What Qualified someone as Qualifiied Instructor???

A good coach/instructor is one that understands that each student is an individual and is able to see the strengths and especially weaknesses of the student and help him/her improve.

A bad one is one that comes with an easy/amazing/foolproof method that's suitable for each and every player of any level.

In general the latter ones have all the qualifications/certifications/diplomas.
 
once you got a stroke, just playing and thinking will be what improves your game.

getting an instructor and playing a couple times a week for an hour or so means you will never be any good and just a fun weak player.
so resolve yourself to be that and just enjoy the game.
 
An instructor can be anyone with half a brain. It is another matter entirely how good you are.
It's easy peasy to teach and learn the subtleties that seem to be so significant and that both teachers and students focus on. Pool knowledge 101 grammar school material.

The principles of approach and posture, mathematical systems, banking, kicking, patterns, etc, simple.
Making a mountain out of a mole hill is common with many instructors that I've seen.
You get the point—it's kid-friendly material, all part of the big picture , it's all good stuff.
Without the stroke and cue ball knowledge try playing checkers on Struggle Road.

If you can't teach and perform stroke technique to the fullest and 100% knowledge of the cue ball
here is a dollar, hop on that Greyhound bus and take it to nowhere.
Yes there is a place for fundamentals and all there is to learn but that is easy stuff, a Warthog can teach it.
A good instructor can teach 100% Stroke Technique and 100% Cue Ball understanding, including all of their nuances.
Additionally, they must to be able to teach the game's basic ABCs.
Each student's learning capacity must be adhered to by them, which usually combines audio and visual elements.
Stroke technique is 99% visual and you better possess it as an instructor, if not, here are your walking papers.

When you have the stroke and cue ball knowledge anything is possible.
My dog can figure out the other stuff.

Next high tide 11: 11 AM.
 
Just a simple reminder……regardless of how highly knowledgeable any instructor might be,
if the individual cannot effectively communicate the information in a meaningful, easy to
understand style, the student is the only one that suffers any consequences as the instructor
still gets paid. It’s important to choose smartly someone that has a personable teaching style.
You absorb more information because your attention is better focused on key teaching points.
 
you dont need anyone to teach you how to stroke straight you just have to stroke over a point enough times until it is second nature.
few even have done that once.

if you cant put the cueball on the centerline of the table and shoot up and down and have the cueball hit your tip on the way back you dont have a straight stroke and cannot get any better no matter what else you do.
so all the lessons and talk are just wasted.
 
The student is not blameless in this relationship. Often they pay just to have somebody pamper them or show them what to practice or make them practice or their parents are paying, cajoling, forcing, threatening them.

Oh wait, that was pschotherapy....
 
maha said:
you dont need anyone to teach you how to stroke straight you just have to stroke over a point enough times until it is second nature.
few even have done that once.

if you cant put the cueball on the centerline of the table and shoot up and down and have the cueball hit your tip on the way back you dont have a straight stroke and cannot get any better no matter what else you do.
so all the lessons and talk are just wasted.
Click to expand...
You are absolutely right about a straight stroke. but it takes a lot longer to figure out what you are doing wrong
since you obviously don’t want to use any unintended English to achieve a straight stroke. And you know that
speed disguises a stroke flaw because the errant cue ball return can still appear almost straight whereas a softer stroke
would immediately reveal the cue ball veering off its intended return path, i.e., straight. However, you can’t teach yourself English without some instructional aid,. i.e., lesson, video, book, etc. The underlying principles of English need explanation just like difficult 2 and 3 rail bank shots. Trying to teach yourself all the different principles would not only be stumbled upon by sheer happenstance but it would be scattered and unrelated bits of knowledge. IMO, to become a highly skilled player, you need coaching, even if you coach yourself using various training materials available today that weren’t around 15-20 years ago. Knowledge must be acquired as opposed to being discovered so take advantage of what’s available today.
 
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SmoothStroke said:
An instructor can be anyone with half a brain. It is another matter entirely how good you are.
It's easy peasy to teach and learn the subtleties that seem to be so significant and that both teachers and students focus on. Pool knowledge 101 grammar school material.

