Worlds Best Aiming System for Billiards

Open Preview See a Problem? Thanks for telling us about the problem. Return to Book Page. The book breaks down the essential elements of the system into an easy to understand method that can be applied immediately while playing any kind of billiards. The 3-cut system is based on geometry so it is the most reliable and accurate aiming system available.

Get this book and start pocketing balls like never before! Your friends will be amazed. Kindle Edition , 57 pages. To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up. Lists with This Book. This book is not yet featured on Listopia. Jul 15, Thomas Kavanaugh rated it it was amazing. Awesome, simple to follow diagrams! For such a short book, the author provides an incredibly easy, and simple, flow of info for aiming.

The diagrams are exact and really easy to understand! I highly recommend studying this book to gain a solid foundation in aiming knowledge Jun 22, William D. Rider rated it it was amazing. Simply assuming the reader will know, for instance, which reference point on the cue ball to use for a given shot. This book is simple, and easily understood because it is complete. The information is there for you to understand and learn. Don't pass it up. Based on the above observation I was able, via some testing to establish a pivot point adjustment key depending on the height the cue ball is struck with english.

Strangely enough it seems to work pretty well independent of distance, speed or cue offset. Though this hasn't been tested comprehensively. In most practical cases we don't need to hit higher than the 1 range. Most draw shots fit into the -1 range. So they might range from 4 to Current information suggests the Predator Z has a natural or intrinsic pivot point of between 12 and 13 inches, compared to a normal shaft which is in the 9 to 9. How does the "bisect-pivot-and-shift" or "midpoint-parallel-shift" aiming system work?

A brief summary is below, along with illustrations showing how the contact points, bisect midpoint, and cue pivot angle are related. First visualize the required cut angle for the shot as shown in "a" in the diagram below. Then visualize this same angle on the face of the object ball, as shown in "b" below. If the vertex of the angle is on the edge of the ball, and one leg of the angle goes through the center of the ball with the other leg vertical, the necessary contact point CP is where the vertical leg crosses the ball's equator. How does the "contact-point-to-contact-point" or "parallel-lines" aiming system work?

Here's a useful illustration from the article:. Visualize a line through the center of the OB in the target direction. This locates the CP red dot on the OB. Shift this line to the CB, keeping it parallel to the line in step one see the blue lines. This defines the CP on the CB. Parallel shift this line to the center of the CB. The result is the required aiming direction neglecting CIT, of course. Other parallel lines relative to edges of the ghost ball GB can also be useful in visualizing proper aiming, per the diagram below. One way to help visualize the outer GB-OB edge line is to imagine that the OB is frozen to an imaginary rail leading to the pocket.

This can help some people visualize the angle of the shot and be more effective. A good template showing how the contact point and ball overlap change with cut angle is available on the cut angle estimation resource page. The template is useful for practicing aim visualization. I first came up with Dr. Dave's Aiming Method DAM as a joke to mock some people who try to promote "aiming systems" with outrageous claims and snake-oil-salesman type statements, but I also have some serious and useful recommendations below. First, let's start with a satirical list of outrageous claims, many of which are direct quotes or paraphrases from statements posted by "aiming system" proponents on pool Internet forums over the years I have invented an amazing and new aiming system called DAM that will revolutionize pool playing all around the world.

You won't find DAM in any books, because it has just been recently invented. DAM is the best and most complete aiming system, that also contributes to correct body alignment, that has ever been devised. Most of the pros use it, especially the Filipino players DAM works on every shot, regardless of the distance between the balls, or the angle and distance to the pocket. The best thing about DAM is you don't even need to know or see where the pocket is. Just align and pivot, and the ball goes in the hole.

When a good player uses the system, it is impossible to tell That's when you know they are using DAM! Try to prove that DAM doesn't work If you can't make it work, it is either because you really don't understand it or you don't have an open mind. If you ask a pro if he or she uses DAM, and he or she says he or she doesn't, it is because he or she doesn't want you to know his or her secrets. The DAM system will radically improve the shot-making abilities of those who spend the time to learn it. DAM will eventually become the "aiming standard" and will significantly accelerate your learning curve.

