Speeding up - eradicating negative thoughts

[tomwalker147]

Hi all,

Just a quick one, not after advice but generally interested in other people's experiences.

I played the other day beating a friend 11-1, 40/50 breaks in almost every frame. Not outstanding but good for me having not played since the pink ribbon. The lad I played is also a good player which is worth mentioning.

I abandoned my usual pre shot routine of stand behind the shot, get down on the line, 3 feathers, pause and hit.
I turned up on the day and wanted to impose myself from the off, playing the shot I instinctively saw, getting down on the shot, couple of feathers, pause and strike. To compare myself to a pro's pace of play i've probably gone from Kyren Wilson to Judd Trump (only without the skill obviously). I'd found that by slowing down and becoming more deliberate I'd been allowing myself more time to let negative thoughts come into my game and ultimately had missed shots i'd usually get.

When I get down on the shot a bit more quickly and without too much thought I naturally get down on the correct line, and unsurprisingly miss less (who'd have thought it).

I'm just wondering whether others on here have sped up their games before and have seen similar results? The link between 'getting on with it' and not letting negative thoughts come into my game is a big plus for me.
Now I'm playing this evening and probably on my own so may take a video to show you all in case any of you are interested.

All the best

Tom

[markz]

I've always played quick, not to your level though Tom. I've tried to slow down and do a more deliberate pre shot routine but I struggle, like you say I get so many different thoughts it complicates everything. Also I find playing slower really boring, it's like my inner Alex Higgins wanting to burst out lol.

[Byrom]

I have personally always struggled with this... Depends how you feel I think yeah if you are flowing just get on with it other days it seems a bind. If somethings not going well I speed up one feather and pop pop pop ...like at the end of frames when you know you have won. It does work sometimes - as long as you stick to a rhythm be it fast slow or medium I don't think it matters. Some days you just see it better than others perhaps

I would love to be fast player but the old bin lids don't focus to quick these days -

[blahblah01]

I've always played quick, not to your level though Tom. I've tried to slow down and do a more deliberate pre shot routine but I struggle, like you say I get so many different thoughts it complicates everything. Also I find playing slower really boring, it's like my inner Alex Higgins wanting to burst out lol.

We are twins

[itsnoteasy]

Finding your own rhythm is really hard, too slow and deliberate and it actually makes it harder, too fast and you can get lazy , maybe not pick the line or come in from the side. Like Byrom said some days it just flows,on others doesn't matter how hard you try , it just ain't happening. So it's just fast enough not to be stiff and just slow enough not to be too fast lol, that's as clear as mud.

[tedisbill]

Hi Tom.

It's just a good balance for me I think now. If you're seeing the ball well and you naturally like to play a bit quicker, then don't over complicate the game.

As long as you don't feel careless, then carry on at whatever speed you feel is OK.

[ace man]

Whenever I have scored a 50+ which for me is still big, every single time my pace has quickened up. If I try to be conscious about pre shot routine or feathering, technical things, then pressure gets to me. Also, if I try to force myself to play quicker because I feel like I'm dragging myself down, then that also doesn't work because it feels forced and reckless. Fine balance is not that easy to find.

[vmax4steve]

When someone told me that I played too fast I slowed it down for a few years and unbeknownst to me I was actually overiding my subconscious hand/eye and thinking about every aspect of the process, even what each finger was doing, and my game went tits up.

Have now gone back to my normal Drago like speed and it's much better. I remember practising line up a couple of years ago and someone I didn't know came into the snooker room and sat down and watched me as I actually cleared the table in one hit in about five minutes and asked if I was a pro
Usually when playing well I miss about three or four times while doing line up, playing badly I struggle to make three in a row, but of course when I don't it all looks so much better than it actually is.

The inner war is trying to find out what it is that makes you miss and I've found that when I'm thinking about it I simply don't look at the correct target/s during the shot making process and therefore I'm usually on the wrong line, when I manage to empty my mind my subconscious takes over and it happens on its own and all I seem to be doing is seeing the object ball very clearly.

[blahblah01]

When someone told me that I played too fast I slowed it down for a few years and unbeknownst to me I was actually overiding my subconscious hand/eye and thinking about every aspect of the process, even what each finger was doing, and my game went tits up.

