Struggling with aiming!

[Baileysnooker]

Hi there, im pretty new to the game but im having a few issues! As far as anyone who plays at the club im at, my cue action is pretty much spot on, however, im really struggling with where to hit the ball, picking the correct angle etc. Any tips???

Also, im using the ghost ball technique.

[Essa]

Hey I try and help I was struggling with my line of aim too.

What I did to resolve it was to move the cue from center of my chin to the right side under my better (dominate) right eye and that resolved the problem for me.

You need to find out which eye is dominant and try adjusting your cue accordingly.

If the doesn't resolve than I guess there something wrong with the stance, grip, bridge etc you need narrow it down

Is there a local coach in your area worth seeing them.

If you can post video maybe here or maybe send video to coach, they may be able to help you out seeing your cue action stance grip and bridge etc.

Also do you find the line of aim before you go downon the shot?

[Terry Davidson]

There is no need to worry about the dominant eye and change your set-up to account for it as you game may improve or it may get worse depending on how your present set-up is.

In aiming the big 'trick' a lot of players don't know is to do your aiming while you are standing up behind the shot and then after you've selected the correct line of aim (or what you believe it is) then drop your head STRAIGHT DOWN while keeping your eyes focused on the object ball until you are in the address position. Once you are down behind the cueball you are now SIGHTING the pot but it's important to not adjust your aim at all.

The reason is you get the best perspective of the line of aim while standing up behind the shot and that line of aim is more accurate that the line of sighting you get when you're down behind the cueball.

Just remember to drop the head STRAIGHT DOWN. To accomplish this keep your nose pointed at the OBJECT BALL while you are dropping down into the shot.

[Baileysnooker]

Thanks guys! Should help alot Just Re your reply Terry, thanks for the tip! However, i struggle to determine the angle whilst standing, i can perfectly line up where the ghost ball is while standing up, but i struggle to visualise where it is when potting angles, any other tips?

[Essa]

Maybe try identifying the potting angles may help like full ball, half ball etc. Just keep practicing over n over, drilling it the same angle until you see the line of aim. Like terry said while standing up stand behind the line of aim go down and take the shot. like I mentioned before there are many variable so may be your aim of line is spot on but your cue action delivery is off due to body alignment, grip, bridge etc.

[Essa]

you say you struggle to visualise the potting angle, stand behind the the line of aim you think is wright go down and cue straight and take the shot, if you miss re spot the balls to where they were before take it again with the correct adjustment.

[crossFade]

Also - thats something I have to tell myself alot - you need alot of patience. Speaking for me I believed there is one solution which makes my play out of the roof. It is a very hard game that needs alot of practice. I realized after some time that there is no such thing. Don't expect to make huge steps, it is a long process. I'm talking about me here, but maybe this can help you aswell

[Essa]

Also - thats something I have to tell myself alot - you need alot of patience. Speaking for me I believed there is one solution which makes my play out of the roof. It is a very hard game that needs alot of practice. I realized after some time that there is no such thing. Don't expect to make huge steps, it is a long process. I'm talking about me here, but maybe this can help you aswell

I total agrèe 100% I been 2 practice session for 4 hours, just practicing find the line of aim and potting different angle balls over and over again

[Terry Davidson]

Thanks guys! Should help alot Just Re your reply Terry, thanks for the tip! However, i struggle to determine the angle whilst standing, i can perfectly line up where the ghost ball is while standing up, but i struggle to visualise where it is when potting angles, any other tips?

If you can determine what you feel is the correct angle using 'ghost ball' aiming then just AIM and SIGHT for the centre of the ghost ball and don't worry about anything else. Just remember it takes a lot of practice, not 2 hours a week but at least an average of 2hrs a day.

[pottr]

I don't mean to sound harsh guys, but all these 'aiming' posts...

I guarantee it's not aiming you're struggling with... it's cueing.

Stand up behind the shot and point your cue on the line of aim. From a standing position, take a photo on your phone and then sit down and look at the photo.

If you're on the line of aim, then it's cueing... if you're not on the line of aim then you really shouldn't be playing snooker as recognising that 'line a' is required to pot 'ball b' is pretty much the most basic concept of the sport.

[jonny66]

I agree with pottr. Also just because you cue long straight shots well, doesn't mean you cue every shot well, especially if you're not confident about the angle. I find angles much easier to see if I take a step or two back from the shot.

[ace man]

There will always be more "I struggle with aiming" claims rather than "I struggle with cueing". In real life snooker too, not just tsf.
For some reason, most players seem to think that they strike the ball ok, but somehow can't "see" the ball or determine the angle or whatever.
About successful long pots...yes, what kind? Plain ball rolling with nothing on cue ball or power shots where cue ball has some work to do? Big big difference in technical difficulty even though distances might be the same.
Missing balls is just unwanted side cause by body/head movement, nervy twitches, poor stance and/or cue alignment, punching the ball too hard perhaps...etc. I do it all the time when playing poorly. Not so much if things are going well.
Misjudging the angle completely while standing up? Nah, I just don't believe that any players who have some experience with the game could do that.

[Hello, Mr Big Shot]

Wonder if John Barton is still around lol.

[itsnoteasy]

Pottr is right, Terry used to tell me a few years ago the exact same thing when I said I couldn't see where to hit the ball. He said everyone can pick out where to hit the ball ,it's hitting it that's the hard bit, in other words cueing. Put a ball on the table pick a pocket ,stand back and guide a pal to place a ball on it in the plant position, when happy you have it right go and check it, if it is correct there is nothing wrong with your ability to pick the line.
There is a chance it might not be cueing though, you could be wandering off line as you walk into the shot, it is critical that your cue and head stay on line and it's dropped straight down on it, not saying it isn't all cueing but it's worth checking with a wee head on video, in fact you will probably see all your errors yourself if you could video yourself from different angles, it's quite horrible to see at first, you think your wandering around playing like Ronnie, then you end up watching some sort of twitching moving club basher .

[Ramon]

Wonder if John Barton is still around lol.

I would'nt expect him mate .

He does'nt belong to ADR'S social network .