This is a good example of why I like this channel. So many other channels are US based / American tables, big pockets etc. Rail shots are very different on a British table where the object ball has to be pretty much perfect, touching the cushion all the way.
You’re gonna get me to the top of the division by next year. I’m following this focussed practice now. I just find the videos so useful. All areas of the game covered. Thank you so much. Terrific videos.
Never thought I'd work up an appetite watching a pool vid! I used to look forward to a rail shot but of late they've been giving me gyp, back to the routines! Thanks for the vid :)
@@PoolSchool they sound fine, the animations and graphics help too! i got bored of not being able to practice in the pubs so i bought a table a couple of weeks ago, supreme winner with Hainsworth smart cloth. does the job. these videos will help during lockdown lol
well explained, especially not sacrificing the pot. and most important factor is getting comfortable with cushion shots and approach them as if you are playing normal shot with the cushion not being there. also lastly is knowing how hard you can really hit a cushion ball as the harder you hit the more likely it will bounce off the rail.
I struggle with rail shots. As soon as you said about the white being smaller in UK (and in Australia here) it clicked...I'm going to practice this today. Great videos
Glad I found your channel. Most of the pool tutorials on RUclips are for American tables with pockets the size of buckets. In Australia the vast majority of tables in pubs are 7x4 and in home gamerooms 7x4 or 8x4 with snooker style pockets.I have an 8x4 that has been recently been re clothed with Strachan 6811. Shall be following you with interest.
Anthony Collyns Thanks. Yeah that’s one of the reasons I started the channel, lots of American pool videos but it’s quite a different game. Do you play with the slightly smaller cue ball in Australia too? That and the tighter pockets make a big difference.
@@PoolSchool Pub and comp tables use the 1 7/8 cue ball and 2 inch balls. I only play socially 99% on my own table and I use a 2 Inch Aramith pro cup cue ball. The problem with playing 8 ball pool in Australia is that the rules are not consistent unless you play comp. Rules change from pub to pub and state to state. Its very confusing. I prefer to play at home where the rules dont change. If you play a stranger in a pub you best agree on the rules first or there could be trouble.
@@anthonycollyns9068 Ha! It's no different in the UK. The league I play in use the World rules but lots of people who play casually in the pub still play old rules, and quite often all manner of other mixed up rules people have come across over the years! Like you say, just best to agree before you start a match with a stranger!!
Great video. There's been a bit of a debate of using running English or Top English. I think both because top spin creates forward rotation further securing the object ball on the rail. How much is needed of both will likely depend on the angle you are shooting.
I will only use side when it's absolutely necessary. Some players use it on far too many shots when there's no need too. It just makes the pots harder. Keep things as simple as possible
Great video. I enjoy all of the videos, and particularly appreciate your clear and concise manner and the graphics that you use to you describe what is happening. However, I'm old skool and and have learned a lot of my technique from Steve Davis's snooker manual from the eighties. Davis's view on 'transmitted side' is that it doesn't exist - "I just dob't see how this could happen when you've got two perfectly smooth, polished surfaces in contact with each other - especially when friction between them is absolutely minimal". I tend to agree!
Thanks for you comment Chris and glad you enjoy my videos. Spin transference is quite a contentious issue and there are many who believe it does not exist but also plenty who insist it does. It is certainly a very small amount but in my experience this is one of the occasions where it seems to work for me. This page also gives some excellent demonstrations and explanations. billiards.colostate.edu/faq/throw/spin-transfer/ I have tried the first example myself and I can play a dead straight shot with lots of right hand side and get the object ball to spin off to the left when it hits the cushion. Like i said it is a small amount but certainly there.
@@PoolSchool Thanks for your reply - seeing is believing and I'm now convinced. This video here seems to corroborate your view also - ruclips.net/video/t1cRe9nL2rk/видео.html from 1.15 onwards. Just shows, you're never too old to learn!
@@hendrixinfinity3992 It depends entirely on where you are aiming? If you are aiming exactly where the ghost ball should be then playing with cushion side side, would squirt the cue ball across meaning you would hit the ball too thick and into the cushion. If you are making this shot then you must be aiming to hit the ball thinner than the ghost ball position in the first place (probably about where both balls would be in contact with the cushion). Your cushion side side would then be correcting the contact point and hence you making the pot. There is no "correct" way of making rail shots and if you find a way that works for you then that's great. It's important to be aware of "why" your making it though and understanding how playing with side affects the line of the cue ball. *Note: This is all assuming you are playing English pool with a smaller cue ball.
