To
be in control of everything at snooker, there
must be a method; a routine for each shot. I call
this the "DRILL".
The
drill breaks down into four parts.
Before
getting down to play a shot, look at the situation
on the table and decide what is the best shot
toplay, (Figure One). This is very important.
Then
comes what I call the 95 per cent. Having looked
at the pocket and decided the spot on the object
ball that must be hit, address the cue ball where
you intend to hit it, (Figure 2).
It
is no good getting down before you have decided
what to do. If your brain has not a clear message,
how can it possibly send directions to your cue
hand?
You should now be 95 per cent certain of potting
the ball. You begin your waggle trying to 'feel'
the shot you are about to play.
You
have made up your mind whether to play with topspin,
sidespin or backspin, and how hard you are going
to hit the cue ball.
This
takes care of the second part of the shot, which
is the positioning of the cue ball.
Your
waggles should be short, medium or long according
to the type of shot
you are about to play. For example, if you are
playing a deep screw shot and have reached the
last waggles, the cue has to go back several inches
if power is to be obtained on the follow-through,
(Figure 3).
If
you address the cue ball with, say, no more than
a two inch (5 cm) waggle before playing the shot
itself, you will have to judge the pace, power
and feel of the shot with one last movement.
This
is asking a lot of your brain and takes concentration
away from the pot, which, after all is the main
priority. The waggles should be an aid to aiming
only to a very small extent.
You
should have assessed the angle before you even
start them. The primary purpose of the waggles
is to 'feel' the positional side of the shot.
By
getting the right movement from the start, you
have more chance of achieving the shot successfully
because you will have more feel for it beforehand.
On
finishing the waggles, address the cue ball
for the last time and
take a final look at the cue ball to make
certain it is going to be hit in the right
place. Get your eyes back onto the object
ball before coming through with the cue.
This
is what I call the 5 per cent. Without observing
the last 5 per cent of the drill, you will
not be giving the shot 100 per cent effort.
How many times have you seen professional
players miss simple shots and wondered why?
This is usually because they have neglected
the 5 per cent, that is, getting the eyes
back on the object ball.
How
many times have you seen professional players
get down for a shot and then get up, stand
back and start his preparation again?
This
is because he/she has realized that his
95 per cent was wrong because, in his opinion,
he was aiming at the object ball either
too thick or too thin.
I don't claim that 95 per cent and 5 per
cent are mathematically accurate, but the
terms are there for you to relate to.
Each
shot, in my opinion, consists of the thrust
forward of the cue from the pause at the
end of the last back swing, to the completion
of the follow-through.
Everything else is preparation - albeit
very important preparation.
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