How to Get the Cueball on a String when playing 8 Ball Pool.
Playing Pool is much easier when you know the fundamentals such as where to hit the white ball to get it to land in perfect position for your next shot.
Of those players that do know which points to strike the white ball, very few understand that the way in which you deliver the cue and make contact with the cueball also matters! There are many variables but in this post I am going to explain the most important things you need to know to start seeing a dramatic increase in your 8 Ball ability.
There are 3 things you can make the cueball do after you it strikes your object ball (the ball you’re aiming for), these are Stun, Screw and Follow.
A Stun shot essential makes the white ball stop upon contact with your object ball and is therefore also known as a “stop-shot”. Stun shots require a punchy delivery and in 8-ball pool the cueball needs to be struck just below the centre as shown below.
The further the distance between the 2 balls is, the lower you’ll need to strike. Alternatively, you could just add more force — or in some cases you may even need to apply both for the desired outcome. The closer the cue ball and object ball are together, the less force needed and you can aim slightly higher on the white ball too.
Next up we have the Screw Shot in which the white ball spins backwards like a boomerang once it has contacted it’s object ball. Here is a diagram that explains where to hit the cueball for maximum screwback effect. Don’t be scarred to go too low!
Finally, we will take a look at the Follow shot. The Follow shot is when the cueball “Follows” the path of the object ball immediately after contact. Let’s take a look at how we deliver the perfect Follow shot in 8Ball pool.
All of the above examples are assuming that the angle of the shots is straight. If the shots are cut-shots then the cueball will deviate accordingly upon deflection.
For a slightly more comprehensive read on this, with more diagrams visit this blog post.
Hope you enjoyed this read and it helps you become a winner in your local club!
