Why do Players Miss Power Shots?

[Donovan]

I agree with most of these posts. But to put it this way, it comes down to ego.

When someone has the opportunity or needs to make a power shot, they think they can use it as a small tool of intimidation. Therefore, they get their adrenaline up a little and show off a little bit in the process. Sometime in that shot, something happens muscle wise and mental wise that can cause you a slight change from what you normally shooting form, hence the miss.

It's funny, the shot alone should do the trick, but some people just can't help themselves to make it just a touch more dramatic.

 

[Flex]

When someone has the opportunity or needs to make a power shot, they think they can use it as a small tool of intimidation. Therefore, they get their adrenaline up a little and show off a little bit in the process. Sometime in that shot, something happens muscle wise and mental wise that can cause you a slight change from what you normally shooting form, hence the miss.

Power shots are fun, especially when the ball goes down. Never underestimate the psychological power that goes along with potting those suckers, and just the act of shooting them to pot them, even if the ball doesn't pot but is close, will still instill fear in many opponents. And if you pot a few of them, that will work your opponent over too.

Flex

 

[jnav447]

IMHO, I think missing power shots is caused more by squirt/masse effect (since most of us don't have perfectly level strokes) than anything else. If practice were the cure, the top players would all hit the ultimate power shot (the 9-ball break) the same every time. Also, cue tips aren't always perfectly shaped or perfectly consistent (firmness) which is exacerbated when the cue is struck forcefully. I've practiced power shots using same stroke, same speed, same everything, and got dramatically different results, then shaped my tip a little and got much more consistent results. At any rate, NOTHING is more satisfying than rocketing a ball in at warp speed - always makes up for a couple of those ducks we dog.

 

[pete lafond]

I think power shots are missed because players do not accelerate smoothly enough through the shot. Too much jerky motion in the beginning of the down stroke.

Stroke starts slow and a smooth acceleration (pickup speed during the stroke).

 

[Tennesseejoe]

IMHO, I think missing power shots is caused more by squirt/masse effect (since most of us don't have perfectly level strokes) than anything else. If practice were the cure, the top players would all hit the ultimate power shot (the 9-ball break) the same every time. Also, cue tips aren't always perfectly shaped or perfectly consistent (firmness) which is exacerbated when the cue is struck forcefully. I've practiced power shots using same stroke, same speed, same everything, and got dramatically different results, then shaped my tip a little and got much more consistent results. At any rate, NOTHING is more satisfying than rocketing a ball in at warp speed - always makes up for a couple of those ducks we dog.

I agree that squirt is a major factor and also not enough experience shooting power shots. Try this for a practice session:
Set up a straight in shot buy putting an object ball 3 feet from a corner pocket and the cue ball 3 feet away from the object ball. Now shoot this power shot with extreme left or right English and 1/4 tip low. You should be able to make this shot and the cue ball will sit and spin in place. If you use the measles cue ball the dots will seem to disappear because of the extreme spin on the cueball and the cueball will spin in place for over a minute. I found that this power shot practiced at various distances really gave me a new perspective. You may be suprised at how many good players can not make this shot. (Sounds like a proposition shot to me.)

 

[sjm]

I think that it's just a little tougher to stay down on the shot when applying a lot of power, causing some misses.

 

[JamisonNeu]

power misses are

The reason these shots are missed is because of the hesitation at the end of the backswing if you stop to muster up the power you will miss watch almost any normal player they all do it some pro's even do. It's a natural tendency to stop it alows your brain to tell your muscles to explode with power and speed but, if you want to make balls at 20 mph + you must try not stop the stroking motion. Just like in golf it must be one motion or at least close as possible. I don't want to argue about the laws of potential & kenetic energy. If you take your backswing and then stop your muscles forget where the target on the cueball is and this is what causes the center of the cueball to be missed. The cueball is then deflected off it desired path. It's also in this moment when you get to see people stand up move or whatever else they might be doing to cause this miss. If you take care of the stopping motion you will stop moving and stop missing the center of the cueball which means more balls can be riffled in. When you try this out I would consentrate mostly on the solidness of the hit not power, speed or any thing else you will see that by hitting the cueball dead nuts (in the center) that the power is there and you do not have to jump through the ball or throw your arm out to get it. This is my first post on AZ Billiards and hello to those of you who don't know me yet. I am Jamison Neu and The WPA says I am the best in the world at Masse and Jump shots but, long before I studied these disiplines I could play a little pocket billiards so at least try this technique and let me know how it goes for you I enjoy the feedback. I also have a column in one of the Billiard magazines so if you like my ideas you can E-Mail me and I'll set you up with a subscription or you can try to get AZ Billiards to give me a forumn lol.

