The Real Problem With Snooker 

This is a really good focus on a problem i find often! Very well writen video. Keep up the good work mate 👌

Hello from New Jersey! Love your stuff, great video! 👍🏼

Great video. Love the conscious vs unconscious idea, and thinking about it I usually find it helps to count to three before each shot when I'm struggling because it makes me play the shot consciously and stops me relying on the instincts that are leading me astray

Awesome video! I have watch your videos for a few months now, and this is the video that has earned me to subscribe to your channel. Keep it up!

I really like watching your videos and love listening to your tips Love from cape town south africa

Great video work and your breakdown of snooker points is class!

Another good video ! Looking forward to more. Watching from Hobart Tasmania

You put a lot of work into these videos, more than meets the eye. I always watch the whole video. Hope you have an understanding partner!!

Hello from Newcastle, Australia. Your videos are superb and always a joy to watch

good work as always! thank you for explaining everything that well.. :)

Same with darts. If I am having a crap practice I just stop and come back later. It's all in the heas

Really enjoy your videos, learning a lot, not had much practice lately but to keep match fit I've joined a billiards league, entering as a learning curve. I agree with this video, when I'm potting them off the lampshade the game looks easy (and my positional play improves) but when I'm rattling them then my game deteriorates rapidly (and this can happen during a match). I find trying to enjoy the fact I'm playing even when badly as this helps when the bad play creeps in and does not ratchet out of control. Anthony from Lowestoft

That was a great and efective video. That is my biggest problem in snooker.

Love you sir I watch your videos and improve my game Thank you

I found this video more interesting than any other, simply because this is something I noticed throughout my (20 year) playing career. Every summer I’d take some weeks out, come back, and first practice session play REALLY well. Then either later in the same session, or by session 2, I’d start to find things really difficult, and to get back to the initial form would always take several weeks hard work. I then have had ten years without picking up a cue more than a few times (with years gap). Bought a house with a table a few weeks ago, and found my cue. Put a new tip on, as the one on had gone like rock - so no play for year, new table, new tip. 21,38,58 clearance first rack! And then it went really downhill! I think it must all be in our heads. Nik(Castleford)

Hi Break from Life Phil from Sydney Australia here love your channel and admire the effort you go to to produce these videos keep it up! I have my own 12 ft table in my garage/man cave and have managed to greatly improve my game in watching yours and others tutorials on RU-vid not to mention copious amounts of practice! I would like to install a camera and record some of my antics not just for fun but as a way to spot technical issues while analysing my game. Problem is the budget is not huge and there are lot's of options. Your videos are of decent quality and I just wondered if you wouldn't mind sharing what camera you use and also how you capture (record) the footage do you use a hard drive on computer of dedicated HDD recorder? Hope you don't mind pulling back the curtain!

great snooking to you from Denver, Colorado, USA

Yeah, this is definitely also a thing in other sports as well. I play a lot of cricket too, and there's often no obvious difference between days that I'm batting well and days that I'm batting horribly, but on the latter it just feels so much harder and then I mentally convince myself that it is harder, and by that point I've probably managed to get out anyway and ended my misery. I also often bat better when I'm a bit ill or injured but that's a whole other matter. At least when I play snooker it pretty much always feels incredibly hard, but I do sometimes just find that I can get down on a shot - even a difficult long pot occasionally - and just feel completely comfortable knocking it in (not often on consecutive shots though)

Hello from Germany To be aware of all these things makes me more confident while playing, thanks for the input :)

Great content, thank you

Hello, first comment on here. So would love to say how much I like your videos and you cram so much info for all levels, keep up the good work... I would think that this 'snooker problem' is only really noticed when practicing or when you are behind in a match I've found. It must have something to do with the fact you become aware of things once you've noticed it. Hard to explain what I mean, but it's like when you hear a song you like, but then notice it more and more, you become aware of it. So if you start missing balls or feel like your not cueing right you become aware or it more and more. This is magnified when behind in a match. Only a thought, thanks Billy newton, coalville Leicestershire ;)

Hey - love the channel - as I was watching you introduce the topic I was surprised when you suggested it's unique to snooker because I was actively thinking "just like golf." Perhaps it's contained to games played on green surfaces? In actuality, I suspect it has a lot to do with turn-based single-player competition. They're also both sports very impacted by mind-set and a focus, more than perhaps "reaction" based team sports like hockey or football. The physical act of playing both games is regulated by having your mind properly centred on the task. I have no solution to the problem - do they have "the yips" in snooker? I certainly feel them sometimes looking back on some missed shots late in a game, much like those frustrating mid-length putts late in the round. Thanks again - Jordan (in Vancouver)

So true! I've always had that back and forth with my games and i hope your theories help me improve. This is pratik from India 🇮🇳 thank you

Great video but an important question: Are you left eye dominant? Am I seeing things properly that you have your left eye over the cue? Cheers.

