I imagine most people here are great pool shooters. I’ve come up with a bunch of tips that help improve your pool game that a lot of people just do not think about. These do not teach you to play, but they can easily help you turn a couple of those missed opportunities into incredible shots.

Counting back from ten:

10. Confidence: A lot of people do not realize it, but if you approach the table and each shot with the utmost confidence, you’re sure to make a couple of those harder shots. I’ve seen a huge difference in my game, even when playing some of the best shooters I know, just from confidence. I went into a very difficult APA match on Monday a little scared and that helped cause me a loss that night. However, I was practicing Thursday, playing against somebody much better than my APA opponent, one of the best in the tavern I go to, and I ran the table within a few minutes, simply because I went in with confidence and a plan.

9. Walk through the game in your head: That’s the plan I just mentioned. When you’re faced with your first shot, think it through. Look at all available shots and figure out what pocket each shot will go in. Figure out where the cue ball should go after that shot by the way you’re shooting it and what shots that will leave you with. Do not make a shot until you’re sure you’ve accounted for every possibility. It doesn’t take long.

8. Cue ball placement: That cue ball can be your own worst enemy. I’ve been on a roll but then stopped myself by placing that cue ball in a horrible spot behind balls blocking all my shots. If I had hit it a little harder, a little softer, or at a slightly different angle, the cue ball would have placed in a much better place.

7. Don’t show off: Yes, you’re a very good player. Nobody doubts that. You like to show off, I’m sure. I do. If you show off, you can miss a shot. Don’t be afraid to make the safer cut shot instead of a nasty bank shot if possible. I am prone to a little showing off every now and then myself, so I understand the desire to fool around a little. If you’re really trying to win that game, showing off is counter productive at best.

6. Play it safe: One of my favorite things to do is play smart. Against a better player, I like to shoot safe shots. (Playing a “safe” or “safety” is when a player shoots a legal shot that is intended to place the cue ball in a position that causes an impossible chance of the opponent making a shot.) Sometimes you can give up a risky shot or one you cannot run the table with by playing a safe, which may force the opponent to mess up and leave you in a much better place, or, even sweeter, give you a ball-in-hand.

5. Follow through: If you poke at the ball like it’s a smoldering coal in a charcoal grill, you will get nowhere. Hit firm– not necessarily hard– just firm. Follow through slightly as if you are shooting through the ball, not at it. Combined with that is not hitting too hard.

4. Chalk up your stick: You can miscue if your stick is not chalked properly. Some players chalk after every shot. I do. I do it for two reasons. The first reason is that you are much less likely to miscue. The second reason is that I can take the time to look at the table and plan while I am chalking up my stick. Taking that breathing room to chalk up your stick forces you to take plenty of time that you can use to look, think, and calm your mind down.

3. Place your hand on the stick in the right place. Too many people hold their cue stick closer to the butt of the stick. Hold your stick loosely in the insides of your fingers allowing it to tip at the heavier end. Balance it so it doesn’t move unless you do, and then choke up about three or four inches so the butt end is slightly weightier if you try to balance it. That is arguably the best place to shoot from. It may seem weird at first, but it gives you much more control and reduces stick vibration in the middle of the shot.

2. Focus: The band, music player, or jukebox may be playing your favorite song. You may be in a strip club with the obvious distractions. Your buddy may have just said, “Hey! Let’s do a round!” It doesn’t matter. Until you make that shot, the only thing that matters is that shot. From the time you have eyed up a shot until the time you complete the shot and the balls stop moving, keep both eyes and your undivided attention on the table.

1. Slow down: Don’t make shot after shot real fast. Slow down, look at the table, figure out ball movement and cue ball placement. Have you ever heard a pool player say, “bang-bang-bang-bang”, referring to making shot after shot? Don’t actually try to do it that fast. take your time, measure up your shot, check out what shots you will have when that shot is done. Chalk up your stick after every shot if it helps slow you down.

I figured out the ten biggest mistakes I’ve seen pool players make. Here they are, in the order I think they are most detrimental, starting with the least, ending with the worst:

10. Not Chalking the Stick – Never go more than two or three shots without chalking your stick. Have you ever totally “miscued,” creating a weird snap noise instead of the usual hearty “pop” sound a shot makes? Have you noticed how the ball goes all over the table and not where you expected? Chalk is free. Pick it up and rub that sucker all over the tip of your stick.

9. Breaking up clusters – The only cluster you should be in a hurry to break is the one in a triangle formation that starts the game. If you have two or three of your opponent’s balls tied up in a cluster with yours, try to prolong breaking that cluster up. Try to make your opponent break it up. There is a 95% chance that your opponent will not make anything from that shot, and it broke your balls out, very likely closer to pockets… leaving you the next shot.

