Which aiming system you use and why?

[Thomas025]

Heya guys/gals, a newbie here!

So, basically I started playing roughly 2 and a half months ago and I spent this time by trying to find the best aiming system for myself. At first, I tried to follow the ghost ball method, simply by trying to draw an imaginary line through the center of the OB and the pocket. Then I tried to find the point on that line where I think the ghost ball's center should be. Unfortunately I missed most of my shots by this technique, firstly because in some cases it was hard to find the path of the OB (especially when the OB is far away from the pocket). Secondly because it was kind of hard for me to imagine a ghost ball, a fictional thing behind the OB. I could make estimations about where it should be, but I could never see it exactly.

But... Lately I've been trying to use the fractional aim method, because it seemed to be a lot easier and IMO it took less effort to imagine lines, contact points and etc. but I found 2 frustrating problems:
1. It's inconsistent for me
2. I'm not really good at estimating angles

This has lead to finally rage quitting while practice last time and now I'm trying to figure out what's going on. Is it really that hard to imagine non-existent objects/lines/points on the table or this takes a very long time to develop? I'm starting to think that it would be the best if I'd just went by feel while aiming and not caring about drawing imaginary lines and finding imaginary contact points.

I just really want to find a method that is easy for someone who can't imagine non-existant things in front of himself. A system or some advice that could help me improve. The main reason behind my frustration about potting/angles is that if I miss I know where I missed (too thick or too thin), but I don't know how to learn from it. There are just too many variables and too much shot angles to learn one by one. I really want to analyze myself and find out the problems in my game but I've got lost in my thoughts.

I was thinking about hiring a coach but I couldn't have paid them after 3-4 sessions.

Sorry for the long and meaningless post, but even though I love this sport I'm starting to lose my sanity over this situation.

PS.: The only thing I can aim with is my cue, because I can see it and it draws a fairly straight line, so I just should find a fixed aiming point. Also, I would like to ask you a dumb question: after how much months you started potting confidently (not without a miss).

 

[forabeer]

You forgot one . . .

 

[CocoboloCowboy]

PBIH = Put Ball in Hole, also CTE.

 

[BC21]

Heya guys/gals, a newbie here!

So, basically I started playing roughly 2 and a half months ago and I spent this time by trying to find the best aiming system for myself. At first, I tried to follow the ghost ball method, simply by trying to draw an imaginary line through the center of the OB and the pocket. Then I tried to find the point on that line where I think the ghost ball's center should be. Unfortunately I missed most of my shots by this technique, firstly because in some cases it was hard to find the path of the OB (especially when the OB is far away from the pocket). Secondly because it was kind of hard for me to imagine a ghost ball, a fictional thing behind the OB. I could make estimations about where it should be, but I could never see it exactly.

But... Lately I've been trying to use the fractional aim method, because it seemed to be a lot easier and IMO it took less effort to imagine lines, contact points and etc. but I found 2 frustrating problems:
1. It's inconsistent for me
2. I'm not really good at estimating angles

This has lead to finally rage quitting while practice last time and now I'm trying to figure out what's going on. Is it really that hard to imagine non-existent objects/lines/points on the table or this takes a very long time to develop? I'm starting to think that it would be the best if I'd just went by feel while aiming and not caring about drawing imaginary lines and finding imaginary contact points.

I just really want to find a method that is easy for someone who can't imagine non-existant things in front of himself. A system or some advice that could help me improve. The main reason behind my frustration about potting/angles is that if I miss I know where I missed (too thick or too thin), but I don't know how to learn from it. There are just too many variables and too much shot angles to learn one by one. I really want to analyze myself and find out the problems in my game but I've got lost in my thoughts.

I was thinking about hiring a coach but I couldn't have paid them after 3-4 sessions.

Sorry for the long and meaningless post, but even though I love this sport I'm starting to lose my sanity over this situation.

PS.: The only thing I can aim with is my cue, because I can see it and it draws a fairly straight line, so I just should find a fixed aiming point. Also, I would like to ask you a dumb question: after how much months you started potting confidently (not without a miss).

Traditional fractional aiming involves a lot of guesswork/estimation. If you like the simplicity of fractional aiming, but want a better way to know which fraction to use, Google my book or check out my youtube channel, Poolology. It's not for everyone, but it's basically a roadmap for fractional aiming.

 

[BC21]

You forgot one . . .

Very cool pic!

