You either shoot straight or you don't...

1

1on1pooltournys

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Does anybody else feel this way...??

Sorry but I couldn't resist seeing how 75% of the threads on the front page are about aiming methods that I think are bogus...

I asked two world champions about them last week and they started laughing... Just sayin...:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:
 
1on1pooltournys said:
Does anybody else feel this way...??

Sorry but I couldn't resist seeing how 75% of the threads on the front page are about aiming methods that I think are bogus...

I asked two world champions about them last week and they started laughing... Just sayin...:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:
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In my opinion, aiming systems place too much emphasis on one aspect of shot placement, versus emphasis on the total outcome.

There is no one correct aim point to pocketing the object ball. That fact alone debunks aiming systems.

The best advice I've heard about aiming systems is that some players have difficulty with some shots. An aiming system may help them overcome that on those specific shots.

Chris
 
dude I'm a c player and I know that. but there is a few things about aiming not in books that the world champs know...wonder why it hasn't been put on paper. I heard from someone that there is only a handful of guys that pockets balls correctly....and they ain't tellin.
 
searcyD said:
dude I'm a c player and I know that. but there is a few things about aiming not in books that the world champs know...wonder why it hasn't been put on paper. I heard from someone that there is only a handful of guys that pockets balls correctly....and they ain't tellin.
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conspiracy theory?

To pocket balls correctly, they must fall into the pocket and remain there. Doesn't matter how they got there.

Aiming systems are valuable for people just learning or for people who happen to be struggling that day with their aim... though this is usually a stroke problem not an aim problem. I only use an aiming system if it's a very long and very tough cut that I just can't seem to visualize.

If you get a straight stroke and you are feeling it, consciously aiming barely plays a part in it. It's when you are consciously aiming when you mess up... play out of your mind... literally.
 
searcyD said:
dude I'm a c player and I know that. but there is a few things about aiming not in books that the world champs know...wonder why it hasn't been put on paper. I heard from someone that there is only a handful of guys that pockets balls correctly....and they ain't tellin.
Click to expand...

It has nothing to do with aiming... it is a secret in the final stroke when shooting a ball...

It just allows for balls to be pocketed more "cleanly"...if you will....especially when cutting balls...:cool:
 
Bobby,

You just happen to live in a state where the best 4 players (over the last 25 years) are (were in one case) all naturals.

Not talking about transplants, but people who grew up and lived here.


I agree, you either shoot straight or you don't. But since the majority of players (myself included) don't shoot straight then there will always be a large market for products, devices, etc. for them to purchase.
 
1on1pooltournys said:
This is true...However, the top players (world champions) I asked do not live in this state and never have...
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Are you commenting on shooting straight or having a straight stroke? Those two don't always go together. I know guys with flawless mechanics that can't get out and some guys who might not miss forever(feels that way) and there stick shakes more than Michael J. Fox!
 
mikeyfrost said:
Are you commenting on shooting straight or having a straight stroke? Those two don't always go together. I know guys with flawless mechanics that can't get out and some guys who might not miss forever(feels that way) and there stick shakes more than Michael J. Fox!
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If you know people with straight strokes that can't pocket balls then they have an alignment problem...


Most people do not how to properly align themselves with the shot...they just bend over and shoot...and yes...many of them have nice, smooth, and flashy strokes...but can't run out..
 
Playing pro level pool is about natural talent more then knowing secrets about aiming systems. I have watched players go from young beginners to near pro level. I watched one guy from my city go from a level where he would never play me for cash to a level where he beat 4 well known pro's in a row in the US Open. He was not playing much more pool then me when he blew past me, he simply has a better eye and more natural talent for the game. In a city where he is in the top 5 for natural talent I am maybe in the top 50, and there is a big difference in actual natural talent between those two places.

The game is not rocket science, you have two round balls and there is this contact point on the object ball that will make that object ball go into the pocket. If you hit that cotact point the ball will go in, if you miss that contact point you will miss. Virtually all of the top players simply subconsiously aim the round cueball to hit that contact point on the round object ball because they have shot alot of pool and the information on what the proper aim "looks" like stuck for them. Some players can visualize the shot better by cueing at the contact point on the object ball and then getting into the shot after seeing that point, some don't have to do that. At the end of the day aiming is simply making the cueball hit that contact point. If you are trying to do 1/4 ball, trying to visualize an actual ghost ball in the place where the cueball needs to be to hit that contact point, ect... you are overcomplicating things and taking your mind off the place it needs to be, cueball placement and shape.

