Need some advice before i lose my sanity and punch a small child (joke)

[bmole]

I had coaching for many years, at the time I felt it made my game worse, I could never relax and I played terrible whenever my Coach was watching, I wasn't playing my game!. But now many years later I have come to realise that most of what my Coach was telling me was right, but my attitude towards learning was wrong. I was trying to improve too quickly, my goal was to make big breaks and beat the people I was losing to at that time, my Coach was trying to make me a better more complete player.

If you can pick out what parts of your game are good and concentrate on them, the problems you are experiencing will be easier to cure, if you can still make a 70 in practice, its not your sighting or anything else that is your current problem, its doing these things at the right time

My game improved when I accepted one simple fact, "SNOOKER IS HARD", to improve significantly you must gradually put in more effort(not less), the game will not get easier you must get better

[Terry Davidson]

As I have stated over and over again, there are only FOUR necessary fundamentals for playing good snooker. All the rest of the problems with technique are just fine tuning. If you can faithfully follow the 4 fundamentals then you will improve. The benefit is it takes your mind from worrying about the grip configuration, the stance, the eyes, the head alignment with the cue, the elbow alignment, the forearm alignment, the amount of bend in the bridge arm, etc. etc.

If you have a set-up which is somewhat normal, if you stay absolutely still, if you have a relaxed grip (of any configuration), if you have a slow backswing which is absolutely straight and if you deliver the cue and accelerate through the cueball THEN THAT IS ALL THAT MATTERS!

That said though, each player should use some solo practice to experiment a bit and find the grip which works for him and which allows him to accelerate through the cueball without tightening the grip at all through the strike. He could also find a stance which helps keep him stable and still.

The other point is I don't believe it's necessary to focus (or try to focus) on an exact spot on the object ball at the time of strike but I do believe the eyes should be focused on the object ball at that time. If you aim correctly while standing behind the shot and you drop your head exactly straight down then you will be on the correct line of aim anyway. This has been proven over and over again by players potting with their eyes shut.

Terry

[throtts]

Hi Terry,

I take it you use the ghost line then when standing behind the shot for a very brief period.?..

[Terry Davidson]

throtts:

When standing behind the shot and doing my aiming it's mostly unconscious but I believe I will try and determine the plant position for the imaginary cueball (this is 'ghost ball'). I then determine what line my cue must be one to get the cueball to that position.

When I get into the shot I try and drop the head straight down but I find I am unable to imagine a spot on the object ball and I believe now I'm using the 'arc' method (which is another name for ghost I think) knowing then I've dropped straight down and my cue should be on the correct line of aim.

When I miss a shot it ALWAYS comes down to me not delivering the cue straight down that line of aim. Mostly this is due to some slight upward movement of the head during the backswing or else not driving the cue through the cueball whilst keeping the grip relaxed.

Either of those faults will result in missed pots EVERY TIME.

Terry

[razvan]

Terry, can you, please, tell more about arc method?

[nrage]

Terry, can you, please, tell more about arc method?

The arc method is basically ghost ball in 2D. You're imagining how much of the object ball you need to "cover" with the ghost white.

So, for example, for a 1/2 ball pot you would cover 1/2 the object ball with the ghost white. Or, you would imagine the ghost white edge/arc intersecting the center of the object ball. All of this is visualised as a flat 2D plane with no depth - because the depth is actually irrelevant assuming you've got the amount of coverage right.

Interestingly, the contact/BOB spot is always exactly half way between the arc/edges of the two balls as they overlap - because we're dealing with regular spheres here.

So if you know you need to hit the object ball 1/2 way between the center and edge, then you know it's a 1/2 ball shot. A 1/4 ball shot overlaps by 1/4 ball and the contact point is 1/8 of the ball width from it's edge (1/2 of the 1/4 ball overlap).

You can get very technical about it, or you can just learn from experience the amount of overlap for the various angles you want and simply thicken and thin the contact as required for individual pots.

[Terry Davidson]

razvan (and everyone else):

Before I explain the 'arc method' (which nrage has explained very well) let me start out by saying this:

Players are always obsessing about how to aim accurately and I see a lot of comments like 'I don't know how to aim' or 'I can't see the line of aim' and a lot of questions asking 'how can I determine the line of aim because right now I know I'm not as I'm missing a lot of simple pots'.

