Improving potting consistency

[thelongbomber]

Boy is this game every complex, challenging, time consuming, difficult, and downright near impossible to stay consistent at! That's probably the fascination with it though and why it's so easy to get hooked on - the challenge never ends! There are so may variables at any given moment and yet we all try our best to master the game spending thousands on cues in the process!

Over the years of playing (around 10), I have figured out a few things about keeping the game simple. I was always a potter and making balls was never an issue for me - position was and still is a challenge but I'm working on it.

Do you have some tips on improving potting consistency you could share? Below are mine:

1. Determine angles, and where to strike the cue ball BEFORE you get down. Once you are down, focus on execution of the needed shot ONLY (and not look at angles and other issues with the shot for example). If you are looking around, get back up!
2. Before you can FEEL it, you need to SEE it. That is, before you strike the cue ball (feeling), you need to know where to strike, and where the cue ball should go (seeing). Stand and plan before you get down.
3. Walk into shots. I see too many players NOT walking into the line of the shot which causes them to miss. Make this part of your ritual and you will be truly surprised at your increased consistency.
4. Don't use side unless absolutely needed. Centre ball striking has a lot of rewards and most importantly helps you pot more balls (something we all like!)

[tmax]

Hi bomber

Your tips are very good.
IMHO one of the really important things - and unfortunately the hardest to do - as you get down into the shot, is to PUT THE CUE ON THE LINE OF AIM!!!

Its usually acheived by your stance - bending down OVER your back leg.

Then of course cueing straight -

[KeithinFrance]

Good tips there, I'd add:
Keep your head still!!!
If it's good enough for Steve Davis it's good enough for me ...

[cantpotforshíte]

I think that you've hit the nail on the head as to why snooker is so addictive ... it is the never ending challenge, and the manifold opportunities to improve your game by tweaking your technique etc., that make it so rewarding.

As far as tips for consistency go, I think that your tip No 1 is everything (well 90% of everything). All I can do is elaborate on that tip and make sure that you know exactly where you want the white to finish before you get down.
I imagine you have it covered with the 'where to strike the cueball' clause, but I think it's so important to pick a path for the white to take, and an exact spot for it to finish. It is so easy to miss a pot if you don't have a clear and unambiguous outcome in your head.

[Freddie Ng]

Boy is this game every complex, challenging, time consuming, difficult, and downright near impossible to stay consistent at! That's probably the fascination with it though and why it's so easy to get hooked on - the challenge never ends! There are so may variables at any given moment and yet we all try our best to master the game spending thousands on cues in the process!

Over the years of playing (around 10), I have figured out a few things about keeping the game simple. I was always a potter and making balls was never an issue for me - position was and still is a challenge but I'm working on it.

Do you have some tips on improving potting consistency you could share? Below are mine:

1. Determine angles, and where to strike the cue ball BEFORE you get down. Once you are down, focus on execution of the needed shot ONLY (and not look at angles and other issues with the shot for example). If you are looking around, get back up!
2. Before you can FEEL it, you need to SEE it. That is, before you strike the cue ball (feeling), you need to know where to strike, and where the cue ball should go (seeing). Stand and plan before you get down.
3. Walk into shots. I see too many players NOT walking into the line of the shot which causes them to miss. Make this part of your ritual and you will be truly surprised at your increased consistency.
4. Don't use side unless absolutely needed. Centre ball striking has a lot of rewards and most importantly helps you pot more balls (something we all like!)

Good tips there mate.. keep them coming

[thelongbomber]

Hi bomber

Your tips are very good.
IMHO one of the really important things - and unfortunately the hardest to do - as you get down into the shot, is to PUT THE CUE ON THE LINE OF AIM!!!

Its usually acheived by your stance - bending down OVER your back leg.

Then of course cueing straight -

I tell you what. I found my own way of "getting down in the line of the shot" and making sure my cue, cue arm, etc all follow. It's an absolutely superb way of going about it and something I discovered just recently. You see, I'm not convinced all this chatter about feet, stance, shoulder, bla bla. The human body has too many moving parts and everyone's physiology is too different for one stance to work for everyone. I usually just get down in my most natural way without paying too much attention to feet/legs/etc. I'm convinced that if there is any tension in the body, it shows up in your shot making and in your game, so I believe that relaxation helps your game overall. As it is, I always had a square stance and loose grip from the early days of learning this game because I read a few Steve Davis books and got some proper help from club regulars.

