Practice form v Match form

[Stef1988]

Any suggestions and help is appreciated, a few things to know before commenting:

• I get regular coaching
• I practice quite a lot on my own and against club players

I really struggle to take my practice form into my matches, I always go into my league matches with confidence as just an hour before I’m cueing great and feel really good going into matches only to play badly, most of the time I still win as I play a decent safety game but when that’s not on it I tend to struggle and it’s not even in league matches sometimes it can be just playing mates down the club, it’s like a light switch between matches and practice and I can’t even put it down to pressure I don’t think as I also do it while playing my mates down the club, can anybody help?

[Cue crafty]

TBH Stef this is normal so firstly take a positive from that.

Average ratio for practice form versus match (any match even practice match) is if practice form = 80% then match form you should expect 50% at best. Reason = pressure, importance on each shot being "real" and probably an audience of some sort.

Once you you fully take this on board and "accept it" the sooner you will advance further. Reason = you are not beating yourself up for not performing to your best ability which is as I already alluded to, unlikely anyway.

If if you listen to ROS even he is always looking for ways to deflect the pressure from himself. Once you can genuinely forgive yourself for your errors they will be become less. Find an inner humble that will compliment your competitiveness and unlock your real potential (I.e. Your practice form)

best of luck.
.

[Stef1988]

Thanks for your advice, it feels strange to just learn to accept it but I get what you mean, I think I do over analyse whenever I miss a shot that I’d pot in practice, so are you saying that every time I miss don’t really care to much about it or?

[Cue crafty]

It's not so much "don't care" but accept its a likely possible reality. Take the view you may get the next one?!? The thinking should be " I nail these in practice" therefore one will go in shortly.

To "EVERY" snooker player a miss is a knock to confidence, however how you view this is the important part. If you let it chip at your confidence it will surely destroy you. If you can develop a doged attitude and just keep believing your time will come.... It will.

So so so many players wrongly lose heart in their ability through missed shots, this is silly because if you watch Ronnie and Judd they do miss too.... They are light years ahead in talent to even good 147 makers. Take these facts on board, be nice to yourself and I believe your best will surface. Free yourself of guilt over poor shots and misses and you will have a far better chance of taking "some" chances when they present themselves. The feeling you will take away when you allow yourself this will advance you.

Im not a Yoga fan, but my wife is a teacher - these thoughts work and provide enjoyment through progression. ( hopefully Namaste! )

[Stef1988]

I’ll bare all that in mind when I’m next playing, thanks mate really appreciate that advice

[ace man]

Any suggestions and help is appreciated, a few things to know before commenting:

• I get regular coaching
• I practice quite a lot on my own and against club players

I really struggle to take my practice form into my matches, I always go into my league matches with confidence as just an hour before I’m cueing great and feel really good going into matches only to play badly, most of the time I still win as I play a decent safety game but when that’s not on it I tend to struggle and it’s not even in league matches sometimes it can be just playing mates down the club, it’s like a light switch between matches and practice and I can’t even put it down to pressure I don’t think as I also do it while playing my mates down the club, can anybody help?

Probably too much expectation? I'm always terrified when everything goes too well in practise. You really don't want to play your best when it matters the least.
Couple a months ago I was playing a group stage match against a guy I usually beat. It was my worst showing of the year. Absolute rock bottom.
During the warm up got a 70 break. I was thinking, wow, what will I do when I warm up properly later on? Then the match started, lost 2:0 collecting less then 20 points combined
It is not always this bad of course. I've had my share of good results.
If you feel like you're not playing up to your potential in comps, you need to enter more. Play the big numbers game. It is as simple as that. At some point you'll get rewarded.

[Danger Steve]

I’d say your technique probably isn’t as good as you think it is? A solid ‘pre-shot routine’ can help in these situations, you may not feel the pressure when playing your mates but your concentration won’t be the same as solo practice. I’m no coach but I’ve watched a couple of videos on YouTube ‘break from life’ which may help you understand what is going wrong.