Unofficial 69

Ron F

Ron F

Ron F
Silver Member
Was playing a game to 100 with a lower skilled player last night when my regular game showed up. When my guy arrived I needed 29 balls to go out. I picked up the pace dramatically just to get the game over with so my regular guy didn't have to sit around long and I found that I was pocketing balls much better at the faster pace. I missed at 92 and when I got to the table next I ran my 8 and just kept running. Ran to 20, 30, 40, 50, 60 and came up short using 2 rail position to get on the break ball to open the sixth rack. A 69 that I cannot count (on the 48th ball I had to use the bridge over 2 balls to get to the CB and touched one of the balls with my tip after pocketing the OB).

I maintained the faster pace throughout the run and was surprised at how well I was making balls. I usually approach each shot slowly, deliberately and with a lot of calculated thought. Maybe I was simply playing too slow in the past. Anyone ever alter their pace up or down and notice a marked improvement in their game? If so, was it a sustainable improvement or just temporary?

Ron F
 
Ron F said:
Was playing a game to 100 with a lower skilled player last night when my regular game showed up. When my guy arrived I needed 29 balls to go out. I picked up the pace dramatically just to get the game over with so my regular guy didn't have to sit around long and I found that I was pocketing balls much better at the faster pace. I missed at 92 and when I got to the table next I ran my 8 and just kept running. Ran to 20, 30, 40, 50, 60 and came up short using 2 rail position to get on the break ball to open the sixth rack. A 69 that I cannot count (on the 48th ball I had to use the bridge over 2 balls to get to the CB and touched one of the balls with my tip after pocketing the OB).

I maintained the faster pace throughout the run and was surprised at how well I was making balls. I usually approach each shot slowly, deliberately and with a lot of calculated thought. Maybe I was simply playing too slow in the past. Anyone ever alter their pace up or down and notice a marked improvement in their game? If so, was it a sustainable improvement or just temporary?

Ron F
Click to expand...

In short... yes. Nice shooting.
 
69

Ron, nice run. 69 is very good. You have been shooting very good, keep up the good work. I like shooting at a fast pace, it works for me. Stay with it for awhile and see if it works for you. Everyone is different. I know that when I play slow, it throws me way off. Keep us posted.
 
Ask yourself why you play slow.
If you introduce extra thought into the preshot routine it may well be slowing you down.When I over think things the negative always seems to creep in.
When that happens , I have a whole new can of worms to deal with.
You may also be dealing with negative thoughts.On a positive note you
now have one more good reason to play!
 
Pace

I think my pace of play is a product of several factors:
1.) Emulation - I play at a pace that is similar to some of the professional players I typically watch. Not Lou Butera fast, but not Johnny Archer slow - more like a Ralf Souquet medium/slow.
2.) My concept of how difficult the game is - running a lot of balls isn't easy (as all of us can attest), so IMO much thought and consideration should go into shot selection, position play, planning ahead for a break ball, key ball, the breaking up of clusters, etc. This is compounded by the fact that after each shot the table is completely different than before the shot - at the very least the cue ball is in a different place. And my thoughts were always that you should look at every possible shot before selecting which to take next based on what's easiest, but will end up giving the best overall results

I feel there's 2 ways of thinking about clearing a rack and being set up to open the next rack - as a series of 14 small math problems, or as one very difficult and complex problem with dozens of things to consider to solve it. I guess I've always approached it as the latter. Maybe it's better to employ the KISS method and approach it as the former. If anything, it's inspired me to at least look at the game differently and experiment with pace.

Ron F
 
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