There are those who will eventually learn the system, and there are those who will not, and be beaten by those who do. If you don't think DAM works, it is because you haven't had personalized lessons with somebody who truly understands it. I make almost every shot with this system Isn't that proof of how good it is? Don't you want to be as good as me?

If you want to master the DAM system, you must visit me in person and pay outrageous sums of money to learn all of the required intricacies. It only takes two days to learn DAM, and if you practice it for two months, you will start winning tournaments. If you can't make it work, it is because you don't have enough "visual intelligence," in which case you are hopeless. Don't ask me to describe the system in words or with diagrams, because this can't be done; although, I do have lots of fancy words and phrases to describe various parts of the system If you don't believe in my system or if you doubt the validity of my approach, you will be banished by all of my followers.

Probably the most amazing fact about DAM is that it works for all types of shots, not just cut shots. It also gives you the correct line of aim for combos, caroms, and banks. And you don't need to adjust for speed, sidespin, throw, or spin-transfer effects. All of the adjustment happen automatically with DAM. If you want to learn the magic of DAM, I am currently offering exclusive private lessons. I know this might sound ridiculous, but I must be clear on this matter: My students are not allowed to share with anybody anything they learn.

They are required to sign a special nondisclosure agreement that binds them for life. People are willing to openly discuss and share everything they learn from my currently-available instructional videos ; but if and when I ever release a DAM DVD, the information must not be disclosed by any viewers; otherwise, they risk exposing themselves to extreme wrath and persecution.

Now for a somewhat more serious, realistic, and useful description of what Dr. The basics of the DAM system are: If you are a good shooter and maintain focus and don't do anything wrong during the entire DAM process, you will make every shot. The key to aiming is placing the bridge hand in the exact required position so the bridge guides the cue along the necessary line of aim for the shot.

Sometimes you might need to adjust your bridge position a little as you get down and settle into your stance, because you are not likely to place your hand down perfectly every time. Good shooters can see the required angle of the shot and make the necessary fine adjustments to bring the cue with the bridge into alignment with the necessary line. Good shooters can also make adjustments where necessary for squirt, swerve, and throw based on shot distance, shot speed, cue elevation, ball and cloth conditions, bridge length, amount and type of spin, etc. Good shooters use all visual information available to them to help see the required angle of the shot and the necessary line of aim.

They might use any or all of: Regardless, a good shooter doesn't need a procedural "aiming system" to do this. For not-so-good shooters, there are drills and techniques they can use to help develop their visualization skills so they can improve their ability to "see" the shot. For more information, see " Fundamentals - Part II: Here's a video demonstration from Vol.

II of the Billiard University BU Instructional video series that illustrates useful ways to apply ghost-ball aiming accurately:. For seeing the required line of aim of a shot, I personally use a combination of straight intuition and feel just "seeing the angle" and ghost-ball aiming. I visualize the necessary CB-OB contact point to account for throw when appropriate , the necessary line-of-centers for the shot, and the entire ghost-ball. I do this before and while I am moving my bridge hand forward into my stance, maintaining focus at the OB.

How Do the top Filipino players aim? - www.newyorkethnicfood.com

I sometimes also visualize the amount of "ball overlap" between the GB and OB required during this process. This seems to help me focus better and maintain my aiming line when I'm down low in my stance. My personal keys are to aim while standing , with my vision center along the line of the shot , and have laser focus on the OB target as I drop straight down and forward into my stance.

Regardless of what I or anybody else says, the most important components for success with any aiming system are: Don't forget to actually aim while standing , and keep your eyes "quiet" during cue alignment and aim checks. Also, maintain full concentration only on stroke execution during the final stroke. During the stroke, you should not be second-guessing anything about the shot. Everything should be decided and figured out before you settle into your stance.

Double this distance by adding it to the other side of the CP. This locates the required line of aim through the center of the GB. For thinner cuts, it can be easier to visualize the smaller distance "x" from the CP to the outside edge of the OB, which is doubled to locate the inner edge of the GB relative to the CP. The contact point between the CB and OB is always in the middle of the ball-overlap area.

