Every pool player does it at least once in a while… jump up during their stroke, and the degree to which they can control themselves by NOT jumping up during their final stroke may very well determine the potential they have to improve beyond their current level of skill.
This one fix (staying down instead of jumping up) is so powerful that it will alone wipe out scores of other problems that it caused, thus you may literally increase 1-10 or more skill levels in a few days time… for life!
So without any further ado…
8 Tips for Helping You Stay Down on Your Shots!
- Practice shooting with your eyes closed: Go ahead and line up into your shot, take your practice strokes, and then just before your last back swing, close your eyes and shoot the shot. Do this for a few racks and get the feeling for how you automatically stay down when your eyes are closed and then just carry that over to your open eye pool game.
- Stay down until the object ball drops: Keep your body completely still (except your stroking arm) until the ball falls in the pocket.
- Stay down until the cue ball stops moving COMPLETELY: This is an advanced extension of number 2, and much more powerful. Do not allow your body or head to jump up even a millimeter until the cue ball comes to a complete rest, usually well after you have made the object ball. This one is tough at first, and if you are like 95% of my students, you will most likely fail until you have someone there to inform you that you did indeed move before the cue ball stopped. Since I’m not there to watch you… be DISCIPLINED! Be the 5%. This will make you much more powerful as a pool player… if that’s OK with you
- Become a statue: Pretend that once you are in your stance, you have transformed into a bronze statue… and are unable to move (except your stroking arm). Now, once you have stroked the shot, you are a statue with a follow through and you simply stay there for a while (as decoration in the room). How good are you at becoming a statue?
- Be prepared by lining up well: By getting down in the proper place to make the shot, there will be no reason for you to move, jump up, add body English, or any of that chronic missing non-sense. Lining up into your pool shot is an art and a science. I’ve got lots of free and paid materials to help you out in this area. Anyway, commit to the shot with precision and you will be better able to stay down.
- Relax during your stroke: Keep your body relaxed and still and deliver your stoke with the smoothness and accuracy it deserves.
- Have confidence and faith: You’ve got to stroke the shot like you know it is going in the pocket, period.
- Take your time, make each shot a work of art: Even if you insist on playing fast, when it comes time to stroke the shot, keep your body still and stay down as you stroke cue with a complete and beautiful stroke… and THEN you can resume to running over to the next shot. Or keep a nice medium pace and be deliberate as you keep your body still.
Ok that’s 8 Powerful Tips to help you stay still and keep your body down during the shot. Practice these and I guarantee your game will improve at record pace.
Enjoy your next pool playing session and I’ll see you soon…
Max Eberle
PS: To get more in depth coverage of these subjects and a TON more, click this link see what I have to help you explode onto your local or international pool scene!