Anyways, what I do is

1. Many people look for a "spot on the object ball". That's silly because it's near impossible to do so. Balls are round after all! Through practice and experimentation, I found using the contact point the object ball makes on the CLOTH as my guide for aiming. It's FAR easier and it's the only point on the entire table I look at while approaching and getting down for the shot. I can make some pretty impressive 1/4 ball and less shots this way into the middle pocket and move the cue ball around without fear of missing. Using this technique has dramatically improved my potting (at least 50% better then it was already! )
   
   If the object ball is far enough away, I'm also able to continue looking at the aforementioned contact point on the cloth. Things start to get dicy when I'm close to the object ball - I stand up above the shot to make it. Same problem on long potting because I can't clearly see the point I mention above.
2. Once I have identified the contact point, I next put my cue shaft down on the rail of the table (still holding the butt of course) and WALK INTO THE CUE. It becomes automatic after a while, but I find that my bridge hand is usually the last thing to touch the table.
3. Once I'm down on the shot, I'm already assuming my shoulder, elbow, hand, and arm are all in line (or at least feel natural for me) because I walked into a) the contact point or angle required on the object ball, and b) the cue
4. The only work I'm doing once I'm down is feathering, seeing the aiming point up close, and then striking the cue ball.

[thelongbomber]

I really need to put up some videos of all this chatter. Have several recorded but haven't put them up for viewing yet

[tom snow]

thanks bro long . i understand i have to look on object ball .. where cue ball hit .. object point on cloth. and
on long .. shots .. this is right way ?????

[thelongbomber]

thanks bro long . i understand i have to look on object ball .. where cue ball hit .. object point on cloth. and
on long .. shots .. this is right way ?????

IF you use my technique for aiming and shot making, then yes, you can look at where the object ball meets the cloth.

On long shots, this becomes harder because the object ball is very small. For long shots, I recommend using where the object meets the cloth as your initial aim (while you are standing), and also try determine if it's 1/4 ball, 1/2 ball, 3/4 ball, or nearly full ball.

Long shots are always harder to teach because it requires you to "sense" or "feel" where the potting angle is. If you tend to "throw" balls in with side, then it becomes more complicated. Long shots, to my level of understanding, are not easy to teach.

Terry, might be able to chime in on this topic and give you more input

[thelongbomber]

I thought I knew how to play snooker a bit but after reading this stuff I now realise I have not got a Scooby Doo.

Hehe.. well snooker is like that. You think you know everything, and then learn more and realize you have more to learn. I suggest you try different ideas and use the one that makes the most sense to you and produces the results.

My approach to aiming and shot making is adapted from standard concepts. I'm a proponent of using centre ball as much as possible and side only when needed.

At the end of it all, results speak for themselves. After changing my aiming to what I describe here, I made good breaks 30, 35, 40, 41, 42, 52, 53, and 78 in practice. All of those breaks were with quite good cue ball control, and predominantly center ball striking.

[checkSide]

You should aim all your shots by instinct. Just stand behind the shot and move side to side until it "looks" right. I guarantee your brain will pick out the right angle for 95% of all shots played.

The hard bit is to strike the cue ball to where your brain is aiming. This is reason for most missed pots IMHO.

Bad cueing, NOT picking the wrong angle.

You must be absolutely sure your cue action is straight. Not just on long blues, but playing with different bridges over different distances from different positions around the table.

To reach this level of confidence you must practice dead straight pots from all over the table. When you can do this, you will realise you already know most of the potting angles.

[thelongbomber]

You should aim all your shots by instinct. Just stand behind the shot and move side to side until it "looks" right. I guarantee your brain will pick out the right angle for 95% of all shots played.

The hard bit is to strike the cue ball to where your brain is aiming. This is reason for most missed pots IMHO.