This is true of all cut angles, as illustrated in the cut angle template below from the cut angle estimation resource page:.

1. Studies in Scripture, vol. 3: Genesis to 2 Samuel.
2. The YOGA of POOL.
3. A Tuscan Dining Experience.
4. ... how different aiming systems are used to aim pool shots.?

Here's a document from Don Smith showing the results of sighting through the center of the CB or any other point , instead of along parallel lines. With non parallel sighting, the system doesn't work well when the CB is close to the OB see error "E" in the diagram below , but it works fine when the balls are farther apart, for all cut angles. See the document for more info and examples.

It does take a little practice estimating the distances, but you can use your cue tip to help. Jal has also done an analysis of the error with plots. Variously called "double-the-distance", "double-the-overlap", etc. It came up often in discussions of aiming systems because it's one of the few "geometrically correct" systems like ghostball.

Aiming without Aiming – How to shoot pool like a pro

They make up two triangles that appear to be congruent equal sides, equal angles. In order to be congruent the red and green triangles need to be equal. A small gray triangle represents the error. For the red and green triangles to be equal the lines drawn from the cue ball to the centers of the object ball and virtual cue ball at contact would have to be parallel which they are not. There is a small error inherent to the method. The method may be a good enough as first order approximation for distances sufficiently far from the object ball about 1 diamond or for cases where the cut angle is sufficiently small.

Note that the following diagram shows a relatively severe cut shot. The error may be sufficient to cause a missed shot due to hitting the object ball slightly too full. The significant part is in noting that as the cut becomes thinner, the error increases. If you are using double the distance here, I think some sort of correction is required. Fractional ball aiming is illustrated and described in the following video from Vol. For more info, see: The illustration below from Patrick Johnson shows the approximate cut angles for all standard ball-hit fractions.

For more information on how ball-hit-fraction is related to cut angle, see the ball-hit fraction vs. See estimating cut angles and below for other methods to visualize fractional-ball cut angles. Various aiming systems even though they are not perfect do help some people aim, concentrate, focus on the OB, stay down, and shoot better. I don't think anybody even me would say that is a bad thing. On the other hand, people should realize that fixed-point aiming systems with a limited number of aiming lines are not perfect and will cause you to miss shots if you don't compensate consciously or subconsciously.

The common fractional-ball aiming system, sometimes referred to as Hal Houle's 3-angle system. Basically, the claim is there are only three different aims for all cut shots: Also, I show an example shot "in between" two of the aim references to show a deficiency of the method.

The method provides easy visual aiming, and it helps a player establish good reference aims for different ranges of cut shots; but for "in-between" cut angles, one must adjust or compensate between the aim references. However any system that offers only a limited number of lines of aim from which to choose can be limiting if the user isn't good at adjusting for the many shots that fall between these references.

Also, any "aiming system" can offer a person benefits , especially a person that doesn't aim accurately or consistently. To use Fractions for aiming you need to get familiar with learn to visualize at the table the cut angles formed by the three common fractional overlaps: To help with that, here's a practice setup diagram of the fractional cut angles left and right for shots parallel with the short and long rails.

Like all "discrete", "fractional-ball", and similar aiming systems, it gets you in the ballpark for most shots and depends upon subconscious correction to make the fine adjustments. In other words, you have to use it as a guide, "take it on faith", and shoot the shots. For a beginner, it will get them in the ballpark and they'll accidentally pocket more balls than by winging it.

For an intermediate, they may have enough experience that they will subconsciously correct, and the system might work well for them. The expert doesn't need a system to get them in the ballpark. All discrete systems have the same failing - they are not geometrically correct for all setups. If you claim that there are only a small discrete number of aim points required to hit any pocket from any setup, and disallow the subconscious correction factor, all such systems may be easily disproven.

In practice, your ability to compensate overcomes the built-in flaws of the system. Is it a foul to hit "into" a cue ball frozen to an object ball? When the cue ball is frozen to the object ball, you are allowed to hit into the cue ball toward the frozen ball with a normal stroke. In fact there are aiming systems devised just for this type of shot. High-speed video footage clearly shows that hitting into a CB frozen to an OB, with a normal stroke, results in a non-pushing, clean hit, just like any other legal shot.

