Ok, so you completed Part 1 of the stroke calibration training and you're hitting the balls straight. Now, you're ready to improve your accuracy when using english. We're going to do the same exercise that we did in Part 1, but first let's revisit the shot from your last lesson.
In this example, we need to hit the cue ball with low right english. Hitting this shot with english makes it a little more difficult to pocket. You have to compensate a little for the english that is applied. How much you have to compensate is determined by several factors including...
- Cue ball squirt
- Cue ball swerve
- How hard the shot is hit
- How much english is applied
- How level your cue stick is
- Collision induced throw
- Table conditions
I don't want to get into all the science of pool in this post. There is a lot of information available if you'd like to study it further, but I think your time would be better spent learning how to compensate for it. The biggest factor that affects accuracy is, probably, cue ball squirt. You don't have to become an expert on this subject. Just understand that when you hit the cue ball with left english, the cue ball will travel off-line to the right, slightly (vice-versa for right english). How much the cue ball squirts varies from cue to cue. Some cues are designed to minimize squirt, but some, inherently, produce a lot of squirt. Either cue can be used to play at a high level as long as you learn to play with it. The exercises I'm giving to you will help accelerate the learning curve drastically. Wouldn't you rather go through this learning process during practice, instead of during game situations?
Also, table conditions can affect how the cue ball reacts to english, specifically the type, newness and cleanliness of the cloth. That's why I recommend using these drills to help calibrate your game when playing on foreign equipment. It will help you become comfortable more quickly.
Let's take a look at the exercise from the previous session.
At this point, you should have a good completion percentage for steps 1 thru 3 performed at a variety of speeds.
The next step is to repeat the process using left english, then right english. As in the previous session, be sure to shoot from all three positions using different speeds. The amount of english and the speed will both affect how much you have to compensate for throw and swerve. As you do your 10 attempts in each step, try to be consistent in the speed and the amount of english applied to the cue ball.
Depending on your experience level, you may be surprised at just how much english affects the path of the cue ball, especially the longer shots. It is very typical for people to start using english without understanding its effects. When that happens, missed shots often get misdiagnosed and people make the wrong adjustments. One thing is for sure, though, a systematic process like this will shorten the length of time that it takes you to master cue ball english use.
Keep using this drill, trying to increase your make percentage using different amounts of english. When you miss, be sure to watch where your cue ball hits the object ball, so you can tell which way you have to address.
I strongly recommend recording your results to keep track of your progress.
You can also try some low-left, high-right, etc. to see how consistent you are at those types of english.
Let me know how your doing with these exercises. Leave a comment or email me: Skippy@9Baller.com
Cheers,
Skippy