What is the best game for practice?

Luxury said:
Here is a tip: if you think practicing straight pool is better than practicing 10 ball, which is the game that you can win tournaments/money at then I recommend starting all runs with a power break like you are playing 8 ball. Not starting with a 14.1 break shot.

Shane has proven how important a good controlled power break is to making six figures.
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I think this is very good advise. Especially considering most guys start out their straight pool practice with that phony side pocket break. They'd do more for their game with that suggestion.

My biggest problem isn't choosing which game to practice, but rather being able to practice at all for more than a few minutes without getting bored, and I have a GC in my basement.

Rotation games don't hold my interest at all. At least 14.1 requires some deeper thought for the mental side of the game.
 
flyvirginiaguy said:
I practice:

15 Ball, Straight pool, repetitive shots (long straight in etc...), and banking.
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I truly envy that ability. Especially repetitive type practice like those long straight ins. Those definitely help our games.

I honestly wish I could make myself enjoy it enough not to get stupid and sloppy after only minutes of trying to practice.
 
Someone, maybe joe tucker... ? felt it was a common misconception that 14.1 is best to improve
your general pool skills. He made a case for 9b/10b instead.

You're constantly moving the cue ball large distances, using more force and spin,
and coming up with medium difficulty or longer shots.

Basically if you can control whitey doing more difficult shots over longer distances,
and with more spin, it will be easy to control the CB under less challenging circumstances.
Whereas you may not be able to go the other direction quite so easily.
Makes sense to me.

One common misconception is that straight pool doesn't have long shots come up.
Unfortunately they do, even if it's only once every other rack.
There are a lot situations where a player must really bear down and make a tough shot
because there's no easy 2-way safety you can play as you would in 9b.
If you miss they can shoot at anything and run a lot of balls.
 
CreeDo said:
Someone, maybe joe tucker... ? felt it was a common misconception that 14.1 is best to improve
your general pool skills. He made a case for 9b/10b instead.

You're constantly moving the cue ball large distances, using more force and spin,
and coming up with medium difficulty or longer shots.

Basically if you can control whitey doing more difficult shots over longer distances,
and with more spin, it will be easy to control the CB under less challenging circumstances.
Whereas you may not be able to go the other direction quite so easily.
Makes sense to me.

One common misconception is that straight pool doesn't have long shots come up.
Unfortunately they do, even if it's only once every other rack.
There are a lot situations where a player must really bear down and make a tough shot
because there's no easy 2-way safety you can play as you would in 9b.
If you miss they can shoot at anything and run a lot of balls.
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I think there is no right or wrong, all games help. Straight pool gets you into the mindset running many multiple balls is no problem and gives you the confidence to do so. It also helps with close positions, bumping balls etc... And 9,10,15 ball etc... helps with the things you pointed out. I would also add bank pool in there. One pocket for safe and strategy.
It is always best to be well rounded.
 
The beast • technique

Mike,
It probably depends upon what you are trying to accomplish as to which game is best to practice.

We have an unbelievably tight pocketed Diamond 9 foot table with no shims and long rails. I had some photographs and the table looks "gaffy", at least the pockets look very strange because they are so small.

For months I have railed and wailed against this table saying that it hurts your game rather than helps your game. It is almost impossible to run out a rack of ten ball for ANY PLAYER. I would get frustrated trying to practice 9 ball on it because I seldom could ever run out a rack.

I told the tale of "THE BEAST" as I call the table to Shane Manole and he became enraptured with my description of it and made a special trip just to play on it as he LOVES these type of tables. While watching him make a lot of balls and miss a few, after about 15 minutes of watching him fail to run out consistently, I asked him a couple of questions. One, is this table good for average or below average players to play on? Two, is this table good for above average or top players to play on? The answer was No and Yes respectively. I consider myself an above average player so I told him that I was frustrated with not being able to run out on this table. He just smiled and said, "These type of tables are designed for working on your technique". Once he said that I started a metamorphosis in my thinking and my frustration disappeared and I now have a new training tool that is helping me in different areas.

Also, I see GREAT value in shooting the same "exact" shot over and over, noticing the differences in the path that the cue ball and the object ball take. It is in these repetitious shots that I discover my inconsistencies and it gives me a chance to reduce those inconsistencies.

Running lots of balls in rotation/practice does not do much for my improvements, sorry to say. It is the fine-tuning of my technique that makes improvements to my overall game, not the choice of game.

My favorite game is one pocket but I seldom practice it. I will practice banking balls from time to time because that is my weakest link (hint JayH) but I do not practice one pocket anymore.

I think what Shane Manole shared with me about "technique on THE BEAST" was an eye opener and will eventually improve my game.

Best Regards,
JoeyA
 
Patience helps more than game variety

When you practice on your own, it is far too easy to let the bad habits creep in. People have no penalty when playing with themselves if they miss.

I find that sticking to good fundamentals helps more than anything. To penalize myself, I set up a little bank next to my pool table at home. [I got my wife to let me put it in the livingroom so she can do her thing nearby while I do mine] I 'pay' to play at home. Rushing through racks or screwing around costs me more money. I find that it makes me focus better at staying down, shooting with proper stroke, speed, follow-through.

