Do I strike the ball well?

[thelongbomber]

Been done before - go for it

HAHAHA.. thats hilarious!

[thelongbomber]

Are there not many proper snooker clubs left over there?

There are definitely a few good tables left in town. One at High Break Billiards about 30 mins drive, and the other at Kevin Deroo's (although his is tighter for golf games) closer to me.

If I was you I would get back on this table at this club -

I note at this point on this proper table you do actually get behind the shot better before you get down as there is more room around it - so fact is that little table is making you lazy I would say and it is making you develop bad habits-

Again I still think your shot selection could do with a little more care and you should start thinking a few more shots ahead and take more care on the line of the shot for position - some good pots but you are a punchy player and a little too fast - made me laugh when you where on 42 after making a lovely blue in the middle and getting perfect position you then took the wrong red as had you had took the other red and made a a soft stun canon on the red below it would have freed the black into both pockets and you would have been on for red black red black red black and might have gone on to make a ton - if you had took a little time out earlier in the break had a little walk around and checked your options here or earlier on in the break you would have noticed the black went in the oposite pocket and would have been thinking about freeing the line to the left corner pocket fron that top red earlier on in the break.

That break I made on the bigger table was quite a while back and I have worked on parts of my game since then. I haven't been on a proper 6x12 table in at least a year - personal family issues and such. You point out some parts of my game I wasnt aware of before and will definitely have to get back on the practice table soon and consider your points.

On a side note, I think there isn't any shortcut to centuries. If you haven't been taught proper tactical approach and ball selection strategies (like me) from the start, you can end up being a player that tends to take what's comfortable in order to just win. In my case, I have gained a bit of confidence with 50's and 60's recently and I have discovered that my shot selection has changed. I'm not taking the "not to lose" shots any more. Now, because I know I can do a 50 break without difficulty, I'm able to worry less about losing and my breaks and game are improving as a result.

[alabadi]

I think there isn't any shortcut to centuries. If you haven't been taught proper tactical approach and ball selection strategies (like me) from the start, you can end up being a player that tends to take what's comfortable in order to just win. In my case, I have gained a bit of confidence with 50's and 60's recently and I have discovered that my shot selection has changed. I'm not taking the "not to lose" shots any more. Now, because I know I can do a 50 break without difficulty, I'm able to worry less about losing and my breaks and game are improving as a result.

maybe this is where I am going wrong. I only have a high break of 48 in a match, but I will always take the shot that will give me the best chance of making a break, even if its the more difficult. Maybe I should just take the easy ones and build up confidence first before attempting to make big breaks.

Alabbadi

[thelongbomber]

maybe this is where I am going wrong. I only have a high break of 48 in a match, but I will always take the shot that will give me the best chance of making a break, even if its the more difficult. Maybe I should just take the easy ones and build up confidence first before attempting to make big breaks.

Alabbadi

Hmm. Well I don't have a straight answer for you. Ideally, you should take the right shot always. That right shot is both the shot that will continue the break, but it's also the shot that has a good chance of being made. For example if a red down the rail can get you on the black, and it's the only shot on, then it doesn't suddenly become the right shot just because it's the only available one. It's a 1/10 shot no matter who takes the shot on. Of course, statistics and general shot difficulty don't tell you the whole story either. Sometimes, when you are "in the zone" everything seems to go in without difficulty, so what at one time is the wrong shot, suddenly could be the right shot. But generally speaking if it's a tough shot, no matter the circumstances, then it's a tough shot. Period. You are not supposed to try and make a century ever time you get to the table, and you are not supposed to try and make a big break. You are just supposed to try to WIN based on POINTS. 30 beats 29 just as clearly as 147 beats 0. Now, of course, the absolute best way to WIN is to make a century every time you get to the table but it doesn't happen that often - even for pros (I believe the most centuries made in succession in pro level snooker is 4 or 5 by Ronnie or Stephen). You can win a frame with two 40 breaks, or three 30 breaks or four 20 breaks. It's really not that hard. What gets us all into trouble is trying to continue a break when the table is telling (sometimes screaming) to play safe, chip off, run and hide.