 

[mjantti]

I think that it's just a little tougher to stay down on the shot when applying a lot of power, causing some misses.

Yep. Agreed. With power shots, you subconsciously anticipate the shot -> excess preshot body movement.

Also, the pocket becomes smaller with power strokes, you need to be more accurate, usually meaning you need to split the wicket with a power shot.

Some players think that muscles make the power shots and tense up. Instead, you should relax the shooting arm even more. Relaxed stroke brings more power and speed to the cueball.

Also, there's a difference between powering a punch stroke or powering a massive draw/follow stroke. A good point was brought up earlier: in order to be comfortable with power shots, they need to be practised as well with other types of shots.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[cuetechasaurus]

I love it how everyone here thinks it's just one or two reasons why someone misses power shots. The truth is, there are many, many reasons why involving everything from your stance right down to your aim and alignment, and everything in between. If it's not one thing it's always another thing, or it could be all of them. You have to figure out which is wrong and fix it, and it's a long and grueling process. The bottom line is this: mechanics is structural functionalism. Every part works together with another part to achieve a desired result. If one part is broken, it's possible for the whole machine to break down. Think about that.

 

[Rickw]

In my experience people miss these shots due to either body movement (both lateral and vertical) or their bridge moving before the shot is executed.

I agree. When you put the power in, there is a tendency to use other parts of the body to add to the power thus causing inappropriate movement. I've seen me do it on video - very humbling!

 

[Cornerman]

But on a power shot, these little adjustments cannot be made, or if made slightly, they don't have the same effect on the CB direction. Hence the player misses a lot of these power shots.

Thoughts?

Colin

Interesting. So, your theory is really opposite of what would be the standard answer.

Your theory suggests that a person will actually hold their initial aim line better on a power stroke.

Fred

 

[Cornerman]

I think its because folks are trying to throw a "round house" punch, instead of stroking straight. They "chicken wing" when trying to put more power behind their stroke.

This is what I've always thought. A person will naturally add more muscle groups in order to get that power. The coordination of those muscles determines how well a person will execute.

Fred <~~~ needs to be executed sometimes

 

[Flex]

This is what I've always thought. A person will naturally add more muscle groups in order to get that power. The coordination of those muscles determines how well a person will execute.

Fred <~~~ needs to be executed sometimes

I agree, especially about torqueing everything up to put that jee-whiz whatchmacallit on the cue ball. However, developing the ability to stroke very short strokes, say 2 or 3 inch strokes, and then powering STRAIGHT through the cue ball, with a long follow through can help fix the chicken wing stuff. I've seen several very good players shoot that way, and it's working for me...

Flex

 

[jsp]

When I miss power shots, I tend to hit the CB left of my intended aim line (i stroke right-handed). I think this is because the power shot is more of a pulling action than a pushing action. When you pull something, your hands naturally want to be pulled toward your body. This is what happens to me on a power stroke. When I stroke hard, my backhand tends to go towards my side instead of going straight through the target line. This results in my tip striking the CB a little to the right of where I intend to hit it. This off-center hit, combined with a hard stroke, causes the CB to squirt towards the left. I always noticed on hard shots, I undercut cut shots to the left and overcut shots to the right.

 

[Snapshot9]

Power shots

On power shots I tend to lengthen my stroke.
First I get it straight in my mind how I have to shoot it.
I aim and make sure I have the correct english and
smount of english needed, THEN I concentrate on my
stroke and to follow through good.

My percentage of making power shots went up
significantly when I started using this technique.

I do this with all shots that I know that even the
slightest thing can throw the shot off, or a difficult
shot for me. I always concentrate on my stroke,
hitting accurately, and following through. On all other
shots I don't worry about it because I know I can make
them given no mental lapses.

 

[cheesemouse]

Nice first post...