For the pros and top players the aim is a given, so they can focus on the other aspect of the game that really matters, the shape. If your aim sucks so that you need to focus on aiming systems, ghostballs, fractions of object balls, ect... you are screwed because the top players don't think about the aim, it is automatic, they are thinking about the shape off of an angle that will pot the object ball that came naturally and subconsiously to them.
 
Just curious, but why do people always drop hints about 'world champions' and 'well-known pros' and never actually name them?

Are the pros so worried about image that they don't want anyone to attribute (even indirectly) an opinion about aiming systems to them? Are their egos so fragile that they'd be mad if anyone ever posted about a time they lost a set somewhere?

IMO you can't have it both ways. You can't try to add weight to what you're saying by claiming that world champions agree with you, and at the same time not say who it is.

It's not that I disagree with what 1on1's saying, or can't believe a world champion would knock aiming systems. But it's like he expects us to take his as seriously as if it came out of, say, johnny archer's mouth. I won't unless he can say it actually DID come out of johnny (or earl or shane or whoever's) mouth.
 
1on1pooltournys said:
Does anybody else feel this way...??

Sorry but I couldn't resist seeing how 75% of the threads on the front page are about aiming methods that I think are bogus...
Click to expand...


Me. I do.

Perhaps the thing with all the aiming threads is the same reason 75% of the commercials on day-time TV are for miracle weight loss programs, pills, and effortless "exercise" devices. A lot of people want a shortcut. A magical solution. A secret aiming system. An effortless way to get good. They want to believe and listen to those who preach to the great unwashed with all the fervor of a tent-revival fire and brimstone preacher. If you don't believe, you aren't trying hard enough -- just give yourself over. Drink the kool-aid and toast to the founders.

I guess too many do not wish to hear that, unless you are a natural, you have to play 10,000 hours and hit millions of balls, all the while concentrating and learning as you go along.

Lou Figueroa
 
I agree with 1on1, and Celtic, on this. You don't aim in pool playing because there is nothing to aim with. It's like a shotgun. You don't aim a shotgun, you point it. When you point it in the right direction, just like in pool, you hit the target. Professionals know this. They've spent years honing their art and can not only hit the desired contact point on the object ball, but add english to as well. A combination that frustrates the hell out of most of us.
These various aiming systems we see bandied about are nothing more than gimmicks and in my opinion should not be entertained by the aspiring poolplayer. The best instructors you'll ever have are the guys that hang around your poolhall. And if you want to learn faster, gamble.
 
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1on1pooltournys said:
Does anybody else feel this way...??

Sorry but I couldn't resist seeing how 75% of the threads on the front page are about aiming methods that I think are bogus...

I asked two world champions about them last week and they started laughing... Just sayin...:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:
Click to expand...

Name names or it didn't happen.
 
CreeDo said:
Just curious, but why do people always drop hints about 'world champions' and 'well-known pros' and never actually name them?
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Really, did they tell you not to name them? I seriously doubt it, the world champions I've known and had lessons from have no problem with their names being dropped, if it's something they actually said and not something somebody thought they would say.
 
I hardly open up any threads on aiming systems. I believe they are for beginners that have a hard time of seeing as to how to hit the correct spot on the object ball. Notice I said how and not where. They know where but for them the problem is the how. One round ball colliding with an other is not that simple for beginners.

Aiming systems work for simple shots. As soon as the shot has some distance and requires spin and speed on the cue ball then many variables now come into play. Variables that only you can develop the instinct for by shooting that shot countless times. This is what makes the game complicated. If aiming systems worked then we would all be champions in no time at all. The thing necessary is good mechanics so that you can have a repeatable stroke so that you can learn from a shot even when you miss it.

What gets you to higher levels is when you can not only pocket the ball but also move the cue ball to a desired location. This will only happen to dedicated players that will put the time in. Practice, practice, practice and then more practice.

If you feel that a system works for you then I suggest you stay with it. I don't want to discourage anyone if they are making progress with some system. The above is just MHO.
 
I agree for the most part. You can set up a shot for me, hard or easy one whatever. I generally know where I "should" hit the ball, how hard, and what my english if I use any will do to it. Its getting the ball to where I know it should go is the problem, which brings up the talent thing everyone is talking about lol.
 
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