Damn of course! I just realized why I could always make these shots on a Chinese 8-ball table, but couldn't make them with the same aiming on a English pool table. It's cause of the different cue ball size!
Rajie Music exactly. I often hear people say “aim to hit the cushion and cue ball at the same time” because that works when the balls are the same size. Because the cue ball is smaller on the English table you’ll always be cutting the ball away from the cushion if you do this.
I know, I’m still amazed how many times I hear people say “to pot a ball along the cushion just hit the cushion and the ball at the same time”. Just doesn’t work with the smaller cue ball.
How do you find the table ? looks like a pool/dinning does it have good bounce off rails etc: I'm looking at getting one would love some pros and cons on them pls.
I've actually sold that now and replaced it with a Supreme Winner. Yes it was pool dinning table. It played fine and the rails were good. The only issues I had with it was that it wasn't the sturdiest table and if you bashed into it a bit when reaching for a shot you would get a bit of movement in the table. The other issue was more to do with construction. Because it has a shallow cabinet to allow you to put chairs underneath, the inner supports for the slate weren't great. They were mdf pieces put in horizontally so sagged under the weight of the slate, I had to make some adjustments myself and create some vertical supports to help keep the slate supported properly. Obviously different models vary but generally it was a pretty good table other than those slight niggles.
Not really as the smaller cue ball is used pretty much everywhere, in pubs, clubs and competitions. Because it behaves differently than a cue ball of the same size (like in snooker and American pool) you need to get used to the subtle differences.
Hi mate found this vid very helpful went strait after and spent 2 hour in a nearby pool hall as I'm away from home. What pool cue are you using? I’ve got one end of my table where my standard cues are just 6" too long so always have to elevate more than is comfortable. And I can see you just unscrewing the last bit of the cue butt. Which would suit my situation to a tee. Cheers
I have a 3/4 jointed cue. It's a "Taylor Made" cue from a guy called Gary Taylor in Basildon. I think he does sell them on Amazon now but I'd always recommend trying out a cue in store before buying if you can. It's a little too short to play with normally when you take the end off, but useful in small spaces. My cue is about 58 inches long I think but I also have my kids cues which are still quite decent and around 50 inches which are also really handy if things are tight.
I was getting to the point of realisation that you just can’t pot these shots hard. Trying many times to play them with screwback and rattling the pocket. Thanks for confirming my thoughts, gotta give up position a little to make the shot. Even medium pace becomes very risky
I noticed that you generally have quite a short distance between your bridge hand and the cue ball. However, it appears that the ideal distance should be longer and is favoured by most professionals. I also naturally favour the shorter distance and have been unable to increase the distance so that I have to play more shots with my bridge hand on the rail as it doesn’t feel that I am cueing as true/straight. I know it hinders some shots particularly in terms of imparting spin but not really power as I rarely need that much compared to snooker where the distances are obviously much greater. I just wondered what you think? PS no criticism intended: you are an astonishing good player!
Thanks, and no criticism taken. You're right I do play with a relatively short distance between my bridge hand and cue ball, although I do vary this considerably depending on the shot I'm playing. One of the reasons is purely down to the space available on a British pool table as compared to a snooker table. Often when things are clustered together it is difficult to have the room to have your hand a long way back. However there are also technical reasons involved. As you touched on, straight cueing is by far the most important aspect of the game. The further your bridge hand is from the cue ball, the harder it is to keep the cue straight as you push it through. Also it can actually be easier to generate more spin when your bridge hand is closer. Because you are closer it means you can push the cue through further, and it is this follow through on the shot that really helps when playing with top or screw back. Like you say, having a greater distance between the bridge hand and cue ball allows you to generate more power. This is because you have more cue to draw back and therefore have a bigger back swing. However in the game of British 8 ball you rarely need lots of power because of the size of the balls and table. Things are obviously different in snooker or American pool. The one shot where I do have a far greater distance is the break, purely because I'm trying to generate more power.
I'm not sure that works? If you use check side then the spin you transfer to the object ball will pull it away from the pocket when you hit the far jaw.
