me alot, i missed it when i needed to make it. i had that feeling of impending doom that i might miss this shot. and i did.

DCP

CueTable Help

 

[scottycoyote]

i would have never tried to put english on the cueball to play the 7.....ur already on the rail......better to play it and get the cueball off the rail and up a couple diamonds......even if you dont have optimum position on the 8 you have plenty to work with to get to the 9

 

[TheConArtist]

i would have never tried to put english on the cueball to play the 7.....ur already on the rail......better to play it and get the cueball off the rail and up a couple diamonds......even if you dont have optimum position on the 8 you have plenty to work with to get to the 9

True, its hard enough to hit center cueball when the cueball is on the rail let alone use english. But i probably would of did the samething, use IS english as i do that most of the time when the ball is on the rail but this is if it is frozen to the rail.

i had that feeling of impending doom that i might miss this shot. and i did.

Might what cause to miss the shot also, when i find myself thinking i am going to miss, or if i think where the ball might hit the pocket like the point i always hit that point all the time LOL.

 

[GADawg]

I can't imagine why you would try to put any spin on the CB while shooting the 7. Shoot the 7 with center follow off the rail and the CB should naturally go to the long rail at about the second diamond giving you nearly straight in position on the 8.

You seem to try to over-complicate these things. Anytime you can shot a shot with no english, do it, and your per cent misses will drop.

 

[unknownpro]

i would have never tried to put english on the cueball to play the 7.....ur already on the rail......better to play it and get the cueball off the rail and up a couple diamonds......even if you dont have optimum position on the 8 you have plenty to work with to get to the 9

Exactly. It would take a very, very long, very slow, outstanding stroke to not let your cueball curve from there. If you're playing curve shots regularly, you will probably not get out very often.

Good shot on the 6 though, Protege, and you should've been out after making that. Anybody can miss off the rail, try not to complicate things. Instead of using english on this shot, concentrate on hitting the ball and rail at the same time so the cueball will go more forward instead of straight up table. (Bob, don't start with me, lol!)

unknownpro

 

[PoolSharkAllen]

True, its hard enough to hit center cueball when the cueball is on the rail let alone use english. But i probably would of did the samething, use IS english as i do that most of the time when the ball is on the rail but this is if it is frozen to the rail.

Might what cause to miss the shot also, when i find myself thinking i am going to miss, or if i think where the ball might hit the pocket like the point i always hit that point all the time LOL.

I also would have used inside english on the 7. If the 7 is frozen to the rail, hit the rail first with a soft-medium shot. The CB will glide up a few diamonds closer to the 8.

You still need to work on blocking out those negative thoughts. Take a deep breath and focus on the shot and nothing else.

 

[TheConArtist]

I also would have used inside english on the 7. If the 7 is frozen to the rail, hit the rail first with a soft-medium shot. The CB will glide up a few diamonds closer to the 8.

You still need to work on blocking out those negative thoughts. Take a deep breath and focus on the shot and nothing else.

Yeppers, but i have my aiming system, and BHE down that i can pocket a ball frozen to the rail using OE but IE is the one that people tend to use as it makes potting the ball easier. But i know i can use different english to protect the cueball if it lays to where it might scratch.

 

[mikepage]

[...] so, i had to bridge over the rail to pocket the '7' Ball to come up for the '8', and i thought a half tip of inside english to lessen the angle on the '8' Ball.[...]

I agree with others that the 7-ball is a tougher shot than any shot you're likely to get on the 8. I'd cinch the 7-ball with no english and not much more than pocket speed.

mike page
fargo

 

[Tennesseejoe]

Hit the cue ball with a little high English and aim to hit the rail about 1/16 inch before the 7 ball. Keep your cue level as possible without miscueing. Try this 10 times and you will have it mastered.

 

[Snapshot9]

Good advice

I agree with others that the 7-ball is a tougher shot than any shot you're likely to get on the 8. I'd cinch the 7-ball with no english and not much more than pocket speed.

mike page
fargo

Mike gave good advice, and so did TJ. Jsst center follow will move the cue ball to where you will have a good shot of the 8. With Inside english, you are 'throwing' the cue ball toward the long rail, but center follow will kind 'fade' the cue ball towards the long rail after the shot, and actually leave you a slight angle on the 8 to work with for shape on the 9.

 

[TX Poolnut]

There is absolutely no reason to use any english on the 7-ball. Why complicate things? The natural roll of the cue ball will give shape to the 8-ball. Some people like to make things harder than they need to be. Reduce the variables in your game and simplify your pool. Your runout percentage will naturally increase.

 

[pete lafond]

Great shot on the 6.

I would have just played the 7 with follow (not hard) to get to any place 6 inches short of the side pocket. Played the 8 with middle just to get a couple inches off the rail with the CB.