 

[bbb]

For the op i think poolology would be well worth it for you to get and try
One more thing
work on your stroke
if you can’t make the Cue go up and down the table back to your tip
And a perfect stop shot
you’ll never know if you miss was because you didn’t hit where you were aiming or that you aimed wrong

 

[Thomas025]

Traditional fractional aiming involves a lot of guesswork/estimation. If you like the simplicity of fractional aiming, but want a better way to know which fraction to use, Google my book or check out my youtube channel, Poolology. It's not for everyone, but it's basically a roadmap for fractional aiming.

Thank you for the advice! I already found it on Amazon, I'll definitely buy it!

Also yeah, I don't know how could I forget to add Ghost Ball method to the list. My mind absolutely went crazy while creating this post. :grin:

 

[Thomas025]

For the op i think poolology would be well worth it for you to get and try
One more thing
work on your stroke
if you can’t make the Cue go up and down the table back to your tip
And a perfect stop shot
you’ll never know if you miss was because you didn’t hit where you were aiming or that you aimed wrong

I'm very conscious about my stand in and cue delivery. I even asked some of my club mates back then to check every part of my shooting procedure. I think I can bring te cue straight most of the times (on low power shots).

There's also one thing I've tried. I found a fix position for the CB, marked it's place on the table with my chalk, then put another ball behind it exactly at the contact point. I marked the ghost ball's point as well and for some reason I could pot it almost from anywhere ranged from short to medium distance shots. But as soon as I decided to play for another pocket, where I don't have any chalk marks for the aiming point I started missing again. Also I got very nervous when I got down to the shot because I always felt like I'm aiming at the wrong point and it made me misscue or putting an unwanted english on the cue ball. For some reason when I'm not 100% sure about the successfulness of my potting attempt I get nervous when I get down to the table.

I really should work on my mentality as well, because I've never experienced this level of fear of failing, especially nowadays.

 

[genomachino]

I can help you immensely....

Heya guys/gals, a newbie here!

So, basically I started playing roughly 2 and a half months ago and I spent this time by trying to find the best aiming system for myself. At first, I tried to follow the ghost ball method, simply by trying to draw an imaginary line through the center of the OB and the pocket. Then I tried to find the point on that line where I think the ghost ball's center should be. Unfortunately I missed most of my shots by this technique, firstly because in some cases it was hard to find the path of the OB (especially when the OB is far away from the pocket). Secondly because it was kind of hard for me to imagine a ghost ball, a fictional thing behind the OB. I could make estimations about where it should be, but I could never see it exactly.

But... Lately I've been trying to use the fractional aim method, because it seemed to be a lot easier and IMO it took less effort to imagine lines, contact points and etc. but I found 2 frustrating problems:
1. It's inconsistent for me
2. I'm not really good at estimating angles

This has lead to finally rage quitting while practice last time and now I'm trying to figure out what's going on. Is it really that hard to imagine non-existent objects/lines/points on the table or this takes a very long time to develop? I'm starting to think that it would be the best if I'd just went by feel while aiming and not caring about drawing imaginary lines and finding imaginary contact points.

I just really want to find a method that is easy for someone who can't imagine non-existant things in front of himself. A system or some advice that could help me improve. The main reason behind my frustration about potting/angles is that if I miss I know where I missed (too thick or too thin), but I don't know how to learn from it. There are just too many variables and too much shot angles to learn one by one. I really want to analyze myself and find out the problems in my game but I've got lost in my thoughts.

I was thinking about hiring a coach but I couldn't have paid them after 3-4 sessions.

Sorry for the long and meaningless post, but even though I love this sport I'm starting to lose my sanity over this situation.

PS.: The only thing I can aim with is my cue, because I can see it and it draws a fairly straight line, so I just should find a fixed aiming point. Also, I would like to ask you a dumb question: after how much months you started potting confidently (not without a miss).

I feel your pain my freind. What I teach is Perfect Aim which is a complete pool shooting system. I can take a player from zero to 100 in a few months and with one lesson have you on the right track immediately to shooting the best pool of your life. Right now i am doing free Perfect Aim lessons on Skype and facebook video. i have done about 7 of these with great success. It's just as good as having me in your house. if you have a table all you need is some head phones for your phone and messenger and facebook. Or we could do it on skype but if you don't have that you need to download it and then we can hook up. I play at a professional level and I teach. Just give me a call and I will get you on track in a real quick hurry. 7155638712. I was only going to do 10 of these but dicided to just do a bunch for the next 2 weeks. The testimonials for these are off the charts. Just click on my info below and you can see this is for real. Looking forward to working with you and this will not cost you a penny. 715-563-8712.

