5 years out the game where to begin!

[JayUK9779]

5 years ago I was a 50 -60 player, my local club has a league and thanks to this forum and Terrys posts on tips I was always pushing for the title, I quit due to mental health problems and decided to come back playing 3 weeks ago and currently 0 wins 3 Losses sitting bottom of the table.

What's Different this time round.

1. Everything looks missable

2. thinking too much on the shot ( grip my tension is too high I am holding the cue tight at contact point and struggling to relax thinking the cue will fly out my hand during the shot, aiming point (using ghostball) just not used to the potting angles anymore I guess. moving at contact point feel like its anxiety based.

3 at the contact point of the white i seem to deviate the cue, not sure what it is movement or grip but I am definitely cuing across the ball on pressure shots, even on easy shots

4.. My feathering is feathering wonky trying hard to correct it every time I get down on the shot i am adjusting my arm so the cue is feathering straight and not inward if that makes sense. maybe bridge hand not coming across and not twisting hips enough.

I know its hard without a video but this is my thinking before each shot. Before I get down find the line of the shot and aiming point on object ball , upon getting down visualise the shot, feather no more than two times, pause tip at white pull back slowly keep eyes fixed on point of contact slowly bring cue forward slow at start and increase speed on delivery until the shot is complete. keep still and head down to visualise it to get knowledge of future shots.



Played three games

first game against mid table player lost 3-2 played well two frames over 20 break went 2-0 up after that couldn't make a break over 1 lol ended up completely capitulating .

second game against the current champion lost again 3-2 again going 2-0 up two breaks of 30 in first two after that he steam rolled me but I went home with smile on my face.

thrid game against a guy that finished 2nd from bottom last season lost 3-0, his highest break about 20 and today couldn't pot a colour after a red. Hence the post.

So in fairness I have played 3 different abilities and lost all 3. My advice to anyone that wants to quit the game think twice whether its what you really want as the climb back seems horrible andf painful mentally.

If anyone can offer any advice I know there is no videos but Am i missing anything obvious other than table time to get me better?

currently practicing 3 x week for 3 hours a session practices not showing much improvement.

Regards

Jay

[mikee]

Too much stuff written there for you to process, you can play the game ok if you were making decent breaks and then you made a few good breaks in recent matches .All I would say is play to enjoy it ,practice without thinking about it ,just knock the balls in and it will fall into place and come back in time .I had 18 months away from golf due to bad knee ,I’m not playing like I was but have had a few good rounds in the ltd games I’ve played even though most of its rubbish .Both games very similar static ball games .Trying to analyse every shot you miss is and thinking there’s a reason to it will drive you mad .Give it time it will come back .

[fkhan]

I started playing last week after a gap of almost 2.5 years. My game sucks ATM. I lost 6-0 to the person against whom I would win most if not all frames. Practice and more practice I would say is key.

[JayUK9779]

Thanks guys, ill dig in and keep playing and TRY to enjoy it!

[Snooker998]

I started playing for a week now after more than 25yrs off this game, I'm missing most of the shots and I can't seems to find the line of pot , my cueing is wobbling, my stance is off and couldn't place the cue in-between my both eyes and centre of my chin. I'm now back to beginner stage. I guess it will take months or years of practice to be able to play relative well like before.

[JayUK9779]

Hey Snooker998, it is a horrible climb but my confidence is growing each practice session and I’m cuing through the ball nicely making decent 10-20 breaks. I actually won my first match 3-2 was 2-0 up and capitulated again but pulled myself together and made a lovely 22 followed by a safety and knew I had one was an amazing feeling 5 weeks back. The guy I played said he didn’t turn up which to be fair I thought he played well as for me I was happy no where near my best but very happy with the progress I am currently 1-4 in the league now! losing my first 4 games but the experience and trusting in my aim and cue action was key in winning it.

As for the grip one of my biggest problems I think about it before the shot then once I am relaxed I forget about it and switch my mind to visualising and feeling the shot. Once down I feather a few times keeping my eye on the contact point also glance at the tip at the front pause point make sure I am where I want to be, I pull back slowly and I start the actual shot where I guess I just feel the shot best way to describe it.Once the shot is played I make sure I stay down. However, don’t take my advice I am not a coach but that is where I am at now. I had a big problem when I was down on the shot I would think about the grip, now I switch it to thinking about the feel of the shot. Really has helped me and focus on the point of contact.

final thing It took some time to play the shots at a slow/medium pace once I got that right I felt my timing coming back where I was no longer jabbing but rather stroking the shots which is a turning point. As I was over hitting everything initially, that is due to me not feeling the shot and trying to deliver the cue straight with no thought on position.

I started playing for a week now after more than 25yrs off this game, I'm missing most of the shots and I can't seems to find the line of pot , my cueing is wobbling, my stance is off and couldn't place the cue in-between my both eyes and centre of my chin. I'm now back to beginner stage. I guess it will take months or years of practice to be able to play relative well like before.

[Snooker998]

I dont even think of positioning at this stage, I'm concentrating to get my cueing (I'm jabbing)and aiming. Right now, I always over cutting on the left of the OB😑. I have been reading a lot in this forum picking up tips from the pros and coaches advice.

[JayUK9779]

That could be a problem bro. Not thinking of position means your not fully committed to the full shot. Even if it’s just a simple stun that’s helpful for information. Jabbing was a problem for me but with lots of practice and in a match situation trusting in my cue action and delivery things have started to improve.