I never knew why and how to fix it! Now i know, thank you! Greetings from Zagreb, Croatia ;)

Really love your Videos...A few Months ago i am not Able to Pot More than 2 Balls...But After Your Perfect Tutorials , i can Break more than 40 ...i Hope In Next A fews Months i might be able to Break more than 100 😍😍love from Pakistan ❤❤

Finally a video that explains a struggle for me, the right way. Thanks. Tomer from Kfar Saba, Israel

Fairplay man nice video love from ireland

Hi and greeting from Halifax, Yorkshire. Have an idea for a challenge. Taking some difficult situations from profesional games (like from Crucible) and trying to overcome them. What would you do in this situations?

First of all, great content! Although, I strongly believe that all of it is just in our heads. My snooker coach used to make me take fairly simple shots without imagining what I wanted the cue ball to do and I missed 9/10 pots but then he asked me to take a second, bring my mind down to the table and focus so hard that you stop seeing the cue ball. Since then the game has gotten a lot more forgiving. I mean it's the same table, same balls, same cue stick (if you have a personal one xD) none of these change, we do. We are something this minute and something else next minute, so as long as we don't find consistency in thinking, consistency in the game will be a far fetched dream.

Another top tutorial! 👍

Great video, and funny as always. Just one thing, it's AFFECT and not EFFECT....Keep 'em coming. Very entertaining...

Really fascinating!

I've yet to play snooker but play pool everyday and experience the same phenomenon occasional. To me, the stance theory and all that about expectations seems likely. Thanks for the explanations.

Great video man, but don't you think there's almoust the same problem with golf? for example Tiger Woods mabey, i see a lot of similairities here.

Keep up the great work.... Love from India..... Cheers. 👍

Great video. Ben from Christchurch New Zealand

Nice video! I have always been of the opinion that if I'm shooting poorly and the games don't matter, then stop practicing bad habits. Take a break, quaff back a favourite bevy, then try again. If I'm still shooting poorly, hang up the cue until tomorrow.

This is one of the best Analysis of Practical difficulty of a snooker player...I really appreciate your efforts bro...udaykumar from chennai(India)

Hey, I’m Jack from North Wales and go to uni in Cambridge. I’ve recently got into snooker over the last year and I find your videos really interesting and informative. I get some of the issues that you describe in this video, namely inconsistency. Your videos are great for explaining all of this!

Yeah I think part of it is the war that goes on constantly between instinct and rules. Instincts can be superior to rules, but they are inconsistent because they are based on how we feel, which can change randomely. Rules are very consistent, but they can be flawed, since every rule is a simplification of perfection.

Hi there, I am just a total newbie who's been starting out for around 3 months. Just absolutely wanna let you know your videos helped me a lot a lot a lot! Cheers from Hong Kong! Got one question though which I couldn't find answers anywhere on the internet: Regarding the stance, which foot do I put my weight on? I am right-handed and been playing with all my weight put on my right leg. I believe Shaun Murphy said it should normally be your left leg instead. What's your view on this? Cheers again! AWESOME videos :)

Hi, very interesting video. Greetings from Transylvania.

I’m looking to buy a snooker cue, I have pool cues but I’ve never bought a snooker cue. Do have a suggestion for an affordable but reliable starters cue

love your content! watching from nottingham uk. you reds! hahaha

Love your videos sir. Love from India

I really like your videos and the way you break down the game. You have probably been asked this before but have you ever considered turning pro? Keep up with the videos we all appreciate.

I'm always frustrated when I cannot pot anything lol, great video anyway Kong form Bangkok, Thailand

Great Video! At 6:00 you ask "Do your eyes see the game differently day to day?" What about sight changing "moment to moment?" and "shot to shot" and "circumstance to circumstance?" This strikes me as a more significant issue than "sight changing from day to day...." So, 4 years after making this vid', do you have any further evolved opinions on this subject? I'm more than curious!

It most certainly does effect other sports, mate. I'm the same with golf, rugby, darts, cricket (batting), goalkeeping, etc. Golf especially. I play at least three times a week, and i play off of a 12 handicap. Some days i can play a round and come in 3 or 4 under par, and then play the same course a day or two later and come in 8 - 10 over par. My batting average for cricket is 31-odd. I've had days when i can stay at the crease for the whole day; and hit 80. Then I'll have days when I'm out for a duck, or for single figures. Darts is the same. For me it's about confidence. If i hit a treble 20 with my first dart, or if i hit a golf ball 300 yards on my first drive, or hit a lusty shot out of the middle of the bat whilst playing cricket, it gives me confidence, and i feel good, which i think helps me to concentrate. The opposite is true if i hit a 12 with my first dart, or if i slice my first drive in golf, or miss/edge my first ball in cricket. Sports is all in the head. If you feel good, your game will follow.

