Positional Shots on Plant Shots

[Tom Read]

Here's something I've never really understood.

How comes when a player goes for a plant shot, the majority of the time he will send the white ball up to the baulk area and play it as a shot-to-nothing, even when the plant is dead set.

Why do so few players actually play a plant shot and get onto a colour at the same time? I mean, I'm no pro, but when I play a plant shot I aim to stay in position for my next shot, as I'm 99% sure that the plant will go.

Cheers.

[hotpot]

Usually if after playing a plant they run away to baulk , then its played as a shot to nothing . Even though it looks a dead cert on tv , looks can be deceiving and actually its probably got to to be made , but the players not certain he,ll get it .

If they were certain of the plant then they would always play position , if possible .

Sometimes you,ll see players playing for the baulk colours after a plant to give them more options , but they over run the white , which makes it look like they were playing a shot to nothing .

[Terry Davidson]

With a plant where the balls are frozen you would get more action out of the cueball because you are effectively hitting a heavy ball which is twice the weight of the cueball.

The other point is no plant is guaranteed when playing from distance since they can all be cut and thus missed, even if they are frozen. I would play position off a plant if I was only a shorter distance away from it and could play a screw or stun shot for position, trying to remember that I will get twice the reaction as in a normal one-ball situation

Terry