 

[genomachino]

Should have put Perfect Aim on your list...

Heya guys/gals, a newbie here!

So, basically I started playing roughly 2 and a half months ago and I spent this time by trying to find the best aiming system for myself. At first, I tried to follow the ghost ball method, simply by trying to draw an imaginary line through the center of the OB and the pocket. Then I tried to find the point on that line where I think the ghost ball's center should be. Unfortunately I missed most of my shots by this technique, firstly because in some cases it was hard to find the path of the OB (especially when the OB is far away from the pocket). Secondly because it was kind of hard for me to imagine a ghost ball, a fictional thing behind the OB. I could make estimations about where it should be, but I could never see it exactly.

But... Lately I've been trying to use the fractional aim method, because it seemed to be a lot easier and IMO it took less effort to imagine lines, contact points and etc. but I found 2 frustrating problems:
1. It's inconsistent for me
2. I'm not really good at estimating angles

This has lead to finally rage quitting while practice last time and now I'm trying to figure out what's going on. Is it really that hard to imagine non-existent objects/lines/points on the table or this takes a very long time to develop? I'm starting to think that it would be the best if I'd just went by feel while aiming and not caring about drawing imaginary lines and finding imaginary contact points.

I just really want to find a method that is easy for someone who can't imagine non-existant things in front of himself. A system or some advice that could help me improve. The main reason behind my frustration about potting/angles is that if I miss I know where I missed (too thick or too thin), but I don't know how to learn from it. There are just too many variables and too much shot angles to learn one by one. I really want to analyze myself and find out the problems in my game but I've got lost in my thoughts.

I was thinking about hiring a coach but I couldn't have paid them after 3-4 sessions.

Sorry for the long and meaningless post, but even though I love this sport I'm starting to lose my sanity over this situation.

PS.: The only thing I can aim with is my cue, because I can see it and it draws a fairly straight line, so I just should find a fixed aiming point. Also, I would like to ask you a dumb question: after how much months you started potting confidently (not without a miss).

Why? Because it's the only one that really works and works well, Why? Non of those others actually do much for you? Perfect Aim works Because it is just the way it is
, it's how the eyes naturally work. I didn't try to invent something. Just the first person on the planet that actually figured this all out. And not just kind of figured it out. Figured it out exactly. That's why I call it Perfect Aim. Ask Tyler Styer or Sky Woodward. Showed them both this when they were just kids. I'm not saying this is the only reason that they are as good as they are today because it takes a lot of different traits to become a champion but they did know something that hardly anyone else knew. it's called Perfect Aim........Huge......:thumbup2:

 

[BC21]

Hardcore salesmanship! Stan, is that you? Lol :thumbup:

 

[straightline]

Not enough choices. I found three on the list but only the first went.

I use anything that visually "sockets" the balls at the contact points. This includes bottom of the ball, midpoint roll, C2C, and reciprocal sections besides.

...and repetition.

 

[Dan White]

That's why I call it Perfect Aim. Ask Tyler Styer or Sky Woodward. Showed them both this when they were just kids. I'm not saying this is the only reason that they are as good as they are today because it takes a lot of different traits to become a champion but they did know something that hardly anyone else knew. it's called Perfect Aim........Huge......:thumbup2:

Tyler Styer uses Perfect Aim?

 

[BilliardsAbout]

Heya guys/gals, a newbie here!

So, basically I started playing roughly 2 and a half months ago and I spent this time by trying to find the best aiming system for myself. At first, I tried to follow the ghost ball method, simply by trying to draw an imaginary line through the center of the OB and the pocket. Then I tried to find the point on that line where I think the ghost ball's center should be. Unfortunately I missed most of my shots by this technique, firstly because in some cases it was hard to find the path of the OB (especially when the OB is far away from the pocket). Secondly because it was kind of hard for me to imagine a ghost ball, a fictional thing behind the OB. I could make estimations about where it should be, but I could never see it exactly.

But... Lately I've been trying to use the fractional aim method, because it seemed to be a lot easier and IMO it took less effort to imagine lines, contact points and etc. but I found 2 frustrating problems:
1. It's inconsistent for me
2. I'm not really good at estimating angles

This has lead to finally rage quitting while practice last time and now I'm trying to figure out what's going on. Is it really that hard to imagine non-existent objects/lines/points on the table or this takes a very long time to develop? I'm starting to think that it would be the best if I'd just went by feel while aiming and not caring about drawing imaginary lines and finding imaginary contact points.