I subconsciously subscribed to this channel.

I've just taken up snooker again after a 40 year break. I'm having to re-learn everything. I've been a decent clay shooter for 30 years and it's also a thing in that sport. One day everything feels right, and you feel that you can hit everything, another day it's a real struggle. Snooker has so many ways to go wrong...

I thought about this before and I think when someone does not play snooker for a while he got more confidence because he ( or she ) doesn't think a lot before playing the shots because as you said the expectation is low .. that's why sometime when I play bad 4 days In a row i take 2 days break and then when i come back i play my best games .. i try this all the time and its works .. Hasan from Bahrain cheers

Hello From Estonia!

Hello, the same problem certainly exists in golf. Also I am reading a book at the moment about how the quantity and quality of sleep affects a persons performance (and health). It turns out it affects it quite dramatically. So this may be something that contributes to the problem without being realised as such.

Hello from morocoo love your video

Hello there 👋. I’m joining them great channel from Guildford in Surrey

I am Marcel from South Africa and i would like to see a 147 break from you .with a headcam.

Three cushion billiards can be a nightmare. Some days you’re hitting everything correctly, other days you play embarrassingly incompetently. It’s a mental spiral, playing poorly in the beginning of a session usually means that you will play poorly throughout the session. I have noticed something interesting: some days I will challenge someone to a game without any warm up on my part and for the first one or two games I am on fire, and then on games three, four, and five I am terrible. I have figured this out: early in the session I haven’t missed Enough shots for it to affect my mentality. So I play well.

The difference of a 16th on an inch can mean making or not making a shot...be it potting, setting up a snooker, escaping from a snooker, etc. It can go either way. When we don’t make the shot, the odds are like flipping a coin...they return to 50/50. It’s easy to flip 3 coins in a row and get heads each time. My theory is we assume something is ‘off’ when it’s not...the shots might have been successful and all went as planned except for a minutia of one variable.. BUT, wrongly, ...we adjust something instead of keep shooting in a natural way. The reality was there was no need to adjust anything. We aren’t adjusting in a better way. We can get better though practice...but not better by adjusting ‘In the frame’ for the sake of doing something. It’s best to make changes in practice...not in a game. Don’t overthink stance, the speed of the cloth, the chalk, etc. unless you are a pro and actually ‘know’ they are an issue and not just ‘guessing’.

There is a change in the eyes throughout the day Blood sugar levels have a direct effect on your vision Love your videos from polo mo

Hello from Port Macquarie, NSW Australia :D

I personally believe that the problem lies at the time we are positioning to take the shot and then make slight deviations in angle to play it. That could be another theory. Overall good video. Love from India

So what do you believe is the main cause or can it be all of them just at different times? For me it is

I think is more about confidence. If you think on every shot that you re going to pot the ball and think about the technique before the shot you will break from the bad play. And yes. The expectations are the main reason.

Yay! Second comment on this video! Love your channel! If you like this I will get a heart attack. Keep up the good work

Gday from Perth, Australia

The main problem is people not being in the 'now' moment yes expectations and too much, mis match in thoughts and concentration causes this. Ronnie has mentioned in talk in Sheffield that he knows when he's not automatically flowing well he's got to grind and really concentrate in gear 1&2 and then when he's flowing well he's got gear 3,4,5,6 i.e subconsciously. When Judd Trump demolished Higgins 8-1 in session 3 of the world final. Analysis from Hazel and Davis noted no expectations and just being in the present moment. Judd too said in the commentary afterwards that he wasn't thinking ahead.

Snooker/pool are not equal offense games in fact the goal is to never give your opposition a shot. Very much momentum games. Then there is regression to the mean. Take a shot you believe you can make 8 out 10. Test your self 10 times(100 shots) take your mean and see if can improve. You will find it very hard to move your score will regress back to the mean. The real problem is that one time 60 break is a good day and you forget you only average 35 assuming you know. Great stuff thanks

one day i can hit a 16 (still practicing!) break, next day i cant hit anything. always giving 20 or 30 points in fouls.

I'm a semi-professional musician and the thing about subconscious playing seems to be the same in music. We all know and experienced how you can sing along to a tune easily until you think about the lyrics and really think about what you're supposed to sing and play. Then you suddenly know nothing about the song anymore... I guess when it comes to playing music or playing snooker the same applies: Playing is not equal to practicing. The former being unconsciously, the latter being consciously. Playing gets you feel, but practicing gets you the understanding that you need to play under stress, be it a live performance in music or snooker, or be it simply the mindset "Yesterday I played a century. So now I must do it again.".