I play Rotation, or 14.1, One Pocket, or anything. 8-ball pretty often. 10-ball sometimes. I get through several racks of whatever I am playing at home each day that I practice. It has helped more than anything since I started focusing on my stroke. Willie Hoppe called me 'an inferior player' in his book, and it made me so angry that I work to constantly improve. Now I follow-through and run racks pretty comfortably.

Two nights ago I even ran out 15-ball rotation like CJ Wiley did in his video on youtube. That's a great practice routine, I find. A very honest indicator of when you stray on position or get the slightest bit out of line. [Thanks for the free video, CJ]

In short, practice good fundamentals, and you can play any game you want.

Sorry for the horrid rambling post.


tl;dr - Play smart!!
 
All i do for practice is Fargo 3 sets and 10 ball three sets these games keep me foucused from beginning to end. Then if I have time I like to practice the opening safe in straight pool. That's pretty much it.


Reading my posts means you consent to my incorrect spelling and poor typing skills.
 
Can someone explain to me one pocket ghost ? It has my attention right now.


Reading my posts means you consent to my incorrect spelling and poor typing skills.
 
I like playing 6 pocket, it is a great practice game and trying to beat your high score is challenging and puts some pressure on you instead of just banging around balls.
 
Mikjary said:
I found that straight pool helped my 9ball and 10 ball games. If I played just 9 or 10 ball, I didn't see any noticeable improvement.

My friends have mentioned this to me, too, over the years. I think it's the continued focus and the idea of running more than just a rack or two. The tight position play could be a factor, also. Not to mention that it helped to smooth out my stroke.

Is there a better game? Drills are tough. I like to play a game... in competition or not.

Best,
Mike
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play 9ball banks for a month, nothing else. when you come back to regular pool, they will all look like hangers.
 
bbb said:
straight pool doesnt require you to travel large distance or use multi rail patterns for shape very often
dont see how that helps 9 ball or 10 ball
maybe someone could explain that for me
:)
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I had always heard that straight pool would help all games, so I started playing it several years ago. The trouble was that the game is generally played on only half of the table. When I went back to 9 ball, I found that I struggled much more with my longer shots, and stopped playing straight pool. That being said, it was much earlier in my pool playing days, and my stroke for longer shots wasn't that developed yet (not that it's great now). I can definitely see where the need for precise short cue ball control would help, but I would have to keep playing other games also. That was just my experience.
 
I'll take it one step further...at what level can 14.1, 9 ball, or 10 ball help your game?

I said 14.1 helped my game over the years to become more consistent and smooth out the wrinkles. As an advanced player, I've gravitated towards 10 ball. It's still a challenge to run a century in straights, but a 4 pack on my table is a lot more interesting. :smile:

I say up until a player reaches at least the A level, 14.1 is a better bet to develop their game. About 20% will reach A level or higher, where a greater demand on ability could make rotation games the better choice. IOW, I don't suck as much any more and I play more 10 ball to test my manhood. fighting0007.gif

Best,
Mike
 
Mikjary said:
I'll take it one step further...at what level can 14.1, 9 ball, or 10 ball help your game?

I said 14.1 helped my game over the years to become more consistent and smooth out the wrinkles. As an advanced player, I've gravitated towards 10 ball. It's still a challenge to run a century in straights, but a 4 pack on my table is a lot more interesting. :smile:

I say up until a player reaches at least the A level, 14.1 is a better bet to develop their game. About 20% will reach A level or higher, where a greater demand on ability could make rotation games the better choice. IOW, I don't suck as much any more and I play more 10 ball to test my manhood. View attachment 275828

Best,
Mike
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JA only plays 14.1 FWIW when he practices.

I like to play banks, i feel it gets me instroke faster than anything, as far as practice to improve, 1P has helped my safety play in ALL games more than i can ever imagined.I play a little 14.1, it helps, sometimes more often than not i play just to one pocket, i like that, i work out the pattern and see how many i can get, havent got 15 yet. got a 12 in practice once and a couple 11's in games and countless 11's in practice 100's of 10's. However i don't break and try to get 1ll 15, i usually lay down a 1P break and then play 1P by myself, when i do beat myself to the shot I run out from there, so sometimes balls are out of play. If I played for all 15 into the same hole and broke for that reason i might get there once in a while on 4 7/8" pockets, and 12-13 on 4" pockets i'd guess.
 
JoseV said:
Can someone explain to me one pocket ghost ? It has my attention right now.


Reading my posts means you consent to my incorrect spelling and poor typing skills.
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Break like you would in one-pocket. Take ball in hand or start with the cue in the kitchen then run 8 and out in your hole. You of course can try for more and some people try to run 15. Play 10 racks and see the average frequency of balls you make.

Have fun with it.
 
bbb said:
straight pool doesnt require you to travel large distance or use multi rail patterns for shape very often
dont see how that helps 9 ball or 10 ball
maybe someone could explain that for me
:)
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Every game is good for pool practice, but 14.1 is worst if you want to learn how to pocket long distance, fast speed, large angle, combos, kicks, banks 9, and 10 ball); You are 100% correct. I highly recommend mastering pool pocketing 1st (4000 shots possibilities) then play 9 or 10 ball to practice, mix it with more individual shots that you frequently miss during a match, keep track of what you miss during pressure situations.
 
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