Where to Look for Aiming Billiard Shots
5/14/2007 4:30:08 PM
Where to Look for Aiming Billiard Shots
My friend and I were shooting pool, 9 ball to be exact, and when I was "in the zone" my friend noted that my eyes were not moving from the cue ball to the object ball and back and forth. Until he brought this to my attention, I had never noticed this.
I analyzed it and I found out that when I am aiming a billiard shot during serious play, I tend to glance the top of the cue ball, then the object ball, then the hole where I am aiming the OB, but I never glance back and forth.
Is this a bad habit? I never realized before and only knew I did this just this afternoon.
Where to Look for Aiming Billiard Shots
Replies & Comments
aspin on 5/15/2007 1:24:36 PM
I don't think that there is any problem with moving your eyes back and forth just as long as you avoid moving your head, and focus on looking at the object ball for at least -3 seconds before the last stroke.
When you say you are looking at the top of the cue ball to the object ball, could this be due to a low stance?
I looked at a video of the Reyes-Bustamante match in Cardiff Wales where Efren ran nine racks. I noticed that they both move their eyes back and forth, but their heads are dead still. You can also see that they look at the object ball for a longer time before the final stroke.
Plumb on 5/19/2007 8:43:27 AM
back and forth is great, all the good players do it, it's confirming the shot before playing it.
sequence goes, in whatever order: cue, cue ball, object ball, pocket, they've all gotta be in sync for the shot to be aimed accurately
smichael on 6/27/2007 5:58:44 PMThanks for the great advice. My stance isn't that low, I'm about 5 foot 8 inches tall, so I don't think that is the issue.
allister on 6/27/2007 6:03:35 PM
When I'm aiming billiard shots, I try not to look at the cue ball more than a few times. If my game isn't going all that well, I concentrate even more at not looking at the cue ball, and to purposely look to the object ball. This usually brings my game back to normal. The closer you are to performing the final stroke, the more this back-and-forth will affect your aim. Beyond this, I find that the more I concentrate on a shot, the greater the chances are that I'll miss the shot.
Anyone else find this?
billiardsforum on 6/27/2007 6:14:54 PMAll of this pre-shot aiming routine stuff is often for naught. If you video tape yourself making a billiard shot, and analyse your aiming technique, you will probably notice that you adjust your shot on your final stroke anyway, regardless of the amount or type of aiming you do. When you align your shot while standing up, and lower yourself to shoot, the whole perspective changes for the worse as the angle of the shot changes.
I find that the best way to successfully aim a billiard shot is to aim while standing by fixing your view on the contact point on the object ball. Next, lower in to shooting position, and again, visualize the contact point while noting the angle. Put your cue on the cue ball, pull back, and shoot.
I got this tip from my old man over the holidays and have been playing a little better ever since. I think it might be due to the fact that I'm careful to aim the shot before I go down to execute. I look at the shot, then move down while noticing the angle, sync my aim, and take the shot.
Regardless of the method you use, you must try your best not to make those unconscious last-second adjustments. It will occur to you that occasionally your last second corrections help you, but this is a fluke, and shouldn't be how you go about improving.
Where to Look for Aiming Billiard Shots
- Title: Where to Look for Aiming Billiard Shots
- Author: smichael (Scott Michael)
- Published: 5/14/2007 4:30:08 PM
