Which Variable Is the Cause of Most Missed Shots

[straightline]

I side with the good fundamentals bunch. Wrong stick line afflicts beeginners all the way through BeegChamps. Course beginners are expected to miss anyway but champs missing is a much more isolated and observable event.
Here's another paintistration. Both are aimed center ball. One is the correct shot and the other is a complete disaster. It doesn't matter which and the discrepancy is exaggerated for clarity but to me anyway, indicates the slim deviation the missing player will have. What you see isn't always what you shoot.

as you were...

 

[Vince_Former_BB]

I'm my humble opinion, focus and trying to unnecessarily create something that's just not there.

 

[xcorner]

Not hitting cue where you wanted to hit it. Not sure my arm and brain are in the same place lol

 

[boogieman]

So many posts to reply to....perhaps just to Ramble on. The Rambler Ambassador from the late 60s would be a good car for a pool player as the back seat made to a bed.
Straight pool was my earliest practice as Willie Mosconi was my source from a book.
8 ball employing Straight pool knowledge and skills makes for a sound 8 ball game. Short precision shape is a Straight pool skill taught by Mosconi. His ark of 5 object balls mid table facing a side pocket. Take ball in hand and run them using about a 12 inch draw. Try it! It's fun.

23 games in a row is my bar table 8 ball high run. At 2 bucks a throw and 1 for 10. Those young men oh so wanted to impress the ladies league on the adjacent table.

My 2 biggest pelts would be Steve Mizerack and John Schmidt, both Straight pool Champions. Steve was a single game of bar table 8 ball. I broke and ran. John was a race to 2 nine ball on 7 foot Diamond.
I always enjoyed playing the guys that liked to spin their rock.....To impress? The Girls ?
Center axis is so boring.....like a Straight pool run. Back in the day helped supplement the income in the evenings.

I watched a straight pool match on youtube, Accystats Jim Rempe vs. Buddy Hall. Great match, beautiful piano black GC... but anyway I swear just watching that match improved my game.

The thing it reinforced was: Should I focus most on the shot or the shape? Trick question, they are the same thing. Watching them pin the OB center pocket and float the CB to the next position was a really nice experience and kind of prodded me into trying for perfection. Even if you only get close to perfect you're still better than you would be otherwise.

 

[VTEC John]

Movement, however miniscule. Movement of your head, your eyes, hands, body--or most important, your brain. That said, following through properly and staying riveted to see the actual contact with the OB... those cure all kinds of lesser problems IMO.

 

[Poolmanis]

Fundamentals are important but very overrated. When I play pool or carom in Shooter´s pool virtual simulation people miss same way than real.
It is just fact. There is always perfect stroke. Still bad players are bad.
More important is to learn estimate cut and various aim affecting effects. Speed, spin or lack of spin mostly. Most of my misses are misjudges of friction on low speed draw and stun shots. Real and virtual.
Also players most of time practice mechanics with straight or near straight cuts and when they are facing more cut on shots they lose confidence on aim to ball. Which then leads more unsure mechanics because they are not sure about the cut and steer shots.

 

[SeniorTom]

I see many folks missing, including myself, when we are overly preoccupied with cue ball position. It's like the shooter has two thought processes going on at once, and maybe cue ball position occupies more mind power than it should. Probably the best mindset is to calculate where you want the cue ball to be and then Focus entirely on making the shot. Many times I could kick myself for failing to do this, and the result is a missed shot.

 

[gregcantrall]

Gotta keep my mind right.

When it ain't broke is fun. When it is broke the path to fixing it can be daunting.
Right when I thought and felt that I was in dead punch.....I went down 6-2 going to 7. Playing 9 ball for the point at The White Spot in 89. My mind was good (I thought) my physical fitness was top. I had missed 1 ball but couldn't figure out why.....it tilted me up bigly. So the self to self talk as I racked for his hill break........got my mind right and led to a 7-6 victory to make it to the finals.

 

[gregcantrall]

 

[easy-e]

there's no such thing as an ex-marine

Jaden

WTF do I know? I was in the Air Force.

 

[gregcantrall]

WTF do I know? I was in the Air Force.

