Have you ever found yourself sitting down, knowing you have some task to do, yet cannot find the ability to get up and do it?

More specifically, it gets to the point where, you tell yourself, "get up," and yet your body doesn't follow.

Maybe it even becomes a game.

You will count to three, and on three you say you will stand up. One. Two. Three. But no avail, you remain seated.

What is the missing link then, between your desire to take action and the spark that initiates it? And what would you call that state where, despite your commands, your body remains entranced so that, despite your strongest will and urgency, you remain physically unable to take action?

It’s a mild hypnotic state. Ok why is this important to your ability to play pool? I’ll tell you why.

Humans are pattern seeking monsters. So much so, that these sequences become a part of our daily lives. It's been said that if we truly had to process all incoming information... sight, sound, etc., that we would go insane. (Ever enter a loud night club? That initial ‘what the hell is going’ on feeling?)

So we have adaptive mechanisms that allow us to simply form an impression of what is going on around us, while truly focusing on one thing.

(Again, what t does this have to do with playing pool?)

In our desire for maximum control of our outcomes-- i.e. hitting the ball precisely this way, and keeping our arm angle at 32.6 degrees (with a protractor), and all the many variables that go into shooting the perfect shot:

We paradoxically LOSE control

Think about it this way. The first time you drove a car. It was most likely a clumsy effort, as you sought control of the seemingly hundreds of things going on at once. And yet in that moment, you had maximum awareness of everything going on (push this, step here, turn this way. STOP.)

Or maybe some other experience you were just thrown into, where it felt like 100 things were happening at once, and it was pure chaos.

But as we gain experience...

We no longer seek control of those many things, we simply trust that we have it. The only focus at that point is where we are going--- if that (sometimes I don’t even realize I’m home).

So get ready for it: Why would someone with years of experience playing pool, go about it as if they were just learning (like the car example). All that brings is a loss of control.

If rather, you allowed yourself to develop a pattern, something that could get you into that automatic state (hypnotic-- where the balls clink into the pockets like a transmission shifts gears) then not only would you gain more control, but you’d also make things much easier on yourself.

Now there are many ways to achieve this state. And that’s something I will go into in future articles. But for now one of the quickest tricks is with a pre-shot routine.

But the essence of a pre-shot routine is something that you do consistently to kick on your pool playing pattern. So that you aren’t wandering around like a deer in the headlights, trying to figure out which foot to pick up and step with next.

The irony, and challenge, is:

In gaining control, we must first give it up.

A little short term pain, however, will lead to a much more efficient game. So go out there today (or whenever you usually play) and:

1.       Start a pre-shot routine

2.       Trust yourself a little more (even if you miss, eventually you will adapt better subconsciously)

3.       Share this article with a friend who you think needs it most (most likely they take 5 minutes for each shot)

4.       Never miss a post and follow our email list here.

If you dread the long straight in shot, then you need to read this. Otherwise, this article won't apply.

Guess what? You don't need an aiming system.

The reason you miss shots- You can't hit the ball where you want... yeah yeah, what else is new.

Think about it, what is the only shot in the entire game of pool, that requires no judgement as far as angles go?

The straight in shot.

Hit that object ball right in the center, and watch it go right in the pocket.

But guess what? This shot is probably missed at the exact same percentage you miss any other cut shot at the same distance. Why? It’s not because you don't know where to hit it, it's because you can't hit it where you want it.

"Okay, okay, I'm still not sure about that. I mean, what if I can't hit the ball where I want and I don't know where to hit it?"

Then you need to get your priorities straight. Once your stroke follows where you desire it to go, then you can focus on developing your judgment. Lets not put the cart before the horse.

How can you develop your judgment, if you can’t test your judgment. What I mean is, if you pick a spot on the ball to hit for a particular angle shot, and you miss, how can you know if it was the spot, or if it was your stroke?

What’s the solution?

Prioritize getting your stroke in line. And there is only one shot that does that—the straight in shot. What you need to do is find your “range.”

The NBA great Eddie Johnson described his warm up as follows:

You start close enough to the basket where you can make 7 out of 10 shots without touching the rim. Once you do that, you take a step back and repeat. This process goes on until you find your sticking “range.” You then take a step back in, and go back and forth in this area until you can make 70% perfectly.

This same method has been used by free throw record holders, hitting 1000+ consecutive shots.

But here’s the deal. I've got news for you, it’s the exact same method in pool.

If you are practicing shots outside of this range, you aren't improving. It’s just luck. A statistic. 

If you want to really accelerate your ability and control, you have to first figure out where exactly you have control.

