Who's your favorite pro to watch that helps your game?

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drv4

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
SVB has always been my favorite player but his stroke is something I can't emulate. Lately I've been watching Roberto Gomez, particularly his break, and it helped my break a ton. For some reason watching him and John Morra play and throw in Ouschan, seem to help my stroke, particularly the pause at the end of the back stroke, and made my game more consistent.

Has watching any particular player ever really just clicked with your game and made it better, whether it's the stroke, pattern play, or even their demeanor?
 
Those are all good players to watch. I watch each one of those for different reason. I actually got to play with Roberto and John. John to me has one of the purest strokes I have ever seen. I really enjoy watching him.
 
For me:

JL Chang is definitely the person I like to watch the most. For me, its a reminder how to play calm and with intentional pace. He never rushes, makes right decisions, and commits to every shot.
 
The Rifleman

I used to watch Buddy Hall for hours when he lived here. His fundamentals and psr were just SO good that you couldn't help but play better.
 
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Let me say it before 100 do...Efren. I don't watch to mimick mechanics (that way lies madness), but to see his creativity and shot selection. You can learn more watching him for an hour than watching any one else for three days...:)
 
garczar said:
I used to watch Buddy Hall for hours when he lived here. His fundamentals and prs were just SO good that you couldn't help but play better.
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Agreed....Buddy Hall has a model stroke...although Buddy says don’t forget the Miz.
....the other is Ronnie O’Sullivan.
Many of the great players have idiosyncrasies that should not be copied.
 
pt109 said:
Agreed....Buddy Hall has a model stroke...although Buddy says don’t forget the Miz.
....the other is Ronnie O’Sullivan.
Many of the great players have idiosyncrasies that should not be copied.
Click to expand...

Koop said:
Earl and Alex P.
My favorite player to watch just to watch is Django
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Yeah, Alex belongs in there....his style makes so much sense...it doesn’t change when
he goes to a 6x12.

Earl overstrokes every thing.....the thing to emulate of Earl’s is his desire to play great.
 
There is a 2006 IPT match between Corey Deuel and Ray Martin that I always like to watch before a tournament just to remind me of how little cue ball movement is needed to run out a table.Mostly because I often try to do too much with the cue ball and hit too hard.
I always enjoy watching Corey play, but there is just something about this match with no audio other than the players are mic'd up that tends to put me in the right state of mind.
 
Agreed, I like the usuals, SVB, Efren, Earl, Busty, Big Ko. (SVB and Big KPY today, Efren and Earl old school)
I will add in Allison Fisher back when she was next to unbeatable years ago. Her position play was really simplistic and I think that can help with basic outs for beginners and intermediate players.
 
It changed over time:
Early 2000s, when i first started playing, I watched Efren, Earl, Corey.
Late 2000s, I started watching SVB, Orcollo, Bustamante, Alex P.
Early 2010s, I watched a lot more european players, Ralf, Mika, Niels, etc. I found their stroke to be the most consistent and methodical.
Now, I am gravitating towards Carlo Biado and Warren kiamco, I tried shooting with their style, higher upper body with more wrist movement, and i found that to be very effective.

To pump myself up, I watch Ko Pinyi, he makes pool beautiful for some reason, every time i watch him I just want to go out and play pool and run out like him.

I do recommend incorporating different styles for different shots, the most obvious being breaking the balls like SVB, etc.
 
I like watching Corey, Alex, and Efren. They are all creative and play at a nice pace.
For me to learn more about pool I like good commentary from a pro. AccuStats did quite a few player review tapes and I thought they were great. I remember one with Dick Lane that I especially liked.
Also getting analysis from Grady and Billy Incoardona and many others was good. Recently Jeremy Jones is doing a great job, especially when he is commenting on a 1 pocket match. I thought Chris Melling did a nice job at Derby. John Schmidt did a good vidieo as he runs, I think, 200 balls in straight pool. He explains his thought process during the entire run. I remembered a TAR stream were Corey and Schmidt get interviewed by Justin, great learning moment.
 
All of them. I watch a ton of pool. I don't really root for any one player in particular, although at times I might do so fleetingly, maybe rooting for a good story or wanting to see a particular player achieve something. I mostly watch to see the particular ways they solve the puzzles presented to them. I very rarely try to emulate how they stroke the ball. I do work on my fundamentals and stroke, but it is always done with the presence of mind to allow it to be as natural to me as possible. I have found trying to emulate others strokes too closely to be counterproductive, at least to me. I certainly take very small advice from a number of different players mechanics and techniques, but typically minute details that I will filter and apply in my own unique way. And that list is too numerous to write.
 
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Chris Melling, hands down.

Morra a good second.

and Ronnie as a 3rd only because it's a slightly different discipline.
 
I watch a lot of the old school players...Kim Davenport and Buddy Hall. Kim especially because his fundamentals are solid and stroke is smooth.

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