The reason these shots are missed is because of the hesitation at the end of the backswing if you stop to muster up the power you will miss watch almost any normal player they all do it some pro's even do. It's a natural tendency to stop it alows your brain to tell your muscles to explode with power and speed but, if you want to make balls at 20 mph + you must try not stop the stroking motion. Just like in golf it must be one motion or at least close as possible. I don't want to argue about the laws of potential & kenetic energy. If you take your backswing and then stop your muscles forget where the target on the cueball is and this is what causes the center of the cueball to be missed. The cueball is then deflected off it desired path. It's also in this moment when you get to see people stand up move or whatever else they might be doing to cause this miss. If you take care of the stopping motion you will stop moving and stop missing the center of the cueball which means more balls can be riffled in. When you try this out I would consentrate mostly on the solidness of the hit not power, speed or any thing else you will see that by hitting the cueball dead nuts (in the center) that the power is there and you do not have to jump through the ball or throw your arm out to get it. This is my first post on AZ Billiards and hello to those of you who don't know me yet. I am Jamison Neu and The WPA says I am the best in the world at Masse and Jump shots but, long before I studied these disiplines I could play a little pocket billiards so at least try this technique and let me know how it goes for you I enjoy the feedback. I also have a column in one of the Billiard magazines so if you like my ideas you can E-Mail me and I'll set you up with a subscription or you can try to get AZ Billiards to give me a forumn lol.

JamisonNue,

This is why I continue to check this forum. Everyonce in a while someone( you in this case) has the answer. Just last night I was giving lessons to three guys at once. One guy wanted me to demonstrate the power stroke, a shot which I love to hit when I'm playing good. We had just spent an hour trying to get these guys to incorporate a pause in their strokes. I must have been preoccupied with the pause at the back of the take away because I couldn't do anything but jump the cb off the table when attempting the power draw, it was embarrassing me being the instructor...LOL
This morning, alone in my room it took me an hour to figure out what I was doing wrong the night before. Just after I figured it out I sat down here and read your first post....Welcome to the AZ forum, you busted this one right on the money.

 

[Rickw]

The reason these shots are missed is because of the hesitation at the end of the backswing if you stop to muster up the power you will miss watch almost any normal player they all do it some pro's even do. It's a natural tendency to stop it alows your brain to tell your muscles to explode with power and speed but, if you want to make balls at 20 mph + you must try not stop the stroking motion. Just like in golf it must be one motion or at least close as possible. I don't want to argue about the laws of potential & kenetic energy. If you take your backswing and then stop your muscles forget where the target on the cueball is and this is what causes the center of the cueball to be missed. The cueball is then deflected off it desired path. It's also in this moment when you get to see people stand up move or whatever else they might be doing to cause this miss. If you take care of the stopping motion you will stop moving and stop missing the center of the cueball which means more balls can be riffled in. When you try this out I would consentrate mostly on the solidness of the hit not power, speed or any thing else you will see that by hitting the cueball dead nuts (in the center) that the power is there and you do not have to jump through the ball or throw your arm out to get it. This is my first post on AZ Billiards and hello to those of you who don't know me yet. I am Jamison Neu and The WPA says I am the best in the world at Masse and Jump shots but, long before I studied these disiplines I could play a little pocket billiards so at least try this technique and let me know how it goes for you I enjoy the feedback. I also have a column in one of the Billiard magazines so if you like my ideas you can E-Mail me and I'll set you up with a subscription or you can try to get AZ Billiards to give me a forumn lol.

JamisonNeu,

How do you explain a shooter like Buddy Hall then? He hesitates on his backstroke all the time. I don't disagree with you totally. I think that when a player does something different when he/she shoots that this is deleterious to making a successful shot. In other words, if they do not usually hesitate on their backswing but do so on a power shot, they're going to have problems. If, on the other hand, they usually hesitate on the backswing and don't when they shoot a power shot, they will probably have the same problems. Do you agree with that?

 

[JamisonNeu]

