During my learning process in pool, my instructor always taught me base shots that come up often. We would slowly work on all the variations of that shot and how to get different shape from that shot. That way, when that shot would come up in a match, I didn’t have to think about whether or not I could play shape to a certain spot from that shot—I already knew where I could get on that shot and how to get there.  The shot I’m going to explain this month is a very useful base shot that many developing players don’t think about trying. As you advance as a player though, you’ll find that this shot is used quite often in routine shape during run-outs.

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Below is a scenario that might come up during a 9-Ball match. In this layout, you have ball-in-hand and must play shape from the 2-ball to the 3-ball. Some players would like to place the cue ball in a similar place to the diagram below and take that path to the 3-ball.

But in this scenario, that path is blocked. The best shot to take in this scenario is demonstrated in the diagram below.  In order to make the cue ball travel the desired path, you must aim with top right and follow-through with enough speed to make the cue ball travel two rails to the yellow area.

If you’re unfamiliar with this shot, there are two things to focus on while learning how to shoot it: 1) how to stroke the cue ball and follow-through correctly for your spin to catch properly, and 2) where to aim on the cue ball and the object ball.

1)      One of the biggest mistakes I see when developing players try these types of shots is that they THINK they’re aiming with top right, but they actually follow-through with something closer to middle ball, so the cue ball just comes off straight  and doesn’t take the intended path.  This is usually because players that are just learning to use english are scared to aim too far away from the center of the ball. Trust yourself, trust that you have a steady stroke, and follow-through at the spot that you aim. Don’t be afraid to aim too high or too far right on the cue ball to play around with how the english will affect the cue ball. Your cue and tip are designed for these types of shots, so don’t be afraid to use them. There’s a reason your cue costs more than a regular house cue.

2)      The issue of WHERE to aim on the object ball is a little more complicated because this varies from cue to cue.  Each cue has a different amount of deflection, so you’ll have to play around with the shot to determine how much you need to change your aiming spot when using english versus when not using any english. For players that are just learning to use english, I always recommend a cue with a lower deflection shaft like a Predator (Z-2 or 314-2), Cuetec R360, Lucasi Hybrid or Poison’s Venom shaft. Some of those have more deflection than the others, but they’re all low deflection shafts so you will not have to adjust your aim quite as much as you would if you were learning to use english with a regular shaft with normal deflection.

Once you learn to execute this shot with ease, you’ll find that it’s useful for playing shape to other balls and you’ll find other useful variations of this shot.  For example, sometimes you get too straight on a ball when having to play shape to the other end of the table like the diagram below.

A variation of this shot is another shot where you’re fairly straight on a ball and need to play shape to an opposite rail, similar to the shot above.

Don’t be afraid to try different shots and make adjustments to your aim if you find that you’re missing shots. If your cue ball is not following the intended path, focus more on your stroke and your follow-through to ensure that you’re contacting the cue ball correctly. If your stroke or follow-through is not level, that’ll create problems in your shot. 

Understanding how to use english is a huge factor in progressing as a poolplayer. The pros make it look easy because they’re able to utilize the correct english to make their shots and run-outs easier. Learning to effectively use english is a process, so don’t be frustrated if it takes you awhile to get the hang of it.