I just really want to find a method that is easy for someone who can't imagine non-existant things in front of himself. A system or some advice that could help me improve. The main reason behind my frustration about potting/angles is that if I miss I know where I missed (too thick or too thin), but I don't know how to learn from it. There are just too many variables and too much shot angles to learn one by one. I really want to analyze myself and find out the problems in my game but I've got lost in my thoughts.

I was thinking about hiring a coach but I couldn't have paid them after 3-4 sessions.

Sorry for the long and meaningless post, but even though I love this sport I'm starting to lose my sanity over this situation.

PS.: The only thing I can aim with is my cue, because I can see it and it draws a fairly straight line, so I just should find a fixed aiming point. Also, I would like to ask you a dumb question: after how much months you started potting confidently (not without a miss).

I was curious and planned to vote until I saw several systems not listed in the poll, including the systems I use.

 

[Dan White]

I'm very conscious about my stand in and cue delivery. I even asked some of my club mates back then to check every part of my shooting procedure. I think I can bring te cue straight most of the times (on low power shots).

None of this means you have a straight stroke. What matters is what you are actually doing when it comes time to hit a ball. Most problems are stroke related and not aim related, plus or minus, depending on your level of experience. Try this: Set up a long straight in shot and see how well you do pocketing it. For instance, put a ball center table and the cue ball 3 diamonds away. Shoot straight to a corner pocket. This is a shot where you know the aim point 100%. It's center ball. If you make the shot a lot then your stroke is probably not too bad. If you don't then you need to work on that before worrying too much about aiming.

You know those trick cue balls that wobble all over the place (like exploding golf balls)? Playing with a bad stroke is like playing with a bad cue ball. You can't very well aim a trick cue ball, either.

If I were to do it over again I'd get Poolology. This will give some structure to your ability to just "see" the shot and know where to aim. Learn the Zone A and Zone B shots and don't worry about Zone C for now.

Good luck!

 

[SpiderWebComm]

Tyler Styer uses Perfect Aim?

Tyler uses CTE PRO ONE.

Gene worked with Tyler many, many years ago. Tyler uses CTE PRO ONE and openly expresses so.

Hunter and Tyler will be traveling and doing CTE PRO ONE clinics in the near future since they firmly believe in it and use it to maximize their professional career.

 

[Dan White]

Tyler uses CTE PRO ONE.

Gene worked with Tyler many, many years ago. Tyler uses CTE PRO ONE and openly expresses so.

Hunter and Tyler will be traveling and doing CTE PRO ONE clinics in the near future since they firmly believe in it and use it to maximize their professional career.

Gene and Stan both use Tyler as an endorsement for their system. Makes me wonder if what the two men are teaching is similar.

 

[SpiderWebComm]

Gene and Stan both use Tyler as an endorsement for their system. Makes me wonder if what the two men are teaching is similar.

It's the first time I've seen Tyler as an endorsement for Gene. And it was as a kid as he stated.

No, what they teach isn't the same.

In fairness to Tyler and those who he does give credit to publicly are the following: Stan...Johan...and Jerry Briesath. Tyler credits three instructors!!!

Who do you recognize as your doctor...the one who treated you as a child or your most current and present doctor?

 

[Dan White]

It's the first time I've seen Tyler as an endorsement for Gene. And it was as a kid as he stated.

No, what they teach isn't the same.

Who do you recognize as your doctor...the one who treated you as a child or your most current and present doctor?

I'm not the one taking credit for Tyler's play so I couldn't say. I suppose if I had ricketts as a child and my doctor cured me so I could go on to become a great long distance runner I might credit my childhood doctor for my success.

 

[Low500]

Tyler uses CTE PRO ONE.
Gene worked with Tyler many, many years ago. Tyler uses CTE PRO ONE and openly expresses so.
Hunter and Tyler will be traveling and doing CTE PRO ONE clinics in the near future since they firmly believe in it and use it to maximize their professional career.

That is some good news I did not know about. :thumbup2:
Those traveling clinics with those two players will really do a lot to open the eyes of a lot of players everywhere.
I know that both have been trained heavily at Stan Shuffett's facility in Kentucky....we discussed their visits and how they trained when I was there for my coaching and help with the system.