In Basic Training as a Cadet at USAFA, the altitude check was required knowledge.
The required reply to the inquiry was (.....well for sure still is)......"SIR! My altitude is seven thousand two hundred and fifty feet above sea level. FAR FAR above Annapolis or West Point! SIR!"

 

[gregcantrall]

the self to self talk as I racked for his hill break

Was similar to the caddy. It was along the lines of......"Don't worry about looking like an idiot......you have done already done that. How about quit handing him 3 ball outs? Maybe he has never been on this big of a stage. Maybe just maybe......Then I found the Zen and went on to win !!! Well that match. Jim Ward was too much for me in the finals. Second place paid a week's wage but I had quit my job 2 weeks previous. So I knew it was a recreation and went hunting for another day job.

 

[336Robin]

For a relatively experienced player, assuming your aim is correct and your stroke is straight, in your opinion, which of the 3 variable miscalculations causes the most missed shots when applying spin to the Cue Ball?

1) Misjudging Cue Ball Squirt / Deflection?
2) Misjudging Cue Ball Swerve?
3) Misjudging CB to OB Spin Induced Throw

For myself, I think 3 causes my most misses if I’ve spinned it slightly more or less than planned. 2 is the second most likely cause of my misses, particularly if it’s bottom inside or outside, if I’ve elevated my cue slightly and if I don’t stroke the shot quite at the pace I planned especially if I decelerate and the swerve invariably gets me. Misjudging the cue ball deflection is the least likely of these 3 variables causing misses, at least for me.

Misjudging due to misunderstood Vision Center.

I'm left eye dominant but yet play my best with the cue under my right eye.
Go figure right?

When I was playing with the cue under my nose my make shot percentage was lower and I owe
that to some visual confusion caused by my eyes fighting for control of the shot.

I couldn't control 1, 2 or 3 from above nearly as well as I can now.

 

[Sealegs50]

I am fairly happy with my ability to make shots. My biggest problem is speed control which results in being hooked from my next shot.

 

[ShootingArts]

I am fairly happy with my ability to make shots. My biggest problem is speed control which results in being hooked from my next shot.

With modern day equipment speed control is the big issue for most of us. What I suggest is quit thinking of pocketing the ball and getting shape as two different things. They are all one shot.

Hu

 

[straightline]

With modern day equipment speed control is the big issue for most of us. What I suggest is quit thinking of pocketing the ball and getting shape as two different things. They are all one shot.

Hu

I found the faster cloth much easier and more enjoyable to play.

 

[ChrisinNC]

Easy way around that. Don't use side spin and make sure you're truly aligned on center ball. Almost anything and anywhere you want to get on the table can be gotten to with speed control. Focus on that. There are many high level players that use only very minimal sidespin.

Jaden

I’d have to disagree with your statement. You have to feel comfortable pocketing balls using all types and amounts of spins in order to be a strong position player.

 

[Jaden]

I’d have to disagree with your statement. You have to feel comfortable pocketing balls using all types and amounts of spins in order to be a strong position player.

I respect your opinion, however, I'll be happy to match up with you where my handicap is that I can't hit off vertical center and you can hit anywhere you want.

Jaden

 

[WobblyStroke]

I’d have to disagree with your statement. You have to feel comfortable pocketing balls using all types and amounts of spins in order to be a strong position player.

It's not just that u have to be comfortable, u need to recognize when spin makes shots easier and take the higher percentage shot...the one with spin.

I shared this example b4, but there was a cut into the side where no rails were gonna be hit and JJ remarked to Karl 8n the booth, "the internet will tell u these shots dont need any spin, but you'd struggle to find a single pro that doesn't hit this with low outside". Sometimes spin simplifies things and makes shots react more predictably.

As another example,I was giving a lesson recently where the student had to come off a rail perpendicular to it. He had some trouble doing this consistently from a few feet away. But roll with a tip of outside did the trick every time. Much much easier than getting the ball there sliding, esp if low speed is required on the shot.

Spin makes the game easier, not harder... u just gotta get thru the lil rough patch at the beginning.

 

[Poolmanis]

I’d have to disagree with your statement. You have to feel comfortable pocketing balls using all types and amounts of spins in order to be a strong position player.

Poolmanis approved!