The principles of approach and posture, mathematical systems, banking, kicking, patterns, etc, simple.
Making a mountain out of a mole hill is common with many instructors that I've seen.
You get the point—it's kid-friendly material, all part of the big picture , it's all good stuff.
Without the stroke and cue ball knowledge try playing checkers on Struggle Road.

If you can't teach and perform stroke technique to the fullest and 100% knowledge of the cue ball
here is a dollar, hop on that Greyhound bus and take it to nowhere.
Yes there is a place for fundamentals and all there is to learn but that is easy stuff, a Warthog can teach it.
A good instructor can teach 100% Stroke Technique and 100% Cue Ball understanding, including all of their nuances.
Additionally, they must to be able to teach the game's basic ABCs.
Each student's learning capacity must be adhered to by them, which usually combines audio and visual elements.
Stroke technique is 99% visual and you better possess it as an instructor, if not, here are your walking papers.

When you have the stroke and cue ball knowledge anything is possible.
My dog can figure out the other stuff.

Next high tide 11: 11 AM.
Click to expand...
There is a vast difference between telling someone and teaching someone or even showing them how by illustrating it yourself. That is not teaching. Might as well just go buy a book or video. Teaching is showing someone, helping them use information, or knowledge, they didn’t have, or completely understand, to overcome weaknesses in their pool stroke mechanics, mental focus and strategies to improve their skills. Simply explaining what needs to be done does
not always result in the other person understanding what to change, do differently and they can’t see what’s wrong.

Just like in business where there are great managers and mediocre ones or great cue makers and less talented ones,
teaching is as much personal bedside manner and communications style as it’s the content of what’s being explained.

It’s only my opinion but in real life, the speaker has communications responsibility for reaching his intended audience.
So a pool instructor’s real challenge is help students with different learning curves to improve as much as they can.
 
Waiting to Understand it All!!
Bavafongoul, points are good ones....
to become a highly skilled player, you need coaching, even if you coach yourself using various training materials available today that weren’t around 15-20 years ago. Knowledge must be acquired as opposed to being discovered so take advantage of what’s available today.
Click to expand...
Plus Bavafongoul, other posts. Thanks


pooldd.jpg
 
billiardshot said:
What Qualified someone as Qualified Instructor??? In my book it Bologna! If you can teach a youth or anyone .. That Great, because its helping to grow the sport of billiard. But the the question is?? I Taught my kids a survived lesson!
Click to expand...
I think the real question should be: What is the difference between an instructor and a teacher? Just think about your first day at Marine boot camp.
 
Tennesseejoe said:
I think the real question should be: What is the difference between an instructor and a teacher? Just think about your first day at Marine boot camp.
Click to expand...
This is a big distinction imo. An instructor instructs u what to do. They say, u do. A teacher aims for understanding on the student's part. They offer options and explain the WHY behind them.

Dr. Dave is a good example of a teacher as his background as a professor shines through his style. Whether he speaks on stance, grip, or stroking, he encourages playing around and seeing what fits u. I'm sure, once you choose he could explain why/how what u chose works.

On the other end of the spectrum, u have 'my way or ur doing it wrong' instructors who scoff at methods other than their own and often dismiss them as inferior. They tend to overhaul all their clients rather than tweak what they already do.
 
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WobblyStroke said:
.... On the other end of the spectrum, u have 'my way or ur doing it wrong' instructors who scoff at methods other than their own and often dismiss them as inferior. They tend to overhaul all their clients rather than tweak what they already do.
Click to expand...
I've seen that kind of instructor. Some of them are quite proud of their complete, exact knowledge of how to play. They tend not to ever explain "why", though.

The vast majority of pool students have no interest in a complete overhaul, even if it were the right thing to do. Others really want to find out whether they have mechanics issues and are ready to find a fix.
 
boogieman said:
I guess I'd like an instructor who actually coaches me on improving my game. Most just show you a system. I'm not impressed with "arcane" knowledge because I've likely read the same books as they have. Our local bona fide instructor teaches wagon wheel drills. That's a great topic for sure, and most students are just amazed and learn "tips of english" and how they equate to hitting diamonds, etc. Problem is, I've studied that for decades thanks to an old book by Ted G. Brown. They want me to re-discover what a tip of english is when I'm already doing that by rote feel at this point.

