Last issue, I briefly discussed my approach to introducing position play to beginning students. As I said then, much of their struggle to become adept at position play centered around the pressure and expectations that come with completing some of the drills that most teachers lay out for them. Many of the drills include as many as nine or even 15 balls. That’s a lot to expect from a beginning player, and the inability to complete the entire drill can be very frustrating for them.
My approach is to start with scaled-down versions of these drills. Breaking the drills into smaller, more manageable pieces allows players to succeed faster. It also helps them to gain a better understanding of the principles at play.
Here is a simple drill I give beginning players. It is very basic, but once you start, you realize that there are an almost infinite number of options available. This simple drill can last you months.
I tell the students to take the 1, 2 and 3 balls and place them randomly on the table. Starting with ball in hand, pocket the 1 ball and try to get postion for the 2 ball.
If you start with ball in hand and get out of line on the second shot, start over from the exact same position and continue shooting the 1 until you’ve mastered perfect position on the 2 ball. Act like the third ball doesn’t even exist until you’ve done that. Once mastered, continue on from the 2 ball to the 3 ball.
All we’re doing here is learning how to play position the progressive way. This will shave years off of the learning process.
Once you’ve mastered that three-ball run-out, switch the balls so that your starting position is different and start the drill again.
Of course, there are dozens of ways to get from the 1 to the 2. After a while, start shooting the 1 into a different pocket and gain position on the 2. The idea is to become a human GPS, because the route you’re most comfortable with may not always be available and you’ll have to take a detour. After you’ve mastered all that, add a ball, and so on.