8. Unnecessary Kick Shots or Bank Shots – I’m not saying kick shots or bank shots are bad. (In case someone doesn’t know, a “bank” shot is a shot where a player hits the cue ball into another ball with the intention of hitting it off the rail into a pocket on the opposite side of the table. A kick shot is where a player hits the cue ball off of the rail with the intention of the cue ball hitting their ball into a pocket on the opposite side of the table. These shots are similar, but they differ as to which ball is intentionally shot dead into the rail. See yesterday’s videos for more on these.) I love kicks and banks. I have used them to win countless games. They have also come back to hurt me against opponents who have a killer bank or kick shot. There is a rule I learned a long time ago, “If you can cut it, don’t bank it.” (In case I have a reader that doesn’t understand what a “cut shot” is, it is simply a shot that is not a perfect straight in shot. If you have to hit it at any angle, you are essentially cutting it. Most players reserve the term “cut” for a more difficult angle.) There are so many times I’ve seen a shot someone could have just as easily cut into the pocket, but they attempted to bank or kick it. If you cut it instead, you have more of a chance of making the shot or at least sitting it closer to the pocket, if not inside the corners. A bank or kick shot has less control and can veer off, be hit too hard, or be into the opposing rail, causing a more difficult shot on that ball later in the game.

7. Talking – Talking is a wonderful thing. I love talking to more experienced players, or players that have a different view on how a shot should be executed. Two problems are wrong with that: 1. If you are playing a league game, most leagues give you a penalty for talking to your teammates unless you have called a “time out.” 2. Even if it is legal to talk to your teammates or other players wherever it is you’re shooting, you run the risk of distracting yourself. The best pool players rarely take their eyes off the table. You can tell they are having a good time, but you can see the serious look on their faces. They mean business, and as much fun as they’re having, they’re here to win. There’s plenty of time to talk. Right now you have a game to win.

6. Not Looking over the Whole Table – That speaks for itself. You may be emotionally attached to a shot you just watched line up when your opponent missed. Don’t be so quick to take that shot. It might not be your best option. Look over the table. Play a little of the game out in your head. Ask yourself, “If I make this shot, where is the cue ball likely to go, and do I have a decent shot on another ball from that location?” Don’t be afraid to walk around the table for a couple of minutes while rubbing your beard. (I don’t care if you have a beard or not. Rub it.) One thing I started doing to help me slow down and look at the table is simply chalking up the tip of my stick. While I’m sitting there methodically chalking the stick, I’m a good two feet or more in distance away from the table. I’m looking. I’m thinking. I’m not checking out the beautiful blonde playing at the next table… not right now anyway. She’ll still be there when your turn is over. Right now you want to pick the best shot you have on the table. Choose wisely. Once that cue stick makes contact with the cue ball, it’s too late.

5. Food – Try not to order any food until after you’ve shot your games, unless you know that you will be a while until it’s your turn to shoot. You pay less attention to the game, miss important calls, and frankly, people are less happy to tell you if you have high balls or low balls (stripes or solids) if it’s the fifth time they have told you in this game.

4. Extremely loud music – I know, I know. You’re in a bar. You’re trying to party. I also know that music relaxes you. That’s fine. You just have to remember that you need a little remaining concentration to shoot pool. Instead of playing your favorite Slipknot song or Down With the Sickness on the jukebox, try playing some Bob Dylan, ZZ Top, or even some Country. Save the Finger Eleven, Pantera, and Marilyn Manson for after the game when you’re just having a couple of drinks afterward, playing around.

3. Alcohol Consumption – Sure, I like a drink or two when I’m playing. Who doesn’t? That’s why almost every bar has a pool table. Alcohol and pool go hand in hand. I fully support that. I shoot with a few people on APA who swear they play better drunk than sober. Good for them. Most people don’t shoot better drunk. Even those who think they do play better drunk seem to eventually get worse after they keep drinking. There’s a reason for the DUI laws in the United States. Your perspective of a straight line is considerably different under the influence. (We could have the argument of whether or not the DUI laws are exactly reasonable or not all day long. I’m not going there.) Let’s put it this way: If you are seriously concerned about the quality of your driving due to alcohol, which prompts you to sleep in your car or find a driver, you should probably be seriously concerned about the quality of your game.

2. Shooting Hard – Don’t get me wrong. There is a time for shooting hard. Unfortunately, 90% of the shots I see people shoot are entirely too hard. Hard shots are harder to control and are more likely to veer off of the trajectory that would place it in the pocket. I’ve seen a lot of straight in shots hit the corners of the pocket and bounce right out. I’ve seen people hit the ball so hard it hits the back of the pocket where the brace is, and come flying back into the table. The worst I’ve seen is when people hit a shot so hard that a ball, especially the cue ball, goes flying off the table out of control. (At this point, I jokingly hold my arms up like goal posts, and yell, “It’s good!”) My point here is that a harder shot has less control and you will likely hit a ball off the table or veer off course. If you do make the shot, it’s likely you’ve messed up placement for your next one, because only the God you worship will know where that cue ball is headed and if you will have a decent second shot.

1. Using Damaged Sticks – I cannot tell you how many people I played just grabbed a house stick out of the rack to use in a game without checking the integrity of the tip or the structure of the stick itself. I saw damaged tips, tips that wouldn’t hold chalk, and very warped sticks. If you want the perfect control over the cue ball, and ultimately your shot, the stick you use must be in good repair. The more immaculate the stick, the more you eliminate stupid mistakes.

If you have any mistakes to list, please feel free to drop me a comment. I’ll probably address it in a later post, plus I’d love to see a conversation start here about it.

Also, everybody check out my Cool Sites list. If you want to be on my cool sites list, just let me know and I’ll take a look at your site. Take care everybody, and happy shooting!

Shooter