07.07.06
Off Days
A few months ago, I received the following letter from a fellow pool player:
I haven’t been doing so well in APA 9ball… they finally dropped me from SL8 to SL7. I’ll get back there, and eventually go to SL9. But, I need to work on my stroke… mostly on 9 ft tables. There’s something I do that causes me to usually hit a little off-center on the cueball, which spells disaster with straight follow and draw shots… the cueball unintentially curves and/or deflects. I use a Predator 314… I might try that Predator Z shaft… I think my bridge hand is a bit too loose.
My response:
Hi,
I have been giving your email some thought and was hoping you would be open to trying the following:
- shorten your bridge-length (which in turn, of course, you would choke up accordingly on your grip so the length from hand to hand is always the same)
- set up 30 stopshots into the corner pocket wth the cue ball approximately 2-3 diamonds away. do not lift your head or move any part of your body until all the balls stop moving, even if you miss. When you’re doing this, notice if the cue ball is stopping dead, it if’s spinning at all, and what part of the pocket the object ball is entering (if there is any pattern). Also, notice your grip & stance, and what direction your cue tip is pointed after you follow through.
- Now, move the cue ball and object ball a couple diamonds farther apart from one another and shoot another 10 stop shots. If you are not in stroke by now, you may notice yourself tightening your grip when you follow through. It’s very natural to want to do this, but if you catch yourself doing it, close your eyes for a couple of them and just “let go…”
And, an even better response:
Hi Samm,Your words are not news to me. I always do #2 and #3 as part of match preparation. As for step #1, that will not help my sighting problem at all; I am left eye dominant and shoot right handed, and my perceived “center hit” is slightly off.You know the name Joe Tucker? He wrote “Racking Secrets” long ago, which went to DVD. His 3 part, 15 minute or so video from his “Previews” section at http://joetucker.net/ was mentioned to me by a friend. It sums up all the bitching and moaning I have been doing for the past few years. When I saw it, I couldn’t believe it. What he says in that video makes perfect sense to me. I bought the 3rd Eye Trainer from Joe Tucker’s website, and I have been emailing back and forth to him about stuff.Last Saturday, I used his trainer. My first 3 shots, I had to make an adjustment to my perception, and I missed those. Then I proceeded to make 3 or 4 racks (at least 50 balls) in a row, without any miss. These shots are across the diagonal from opposite corner pockets, cueball a bit behind headstring, object ball about midway along the path between the cueball and pocket. I would do one rack to the left, then 1 rack along the right diagonal. The last rack or 2 I not only made the balls but was nearly able to draw the cueball back into the corner pocket each time.
My back grip has gotten looser over the last couple years — especially when I have an important long shot which requires no spin.
Our league uses a mix of 7 and 8 and 9 foot tables, although the APA is supposed to be 7 ft tables. I play about 7 nights per week, probably over 20 hours per week. I mostly play on the 8 ft (for free) because I would go broke paying table time on 9 ft tables on off-league nights.
Yesterday, in the APA Regionals, I won 5-0 against one of the best 8 ball players in our (North East Massachusetts) region. Two of my wins were break and runs. (I should have had 3 though.) The other games were a bit more defensive. Two weeks ago, for our division championship, I won 5-0 also. The next day, I did very well in APA 9 ball reaching 65, while my opponent only reached about 10, securing our spot in 9ball regionals. (I am APA SL8 in 9ball, my opponent was SL4 that day.)In 9 ball, I play defense when needed. You ask if I don’t get out in the last few balls. I am not sure what you mean by this. Are you asking if I tend to lose focus near the end of the run? Well, sometimes yes, but I try to be aware of that problem. I have missed too many ducks to just take things for granted. That, we all do, unfortunately.
I personally have not tried this Joe Tucker training aid. He offers an $86 value for $65 (shipping included) on his the above mentioned site. If anyone has any additional feedback on this product, I would be happy to know about it.I’m requesting one for use with my clinics. I’ll let you know how it goes.
