Tricks of the trade

[jburkm002]

I know that even if I had the same fundamentals as SVB and practiced just as much as he does. I would not even be close to turning pro. I believe there are things you need to learn along the way to get better. Otherwise your just repeating what you know over and over. Thought maybe we could put up some examples that maybe not all players know.
like-
pattern racking (imagine most players don't know how or how to recognize when it's being done to them)
racking (how to rack with the intention of making a ball in a specific pocket)
cue ball and object ball are frozen on the rail. Playing inside english will help the object ball ride the rail.
Not sure but I think BHE helps eliminate deflection

 

[jasonlaus]

I know that even if I had the same fundamentals as SVB and practiced just as much as he does. I would not even be close to turning pro. I believe there are things you need to learn along the way to get better. Otherwise your just repeating what you know over and over. Thought maybe we could put up some examples that maybe not all players know.
like-
pattern racking (imagine most players don't know how or how to recognize when it's being done to them)
racking (how to rack with the intention of making a ball in a specific pocket)
cue ball and object ball are frozen on the rail. Playing inside english will help the object ball ride the rail.
Not sure but I think BHE helps eliminate deflection

Shhhhhh, no secrets

 

[Dockter]

I know that even if I had the same fundamentals as SVB and practiced just as much as he does. I would not even be close to turning pro. I believe there are things you need to learn along the way to get better. Otherwise your just repeating what you know over and over. Thought maybe we could put up some examples that maybe not all players know.
like-
pattern racking (imagine most players don't know how or how to recognize when it's being done to them)
racking (how to rack with the intention of making a ball in a specific pocket)
cue ball and object ball are frozen on the rail. Playing inside english will help the object ball ride the rail.
Not sure but I think BHE helps eliminate deflection

I'm trying to get the hang of BHE but I'm struggling to adjust my aim point on long shots. I'm wondering if a LD shaft will help me ( I'm not looking to buy a solution I understand it's going to take a lot of hours to figure out the adjustments ) but if any other advice can be given it would be greatly appreciated.

I only pattern rack if my opponent is doing it but I play 8 ball so it's not as advantageous as it is in 9 ball.

 

[The Renfro]

I'm trying to get the hang of BHE but I'm struggling to adjust my aim point on long shots. I'm wondering if a LD shaft will help me ( I'm not looking to buy a solution I understand it's going to take a lot of hours to figure out the adjustments ) but if any other advice can be given it would be greatly appreciated.

I only pattern rack if my opponent is doing it but I play 8 ball so it's not as advantageous as it is in 9 ball.

The amount of deflection will alter the bridge length needed for BHE to work... LD means longer bridges and sometimes that makes it very hard to use... IF you have a stiff maple shaft then you may have a short bridge needed to make BHE work and for me thats worse than one that is too long.... I want the bridge length for BHE around 10" and I adjust my shafts accordingly

 

[jasonlaus]

T

I'm trying to get the hang of BHE but I'm struggling to adjust my aim point on long shots. I'm wondering if a LD shaft will help me ( I'm not looking to buy a solution I understand it's going to take a lot of hours to figure out the adjustments ) but if any other advice can be given it would be greatly appreciated.

I only pattern rack if my opponent is doing it but I play 8 ball so it's not as advantageous as it is in 9 ball.

Try using BHE for inside only, front hand for outside. Yes, you actually shift your fingers for outside, about a tip or less (if you need that much) if you need more English then use backhand for the rest (more than a tip). Starting with centerball on both front and back of course.

Edit. As Outsville stated you need to find a bridge length that works, longer or shorter and it won't work. Guessing somewhere around 8 to 10 inches will work for you.
Goodluck
Jason

 

[poolgod1]

Be born into a dedicated pool playing family and start when you are no older that 8 years old. For most it's nurture not nature that gets results...that and thousands of days of practicing.

 

[JoeyA]

Try them all and see if you find a few that fit for YOU.

I believe that MANY of the tricks of the trade are idiosyncratic, and often not as relative to the general public. What works for one person may not be relative to another person.

I've inquired and listened to some of the best pool players on the planet, talking about their particular way of doing different things in pool and it seems that most have picked up. I've also watched some of the best pool players ply their craft for thousands of hours and while there are many commonalities, there are also many anomalies that defy comparison.

This might be a good thread for listing some of the special things that the better players do or think they do but it might get buried with insults from those who want their day in the sun.

Speaking of a day in the sun, Shane Van Boening has just won the World Pool Masters event against the best players in the world. I guess you could say he is basking in the sun for the moment. As it relates to my perspective, Shane has mentioned his unique way of aiming, using the ferrule and different portions of his shaft to aim. That to me is a fairly good representative of an idiosyncratic pool technique.

There are many other tricks of the trade and from my point of view, you won't know if one of them is right for you if you don't try each of them.

To crap on every idiosyncratic idea that the top players claim may they use, is folly on those who might think they know it all.

Richie Richeson, uses almost an agitated, multiple, short, feathering of the cue (warm-up strokes) before pulling the trigger (final stroke) and I thought that there were few top players that use that style of warm up but this weekend I watched one of the most talented 18 year old pool player that I have ever seen, using the same peculiar short, agitated warm up strokes but playing at an extremely high level.

So while some of these tricks of the trade might not work for everyone, they could work for you. Don't be afraid to attempt accelerating through the cue ball.

JoeyA

 

[dr_dave]

I know that even if I had the same fundamentals as SVB and practiced just as much as he does. I would not even be close to turning pro. I believe there are things you need to learn along the way to get better. Otherwise your just repeating what you know over and over. Thought maybe we could put up some examples that maybe not all players know.
like-
pattern racking (imagine most players don't know how or how to recognize when it's being done to them)
racking (how to rack with the intention of making a ball in a specific pocket)
cue ball and object ball are frozen on the rail. Playing inside english will help the object ball ride the rail.
Not sure but I think BHE helps eliminate deflection

Check out the following list with supporting resources:

Top 100 Pool and Billiards Tips, "Secrets," and "Gems"

Top players definitely learn and master this stuff along their way.

Enjoy,
Dave