PoolSynergy - Practice

John Biddle, Founding Father of PoolSynergy, wants us to share with you this month what has worked and what didn't work for us personally in regard to practice.

Ahh... practice.

The pivotal part of every one's game.

In order to get better, you must practice.  You hear the pro's fibbing and tell you they practice 8 hours a day.  Whatever.  No they don't.

However, practice is important.  Patrice not only gives you CONFIDENCE, which is crucial, but it also gives you CONSISTENCY, which is key.

What worked for me?  Set reachable goals to practice pool.

Once I set a goal to practice, then I was actually able to accomplish PRACTICING.  What was my goal specifically?  Well, several years ago it was to hit balls by myself for 1-3 hours a week on a 9-foot table.

I did this for almost 2-3 years.  And guess what - it was obvious.  It's very obvious when I practice and make a goal to hit balls.  You can see it in my high rankings on the OB Cues Ladies Tour and also my high finishes at big tournaments.

Guess what people?  It really does help!

Now, what doesn't work for me:  Drills.  I'm not a drill person.

Everyone asks me, "How can you practice by yourself?"  I retort back, "Hell, how can you do drills???"

The other way to practice is to read books or watch videos.  I highly recommend that.

However, I must not forget to mention that the game of pool is like golf:  it's 90% mental.

"But Wait," you are thinking.  "How do you practice mental toughness?"

Easy.

Read books on the mental game.

AND...

Play in tournaments.  As many as you can.

Don't just play in a few.  Get yourself in the middle of tournaments and exercise your mind; your mental toughness.  Learn from every match.  What worked, what didn't, what can you work on, why did you falter or do well?  Reflect, learn, and your mental game will get better.

It doesn't matter how many hours you put on the pool table to practice - that wont help you in a pressure situation.  UNLESS - you've already somehow learned or read that a solid pre-shot routine helps you overcome jitters/pressure. 

You don't know how to handle these type of things automatically when you come out of the womb:  a rough crowd, rude comments, bad rolls, bad thoughts, negative emotions, etc., .

You need to learn, absorb knowledge from books or online; you need to toughen up your mental game by playing against others in many, many different types atmospheres (pro events, weekly tourneys, etc.). 

Yes, practice on a pool table to improve your game, pre-shot routine, and consistency.  But combine that practice with sharping your mental toughness skills, too, by jumping into competition.

That combination is the only thing that worked for me.

Good luck!