Evolution of an Aiming Style - Part 2: Theory and Practice

While getting used to the 15-30-45 degree angle aiming, I kept reading about the CTE method.  It intrigued me, partly because it was based a bit on feel instead of calculation.  I am not used to figuring things out that way, and I wanted to see if I could get it to work.  I found a couple of articles about it, and one of them discussed where the center of the pivot needed to be.  Suddenly, it all started to click.  I started practicing, and like magic, most of my shots were going in.  Not all of them, but I was gaining confidence.

Over the last several weeks, I have found that the best system for me is a mix of CTE and the degree-aiming.  If I know that a shot is a 30-degree shot, for instance, I do not worry about CTE, and I just aim for the 30-degree spot on the object ball.  Same with 45 degrees.  As long as I have confidence about where to aim the shot, I am happy.  When there is a short distance between the cue ball and the object ball, the degree-aiming system sometimes works even better than CTE.

There are two drills/games that I play whenever I go to the pool hall to practice. 

First drill:  I rack ten balls (basically a full rack without the last row) and break them apart.  After the break, I either start with the cue ball where it ends up or I take ball in hand behind the head string.  Then, I try to run the 10 balls without missing.  If I do not miss, I get ten points.  Each miss takes a point off.  Most of my racks are between six and nine points.  Very rarely do I run the whole thing out.  I usually play five racks at a time, and try to get as high a score as I can.  Right now, my top score is 40, meaning that I averaged two misses per rack.  I have had a hard time trying to break that mark.

Second drill:  I rack the 6,7,8, and 9 in a diamond formation, with the 6 on the spot.  I break them apart, spotting any balls that sink on the break, and then I get to put the cue ball anywhere I want on the table.  The object is to run the balls in order, as you would at the end of a game of 9-ball.  If I run out without missing, it is a "win".  If not, it is a "loss".  I try to get 5 wins before I get 5 losses, but I have not yet been able to do that.  I don't know if it is lack of concentration or what, but it is really difficult for me.  Most times I can only get two wins before I get five losses.