Background:
I am an instructor who plays around 300 days a year. I am a student of the game and the thought processes required for top performance. I also play a lot of golf (single digit handicap) and tennis (B Player).

In March and April of 2001, I was playing the best pool of my life. In May, I lost it - couldn’t run more than two balls to save my life. Regardless of my practice efforts, I was not able to get it back.

Discovery:
Loss of pre-shot visualization, rhythm and focus - I was not visualizing the shot or results prior to assuming my stance and found my eyes were looking down at the general area of the object ball but were not zeroed in.

In the book "The Inner Game of Tennis", the author suggests a method to help get in the zone. This technique has the player say to himself "bounce" when the ball hits the court and “hit” when the racket makes contact with the ball. The primary purpose of this drill is to help lose your mind so you can gain your senses.

Harvey Pennick, in his "Little Red Book of Golf Instruction", advises the player to: "Take Dead Aim."

Mark Wilson and Wayne Hutson (fellow instructors from the Quad Cities) have a similar saying: "When you get tired of missing - start aiming."

The Drill:
To incorporate the above into the bounce/hit of pool, I came up with the following relaxed concentration drill:

• Set up straight in shot from foot spot into side pocket. (Cue ball on foot spot, object ball 1 foot from side pocket - see White Belt Zero Tolerance Stop Shot in Black Belt Billiards.)
• Visualize the shot in its entirety as part of the pre-shot routine. (The more detail in the visualization the better, e.g. speed of cue ball, speed of object ball, which part of the pocket ball is made in, does ball hit back of pocket, path or reaction of cue ball, etc.)
• When assuming your stance, be relaxed in your set up, be aware of your alignment and place tip precisely at point of cue ball you visualized in your pre-shot routine.
• Practice stroke one - As you draw the cue back, laser focus your eyes on the object ball (ghost ball, point of aim or whatever aiming system you use) and say to yourself “one”. As you bring the cue forward, let your eyes shift back to the cue ball and confirm the precise placement of the tip on the cue ball.
• Practice stroke two - same as one for the backstroke, except you say to yourself “two”. As you bring the cue forward, you again shift your eyes to the cue ball and confirm its precise placement on the cue ball.
• Return your eyes with laser focus to the object ball, confirm to yourself that the shot is on, and deliver your best stroke through the cue ball, coming to a fluid finish. Let the shot and shooter become one. I have had best results with no audio cue to myself on this. You may want to experiment with an audio cue such as “three”, or “back and through”, or “smooth”, or something similar.

After 15 or 20 minutes with this shot, repeat the drill with a longer straight in shot into a corner pocket (such as shot #1 from the Kinister 60-minute workout tape or the Orange Belt Stroke Builder Stop Shot in Black Belt Billiards) with the same relaxed concentration as the side pocket shot.

The Results:
I am now back in stroke, my pre-shot routine now includes the proper visualization required to play to the best of my ability, I have eliminated the mental static, and I have regained my rhythm and confidence.