Those who fail to plan certainly plan to fail in eight ball. I'll show you how to concoct a pro-like runout instead.
How would you play these three balls in Eight Ball knowing you have the freedom of ball-in-hand to start the run?
Ball In Hand, A New Pool Game To Strengthen Skills
The average league player should run these three balls on most any table in most any type of playing condition 100 times in a row.
Yet few league players make the correct mental moves to start a run like this. Let me walk you through right thinking and right action for the run--you may right click on the illustration accompanying this article to enlarge it in a separate window, to follow along, as you read.
You've likely heard, "Pool is an 80% or more mental activity, and only 20% physical in performance." The 80% mental isn't visualizing the balls sinking or getting mentally tough before getting down onto the shot. Rather, it's work done in advance to pick the smartest, easiest routes for the cue ball. Usually, that means fewer or no rails instead of many rails, no english instead of english, and topspin or center ball to pick up topspin during the roll rather than strong draw.
Check out the illustration showing the 4-, 6- and 8-balls remaining on the table. In group clinics, my question, "Which ball should you consider first, and for which pocket?" is usually answered incorrectly. The first ball you need to consider is always the last ball, the eight ball.
And we need to consider it in future time, when it will truly the last ball on the table. In this case, it pops into the near side pocket. (Most of the time, you want to designate a corner pocket for the Eight Ball instead. You'll learn in a moment how tricky those two side pockets can be for the win.)
A word on this "8-ball first" concept before moving on. The goal of the game of Eight Ball is to sink the 8-ball last for the win. "Get rid of the trouble balls first" or "start with an easy ball to set up your run" or "play shape for the middle of the table and therefore, more shots" or any other of a dozen statements players make about starting a run with ball-in-hand have nothing to do with the true object of the game.
With the exception of those leagues that award one point per ball scored, there are no prizes for fancy shots or scoring any balls except the eight ball. Starting a run without a designated pocket and a cue ball position to pocket the eight ball are like spending four years in college or more without any type of degree planned or getting married without meeting your spouse in advance, like having no plan at all.
In the accompanying illustration, the cue ball as it is shown is a pretty good spot from which to pocket the eight in the nearest side. I say "pretty good" because a lot of players will lazily put the cue ball to one side of where it is now, say at position "A", not realizing they are lining up to scratch their shot. Better is along the line between the 8- and 4-balls for a nice full hit without any cut to the shot. I did say you should be making this run 100 times of 100 perfectly, so why take a chance? Likewise, I'll probably set the cue ball if I can at "B" then sink the eight softly with a little bottom, and always score the win without any possibility of a scratch.
Now, if you'd want the future cue ball to be as shown on the illustration, but had another solid there now, it's tempting to just shoot a stop shot on that solid last. But really, to be precise, you'd have to a "bump and replace" shot where spin and speed allow for a full hit on the eight and then for the cue ball to roll just a tad into the spot where the eight ball was for the win. Pool is a game of precision, and you have to both look ahead to the future where the eight will be the last ball and the table, and figure out how to get to your choice of cue ball spot also.
**Next time: The other two balls, the four and the six, should be the easiest in the world. See why they aren't and learn how to fix them the right way. Ball-In-Hand Runout, Part II.
How would you play these three balls in Eight Ball knowing you have the freedom of ball-in-hand to start the run?
Ball In Hand, A New Pool Game To Strengthen Skills
The average league player should run these three balls on most any table in most any type of playing condition 100 times in a row.
Yet few league players make the correct mental moves to start a run like this. Let me walk you through right thinking and right action for the run--you may right click on the illustration accompanying this article to enlarge it in a separate window, to follow along, as you read.
You've likely heard, "Pool is an 80% or more mental activity, and only 20% physical in performance." The 80% mental isn't visualizing the balls sinking or getting mentally tough before getting down onto the shot. Rather, it's work done in advance to pick the smartest, easiest routes for the cue ball. Usually, that means fewer or no rails instead of many rails, no english instead of english, and topspin or center ball to pick up topspin during the roll rather than strong draw.
Check out the illustration showing the 4-, 6- and 8-balls remaining on the table. In group clinics, my question, "Which ball should you consider first, and for which pocket?" is usually answered incorrectly. The first ball you need to consider is always the last ball, the eight ball.
And we need to consider it in future time, when it will truly the last ball on the table. In this case, it pops into the near side pocket. (Most of the time, you want to designate a corner pocket for the Eight Ball instead. You'll learn in a moment how tricky those two side pockets can be for the win.)
A word on this "8-ball first" concept before moving on. The goal of the game of Eight Ball is to sink the 8-ball last for the win. "Get rid of the trouble balls first" or "start with an easy ball to set up your run" or "play shape for the middle of the table and therefore, more shots" or any other of a dozen statements players make about starting a run with ball-in-hand have nothing to do with the true object of the game.
With the exception of those leagues that award one point per ball scored, there are no prizes for fancy shots or scoring any balls except the eight ball. Starting a run without a designated pocket and a cue ball position to pocket the eight ball are like spending four years in college or more without any type of degree planned or getting married without meeting your spouse in advance, like having no plan at all.
In the accompanying illustration, the cue ball as it is shown is a pretty good spot from which to pocket the eight in the nearest side. I say "pretty good" because a lot of players will lazily put the cue ball to one side of where it is now, say at position "A", not realizing they are lining up to scratch their shot. Better is along the line between the 8- and 4-balls for a nice full hit without any cut to the shot. I did say you should be making this run 100 times of 100 perfectly, so why take a chance? Likewise, I'll probably set the cue ball if I can at "B" then sink the eight softly with a little bottom, and always score the win without any possibility of a scratch.
Now, if you'd want the future cue ball to be as shown on the illustration, but had another solid there now, it's tempting to just shoot a stop shot on that solid last. But really, to be precise, you'd have to a "bump and replace" shot where spin and speed allow for a full hit on the eight and then for the cue ball to roll just a tad into the spot where the eight ball was for the win. Pool is a game of precision, and you have to both look ahead to the future where the eight will be the last ball and the table, and figure out how to get to your choice of cue ball spot also.
**Next time: The other two balls, the four and the six, should be the easiest in the world. See why they aren't and learn how to fix them the right way. Ball-In-Hand Runout, Part II.