If break building is your primary concern because you want to accomplish a higher personal break, then you need to really work on cue ball control, and that's not a straightforward path either. You need to experiment with different aiming techniques, including inventing your own if necessary. Study the greats and read their books and try. Read my blog as well for more ideas on this topic. One hint that I believe leads to a real answer: study Ronnie and his eyes, eye movement, and where his focus is in great detail. He has the answer in my personal opinion.

Even with a great deal of cue ball control and skill in that area, you often still need to pot your way out of trouble and continue a break. One of my m8s often says that a century typically has 3 big shots which can either be "torgue" shots where the cue ball needs to take an unusual trajectory, path or cannon, or at least one where you need to open the pack.

If you take the path of making the "easy balls" and taking all the "ducks" (my m8s used to bug me about being a duck shooter and made quacking sounds, even to the point of playing a quack ringtone!) then what can happen is that you end up not being pushed and under pressure. You will never force yourself to take the proper shot on.

You need to find a balance between taking the right shot in GENERAL, taking the right shot for YOU, and sometimes accepting that the break won't continue and you need to play a safety or trap. Sometimes, when you aren't playing well, you need to take on a hard shot, and sometimes you need to shy away from anything but a duck.

[DeanH]

Been done before - go for it

fantastic, I'd forgotten about this one, cheers

[alabadi]

If you take the path of making the "easy balls" and taking all the "ducks" (my m8s used to bug me about being a duck shooter and made quacking sounds, even to the point of playing a quack ringtone!) then what can happen is that you end up not being pushed and under pressure. You will never force yourself to take the proper shot on.

.

firstly thanks longbomber great reply.

and secondly yes this is what I really meant by taking the best option/shot.

sometimes as you say there maybe a difficult shot down the rail to stay on the black or pink and also there is a thin cut red to the middle which is only an few inches from the pocket. for me I would take the one on the rail just because it gives me more chance to be in and around the balls. taking the thin cut although easier doesn't guarantee position, plus the white will be uncontrollable.

when I play I never strive for a ton as I have never got close to making one either, I would be as happy with regular 30s or 40s.

you are right in that to make higher breaks its all about cue ball control, this I am finding quite difficult but I am working on it tirelessly to get right. enjoyment for me is playing well not only winning, I have won many matches not playing well but have come away not pleased at all. on the other hand I have lost when playing well and not been so disappointed. I feel ultimately that when I play well I will win more than I will lose and this is what I want to be consistent in doing. my game is too patchy at the minute with bouts of brilliance to absolute garbage, and for that reason I will seek as much advice I can to improve my overall game.

I do read your blogs and they are excellent, keep up the good work, I do read other material from a variety of sources and watch as much snooker as possible, so I am hoping that with all the determination I have and the will to learn everyday that I will get to some standard that will allow me to enjoy this beautiful game more and more.

Alabbadi

[thelongbomber]

firstly thanks longbomber....you are right in that to make higher breaks its all about cue ball control, this I am finding quite difficult but I am working on it tirelessly to get right.
Alabbadi

Interesting that you stated it's difficult. That's exactly something I'm hoping to address soon with a blog post to describe positional control, break building and the like.

[alabadi]

Interesting that you stated it's difficult. That's exactly something I'm hoping to address soon with a blog post to describe positional control, break building and the like.

when i say difficult i mean i terms of getting pin point rather than somewhere near, i have had possibly hundreds of opportunities to make big breaks and its getting position that lets me down time and time again.

there is one area which i do need to tighten up and that is potting in the correct part of the pocket. i too often go in off the jaws, it wouldn't be a problem if that's all i can aim for, however i've had pots drop in off the jaw of an open middle pocket.

it makes a huge difference to the positional play, as i'm finding out.

Alabbadi

[mythman69]

Interesting that you stated it's difficult. That's exactly something I'm hoping to address soon with a blog post to describe positional control, break building and the like.

Sounds great! I like your snooker blog too.

[thelongbomber]

when i say difficult i mean i terms of getting pin point rather than somewhere near, i have had possibly hundreds of opportunities to make big breaks and its getting position that lets me down time and time again.

there is one area which i do need to tighten up and that is potting in the correct part of the pocket. i too often go in off the jaws, it wouldn't be a problem if that's all i can aim for, however i've had pots drop in off the jaw of an open middle pocket.

it makes a huge difference to the positional play, as i'm finding out.