I'm no pro but this guys is a pretty well respected snooker coach and he advocates playing the shot with running side ruclips.net/video/q9AN8SyWynM/видео.html I know in snooker the balls are the same size but the spin principle is the same for both.
I love Barry Starks videos, except personally i have had more success playing the opposite of what he suggests... This is on a pool table and not snooker. I dont know why if im honest. In my head playing right hand side makes the cue ball spin counter clockwise and after contact the object ball will spin clockwise and hug the cushion.... i dont play the shot to bounce in off the jaw, i play to hug the rail and drop in that way...lll have a practice this way and let you know the results. Would love to hear your opinion on my method too. Many thanksSamuel
hxduck I play exactly the same way as you down the rail as my thought process is the same as you explained and I find that 90% of the time the object ball hugs the rail and goes in, I am not saying our way is right as the pro’s are saying completely the opposite in the way of putting spin on the ball but for some reason it’s working.
No, not at all. Rail shots can be tricky because you need to accept that the ball will hit the jaw, but if you play them at the right pace they're certainly not impossible.
This is a good example of why I like this channel. So many other channels are US based / American tables, big pockets etc. Rail shots are very different on a British table where the object ball has to be pretty much perfect, touching the cushion all the way.
You’re gonna get me to the top of the division by next year. I’m following this focussed practice now. I just find the videos so useful. All areas of the game covered. Thank you so much. Terrific videos.
Thank you. Keep up the practice and glad the videos help.
Never thought I'd work up an appetite watching a pool vid!
I used to look forward to a rail shot but of late they've been giving me gyp, back to the routines! Thanks for the vid :)
Finally someone who can deliver great tutorials for 8 ball who doesn't bore the hell out of me. well done dude. love it and subscribed
Cheers. My other half still thinks I sound boring on the videos, but then they’re not for her!
@@PoolSchool they sound fine, the animations and graphics help too! i got bored of not being able to practice in the pubs so i bought a table a couple of weeks ago, supreme winner with Hainsworth smart cloth. does the job. these videos will help during lockdown lol
Yeah I’d have gone nuts without mine at home.
well explained, especially not sacrificing the pot. and most important factor is getting comfortable with cushion shots and approach them as if you are playing normal shot with the cushion not being there. also lastly is knowing how hard you can really hit a cushion ball as the harder you hit the more likely it will bounce off the rail.
Thank you
I struggle with rail shots. As soon as you said about the white being smaller in UK (and in Australia here) it clicked...I'm going to practice this today. Great videos
Glad I found your channel. Most of the pool tutorials on RUclips are for American tables with pockets the size of buckets. In Australia the vast majority of tables in pubs are 7x4 and in home gamerooms 7x4 or 8x4 with snooker style pockets.I have an 8x4 that has been recently been re clothed with Strachan 6811. Shall be following you with interest.
Anthony Collyns Thanks. Yeah that’s one of the reasons I started the channel, lots of American pool videos but it’s quite a different game. Do you play with the slightly smaller cue ball in Australia too? That and the tighter pockets make a big difference.
@@PoolSchool Pub and comp tables use the 1 7/8 cue ball and 2 inch balls. I only play socially 99% on my own table and I use a 2 Inch Aramith pro cup cue ball.
The problem with playing 8 ball pool in Australia is that the rules are not consistent unless you play comp.
Rules change from pub to pub and state to state. Its very confusing. I prefer to play at home where the rules dont change. If you play a stranger in a pub you best agree on the rules first or there could be trouble.
@@anthonycollyns9068 Ha! It's no different in the UK. The league I play in use the World rules but lots of people who play casually in the pub still play old rules, and quite often all manner of other mixed up rules people have come across over the years! Like you say, just best to agree before you start a match with a stranger!!
@@PoolSchool I'm coming to the UK in October.
I'm coming over to the UK in October whereabouts are you based maybe we can catch up for a game.
Great video. There's been a bit of a debate of using running English or Top English. I think both because top spin creates forward rotation further securing the object ball on the rail. How much is needed of both will likely depend on the angle you are shooting.
Thanks for this video. Well done.
Nice tutorial, thanks!
I will only use side when it's absolutely necessary. Some players use it on far too many shots when there's no need too. It just makes the pots harder. Keep things as simple as possible
Exactly, I agree completely.
