Video: Learn to Play Pool in Ten Minutes

I found a great video I want to share with everyone. It is a ten minute instructional video teaching the basics of pool. If you are a beginner, listen up.

Now, if you are a knowledgeable player, please post your additions or tips in the comments. Most importantly, please post your favorite, most effective shooting drills and how to hone your skills. There is so much information from me here over time, feedback from readers would be great.

Choosing the Right Pool Stick

Pool sticks are like shoes – everyone needs a different size, a different style, and a different feel. If you are playing on a pool league or playing in tournaments, beyond the usual “weekend bar pool”, it is important to own your own cue stick. There are a few tips to remember when choosing your own stick.

For starters, brand name is preference only. It really does not matter as much. However, I would pay for a more expensive stick if you require more expensive tastes. It is important that it feels like butter between your fingers in that tripod-like arrangement you have your fingers in (or index finger around the shaft) when aiming to shoot and has a comfortable weight to it.

Let’s discuss weight for a moment, as that is the most important part of stick selection. Most pool stick weights average from 15 ounces to 21 ounces. It is incredibly important that you find out what is right for you. Many pool shooters like to break with a 21 ounce stick and play with an 18 or 19. Why? A 21 ounce stick brings behind it more power for breaking, but an 18 or 19 allows for more control of shot speed. (Sidenote: Some shooters, including myself, have separate sticks: a cheap 21 ounce stick, or even as high as 27 ounces, for breaking with and a high-end professional grade stick of a lower weight for shooting with. Breaking with a good stick can bow the stick or slowly destroy the joint connecting the two pieces.)

Here is how to gauge the weight properly. Try out some sticks. Go into a store or ask a friend to let you use one of his sticks for the evening. Hold the stick on the weighty end that you normally hold it on, but try to put your four fingers under the stick loosely and try to balance the stick’s weight so neither side falls off your hand. Grip the stick there. That is traditionally the right place to hold the stick.Try shooting from there. Whatever feels right as a good weight with that gripping spot used is the weight to go with. Go not only with feel but with accuracy of shot. What maximizes your game?

Choose a good wood for your stick. Choose a durable wood with a little give – slightly softer, but not easy to break. Maple seems to be a popular choice among professionals, but in every sport or hobby, some of the people who stand out have chosen something against the norm that works for them.

Lastly, choose for style. Be proud of your stick. Pick a design and a color that fits you. Choose a decor that makes you stand out and makes you proud to play with it. The game of billiards is almost entirely mental. Treat it as such and get a stick that helps with your self-esteem on the table. Be proud to use your stick. Walk in with your stick with your head held high.

Finally, we have a great pool supply company sponsoring the site, which you can find in the sidebar. Support them and check out their selection of sticks and pool equipment. I’ve ordered from them myself and I am very happy with what I have gotten.

Do you have any other tips for choosing cue sticks? Please leave it in the comments below. Everyone has a different method once they get familiar with picking a stick.

Reader E-mail and Updates: FINALLY!

Wow, I totally lost track of my website! I apologize for letting this site go and not posting for SO long! I am going to get back to building this site again and moving along in the right direction. From now on, I will post at least a post a week. If I can help it, two or three.

I hope everyone has been doing well, and I hope everyone’s game has improved in all this time without me.

So where do I start? Well, I’ve been laying low and just working on some things and honing my skills a little further. I’ve been so busy with business that I haven’t been out to many competitions, and I really need to get back into the game. I am going to start putting together some notes of all the things I have decided I need to write some entries on here and get some of those up on the site.

If you noticed though, I decided to come back with a boom! I changed the layout of the site and decided to come back with a whole new look; a rebirth, if you will! Let me know what you think of the new site design. Hopefully with the new site design comes new motivation to write here as often as I should.

Well, I guess I’ll get back to blogging here on a high note. I recently got an e-mail from a reader via the Contact Me form. Her name is Kelly W. She is from Minnesota. She writes,

“Hi, I am a good a player in [City omitted], MN, I play tree to four days a week about twenty games, now I don’t practice just play leauge. My question is how doI get my head on strait, i get heavy breathing heart pounding usually on the first or seconde game,,, what gives,, thank you”

Okay, so maybe her writing could have used a little cleaning up, but I didn’t figure it was my place, so I left the e-mail as it was. Yes, I responded to Kelly very quickly, and I appreciate her e-mail so much! Kelly, thanks so much for the e-mail, and I hope you’ll keep coming back and reading my new posts and being part of the community I hope to keep building here! (Also notable, in the e-mail, I was mistaken. She hadn’t commented on one of my Hubpages articles. She had commented on a previous post.)

Now, here was my response to Kelly,

Kelly,

Thank you for your question. I notice that I have not posted on the site
in quite some time, but when I get back to that in the coming weeks, I
will definitely include your question in one of the upcoming posts. I
also noticed that you commented on one of my Hubpages articles and I
appreciate that.