 

[PoolSharkAllen]

There is absolutely no reason to use any english on the 7-ball. Why complicate things? The natural roll of the cue ball will give shape to the 8-ball. Some people like to make things harder than they need to be. Reduce the variables in your game and simplify your pool. Your runout percentage will naturally increase.

Keep in mind that if you hit the rail and the 7 simultaneously, the CB will roll perpendicular to the short rail. As the CB travels perpendicular to the short rail and closer to the 8, you will lose shape on the 9 because you have a sharper angle on the 8. Using a touch of inside english on the 7 will move the CB closer to the top rail with less of an angle on the 8. A stop shot on the 8 should be sufficient to easily make the 9.

 

[laser2507]

With that nice shot on the 6 you should have been out there. Sorry to hear your miss. When the ball is frozen to the rail aim to hit the rail first, not both at the same time... this only works on big buckets. Its funny how many players think hitting both at the same time is the pottable angle.

And as for english, use zero english when your on the rail, just concentrate on stroking straight through the cueball center, it will work wonders.

 

[TX Poolnut]

This is the thinking that gets people trouble. Speed control is simple on this shot. There is absolutely no need to overcomplicate the shot with english. The position clearly dictates a smooth roll to the eight. If I overshoot this 8-ball, I still have a shot even though I'd be a moron for doing so. If I miss the 7-ball, I have no shot. Bottom line: Make the 7-ball. The cue will do the rest.

 

[pete lafond]

This is the thinking that gets people trouble. Speed control is simple on this shot. There is absolutely no need to overcomplicate the shot with english. The position clearly dictates a smooth roll to the eight. If I overshoot this 8-ball, I still have a shot even though I'd be a moron for doing so. If I miss the 7-ball, I have no shot. Bottom line: Make the 7-ball. The cue will do the rest.

I agree. Keep it simple, make the shots. There is a lot of distance to the 8 so speed control isn't such a big factor. Smooth strokes all the way.

 

[unknownpro]

With that nice shot on the 6 you should have been out there. Sorry to hear your miss. When the ball is frozen to the rail aim to hit the rail first, not both at the same time... this only works on big buckets. Its funny how many players think hitting both at the same time is the pottable angle.

And as for english, use zero english when your on the rail, just concentrate on stroking straight through the cueball center, it will work wonders.

Whether you or Bob believe it or not, there is a difference between hitting the rail way in front of the object ball and spinning it down the rail using the english picked up by the cueball and what I call hitting ball and rail at the same time. The first sends your cueball nearly perpindicular to the rail, the second has more follow to it from the start. Both can make the shot no matter how tight the table is because the ball never leaves the rail.

I've seen the videos and know that maybe the second way is really hitting the rail first, but by a lesser amount - it really doesn't matter. The point is that they are different shots with different results, no matter what you call them. I am not aware of any video that shows the two different shot results I am describing.

unknownpro

 

[PoolSharkAllen]

Whether you or Bob believe it or not, there is a difference between hitting the rail way in front of the object ball and spinning it down the rail using the english picked up by the cueball and what I call hitting ball and rail at the same time. The first sends your cueball nearly perpindicular to the rail, the second has more follow to it from the start. Both can make the shot no matter how tight the table is because the ball never leaves the rail.

I've seen the videos and know that maybe the second way is really hitting the rail first, but by a lesser amount - it really doesn't matter. The point is that they are different shots with different results, no matter what you call them. I am not aware of any video that shows the two different shot results I am describing.

unknownpro

That shot on the 7 is harder than it looks. Today, I set up the 7 and 8 similar to the diagram so I could try this out. A simultaneaous ball and rail hit on the 7 that some posters advocated, will more than likely result in a miss. The only way to consistently make the 7 is to hit the rail first, about 1/16-inch away from the 7.

One unexpected result of using high follow was that a few times, I scratched or came close to scratching in the upper side pocket. With high follow, I expected the cue ball to travel perpendicular to the rail, however, the cue ball oftentimes traveled at an angle approaching the upper side pocket. Using inside english would help prevent an unintended scratch in the upper side pocket.

 

[gforces1911]

If.

i would have never tried to put english on the cueball to play the 7.....ur already on the rail......better to play it and get the cueball off the rail and up a couple diamonds......even if you dont have optimum position on the 8 you have plenty to work with to get to the 9

If I hear myself thinking- "put a half tip of english" on a shot where the CB is frozen to the rail I know that I am doing something low percentage. I would just shoot to pocket the 7 smoothly and it will pretty much naturally end up on the 8.

English and shooting too hard are not conducive to pocketing balls while stuck to the rail. Unless you are shooting an impossible long shot and are using Bert Kinister secret #2890

 

[Cornerman]

so, i had to bridge over the rail to pocket the '7' Ball to come up for the '8', and i thought a half tip of inside english to lessen the angle on the '8' Ball.

but, i missed the '7' Ball. undercut it just slightly,

No need to use english on this shot.

On this shot, anything shot with a hair of english will swerve more than most people realize. So, that's probably why you missed.

Fred