Examples can be found in HSV A. These shots might "feel" like "push" shots, but they are not. Examples of true push shots can be found on the push shot foul resource page. Now, if there is a miscue during a frozen CB shot, it could be ruled a foul if there are obviously multiple hits or if the miscue is intentional. How do you aim frozen-ball carom shots e. It is easy to practice visualization of the GB target by having a helper place a real ball in the desired GB location adjusted for throw or not and pull it away when the person shoots.

I demonstrate this technique in NV 3. Also, striped balls are useful to help the shooter visualize both the "aiming line" from the CB to the GB center and the "impact line" between the GB and OB centers. To me, that's the most useful advice in the video. Here's a video demonstration of how you can use the cue to help you aim, from Vol.

See a Problem?

And here are some additional videos and drills to help improve your ghost-ball visualization skills:. Cue's ghost-ball aiming demonstration - NV B. In the "beginner's version" of ghost-ball GB aiming, throw is not considered. In more advanced GB aiming, the GB position is the exact position the CB must be at contact with the OB adjusted for cut- or spin-induced throw that will send the OB into the heart of the desired pocket.

There are several suggested methods to help one adjust for squirt, swerve, and throw. The required GB position is affected only by throw. The path of the CB to the GB is affected by both squirt and swerve. I suspect many top players can compensate for all of this stuff mostly intuitively i. Eyeball the line between the OB and pocket to get your contact point. I mean physically walk near the OB to make this easy. Put your tip on that line exactly half a ball width behind the OB CP. It helps to physically lean over it and get a bird's eye view.

With your tip resting there, walk back around to your shot so that your cue is on a new line between the tip's resting place and the middle of the CB. Hal Houles' 3-angle system is a type of fractional-ball aiming system. There are only 3 angles for any shot, on any size table. This includes; caroms, single rail banks, double rail banks, 1, 2, 3, and 4 rail banks, and double kiss banks. It is always twice as long as it is wide. The table corners are 90 degree angles. The solution is very simple. There are only 2 edges on the cue ball to aim with, and they are always exactly in the same place on the cue ball.

There are only 3 exact spots on the object ball to aim to, and they are always exactly in the same place on the object ball. This means that, depending upon how the cue ball and object ball lie in relation to one another, you may either pocket the object ball directly into a pocket or bank it into any one of the remaining 5 pockets. Of course, the reverse is true. If the relationship of cue ball to object ball can only be a bank, so be it. There is never a need to look at a pocket or cushion while lining up the edge on the cue ball to the spot on the object ball.

Recognizing those 3 angles can be accomplished in an instant by aiming the edge of the cue ball to one of the spots on the object ball. It will be obvious which object ball spot is correct. There will be no doubt. Any time either one of the 2 edges on the cue ball is aimed at any one of the 3 spots on the object ball, that object ball must go to a pocket. Choose the correct spot and the object ball will most certainly go to the chosen pocket. The top professional players in the game have always known about this professional aiming system, but they are a closed fraternity, and you are the enemy.

Interested in where those spots are located? The 2 places on the cue ball are the left edge of the cue ball when you are cutting the object ball to the left; and the right edge of the cue ball when you are cutting the object ball to the right. It does astound me that the amount of American pool players are obsessed with aiming "systems" such as ghost ball, Centre To Edge, Pivotting the body, aiming at the reflections on the object ball, etc etc. Join Date Feb Posts vCash The CTE system has had many heated debates on American forums.

The YOGA of POOL Training Pack

I have a hard time accepting movement after you are down on the shot. I have never understood the Americans fixation with aiming systems. They consider snooker players to be the best potters, yet they seem to want to reinvent the wheel, so to speak. I always thought that shots were played by memory and to a certain extent some are.

Watching videos of profession snooker players, I think they are often aiming at a spot on the ball. In the shot preparation, they often start behind the shot line for positioning purposes? Originally Posted by Mike P.