Page 1

In this version, you have to keep the cue ball above the 1st diamond and hit one long rail (not two) on every shot. You are to use outside (running) english on each shot.

The two main objectives for your cue ball are to bring it down table far enough so as not to have too thin a cut, and to stay on the correct side of the next object ball. Don’t get too close to straight in, either, or you won’t be able to go into the rail, a requiremment.

If on any of these shot you don’t pocket the ball, start over, don’t just push the ball into the pocket and go on. Use the time while resetting the balls to think about what you did wrong, and what you should have done instead.

Did you have the wrong aim, the wrong english or the wrong cue ball speed? Or was the error actually on the previous shot which left you in the wrong position? When using running english, remember that the cue ball will speed up off the rail, so yo’ll need to hit it a little easier. Also, english causes throw which you have to compensate for or you could miss, even on a shot this close.

Finally, remember that when you hit the ball softly, it picks up forward roll quickly, so take that into consideration when deciding how much english to use. Now make the 1 Ball and go on to page 2.

Page 2

Now pot the 2 Ball using left english. Hit it just hard enough to come half way across the table for a good shot on the 3. You have to compensate in your aim to account for the english or you’ll miss the ball. If you come off the rail with the correct angle, this route to position has a large target area, if you stay on the short side. Go long and you’re toast.

Page 3

Shoot in the 3 Ball just like the other two. You must stay short of the line on the 4 to give you the same shot on it you had on the 3. Remember that english won’t affect the direction you come off the ball, just off the rail, so hit the cue ball hard enough so it doesn’t pick up much forward roll. If you don’t, it’ll go too far down table before it hits the rail and could hit the 5 ball on the way out. As an option you could hit it with just a touch of low.

Page 4

When you shoot the 4 Ball, pick a spot for the cue ball, just like you did for every other shot. Don’t let up; shoot for specific position on every shot. Depending on how far from the object ball you are, you may have ti use some low to keep from having to hit the cue ball too hard.

When you can run this variation of the drill successfully 3 times out of 5, it’s time to go on to the next variation on this theme. When you can do them all that well, it’s time to make them a little harder. or to raise your standards to 4 or even 5 out of 5.

Page 5

Now pocket the 5 ball. How hard you have to hit the cue ball will depend on how much angle you have on the 5. Too little angle and you’ll need to hit it crisply to go to the rail and back out. With a little more angle the shot will be much easier.

Page 6

Now finish up with the last ball to complete the drill. Cudos on completing another drill. This drill feels very different from the previous one because you’re hitting the ball much more softly, though for many this is the way you’re probably used to doing it.

This isn’t necessarily a better way, just a different one. You should be comfortable with each of them. That way when you have shots where this is the best approach you know the shot and have confidence in yourself. Also, by knowing the shots you’ll see them as options when you’re scanning the table making plans. The more options you have, the more likely you are to find an excellent route to run out.

Page 7 – Raising the Bar

If you find this variation too easy, or if you’ve gotten enough better to breeze through it, just keep the rules the same and add three more balls to the row.