Bad cueing, NOT picking the wrong angle.

You must be absolutely sure your cue action is straight. Not just on long blues, but playing with different bridges over different distances from different positions around the table.

To reach this level of confidence you must practice dead straight pots from all over the table. When you can do this, you will realise you already know most of the potting angles.

No offence, but I don't agree with you on this. When you reach a certain point in your game, you realize that snooker is a physical activity. You body, arm, and eyes all need to compliment each other in order to produce the results - potting a ball and getting position.

If you use "6th sense" or "feel" to pot, it can only get you so far in the game and yes, instinct does play a role to some degree but it shouldn't be the primary ingredient in shot making. Logic, physics, angles, and a solid understanding of ball striking should lead your break building capabilities. Feel is good for the "last swing" and final aim when you are down on the shot, feathering and about to strike the cue ball. The other problem with feel is can you rely on feel under a pressure shot or if your "off stroke" and haven't visited the table for 20 minutes? What do you then?

[tom snow]

IF you use my technique for aiming and shot making, then yes, you can look at where the object ball meets the cloth.

On long shots, this becomes harder because the object ball is very small. For long shots, I recommend using where the object meets the cloth as your initial aim (while you are standing), and also try determine if it's 1/4 ball, 1/2 ball, 3/4 ball, or nearly full ball.

Long shots are always harder to teach because it requires you to "sense" or "feel" where the potting angle is. If you tend to "throw" balls in with side, then it becomes more complicated. Long shots, to my level of understanding, are not easy to teach.

Terry, might be able to chime in on this topic and give you more input

thanx bro it help me lot ...ur tip of aim ..can u tell me for long shots which best way to on aim .. or terry bro help here

[tom snow]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4NQVTxFNXNQ

this is very good video .. neil.. to help u improve potting .. i think it helps me lot .. and this man is great in coaching ... see this videos .. u will sure improve ur game

[abhi147]

I agree with the first bit because snooker is all about repitition. I just get down and hit it because I remember the angles. The shots repeat themselves all over the table. So here this advice is correct and right for me anyway.

Forgive me for not agreeing with the second bit checkside but I think it is easy to send the ball were your brain is aiming (Grouch) so I think this is wrong to a certain extent. I think not getting the right angle/line of shot or hitting it too hard or thinking more about position and overtrying to get that position for the next shot you need is the reason for me missing at least. Poor shot selection is the reason for inconsistancy therefore.

I can prove this because if I was to ask almost anyone on this forum just to pot the white into every pocket on the table almost everyone would get it right 10 out of 10 so almost everyone can send the (cue ball) where they want, not everyone can pick out the angle when colliding one ball with another ball to pot it though. Not everyone can judge the throw of the ball or hit it with the right pace and or amount of side, bottom, or top stun (or whatever is needed) to get position.

This is hard and I am not a coach or a professional player so writing this is a lot harder than doing it but

I am trying to think of what I do---because like checkside rightly says this is quite a natural process for some people. I sort of do all my aiming stood up behind the shot. In practice I subconciously imagine the shot I need and just do it. (This sounds simple) but I pick the line i need to send the object ball up it and hit the white in a way that will do that.

To find this point I will find the point on the middle of the object ball because the middle of the balls is the only bit that makes contact and this point is always the the futhest pont away from the pocket or end of the line of the shot I am looking at. I keep my eyes focused on this point and walk into the shot get down and pow pow pow fluke it in the middle (just kidding)

My brain is now hurting. never had to explain this before so you guys could possibly tell me if any of what I have said makes sense.

I have plenty of bad habbits at snooker and move all over the place ( my stance is rubbish too) I could make improvements for sure I think I need a coach for that but I suppose it is all about how good you want to get and setting yourself targets to aim for. I have no ambition to get better anymore, I just want to pot balls, drink, play poker and have a laugh.

Hope this helps someone out there because it took me half a ****in hour to write it. grouch

When sending white in the pocket you do realise that there is a huge margin of error right?
When aiming to send the object ball into the pocket you have nearly no margin of error.
I feel its more of bad cueing than bad aiming.