So the next time you are going out to practice pool, do that same exercise with a straight in shot. Then, after you have pinpointed your range, you can work on other shots.

Because at that point, you have locked down a huge variable. And now that you know you are hitting the ball exactly where you want it, now you can focus on your judgment of where that should be.

Imagine when you first learned to ride a bike. You had to worry about falling over either to your left or your right. Now think about how much more difficult it would have been if you started on a unicycle. There is an entire other dimension interfering with your ability to learn.

So are you riding a unicycle when you play pool? If so:

1. Take action and find your range. 
2. Follow our update list, so that you don't miss any of our new articles or advice to help improve your game.
3. Share this article with your friends!
4. Read more here

Good luck!

"AgghfffrrHffhrrhhghh."

 You missed again—but by the end of this article, you’ll know how the dinosaurs can reduce that utterance in half. First, a metaphor:

You are an astronaut and you are in outer space. And there is this orange just floating there—maybe you are in the ship… maybe you are outside.

But the orange isn’t moving. So you grab it, and for whatever reason toss it away. As it floats away, spinning top over top, its direction is set. The only way its path can be shifted is if another outside force comes into play. Maybe a black hole.

The same thing is happening on the pool table. Not just after your cue makes contact and the ball starts rolling, but also as your arm is moving the stick towards the cue ball.

The challenge with delivering a straight stroke, is to keep the “orange” (your arm) from experience outside forces.

The muscles and kinetic sequences that propel your arm forward are complicated. You are not a robot. So when you set your arm in motion, all the tension and subconscious yips can set your path astray. Pool is not a game of inches, it’s not a game of centimeters, it’s not a game of millimeters... Pool is a game of micro and nanometers.

Why? Because if you your tip angles off just one millimeter, for every millimeter the ball rolls, it will veer another millimeter off its original line.

How big is a cue ball?

2 ¼ Inches. 57.15 mm.

How big is the average pool table?

108 Inches. 2743 mm.

If you deliver your shot just 1 mm off angle, you won’t miss by just a millimeter, you’ll miss by several feet!

Now what can you do about that? I’ll tell you what worked for a buddy of mine.

I had a friend who was not that good at pool. When I was hungry and cheap, I would call him up and go play pool with him, because I knew drinks and food would be on him by the time our match was over. And he wasn’t just bad at pool; he was bad at every other sport I can imagine. And I used to think it was just because he was really uncoordinated and goofy.

Then one day, another pool player—much better than myself at the time, gave him some advice. He said, “I have never seen someone so unstable. You need to think ‘Statue’ when you are shooting.”

Instantly he was 1000x better. (And making my job a lot harder in the process)

Now you might be thinking, Oh that’s not me I’m stable when I play. Or, my stance is fine that won’t help.

But remember what I said before, you might think you are relatively stable when you get down and shoot, but pool isn’t a game of millimeters—its less.

You need to be an ice sculpture. A stone statue.

What’s the secret? When you get down you need to have a code word you tell yourself to remind yourself that.

“T-Rex,” maybe? Ever see the movie Jurassic Park? Remember this scene at 2:30?

Think "T-Rex" when you go down to shoot and I guarantee you your shot making % will improve.

• Want to improve your Carom Game?
  
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• Your Cue Ball control?
  

One of the biggest problems players have is their cue ball control and positioning. The consequence is that they are left with more challenging shots and the game becomes more difficult than it has to be. Practice and time are obviously one of the best solutions.

But if you are looking for a quick way to develop intuition, Super Bobolz is a quick fun game that mimics the physics of frictionless balls colliding. Click Here to play Super Bobolz on our site.

This is a must have shot for your arsenal. The ticky.

Below are some of the most common flaws that beginners make. Limiting these from your game will improve your play significantly, and will help to create a solid foundation for the future. It is possible to have success whilst having these flaws, but consider the road to be much longer and harder.

1. Not standing still

Football is a game of inches; pool is a game of millimeters. In a game where precision is absolutely necessary, you must remain as still as possible. There’s a reason why surgeon’s have hands that are notoriously still, just imagine what it would be like if their whole bodies were swaying. I do know some players with Parkinson’s, and pool is extra challenging for them, but in general think “statue” before you shoot.

2. Jerking up after your shot

But you say, I already hit the ball, what difference does it make? If you remain perfectly still throughout your delivery, then none. But more often then not, this is not the case. If you do lift up, when the pressure comes, this will be even more exaggerated then it was before. Do yourself a favor and stay down, not only will you play better, but you will look better too. If you really can’t stop, have someone hold a stick over your head so you can feel the problem.