It is most important to know that you are not alone. Many players
experience stress and panic in a league setting. It is more common than
you may realize. There is a two part answer to your question, so let me
get to each part separately:

First of all, a downfall you are experiencing is that you mentioned that
you are not practicing. That is a two-fold problem. Practice makes
perfect, and it is important to work on shots you are weak in completing
and constantly trying to push yourself. Find a good place and time to
practice when you will not be distracted. Set the balls up and break
them, and do things like trying to get as many balls off the table of
one type (solids or stripes) and then then the other. Play safety shots
on yourself and then try to thwart it. Be the best opponent you can
against yourself and you will gain experience and confidence. Confidence
leads me to the second problem with not practicing. You are playing a
mind game with yourself. Your confidence level is down when you have not
prepared for the game. (I said confident, not cocky. Being cocky is
counter productive, as your Hubpages comment accurately noted.)

Second, as for getting your head on straight, the best thing you can do
is to go in and have fun. I make sure that the top thing on my mind is
having fun. Since 2002, I cannot think of a time when I let the pressure
to excel get in the way of my enjoyment. If I do not enjoy something, I
do not do it. I enjoy every game, and I suggest that all players do the
same. If you allow yourself to have fun, the stress you are experiencing
will subside. It will not happen overnight, but you will constantly see
improvements in your demeanor and reaction to the stress of the game.
You are not experiencing a lack of focus. You are experiencing too much
focus, what I normally refer to as “tunnel vision”. If you are a person
who can enjoy the occasional alcoholic beverage and are of age, I would
suggest drinking one before the game… not six… one. One is just
enough to relax you but not to inebriate you. If you choose your drink
of choice, you will be happier and more relaxed. Do not begin to rely on
the drink every single time, but it is good to aid you in your quest to
learn to relax yourself and get your head on straight. Honestly, to gain
the proper focus and get in the right mindset to play, I, as well as
many players, have a pattern that has become a bit of an unintended
pregame ritual, and there is nothing wrong with finding your own
relaxation techniques.

The most important aspect, though, like I said, is to make a promise to
yourself to have as much fun as possible. It is impossible to feel
stress or panic when having fun. I hope this helps, and please do not
hesitate to contact me further if you could use any more advice.

Good luck and happy shooting.

Shooter

I corresponded further with Kelly, and she informed me that my advice began to help and she saw the difference. That is why I started this site in the first place. If I can help one person find more enjoyment and success in a game I love so much, it’s all worth it, I think. Kelly, thanks so much for the ability to help advise you, and I hope you will keep reading and remain a part of the community I am trying to build here.

If you have any feedback or questions, please feel free to contact me using the Contact Me page. Recommendations on future posts are welcome. Blog at you later!

Cheers,

Shooter

EDIT: There is a really good conversation starting up in the comments. Click the bubble above with the large number inside it to listen in, and maybe join the discussion!

E-mail from a Reader

Hi, everyone! I hope you have all been doing well and that you are excited about the winter being over, and all of the spring tournaments getting under way. I hope everyone has been doing well and having fun. After all, having fun is our ultimate goal, right?

I got an e-mail from a reader by the name of Jason. He had a great addition to my post about stop shots. In fact, his addition adds a little to the topic besides just stopping the cue ball. His addition also brings to the discussion both draw and follow, not just stop shots. He wrote:

“Great site. I want to thank you for the top 10 things that most people do wrong. I think I do 8 or 9 of those. Your stop shot blog was good in that it mentioned practicing, but I like more details. I really like what Dr. "Dave" Alciatore shows. In particular he has a speed control drill which makes the point for all types of follow, stop, or draw shots. In particular, most experienced players know that the longer the shot, the faster you need to hit the shot in order to avoid normal rolling. Most beginner’s don’t know this. So this drill will work for beginners and help hone the more advanced player’s skills. I have a printout in my cue case. It has helped my cue ball control, in particular the stop shot. Hope you find it helpful.”

The link Jason provided is: http://billiards.colostate.edu/resources/stop_follow_draw_drill.pdf. It is a wonderful printout from David G. Alciatore, PhD (“Dr. Dave”) at Colorado State University, and I suggest that you do as Jason does and carry it in your cue case if you need help with draw, follow, or stop shots.

Jason, thanks a million for the e-mail. Not only are you one heck of a man for admitting you are guilty of several of the top mistakes people make, but you are definitely smart for carrying that printout in your cue case. In my bag, you will find annotated versions of several rule books, all sorts of printouts (conspicuously missing stop, draw, and follow, so I will be adding that), enough blue chalk that I could remake Avatar, tips, tip glue, tip shapers, tip punchers, etc. You don’t have to act all fanatic like me, but I do recommend having a few things that would best serve you.

Jason also recommended a printout for speed control, obtained from the same site, that I will share with you in the coming weeks when I do my speed control post. That is a big one as well, because a lot of people, not just beginners, are really good at hitting too hard or too soft. I have seen people hit balls too hard, knocking them off the table, in essence, scratching. I have also seen people hit balls too soft, causing them to miss the shot entirely, or watching the ball veer off course, creating a harder shot later. Speed control is even more important when you are doing something more sensitive like playing a safety. Keep an eye out for that post, featuring another addition from Jason.

Good luck out there, everyone! Good luck to all the APA members who are mid-way through their season and all the people participating in countless tournaments in the US! I know some people got back from Valley Forge recently, and some other places. Valley Forge is one of my favorites. It’s a haul, and I don’t get there much anymore, but it’s nice. I’ve sort of got a bucket list of places to go, even if I just feel like watching. Like I said, good luck everyone, keep practicing, and most importantly, have fun!

Cheers,

Shooter