Trouble adjusting to faster cloth

T

Table Top Joe

Registered
I was wondering if anyone had any advice to give me on tables with faster cloth. I am used to bar tables and 9' with slower nap cloth. I developed a stroke that works for me on those tables and can play around B-level speed on them. Recently i have been playing on 9' tables with very fast cloth and extremely bouncy rails. I t seems like every shot i take a over shoot my position. GREATLY! I have been working on shooting softer but it seems like no matter how soft i shoot I hit too hard.

So many shots that i would normally consider easy shots seem impossible on faster cloth. Is this the case? I worked hard to get the stoke i have and was finally feeling like i was progressing and jumping into the next level but now shooting on these ultra fast tables i feel like a beginner again. I appreciate any advice the community has.
 
Sorry, no advice for you here since I'll be watching the responses closely too. In a few weeks we're re-clothing with Simonis 860HR, replacing the shag carpet that's currently on the table. I expect it will be like trying to dance on ice.
 
Yeah it seems like ice at times. I get way to much action from the cue ball. I miss so many more balls because i am too focused on what the cue ball is going to do.
 
One place I play at has tables with fast felt and I play lower on the cue ball on most shots. Helps to control the speed.
 
Table Top Joe said:
I was wondering if anyone had any advice to give me on tables with faster cloth. I am used to bar tables and 9' with slower nap cloth. I developed a stroke that works for me on those tables and can play around B-level speed on them. Recently i have been playing on 9' tables with very fast cloth and extremely bouncy rails. I t seems like every shot i take a over shoot my position. GREATLY! I have been working on shooting softer but it seems like no matter how soft i shoot I hit too hard.

So many shots that i would normally consider easy shots seem impossible on faster cloth. Is this the case? I worked hard to get the stoke i have and was finally feeling like i was progressing and jumping into the next level but now shooting on these ultra fast tables i feel like a beginner again. I appreciate any advice the community has.
Click to expand...

I learned on cloth during the 60's and boy was it slow. Because of this I developed a Powerful swing that allows me to play on Any table. If you grow up on FAST cloth, its wayyyyy more difficult to go slow, you'll find out quickly your swing mechanics are not powerful enough to move whitey around on Slow cloth. What your going thru is NORMAL. Kinda like the golfer that plays great, but NOT when its raining. Slow to fast is better than Fast to slow, meaning it's better to learn to let your swing Out than to learn by mostly bunting and rolling whitey.
 
Table Top Joe said:
I was wondering if anyone had any advice to give me on tables with faster cloth. I am used to bar tables and 9' with slower nap cloth. I developed a stroke that works for me on those tables and can play around B-level speed on them. Recently i have been playing on 9' tables with very fast cloth and extremely bouncy rails. I t seems like every shot i take a over shoot my position. GREATLY! I have been working on shooting softer but it seems like no matter how soft i shoot I hit too hard.

So many shots that i would normally consider easy shots seem impossible on faster cloth. Is this the case? I worked hard to get the stoke i have and was finally feeling like i was progressing and jumping into the next level but now shooting on these ultra fast tables i feel like a beginner again. I appreciate any advice the community has.
Click to expand...
duplicate post
 
Last edited:
The best way to make adjustments from slow cloth to fast is to try to reduce the angles for each shot. If the cushions are very springy then find a way to play position without using them as much. This takes practice but no one said it will be easy. Still, it is the least complicated way to construct a run out.
Just remember, The faster the cloth and speed of the cushions the smaller the angles you want.

Tom
 
Adjustment to table conditions

Table Top Joe said:
I was wondering if anyone had any advice to give me on tables with faster cloth. I am used to bar tables and 9' with slower nap cloth. I developed a stroke that works for me on those tables and can play around B-level speed on them. Recently i have been playing on 9' tables with very fast cloth and extremely bouncy rails. I t seems like every shot i take a over shoot my position. GREATLY! I have been working on shooting softer but it seems like no matter how soft i shoot I hit too hard.

So many shots that i would normally consider easy shots seem impossible on faster cloth. Is this the case? I worked hard to get the stoke i have and was finally feeling like i was progressing and jumping into the next level but now shooting on these ultra fast tables i feel like a beginner again. I appreciate any advice the community has.
Click to expand...

Table Top Joe,
I used to have the same trouble and what I found was the culprit for me was the fact that I had doubts in my mind about my aiming. I wasnt sure I would pocket the ball and since I had learned it with a crisp stroke I had trouble otherwise. Something I read recently might help you if you are where you understand English and the allowances for it. CJ Wiley plays his shots with a touch of Inside English. The inside tends to kill cue ball travel speed where as running off a ball tends to do just that make it run. Even Center Ball without bottom or top will run pretty fast. I think you are at two places. You need to really know how to aim therefore youre confident you will hit the shot and it might help using the Touch of Inside English. It plays very similar to Center Ball English with just a touch and really slows the speed down.

Just another lovely day in paradise.....

336Robin :thumbup:

aimisithegameinpool.com
aimisthegameinpool@yahoo.com
 
One, if you had a lighter cue, but mostly its about stroke. Faster cloth has less resistance to overcome, so a softer stroke is the best way to play on fast cloth. That keeps you from changing good habits like a proper stance. Also, since faster cloth multiplies English, a softer stroke will keep you from over killing your leave. I'd also suggest a soft tip.