Great video. I enjoy all of the videos, and particularly appreciate your clear and concise manner and the graphics that you use to you describe what is happening. However, I'm old skool and and have learned a lot of my technique from Steve Davis's snooker manual from the eighties. Davis's view on 'transmitted side' is that it doesn't exist - "I just dob't see how this could happen when you've got two perfectly smooth, polished surfaces in contact with each other - especially when friction between them is absolutely minimal". I tend to agree!
Thanks for you comment Chris and glad you enjoy my videos. Spin transference is quite a contentious issue and there are many who believe it does not exist but also plenty who insist it does. It is certainly a very small amount but in my experience this is one of the occasions where it seems to work for me. This page also gives some excellent demonstrations and explanations. billiards.colostate.edu/faq/throw/spin-transfer/ I have tried the first example myself and I can play a dead straight shot with lots of right hand side and get the object ball to spin off to the left when it hits the cushion. Like i said it is a small amount but certainly there.
@@PoolSchool Thanks for your reply - seeing is believing and I'm now convinced. This video here seems to corroborate your view also - ruclips.net/video/t1cRe9nL2rk/видео.html from 1.15 onwards. Just shows, you're never too old to learn!
@@PoolSchool I've been absolutely nailing rail shots doing the opposite. Side spin on the cushion side. Don't know what that means
@@hendrixinfinity3992 It depends entirely on where you are aiming? If you are aiming exactly where the ghost ball should be then playing with cushion side side, would squirt the cue ball across meaning you would hit the ball too thick and into the cushion. If you are making this shot then you must be aiming to hit the ball thinner than the ghost ball position in the first place (probably about where both balls would be in contact with the cushion). Your cushion side side would then be correcting the contact point and hence you making the pot. There is no "correct" way of making rail shots and if you find a way that works for you then that's great. It's important to be aware of "why" your making it though and understanding how playing with side affects the line of the cue ball.
*Note: This is all assuming you are playing English pool with a smaller cue ball.
Sausages and pool, what a beautiful day to enjoy.
Plz keep on making tutorials
Great tutorial. Easily explained and very informative. What were the sausages like?
John Paul Clarkson Ha! Yeah very tasty! Cheers for the comment.
I always thought that you had to put the opposite side of spin on than you do in this video. 🤯
Very helpful
Admire your drills & I guess my game will improve since gonna apply these tutorials
Damn of course! I just realized why I could always make these shots on a Chinese 8-ball table, but couldn't make them with the same aiming on a English pool table. It's cause of the different cue ball size!
Rajie Music exactly. I often hear people say “aim to hit the cushion and cue ball at the same time” because that works when the balls are the same size. Because the cue ball is smaller on the English table you’ll always be cutting the ball away from the cushion if you do this.
@@PoolSchool AND THE POCKET ARE DIFFERENT AMERICA OR 8BALL TABLE ITS EASY TO MAKE THOSE SHOT BUT IN ENGLISH TABLE MAN
It's amazing how many half descent local league players have never noticed that the cue ball is smaller than the colours.
I know, I’m still amazed how many times I hear people say “to pot a ball along the cushion just hit the cushion and the ball at the same time”. Just doesn’t work with the smaller cue ball.
Love the edit and pacing! Great Videos!
How do you find the table ? looks like a pool/dinning does it have good bounce off rails etc: I'm looking at getting one would love some pros and cons on them pls.
I've actually sold that now and replaced it with a Supreme Winner. Yes it was pool dinning table. It played fine and the rails were good. The only issues I had with it was that it wasn't the sturdiest table and if you bashed into it a bit when reaching for a shot you would get a bit of movement in the table. The other issue was more to do with construction. Because it has a shallow cabinet to allow you to put chairs underneath, the inner supports for the slate weren't great. They were mdf pieces put in horizontally so sagged under the weight of the slate, I had to make some adjustments myself and create some vertical supports to help keep the slate supported properly. Obviously different models vary but generally it was a pretty good table other than those slight niggles.
@@PoolSchool Thx for reply
re the small cue ball issue, is it worth getting a 2" cue ball?
Not really as the smaller cue ball is used pretty much everywhere, in pubs, clubs and competitions. Because it behaves differently than a cue ball of the same size (like in snooker and American pool) you need to get used to the subtle differences.