Alabbadi

Interesting that you noticed this. That gives me a possible clue into your cueing action and sighting. Lemme see if I can guess and perhaps help you clue in to a possible fix. One possible scenario is that you are either looking a lot at the object ball and your cue arm is swing into/out of alignment somewhere in your cue action because you aren't really looking at the cue ball enough somewhere in your sequence, or two, you are NOT looking at the object ball and/or pocket during feathering or pre-shot and so the balls seem to go in off the jaws.

It's correct in stating that whenever an object ball goes in/off the jaws more often than you want, that this can have a significant impact in the cue ball position. A one or two degree change in the cue ball flight can still make the pot, but not in the way you want (ie off the jaw) and that one or two degree unintended vector change and cue ball flight path has a resulting mis-position. For the first shot in a break, it's recoverable, but if you make some kind of break by potting 20 odd balls, position can get worse over the break if 5 of the 20 shots went in off a jaw. The first shot maybe is OK, but as the break continues, your position gets worse over time and then ultimately, the break ends cause you take a shot on that you shouldn't have had to in the first place.

Of course, I'm just stating what's obvious but maybe it's not to you - don't know.

Anyways, so now how to fix? Well, firstly, go and have a quick look directly behind the object ball into the pocket. You don't need to bend down and find "the spot" like Mathew Stevens often does. What you need to find is the cue ball flight path assuming centre ball striking. You then determine how you want to the cue ball to come off the object ball, with what pace, and what the landing point will generally be. This is where some skill in ball selection and flight path experience comes into play with understanding things like

- have the cue ball move into the next shot
- eliminate english wherever possible
- use centre ball top and back spin

Second tip I can share is that you might be just potting the object ball and that's where your mental focus is. It's my opinion that this is a common scenario with sub-50 break players (I don't know where you are at in break building so no offense intended). The interesting thing about potting balls is that actually just trying to pot the ball isn't the path to century nirvana. Instead, what you actually want to do is pot the object ball when you stand and as you get down. The pre-shot stance, body position, cue position, cue coming down etc is used for aiming. Once down, focus your energy, mental thoughts, and ultimately the eyes (which will follow your mental focus) on the CUE BALL. NOT the object ball. Think cue ball, imagine cue ball, look at the cue ball, see the cue ball travel, feel the cue ball come off the object ball. Glance at the object ball only briefly but most importantly, have FAITH that whatever you did in pre-shot is correct alignment and that the object ball will go in anyways. As it is you already have personal experience that there is some "give" with the pockets anyways.

I can't say for certain that the above approach works, but I can say doing the above has definitely helped me make a half dozen 50+ breaks in the last few sessions at the table. I also know for sure it doesn't work on every shot. Long shots, thin cuts, and all sorts of other scenarios require a slightly different focus and eye tracking approach (which I hope to write about). It's complicated to say the least but the above approach to sighting and feathering most definitely works in the short game, long pot for the black, most recovery shots, and so forth. I'm now able to play precise cannons and get very good shape doing the above.

One of the reasons I devised/invented/found the above system is because I watch Ronnie very closely. I slow-moed some Youtube footage and counted his eye movements and swing action. Then I tried to replicate on the table and was astonished to discover the above system. This is actually very good practice and will give you insight into his game. Try it. I believe it's exactly what Ronnie is doing when he gets the cue ball moving around effortlessly and I'm also finding the same benefits myself. It reminded me of something one of my friends has suggested long ago which was that he looks "through" the cue ball. This is what he told me when I asked how he aimed at shots because some of the pots he was making were outrageous and amazing with cue ball control to boot.

Anyways, hope that helps. I do believe now that the game is about cue ball. Both in positional play and ALSO in eyes and swing and feathering. It's all about the white ball and all other balls are just vector points that create new positions on the baize.

Maybe I'm just down the wrong path and everything I said is horse manure. I will continue developing the above theory as I find the whole idea of focus, concentration, and cue action so fascinating. Will write about it soon and hope to share more.