Matthew Webb
 
I have this problem too. I actually think it can be harder to play on faster cloth. It just all depends on where your stroke tends to break down. I've found my stroke tends to break down more when I'm hitting the ball softly than vice versa. Others may have issues when they hit the ball hard.

The number one thing you can do to prepare yourself for the faster tables is work on rolling the cue ball. Practice a lot of shots were you hit the object ball just fast enough to reach the pocket. If you are like me, you will realize this is a part of your game that you haven't paid attention to. I was horrible with the slow roll. I would much rather whack the ball.

I think we all have that default stop-shot stroke. Those of us that practice on slower tables, stroke this default shot much harder than those that play on the faster cloth. Once you have to start thinking about how hard to hit your stop shot it can throw everything off. So, I just work on rolling whitey around in preparation for having to slow everything down.

My long term solution is to get a new table.
 
TRWpool said:
The best way to make adjustments from slow cloth to fast is to try to reduce the angles for each shot. If the cushions are very springy then find a way to play position without using them as much. This takes practice but no one said it will be easy. Still, it is the least complicated way to construct a run out.
Just remember, The faster the cloth and speed of the cushions the smaller the angles you want.

Tom
Click to expand...

This is 100% wrong.... It is never easier to run a rack using pure stroke and touch like he is implying...

What you need to do is attempt to play center ball only. Putting high amounts of spin and english on the ball is going to give you varied results and make it difficult to really gauge the speed and the stroke neccasary for the table.

What I would suggest doing is every time before you play on these tables (are you gambling on them?) warm up for about an hour doing 2 shots. Shoot a ball straight into a corner pocket with top english and attempt to go 1 short rail to the other and get as close to freezing the ball to the opposite rail as possible. Once you feel comfortable with your speed on that shot then shoot a ball down the long rail with an angle bounce off said long rail and attempt to freeze on the opposite long rail.

Practicing these 2 shots on ANY given table well really give you a good idea of the speed and rails and how to play the table.
 
Eddie May said:
This is 100% wrong.... It is never easier to run a rack using pure stroke and touch like he is implying...

What you need to do is attempt to play center ball only. Putting high amounts of spin and english on the ball is going to give you varied results and make it difficult to really gauge the speed and the stroke neccasary for the table.

What I would suggest doing is every time before you play on these tables (are you gambling on them?) warm up for about an hour doing 2 shots. Shoot a ball straight into a corner pocket with top english and attempt to go 1 short rail to the other and get as close to freezing the ball to the opposite rail as possible. Once you feel comfortable with your speed on that shot then shoot a ball down the long rail with an angle bounce off said long rail and attempt to freeze on the opposite long rail.

Practicing these 2 shots on ANY given table well really give you a good idea of the speed and rails and how to play the table.
Click to expand...

You're right again. And you're from Chicago you must be a dangerous player. You're giving away your speed.
 
Table Top Joe said:
I was wondering if anyone had any advice to give me on tables with faster cloth. I am used to bar tables and 9' with slower nap cloth. I developed a stroke that works for me on those tables and can play around B-level speed on them. Recently i have been playing on 9' tables with very fast cloth and extremely bouncy rails. I t seems like every shot i take a over shoot my position. GREATLY! I have been working on shooting softer but it seems like no matter how soft i shoot I hit too hard.

So many shots that i would normally consider easy shots seem impossible on faster cloth. Is this the case? I worked hard to get the stoke i have and was finally feeling like i was progressing and jumping into the next level but now shooting on these ultra fast tables i feel like a beginner again. I appreciate any advice the community has.
Click to expand...

Only advice can be "practice". Not much else to do, you are the one hitting the ball. Some tables are horrible, you pretty much have to play an extra rail to get position, instead of hitting one rail out to the middle, you have to go back and forth. The Jillians near me in MA has home HORRIBLE tables, they even re-did them but seemed to have used the same hack as before. Rails are way too fast, pockets cut in random angles at each table, cloth is too tight and fast, banks come off at odd angles so it's almost a guess where it's going. The only people that can play on those tables and not get mad are ones that ONLY play there. So play on the fast tables a lot, use extra rails for shape.
 
ChrisBanks said:
You're right again. And you're from Chicago you must be a dangerous player. You're giving away your speed.
Click to expand...

Haha, I am retired so it doesn't matter much. Just bored at my desk job that has crushed my pool game and trying to share some knowledge I have picked up along the way.
 
Good advice on this thread

Shooting on a 9' with fast cloth is more about angles and speed. Shooting on a bar box with nappy cloth is a lot about using extreme english on most shots to move the cue ball around.

As you practice on the big table you will begin to let the angle and rail do the work for you instead of juicing the cue ball on every shot.
 
Your approach should be holistic. There is no set strategy for faster or slower tables. On faster tables with bouncy rails, on any given shot you might have to use more english to check or kill the CB, or you might have to use less english and play natural punch angles, or be able to stroke softly, or use more stroke to go more rails rather than babying the CB with less speed.

IMO if you're focused on your "stroke" rather than shot selection and routes, your fundamentals are in question. Pros adjust to any table quickly because they have a richer reservoir of shot selection and knowledge to draw from; they don't have to think about the mechanics of a softer or harder stroke because their mechanics are perfect.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top