Hi mate found this vid very helpful went strait after and spent 2 hour in a nearby pool hall as I'm away from home. What pool cue are you using? I’ve got one end of my table where my standard cues are just 6" too long so always have to elevate more than is comfortable. And I can see you just unscrewing the last bit of the cue butt. Which would suit my situation to a tee. Cheers
I have a 3/4 jointed cue. It's a "Taylor Made" cue from a guy called Gary Taylor in Basildon. I think he does sell them on Amazon now but I'd always recommend trying out a cue in store before buying if you can. It's a little too short to play with normally when you take the end off, but useful in small spaces. My cue is about 58 inches long I think but I also have my kids cues which are still quite decent and around 50 inches which are also really handy if things are tight.
Pool School, thanks for getting back to me. I'll be looking into it for sure. Thanks for the info and keep up the great tutorials
Good information like the drll
Could I use only top spin instead of side spin? (I saw it in other video.)
I’ve not heard of that before and not entirely sure what the top spin would achieve? Did the video explain the theory behind it?
Awesome video
Stjohn Peters Thank you
I was getting to the point of realisation that you just can’t pot these shots hard. Trying many times to play them with screwback and rattling the pocket. Thanks for confirming my thoughts, gotta give up position a little to make the shot. Even medium pace becomes very risky
I noticed that you generally have quite a short distance between your bridge hand and the cue ball. However, it appears that the ideal distance should be longer and is favoured by most professionals. I also naturally favour the shorter distance and have been unable to increase the distance so that I have to play more shots with my bridge hand on the rail as it doesn’t feel that I am cueing as true/straight. I know it hinders some shots particularly in terms of imparting spin but not really power as I rarely need that much compared to snooker where the distances are obviously much greater. I just wondered what you think? PS no criticism intended: you are an astonishing good player!
Thanks, and no criticism taken. You're right I do play with a relatively short distance between my bridge hand and cue ball, although I do vary this considerably depending on the shot I'm playing. One of the reasons is purely down to the space available on a British pool table as compared to a snooker table. Often when things are clustered together it is difficult to have the room to have your hand a long way back. However there are also technical reasons involved. As you touched on, straight cueing is by far the most important aspect of the game. The further your bridge hand is from the cue ball, the harder it is to keep the cue straight as you push it through. Also it can actually be easier to generate more spin when your bridge hand is closer. Because you are closer it means you can push the cue through further, and it is this follow through on the shot that really helps when playing with top or screw back. Like you say, having a greater distance between the bridge hand and cue ball allows you to generate more power. This is because you have more cue to draw back and therefore have a bigger back swing. However in the game of British 8 ball you rarely need lots of power because of the size of the balls and table. Things are obviously different in snooker or American pool. The one shot where I do have a far greater distance is the break, purely because I'm trying to generate more power.
Your just tired man🤣🤣🤣yawning 😂nice vid thou
I practice for about 4 hours a day Every day on my own pub Supreme table and will be on this tomorrow 👍
I use check side not running side, if cutting left i use right side. If cutting right i use left side...
I'm not sure that works? If you use check side then the spin you transfer to the object ball will pull it away from the pocket when you hit the far jaw.
I'm no pro but this guys is a pretty well respected snooker coach and he advocates playing the shot with running side ruclips.net/video/q9AN8SyWynM/видео.html I know in snooker the balls are the same size but the spin principle is the same for both.
I love Barry Starks videos, except personally i have had more success playing the opposite of what he suggests... This is on a pool table and not snooker. I dont know why if im honest. In my head playing right hand side makes the cue ball spin counter clockwise and after contact the object ball will spin clockwise and hug the cushion.... i dont play the shot to bounce in off the jaw, i play to hug the rail and drop in that way...lll have a practice this way and let you know the results. Would love to hear your opinion on my method too. Many thanksSamuel
hxduck I play exactly the same way as you down the rail as my thought process is the same as you explained and I find that 90% of the time the object ball hugs the rail and goes in, I am not saying our way is right as the pro’s are saying completely the opposite in the way of putting spin on the ball but for some reason it’s working.
That's what I thought, the object ball would get the opposite side effect to what the cueball has.
So, basically impossible without a decent angle?
No, not at all. Rail shots can be tricky because you need to accept that the ball will hit the jaw, but if you play them at the right pace they're certainly not impossible.
Pool Brazilian > All
Didn’t realize Peter Ebdon played pool
Haha! I've been called Max Branning before but not Peter Ebdon!