So I decided to share the main lines of my tactics for my first article. These ideas have helped me a lot in getting to the top, and I hope they will help you as well. I try to order them in order of importance as well as possible.
(1) Know your own weaknesses. Don't go for a shot you are about sure to miss (unless the outcome of the match is already certain, of course). Play a safety instead, and spend some time practicing that hard shot, so next time you can take it in a match!
(2) Practice the colors. The colors are always respotted at the exact same place, so all you need to remember is where to place exactly your cursor. If you're sure to pot any color off its spot, you're already sure to pot (almost) 50% of your shots! Don't forget to practice them into unusual pockets, just in case you lost cue ball control.
Blue ball is crucial, as it's situated on the center of the table, so it's really easy to take a good position for it, from anywhere on the table. If you can pot it in all 6 pockets, then you're one big step forward.
(3) Master spin. Especially top spin and back spin. Understand completely and in details how they work. This will help you a lot in your cue control, so you can continue your break more easily. Spend some time on the practice table taking a few shots to nothing, just to observe the effect of the spin.
Also note that the "new" spin's effect also depends on the cue ball's speed when it hits the target ball. This allows you, for example, to have a really strong effect (either forwards or backwards) if you're close to the target ball.
(4) Maximize your game window. The greater the table is on your screen, the more precisely you can aim every shot, because every pixel represents a smaller part of the table.
Maximize your browser window (click in your address bar, and press F11). To de-maximize it, press F11 again (you may have to click on the page's background before, e.g. next to the "Help" and "Register" links).
If needed, you can also make the chat area smaller by pressing the small number next to the player's list. Making it smaller will free even more space for the snooker table.
(5) Take your time. Even an easy shot needs concentration. Almost any shot can be missed if you don't pay enough attention to it... I've missed myself some unmissable shots just by lack of concentration.
I hope these tips will help you to improve your performances.
Don't hesitate to react to these tips, or post your own ones, in the comments!
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Another point which i would like to add to improve you game, might not be to everyones taste but anyway.
ReplyDeleteStay on one game type. If you stay on one then that game becomes easier as you get used to it, worked for original snooker for me. Really does help for new players, advanced players can generally switch without a problem, but for new players its better just sticking on one game type.
Damee
You're absolutely right! There was a time when I refused to play Arcade at all (there was no Regular at that time), because I noticed my Original skill would suffer from it.
ReplyDeleteVery good tip, and not only for beginners, but for anyone who wants to raise his/her skill as much as possible in one particular game.
nice work blutch saw something like this on pool, really good advice.
ReplyDeleteI will certainly try the colours one
Pool advice thread:
http://www.funkypool.com/viewTopic.do?topicid=13634&page=1
I would also like to say the break off is a very important shot because if you can get correct position from a break your in business, doesnt matter if safety or aggressive.
Maximizing the game window (for me) makes it harder to see the potting angle and where to hit the ball to be potted, so I decrease the window slightly.
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