most difficult thing to do in snooker?

[TomHau]

Maybe this

But for real concentration and positive thinking especially for me.

[Nic Barrow]

Hello Everyone,
Just wanted to know what you guys think is the most difficult task to do in playing snooker in a beginner or amature level?

For professional players i think they have to deal with a lot of pshycological issues but i think for beginners or even amatures the most challenging or difficult "technical" issue is to be able to "deliver the cue in a straight line constantly" so that the cue ball can hit the object ball where it should in order to pot the object ball.

If u think there are other aspects or issues in snooker which are more crucial than this please do reply, you can also rank your choices in order.

Thanks

Controlling the cue.
When a player makes a 147 it is not the ball control that is good - it is the cue control.

[Sam-Romford]

Controlling the cue.
When a player makes a 147 it is not the ball control that is good - it is the cue control.

Nic This is exactly why i am going to have a half day session with you, you will have to share your wisdom with me about controlling the cue.

[sydneygeorge]

Terry I completely agree with you. I think starting from a beginner things which hold a player back form playing good snooker are mainly the technical issues (grip, cueing straight, sighting etc), but once you have mastered all the basic techniques and knocking in 60s and 70s the only things you are dealing with are pshycological issues staying calm under pressure, confidence, anger control etc.
But i think for decent amateurs one problem could be once they have achieved thier regular breaks like 50, 55 and start approaching towards their first ton, they start suffering from pshycological issues which dont allow the player to carry on the break building.



But Terry now that we all are pointing out what each of us suffer from the most, it would be really nice of you if you could help us out with your wise words.

btw in one of the threads about cueing straight you mentioned 14 points to keep in mind which will help a player cue straight, i think that was the best advice you have ever given out in this forum. Its great to have someone like you here with us.

Hi,can you direct me to btw's advice on cuing straight please.

[Terry Davidson]

sydneygeorge:

btw means 'by the way' and Sam is referring to a post I put up here probably at least a year ago which outlined around 14 points for cueing straight. Just do a search under my name but I've posted so much it might take you awhile. If you find it remember to work on ONE thing at a time.

Since posting that I've modified it down to the 4 most important points, which if a player learns and does consistently he will cue straight and his improvement will come more rapidly. They are (with some explanation):

1. No upper body movement from the time the bridge hand hits the table until AFTER the cueball has been struck.
2. Loose grip such that the butt of the cue will slide easily inside the grip and maintain this relaxed grip until the cueball has been struck or even just a touch after (the unconcious part of this is a player will tend to tighten the grip in order to accelerate the cue through the cueball and this tightening of the grip will take the butt off-line).
3. Slow and smooth backswing which is kept absolutely straight all the way. A longer backswing is better since the player will not be tempted to tighten the grip in order to get acceleration on harder shots.
4. Start the delivery slowly and build up the acceleration smoothly, driving the tip of the cue THROUGH the cueball (without tightening the grip) and the grip hand all the way to the chest (which will stop the cue). Stay still with no body movement at the end of the delivery until the ball has either dropped or hit a cushion, following the object ball with the eyes ONLY, not the head.

There are of course other finer points like having the straight leg foot on the line of aim, dropping the head down straight, selecting the line of aim while standing behind the shot, getting down into the shot correctly but if a player consistently gets the above 4 things correct and does it for every shot he will improve rapidly.

Terry

[sydneygeorge]

Many thanks Terry.

[bally969]

no matter how much I practice, 30 breaks come few and far between, Im 63 now, love the game , but I know old age has beaten me,
my top break was 85 in 1986, 20s and 30s came regular, but not now

[coomsey76]

Nic This is exactly why i am going to have a half day session with you, you will have to share your wisdom with me about controlling the cue.

I had a days coaching with Nic earlier on this year and my game has Improved no end and it's still improving bit by bit as things start to click.... The best days coaching I've had to date by a country mile!!

Highly recommended....!!

[johno]

Coomsey, what in particular mate did Nic show you that's helped you game or is it a combination of things?

[coomsey76]

Coomsey, what in particular mate did Nic show you that's helped you game or is it a combination of things?

It was a whole host of things really.......

He has a great approach to coaching you because he finds a way that you can relate to everything he teaches you and by doing that you remember it and it sticks....

[Sam-Romford]

Hey Coomsey, does Nic coaches in the specific area where you want to improve or he coaches all the aspects of the game like, safety play, potting, break building etc?

Del Smith is my local Grade A coach, i go to his group coaching and also for one to one coaching sometime but even in one to one sessions his approach is general.

I have really specific needs and therefore i travelling all the way from east london to Milton Keynes.

Do you think he will only focus on the area where i want to improve or he will just coach me where he thinks i need to improve?

[coomsey76]

Yes he will coach you in specific areas where you think you need it, but before you start he'll ask you what you after from the session and where you think you need improvement and make a list...... Then he'll assess how you play and go from there, he also used video analysis which was really helpful as well!!

I live in East London as well and it was well worth the trip up the M1 to Melton Keynes.....!!:snooker:

[Manu147]

Increasing awareness is crucial i believe in improving ones game, i think this is a twofold factor, firstly i believe players that have reached a decent standard (say regular century breaks), are more aware of how their technique works at its best , so that when they dip in form they can recover their game and confidence quicker, and secondly because they have developed a sound technique at an early stage, this in turn frees up the brain, so that they have more awareness during shot selection, breakbuilding, experimenting with shots, because they arent tinkering with their technique all the time, which i believe is in some cases is counterproductive, and restricts players from reaching their awareness potential.

[v1lius]

my big problem is to be not nervous and relaxed when practice 5 hours daily 6 times per week. now i talk with psychologist and i think will fix it