can you over do practise?

[centurysnooker]

can you over do practise as when your playing regurly is it best to have a break once in a while especially when your not in form? or doesnt it matter and the more practise that is done is when you get rewarded more? whats your opinions

[Terry Davidson]

If you're doing the RIGHT kind of solo practice, the more the better.

However, if you're constantly 'fine-tuning' different aspects of your technique then that will eventually be bad for you.

Always work on only ONE thing at a time with your target being to deliver the cue consistently straight. Once you feel you've mastered that one aspect then move on to the next. This way you're not playing with 2 or 3 different things and have no idea what is causing the error or indeed what is causing the improvement.

Start from the basics, say your stance and set-up and then go from there much like building a strong and stable foundation.

The one thing you should always do is remember to keep your head and shoulders still no matter what you're working on.

Terry

[centurysnooker]

cheers terry much Appreciated ill try that when im down there later but when i am playing and i know im missing my shot i tend to get up straight away. is there a reason i know straight away?

[BadMadWicked]

I play more pool than snooker, but I think looking forward to getting your hand on the table after a short break (pardon the pun) can keep you motivated. For example, after the xmas break I couldn't wait to get back to the table and found my game benefited from the time off. Having said that it didn't work for all the players in my team, buts thats another story :-)

[centurysnooker]

I play more pool than snooker, but I think looking forward to getting your hand on the table after a short break (pardon the pun) can keep you motivated. For example, after the xmas break I couldn't wait to get back to the table and found my game benefited from the time off. Having said that it didn't work for all the players in my team, buts thats another story :-)

haha yeah i think breaks help because you want to get back to the table but also need practise maybe give it a break soon for a bit after the snooker season break for 2 weeks

[Terry Davidson]

century:

In my experience almost every player who has any experience in any cue sport is able to tell immediately when he's not down on the shot correctly.

Now a lot of them will make an adjustment while their hand is on the table but the really smart ones stand back up and start over, determining the correct line of aim while standing up behind the shot.

I find I am guilty sometimes of being lazy and making minor adjustments once I'm down on the table and I need to slap myself up side the head and stop that!

Terry

[pottingpinks]

This is certainly an interesting question.
I sometimes feel I'm going stale if I practice more than a few consecutive days (I'm a fairly experienced in my late forties player) whereas when you are younger I think the more practice the better.

I currently have a routine where I play half the week before a match and then have the rest of the week off and start up again.

Funnily enough after my few days off last week I played perhaps the best I'd done all season getting a host of decent breaks (by my standard) but maybe if I had my rest immediately before the match I'd not feel so confident going in to it so its swings and roundabouts.

Try to vary routines as best I can, but usually have a stint clearing the colours off spots, then around pink and black from different angles, occasionally the blue, and any other shots I might have weaknesses on, then usually end up having two or three frames to finish.

Very very occasionally will get the billiards balls out and was practicising the in offs the ball on the middle spot the other day as I know the out and out billiards men find that one easy whereas I'm still hit and miss with it (don't think I always remember to put enough top on the ball tbh).

Also occasionally have a solo game of "scrub" which is like a combination of snooker and billiards with the added difficulty of certain balls only being pottable in certain pockets.

But still find myself going stale after consecutive days of playing so I think as you get older you do need to freshen yourself up a bit and the extra enthusiasm you have can more than make up for the lack of table time for a few days I reckon.

[pottingpinks]

Its certainly a good idea to get some practice though, the rest of our team have more or less exclusively played only in matches this year and have all struggled woefully.
In fact, even on match night last week one of them was so un-enthused about playing his doubles match at the end he feigned illness to get out of it which about sums up the commitment at present!

[tornado taylor]

from my own experience if your enjoying practising then play as much as you can but if your getting hacked off with it and your heart is not init then i find its best to come back when you really wanna play. you can't beat it when you really fancy a knock and often thats the time you play well.

[circle]

from my own experience if your enjoying practising then play as much as you can but if your getting hacked off with it and your heart is not init then i find its best to come back when you really wanna play. you can't beat it when you really fancy a knock and often thats the time you play well.

Never a truer word spoken - also it must be remembered that is pointless practising unless you are fully focused and concentrated

[jrc750]

That sure is right, when it starts going wrong instead of battling for too long against it i just go home and wait for the "calling"
Playing this afternoon 1st time since Monday night and im itching to get started, i think you need to have this to play at your best :snooker:

[pottingpinks]

I certainly think nowadays I need a target to aim at, by that I mean a proper match on the near horizon or else otherwise I find I dont tend to concentrate fully on every shot and tend to go through the motions a bit.

[Rjcmcmlxxix]

The other night I refused to leave until I got a 40 break. And potted out the colours. I finally got it at 2AM. But can tell you I did not want to be there. From now I walk off the table when I start to lose it. I'm not talking angry about missing a pot. I'm talking the point where you want to smash the balls around in frustration. Thats when I leave, and take a break and try again later.

[Jono857280]

This is an interesting question.

One very damaging aspect of practicing solo I found is that I will miss easy shots (lets say simple reds around the black spot) because of non-match conditions and I forgive yourself!
Problem is if you get into the habit of letting yourself off the hook during practice, it will creep into your matchplay. As a result during a game I can get upto about 45 points with some really nice long pots or shots down the cushion, and then when I get on an easy red I'll miss it.

Moral: Don't get sloppy with solo table time - Always practice like you mean it.

Thx,
Jono