Here is an absolutely true fact (despite all the American websites that swear their aiming method will improve your potting). EVERY PLAYER WHO EVER PICKED UP A CUE TO PLAY A CUE SPORT WILL INTUITIVELY REALIZE HE MUST GET THE ACTUAL CUEBALL INTO THE PLANT POSITION ON THE OBJECT BALL IN ORDER TO MAKE A POT.

So when a player is standing up behind the shot he will automatically choose a line of aim with his cue which will place the cueball in the plant position, covering some portion of the object ball. Now when he gets down on the shot he no longer has that good perspective of the angle he had when standing up but as long as he dropped his head straight down and can visualize that arc he has to cover on the object ball and he delivers the cue straight he will pot the ball if he hits BOB (Back-Of-Ball) or nearly hits BOB as there is about 3/4" room for error when potting to an open pocket, like pink off the spot to a top pocket.

So the 'arc' method is just another way to visualize the cueball covering a portion of the object ball and is virtually the same as 'ghost ball' but it is done when SIGHTING (when you are down on the table) rather than when you're AIMING which is when you're standing behind the shot.

In addition, I will say it again...MOST POTS ARE MISSED BECAUSE THE PLAYER DID NOT DELIVER THE CUE STRAIGHT ON HIS SELECTED LINE OF AIM. Every player will unconsciously and intuitively select the correct line of aim for any pot by determining the spot on the object ball directly opposite the aiming point on the pocket, but they miss a pot because they don't get the real cueball to that point accurately.

AIMING AND SIGHTING ARE NOT ROCKET SCIENCE. They are very simple and intuitive and all it takes is for a player to FIRST learn how to deliver the cue consistently straight on every shot. That's the most difficult part to learn regarding cue sports and snooker more so because of the larger table and smaller pockets.

Terry

[razvan]

Yes Terry, you are right. My big problem now is to deliver the cue ball where I want. I did miss a lot of easy pots. After reading this forum I am trying to learn the correct basics and my game has improved alot. Now rarely I miss an easy shot and I feel more comfortable on game. I still have a lot of problems on long pots, but I am working...

[Belloz22]

So coming back to my issues........ and hopefully identifying my problem then. I went down today and played hour or so on my own, modified all over the table line up etc. Made several 40s and a 50, and when I broke down it was more due to positioning than anything else. Now during this session all I was ever focusing on was keep my eyes fixed on the contact point and keepin the head down...... and my pointing was reasonably good. However, when I did miss it was always on the thick side no matter what side of the table, and I did notice on these shots.... post feedback.... I felt my eyes are flicked to the center of the object ball (thus explaining hitting shots thick). When I tried to focus on the spot again.... potting improved again. Now before I left..... I played 1 frame..... and wouldnt you know it..... I was back to only being able to pot 1 red. Missing silly shots and screwing up. I actually counted I had 12 what I would consider reasonable chances to compile a break.... and messed them all up after missin the inital red or first colour. It actually felt like I didnt know how to play the game anymore. It was so fustrating how id gone from playing reasonabley well on my own...... to next to useless in a frame. I really can not count how many frames ive lost in last 2 weeks to players I would consider on par if not lower standars than myself. Must be near the 80% loss rate. And its not like I play any better against better players and not taking the weaker players serious...... if anything it is me giving away and messing up to many chances and costing myself the frames. Its rarely im ever out beaten..... I.e. losing to a large break. Its me missing an easy chance and leaving the player pick points up. So why cant I translate this game from practice to frames..... its clear I can pot and break build. So fustrating its unreal as im sure many of yu have experienced as well

[alabadi]

I was back to only being able to pot 1 red. Missing silly shots and screwing up. I actually counted I had 12 what I would consider reasonable chances to compile a break.... and messed them all up after missin the inital red or first colour. It actually felt like I didnt know how to play the game anymore. It was so fustrating how id gone from playing reasonabley well on my own...... to next to useless in a frame. I really can not count how many frames ive lost in last 2 weeks to players I would consider on par if not lower standars than myself. Must be near the 80% loss rate.

its quite common, it happens to everyone, what i would say lately i have been watching a lot of snooker , either recorded from last years Major tournaments or live , i went to about 10 qualifying matches for the crucible this year over the last two weeks. what i have started to notice is the range of shots these pros refuse. some of them me you and i would bet many on this forum would never turn down.

