Learn to Play Pool in Ten Minutes -- billiards instruction

can a person learn to play pool in ten minutes well let's see pool also known as pocket billiards is played on a table like this that is twice as long as it is wide and has six pockets more than where corner pockets and two of them are side pockets there are 15 colorful balls with numbers on them that we call object balls one wall is white and has no number on it we call that a cue ball the basic event of the game is to take a pool cue also known as a cue or a pool stick or a stick and use it to strike the cue ball in such a way that it causes an object ball to go into the pocket how do we aim the cue ball that caused the object ball to go into the pocket how did it how does the cue ball have to strike the object ball it's useful to draw a line from the center of the object ball to the center of the pocket where we want it to go and actually extend that line out in the other direction a little bit what needs to happen is that the cue ball needs to be right on that line when it contacts the object ball like that so the cue ball is gonna need to be right there like that the bad news is that in aiming this shot you actually have to aim the center of the cue ball for there the center of what we call the ghost ball the good news is that it doesn't matter whether the cue ball starts out here or here or here or here or here or here all roads lead to Rome you aim for the same spot like that your front hand is known as your bridge hand and bridge length as shown here about eight or nine inches is reasonable what's important about either bridge on the open bridge like this or the closed bridge like this is that there be a reasonable footprint footprint to your hand here's one way to form a closed bridge step one karate chop pointing north step two middle finger as far east as possible with the ring finger going down halfway in between step three pointer finger going around the cue step four thumb closing up the gap the pool queue itself is a line but if you think of the vertical plane that includes the pool cue there's a surprising number of things that need to be in that so-called shot plan during a proper pull strip the head is directly over top of the stake that's in the shot plane the rear foot the backwards foot is directly below the cue that's in the shot plane there is the rear forearm which is in the shot plane the elbow the upper arm and the shoulder that whole system there is in the shot plane so here's the projection of the stick on the ground the rear foot goes directly below the stick like that and the left foot goes out about 45 degrees like that so where do you brick the back of the queue there's no spot on the cue that I can really point to with the bridge being eight or nine inches the left arm being more or less straight to keep a consistent distance back to your body orienting your body like I discussed in the stance where your rear hand goes is determined by the fact that your forearm is completely vertical when the tip is near the cue ball there are over two hundred and thirty different movable joints in the human body in them this was a video about golf or bowling I'd be talking about it complex carefully choreographed simultaneous motion about many of them but this is not about golf or bowling it's about pool and as it turns out pool is all about this one that's it it may look like I'm doing a baseball bat tight grip on the back of the cube but I'm really not I'm holding it loosely and it's really about this part right here when I'm in the back part of my stroke the rear part of my palm is not touching the cue when I'm in the finished position the rear part is so here is a shot with a ghost ball position that I'm imagining and you can see the line of the shot here's the extension of that same shot line a few steps back from the table I'm going to approach the table with my cue vertical and then the shot plane and then I'm going to plant my foot right on this line and get down into shooting position so I'm down in the set position my tip is at the cue ball my my rear forearm is oh my queue is as level as possible and my chin is down low on the cue remember it's just a pendulum motion about the elbow like this so I'm gonna hold my arm here to kind of emphasize that doesn't matter if the shot is going to be soft or hard the backstroke the final back stroke is going to be the same I'm going to go back slowly followed by a slow smooth transition to forward motion and then forward to the finished position the best diagnostic as to whether you've finished the stroke correctly is that the tip finishes in the correct finished position where the cue ball goes after a shot is important when anticipating the next shot you're going to take for a straight shot like this there's three possibilities for what the cue ball is going to do one is it's going to follow the object ball toward the pocket where it's gonna stop dead or it's gonna come back toward toward the shooter so here's a follow shot here's a stop shot and here's a draw shot or a backspin shot the difference between these is respectively whether the cue ball had forward spin like that or no spin like that or reverse spin would instruct the object on the stop shot is critically important because mastering it opens up a whole range of possibilities for what the cue ball can do a stop shot from the position shown will leave the cue ball stopped in the ghost ball location as shown but a stop shot from any place over here that same shot would send the cue ball off at this 90 degree angle like that follow shot sends the cue ball starting in the same direction but then bending forward up and then a draw shot sends the cue ball starting in the same direction you achieve these different spins by having the tip strike the cue ball low or medium or above any place along the vertical center of the cue ball and you get the different heights by raising or lowering your bridge leaving the stick level as possible for all the strokes alright now you're ready to learn a game eight ball is probably the most popular and you probably need to forget the rules that you learn in a bar or a long-ago fraternity house or somebody's basement if we remove the eight ball which is solid and black the remaining fourteen balls have seven solid color balls and seven striped balls one player is going to have solids the other player is going to have stripes and the object of the game is to sink or pocket all of the players balls which gives that player the opportunity to sink the eight ball on a legal shot and win the game the eight ball gets wrapped in the middle here one of these corner balls is a solid and the other one is a stripe nothing else matters this is the head ball and it gets rack onto the foot spot here and when you rack the balls trying to make them all touching one another which is called a tight rack the opening shot of the game is known as the break shot the breaking player shoots with the cue ball behind the head string commonly known as as in the kitchen at this point in the game it said that the table is open meaning it's not determined who has stripes and who has so the only other time this head string matters in the game of 8-ball is if the player on the break scratches the cue ball if the cue ball goes in the pocket then the opposing player must begin starting behind the head string and shooting the ball that's out of the out of the kitchen always swipe some chalk on to the tip before every pull shop all right I didn't make any balls on that break shot had I made one of our balls I would continue to shoot because I didn't make any balls my opponent will shoot regardless for this shot immediately after the break it is not yet determined who has stripes and who has solids we say the table is still open in order to claim stripes or solids a player has to call a shot as soon as a desert has to designate say the purple ball for ball there and and shoot it in so if I call that for ball and shoot it in like that I now have solids as long as you continue to pocket call balls that is shots for which you designated the ball and the pocket you continue to shoot if you miss your opponent shoots if you do not execute a legal shot that is a view if you foul then your opponent gets ball in hand can pick up the cue ball and put it anyplace on the table and shoot in any direction the three common ways to foul are one scratching the cue ball when the cue ball goes into a pocket to failure to hit one of your own balls first or three after hitting one of your own balls first failure for something to make contact with with the cushion or go in a pocket alright now you scratch the surface learning some of the fundamentals of this great game many billiard parlors have leagues that actually encourage new players so check it out maybe get some friends co-workers or family and form a team yourself there's a lot more to learn about this game to talk to people in your local billiard parlor or look at BCA - cool calm for a list of qualified instructors in your area I hope you enjoyed this little 10-minute introduction to bowl