Answer

I do agree that trying new things can sometimes have negative effects but, on the norm trying new ideas helps break up the same old same old and usually helps a player expand his knowledge of a sport in turn a better player. Tiger Woods said it best in a interview some years back when he said "It doesn’t matter what your practicing even if it's shanking balls OB as long as you try to shank it the best that you can"
I don't think that all players get positive results from the same tech. I think that different things work well for different people. I mean in the world of sports can you pinpoint what makes each individual champion great. I mean you can watch what they do but all Champions have a different approach. Is it the fact he has a way of bringing perfect speed to a shot and is always in perfect shape? Or maybe some aiming system he knows. Is it the way he holds his fingers on his cue or is it his bridge hand maybe it's his determination to win or it could be the fear of losing? There are many reasons a person is a champ. It is impossible to know what makes Buddy Hall a Champion but, I do know his way works for him and alot of people play better because they imitate his systems although I found that for me this way does not work when I try to rifle in balls, however when I shoot a tough cut it's the only way that works. Then again I shoot these cut shots as soft as possible so it's like a bunt compared to a grand slam home run.
My post was an attempt to tell people what works for me. When I pocket balls at blistering speeds and you can ask anyone who knows me I can sometimes slam balls in pretty well. I tend to deliver a more pure stroke if I use the method that I spoke of before. After reading my first post it did sound a little like THIS WAY IS THE RIGHT WAY but, I don't think there is a right way that is, except the way that works for you. I just hope what I wrote helps some people enjoy this game a little more than they already do.
As far as my stroke going sour from trying new things I hope not. I mean how could I ever hope to get better if I only try what I already know????
This thread reminds me of the first person that gave me lessons in the game of pool and yes, I paid at the end of every game I paid. This guy had an answer for every question you could ever ask about missing a ball. He'd say "It's very simple to figure out why you missed, you didn't hit the ball in the right spot" And this is always the only answer possible for missing and it's never I hit it too hard or (too soft this is very rare but, you know which one I'm talking about it's the one that has the long horrible anticipation just before it stops right in the jaw's) it's not that the table plays short, my shoes are untied or I didn't sleep well last night, never I punched when I should have poked or you sharked me when you looked at the table. It's always just simply I hit the ball in the wrong spot... Now how do I fix it?

 

[pete lafond]

JamisonNeu,

How do you explain a shooter like Buddy Hall then? He hesitates on his backstroke all the time. I don't disagree with you totally. I think that when a player does something different when he/she shoots that this is deleterious to making a successful shot. In other words, if they do not usually hesitate on their backswing but do so on a power shot, they're going to have problems. If, on the other hand, they usually hesitate on the backswing and don't when they shoot a power shot, they will probably have the same problems. Do you agree with that?

You are correct here. I know many pool and golf players that stop and pause longer than most at their back swing/stroke and more especially on a power swing/stroke. This method enables the body to collect itself and get into prime position. In other words so that proper muscle organization and body weight are in position..

The power stroke amplifies glitches in the players stroke. The correct stroke should be smooth and must be an acceleration. It begins at stop followed by a slow acceleration to the desired speed.

ALL PLAYERS STOP at back swing/stroke otherwise they could not change direction. It is that some actually stop for a longer period of time than others.





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[CaptainJR]

I know the thread is about why do you miss power shot and a lot of replies here really cover the wide realm of things that can go wrong to cause you to miss them.

So since that has been covered I think I'll talk about what I do to give myself the best chance at making them.

When I walk up to the table and find myself looking at a 'power shot' (notice I said 'walk up to the table', I would certainly never leave myself this kind of shot. LOL), it always makes me notice that I'm in a little bit of trouble. I let this little warning tell me that I'm going to have to give this a little extra thought. How many times have you seen a player walk up to this kind of shot and just fire like as if he is thinking 'I either make it or I don't'. So I do take some extra time with this. (extension please)

Determine which kind of power shot it is. Two types come to mind. 1. You don't have enough angel for the cue ball to come out as far as you need it to so you can make sure you get enough angle on the next shot. (you don't want to set yourself up for a second power shot situation) or 2. You need to move the cue ball a distance. (Also normally a fairly straight shot)

Shot 1. On this first type (the easier of the two) On this shot your normally not going to be using any spin. You just need to hit it with enough speed to get the cue ball off the rail the right distance. I'm very specific on the exact part of the pocket the object ball will be entering. Come straight though with my grip hand and be accurate with the shot.

Shot 2. This is tougher. Especially if your thinking about putting any side spin on the shot. I don't have to remind myself but I will mention, unless your talking about a table with buckets, a long power shot with side spin is a 50/50 chance at best. Maybe 75/25 if it is one of the top 10 shooters in the world. Since I'm not one of those people (LOL), I have to start thinking about alternatives. (safe, leave my opponent a long power shot, etc.) For the sake of this discussion let's say can't figure out any alternatives. Then I would decide just how much power this shot actually requires. How often have you made the power shot and found that you didn't need as much power as you used. Or realize that a good smooth firm stroke would have got you far enough. Remember that a high speed impact with the object ball kills a lot of spin so in many cases backing off a little with a good stroke will get the job done. If I find myself in the position that I can't back off and I'm going to have to really power the shot, I do not allow myself to use side spin. Period, no side spin on high speed power shots. I would rather leave myself a long rail bank for my next shot.

That's my thought process on this situation. I know I'm not a pro, so I remember my limitations. Not only in this situation but in many others I think a big mistake a lot of players make is not remembering there on limitations.