this made me think about shot selection, if a pro who can pot most balls on a snooker table would refuse a red in the middle of the table from the D, or a colour slightly below the middle pocket a foot away from the cushion from around the black spot. why would i a much less skilled player take it on.

i think that we take on too many shots that in reality if we set the shot up in a solo practice session would only pot 2-3 out of 10. so if our chances of potting is that low why go for it when there is more chance you would miss and leave something on. should we play safe and wait for a better opportunity.

i know we are all eager when we get to te table and if we get there and play safe shot after safe shot it seems like we are not playing, we all want to pot or go for a it to feel like we are involved in the game, however if your aim is to win then we should really think about each shot and weigh up the odds, if the shot is a 50/50 chance then we should only go for it if we can position the cueball in a way that if missed would give us a chance on the next ball on but wouldn't leave a sitter.

i have recently started to do this and have won much more than i use to, although i have been told that i am boring, i don't think so...lol, but when my openent comes to the table he hasn't an easy shot most of the time.

My only issue now is when i miss i am getting very close to the pocket the OB usually jaws and stays there or scoots across the cushon and lands over the opposite pocket.

i think most of us are always better in solo practice, when we control where the balls are positioned, we are not under any pressure and are more relaxed. in a game the balls could go awkward and each shot has added pressure because if we miss we know we are letting our apponent in. all these added pressures make shots that seem simple much harder than they are.

[Terry Davidson]

belloz:

Your problem is you are moving on the shot. You might feel you aren't and even if you've asked a friend to check and he says you're not moving, I will guarantee you that you are moving your head/shoulder area on either the backswing or the delivery, or BOTH!

Get a camera and have the camera showing your head with hopefully some point of reference behind the head and then watch yourself play some medium paced shots. I find the best one which I use for my students is long blues with the camera over the top pocket. I have a software (freeware) system here called Kinovia, and I also have Dartfish (expensive) with which I can draw a line through the eyes when the player is in the address position and then see what happens when they deliver the cue, which I can check frame-by-frame.

You can also do this easily. Take a video then download 'Kinovia' and watch yourself frame-by-frame which will be every 1/30th of a second and I can guarantee you that you will see some head movement. Maybe only a little but your brain ALWAYS recognizes the movement and tries to compensate for it during the dynamic delivery but it always OVERCOMPENSATES because of the dynamic part.

You may think the small amount of movement you see should have no effect on the pot but it does. Work on getting rid of it by slowing down the backswing and concentrating on keeping the chin on the cue and the head still. You WILL improve.

Terry

[ace man]

...this made me think about shot selection, if a pro who can pot most balls on a snooker table would refuse a red in the middle of the table from the D, or a colour slightly below the middle pocket a foot away from the cushion from around the black spot. why would i a much less skilled player take it on...

This is one of the reasons why sometimes it can be tricky and tedious to play against players who whack the balls often and don't think much at all. They tend to take everything on and mess up the table when they miss. Before you know it, high valued colours and up on the cushions as well as a few reds. I don't enjoy playing against guys like that.

[alabadi]

This is one of the reasons why sometimes it can be tricky and tedious to play against players who whack the balls often and don't think much at all. They tend to take everything on and mess up the table when they miss. Before you know it, high valued colours and up on the cushions as well as a few reds. I don't enjoy playing against guys like that.

thats very true, i have a playing buddy who breaks off as a pool player would smashes the balls all over the table, reds everywhere colours off their spots mostly in baulk or on cushons terrible.

some might say if the reds are open its easier, well it isn't most balls are blocking each other anyway, very hard to find a path through to a colour when you get a shot. safety almost impossible as reds are everywhere, its a nightmare

[throtts]

belloz,

Terry is correct imo. I too can tell you definitely that you will insist your not moving when you actually are. Its the old school snooker rule but one that is so important. I always remind myself to stay down on the shot till the object ball drops, it brings results straight away..

[Belloz22]

I can understand the reasoning are staying still etc...... but its the fact its practice I play well and dont miss the easy shots as often. Yet..... like again today, in a frame, I have so many reasonable chances and screw them up after or before the first shot. I cant count how many chances I missed in the 3 frames today, and then gone on to lose coz the missed chances have left them in to pick up 16s etc. Surely your technique cannot change that drastically in terms of cueing offline or moving head etc. It really does feel like when I play match snooker I feel I dont know how to play anymore. Why would my technique be changing that drastically ?? From making 40 pluses to not even put 2 balls together in a frame....... and its nearly every frame