And it's very difficult to not come off as a know it all when you legitimately know what they are teaching you already. I try to keep the "beginner mindset" and humble myself and listen to see if there's anything to learn. But how many times can one be taught the same drill or system before it becomes a waste of time?

Please look at my game and help figure out why I suck, it's not because of lack of knowledge. I've pretty much resigned myself to HAMB because there aren't any instructors in this part of the world who want to do anything but teach you a system of some type. Like, lets have a weekly lesson for 3 months and we'll cover wagon wheel, next up we'll learn the secrets of the corner 5 system! Please bud, help me with my mental game and concentration, that's where most of my misses come from. A little fundamental polishing couldn't hurt too. But no... let's learn how to hit a kick shot again when you already can't get BIH from me because of my kicking skills.

It's frustrating. I know I suck but I've yet to meet an instructor who can figure it out. I guess I shouldn't be too harsh because I'm not so great either or I would have figured it out myself at this point! :ROFLMAO:
Click to expand...
That's kind of like the angle I am trying for. Who seriously is going to "go see an instructor" when you have a super subtle issue that is personal to you and only appears under pressure after hours of playing? Or is something that isn't obvious to anyone but yourself? I want to make things that can make HAMB more productive, which is what we all do for lack of discipline, whether we want to admit it or not.
 
nataddrho said:
... Who seriously is going to "go see an instructor" when you have a super subtle issue that is personal to you and only appears under pressure after hours of playing? ...
Click to expand...
I'm not quite sure of your point. I think there are close to zero pool players like that. Well, maybe one in a thousand. The vast majority of pool players seeking instruction have major, obvious problems.
 
problem is most instructors try to make you play like they do which may be better than what you do now, but their way may make you worse off.

ive never taken pool instruction and never will.

but i did a bunch in golf. and i found every one of them tried to drastically change my swing, same as they would do to others.
and when in any pressure shot you naturally will revert to your ingrained swing. so that swing is what you need to refine.
they even tried to make me change how i putted. and i putted better than almost any club pro. as that was one of my hustles.

same with your pool stroke and maybe more so.

they certainly will help a novice learn to think correctly and possibly develop a stroke that works.
 
billiardshot said:
What Qualified someone as Qualified Instructor??? In my book it Bologna! If you can teach a youth or anyone .. That Great, because its helping to grow the sport of billiard. But the the question is?? I Taught my kids a survived lesson!
Click to expand...
AS far as I am concerned , if you can show your knowledge to someone else, and they can repeat it, you are qualified.
 
Qualified teachers/instructors are everywhere. Almost everyone knows at least a couple things that someone else would benefit from. I myself am qualified to teach many knowledge points and techniques, but I would never title myself a qualified pool instructor. More than 40 years ago Jerry Briesath taught me the basics of approach, stance and stroke. This was not formal, paid training, but rather just some one-on-one friendly instruction he was known to give many, many customers at his Cue-Nique pool room in Madison. His approach was to explain the why of each point he taught as well as the how. I remembered well what he showed me, and since then I've passed that basic knowledge on in the same way to a lot of beginners and quite a few experienced players as well.

Over the years my game has become more advanced through lots of playing, my own experimentation, informal teaching from others and just watching a lot of pros and shortstops play. Some of the things I've learned I also pass on to other players, but unless I know the why of a particular shot or technique I usually will not try to teach it to someone else. Likewise, if the person that asks me to teach it to them only wants to learn the how but not the why I will usually decline. I see that as a waste of my time and theirs.

One other thing I've learned over time is that in order to be an effective teacher you need to have a student that wants to be taught. For that reason I very seldom offer unsolicited advice. Once in a while if I see an obvious beginner struggling to make balls because of terrible form I may make a suggestion or two if I can do it unobtrusively. More often than not this is when the neophyte is a young lady who seems serious in doing well, but lacks the basic technique. I can't say for sure if this is because I see more beginner girls that seem to be serious about the game than beginner guys, or if, as my buddies maintain, I am just a dirty old man. ;)
 
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