Channel: FargoBilliards

Views: 6,006,493

Rating: 4.9114623 out of 5

Keywords: pool, billiards, billiard, instruction, learn, how-to, fundamentals, introduction, stroke, stance, aiming, play, basic

Id: qbmNcYH52eo

Length: 9min 53sec (593 seconds)

Published: Sat Jan 17 2009

Reddit Comments

[u/stormotron91]

Very informative, great upload

[u/ZaphodBeeblebrox]

I didn't know that for each shot you need to have the ball touch the cushion or make it into the pocket

[u/nair_balloons]

i grew up playing pool in my parents' house so I feel competent at the game but I will say, this video was very informative. Great instructional video! will look for part 2

[u/[deleted]]

Really enjoyed this. His teaching manner was clear and easy to follow

[u/H-O-D-L]

damn that is perfect and should be how every instructional video is done.

[u/RedditPanhandler]

Come join us in r/billiards if you’re interested in learning more!

[u/clonn]

I never learned that ghost ball thing, I was always trying to aim the edge of the ball, and always failing.

[u/insaneblane]

I knew that the ball behind the line rule wasn't real but this is the first time hearing about having to call every ball you shoot. I always thought that only applied to the 8 ball. I wonder what other "house rules" aren't legit

[u/taylorhempel]

If anyone happens to be in the area, the man in the video is Mike Page and he owns Fargo Billiards & Gastropub in Fargo, ND. It's a 28,500 sq ft. facility with like 60 high quality tables. REALLY nice place!

If you're ever in the area, and are a fan of billiards, you should check it out!

http://www.fargobilliards.com/