Have now gone back to my normal Drago like speed and it's much better. I remember practising line up a couple of years ago and someone I didn't know came into the snooker room and sat down and watched me as I actually cleared the table in one hit in about five minutes and asked if I was a pro
Usually when playing well I miss about three or four times while doing line up, playing badly I struggle to make three in a row, but of course when I don't it all looks so much better than it actually is.

The inner war is trying to find out what it is that makes you miss and I've found that when I'm thinking about it I simply don't look at the correct target/s during the shot making process and therefore I'm usually on the wrong line, when I manage to empty my mind my subconscious takes over and it happens on its own and all I seem to be doing is seeing the object ball very clearly.

I agree with all this, bar any Dragoeasque Clearance comaprisons to my evolving game.

[Ramon]

Hi all,

Just a quick one, not after advice but generally interested in other people's experiences.

I played the other day beating a friend 11-1, 40/50 breaks in almost every frame. Not outstanding but good for me having not played since the pink ribbon. The lad I played is also a good player which is worth mentioning.

I abandoned my usual pre shot routine of stand behind the shot, get down on the line, 3 feathers, pause and hit.
I turned up on the day and wanted to impose myself from the off, playing the shot I instinctively saw, getting down on the shot, couple of feathers, pause and strike. To compare myself to a pro's pace of play i've probably gone from Kyren Wilson to Judd Trump (only without the skill obviously). I'd found that by slowing down and becoming more deliberate I'd been allowing myself more time to let negative thoughts come into my game and ultimately had missed shots i'd usually get.

When I get down on the shot a bit more quickly and without too much thought I naturally get down on the correct line, and unsurprisingly miss less (who'd have thought it).

I'm just wondering whether others on here have sped up their games before and have seen similar results? The link between 'getting on with it' and not letting negative thoughts come into my game is a big plus for me.
Now I'm playing this evening and probably on my own so may take a video to show you all in case any of you are interested.

All the best

Tom

Not outstanding ?? 50 break in every frame is very good bud . making 50 breaks in a real match play is not easy .


as for other issue ( speed up ) ,


speed up is unfortunately the wrong term in my book. bcuz this way you indicate dat you're not playing as fast as you can all the time and in an consistent way .
I believe that each player is gonna have to play as fast as he can all the time. ( MAX SPEED )

Of cours, there's a reason for that.
taking more time than necessary to play an shot means giving your brain a chance to doubt. you give your brain the chance/time to think about other things (and this could be anything: the noise in the club - presence of fellow players - Crowd - the thought of, what if I miss the shot ? and so on ....................................)
So, what happens at this stage?

Once your brain starts to doubt or think about other things, he's gonna try to concentrate more. It happens automaticly it's an reaction of your brain.
More concentration attempts of brain means more /extra work for it .
At this moment your brains gonna need more oxygen.

your heart start beating faster in order to resupply your brains of more blood (more oxygen).
( extra work brain = more oxygen = more blood needed ).
Eventually this gonna turns in high blood pressure.

I believe this process is described by coaches as: Pressure . ??

The first 5/10 minutes is a very useful process bcuz it's gonna help your brain to concentrate more.

After that ?? well ...................Sir trouble is gonna start his engine and you gonna start missing balls . :snooker:

play as fast as you can and do'nt take time more than necessary
just my 2cents.

[Raven]

I abandoned my usual pre shot routine of stand behind the shot, get down on the line, 3 feathers, pause and hit.

I'm more of a golfer than a snooker player, but I would imagine that the idea is similar - having a routine which you are both familiar and comfortable with is important to achieving a higher level for most players. I therefore think it's better to say that you adopted a new routine rather abandoning your old one.

My concept is to work on the mechanics while practicing, then in a game I pick a shot, set myself with only one swing or shot thought in mind, then hit the ball. It works better for me because as you suggest, it helps prevents other thoughts entering my head and taking away from the feel of the shot. The important factor for me is being comfortable with my choice before I start that routine, then removing all thoughts of alternative shots so that I am not second guessing myself.