I think I have a theory of my own. What about the table condition? the lighting, the felt's speed, the bounce off the cushions are slightly different on every table. Moreover, any table tends to behave differently depending on many factors such as the weather

I think the answer is: 1. As humans we are not robots, we cannot perfectly repeat a movement with greater than millimetre accuracy time after time. A poor nights sleep or eating slightly less food or your immune system having to fight bacteria all play a role in the amount of energy your brain has at any given time plus a million more factors. There will always be errors in accuracy with human beings due to them not being made of metal and having laser like accuracy. 2. Luck does not exist. There are many sayings and theories that world class players have ice in their veins and can make shots at critical moments under pressure that are better than normal. In basketball people always claim some players can make a winning shot every time, or in golf a winning putt. When you look at the numbers that is simply not the case. Basketball players shooting accuracy is exactly the same in the first quarter as it is in the last quarter, the only difference is the best shooter get passed the ball more so take more shots at the end of a game giving the illusion they make a higher percentage of shots which isnt true. You can have a bad day of snooker and a good day and a great day and then a terrible day but your average is always staying roughly the same. With practice this average improves, but you are always just bouncing around the average.

Most probably when u Overthink in pressure and your conscious mind takes over there are more chances u neglect the most basic things in any sport... That's the main reason... And then we try and find different reasons for ones failure

Hello from Mablethorpe, England

Another thing is if you play at different club the lighting is different. I have experience where at one club I pot better just simply bcz it is light is brighter and the cushion is greeener

Always wondered why I was inconsistent. This could be one of the reasons. Watching from Namibia.

Last night i mustve had like 20 in offs white swerves its way through anything plop...arrgghhh lol 👍🏼👍🏼

Nice vid. When I started playing I was focusing more on each balls position as the contact point it has to the baize. Until I realized that they make contact (or should) on a invisible plane half a ball size above the baize. This creates the effect of "parallax error". I also noticed that my eyes are not parallel to the baize either all the time. By that I mean that the line going through both eyes should always be parallel to the baize, otherwise the viewing angle is different and therefore my aim is wrong, too.

Hi from Jersey CI!

Mason, Hunter, Lance, Jake from Pittsburgh from the FR Snooker Club in the USA

I used to play a lot of driving sims, really seemed that somedays just were easier to get fast than others... Energy levels are really imortant, as in billiards I would say too...

Not finished it but surely its just regression to the mean. As in if u have a good day today, it is more likely you will play worse tomorrow as it is closer to how to play on average

You are great player

Have you ever heard of “ Zen In The Art Of Archery “ By Eugen Herrigel ? If not, Read It ASAP. I think you’ll find it immensely valuable and encouraging. I’ve been playing American Pool 40 yrs and was introduced to the book 33(?) yrs ago n have read it at least 20 times. Hope that helps.

it does affect every other sport

Hello from Goa, India 😇

I find the mental game is as interesting to watch as the technical aspects of stance and touch.

I find this with pool, some days I feel like i can't get anything right, other days i'm potting everything i poke a stick at

Hello from Malaysia 🇲🇾

I think it's general fatigue of concentration and trying to redo what you've done before, rather than concentrating on job in hand. I have the same problem, and not just in snooker.

Just a question what's your name? And what's your best break

Hello from Sari, Iran.

Snooker is such wired game. When I’m playing well, my shots are much more softer and accurate but god forbid if I miss an easy pot then all of sudden every thing goes downhill; Cue action, aiming, lining, shots, even before taking a shot I doubt about my aiming if I’m aiming correctly.

For me I can be playing well and then one lazy mistake and it all just falls apart

I think it’s just the nature of the game. The stance, cue action and aiming has to be so precise all the time that even the best of us can’t be completely consistent. For those of us not at that level it just shows more frequently

Does anyone know the penguin practise? It helped me to align my arm straight to my shooting line. Now my stance and potting ability got more consistent

Also! Are you entering Cue School this year, Or is making these vid's far more fun, and i guess more lucrative, than joining the Pro Tour?

A coin has no memory so the odds don’t increase of you throwing a head if you have just thrown a tail. Snooker balls also don’t have a memory or a personality: if they are going against you, it’s because you are doing something wrong or something has changed: You don’t have a right to pot the next ball just because you potted the last ball. Equally, there is no reason you should miss the next ball because you missed the last one. The key to snooker is to not take a miss or a pot personally: Both can be for a variety of reasons some of which are out of your control. You have to wipe your mind of the last shot and approach the table as though you have never been there before. Easier said than done but this is how you avoid getting into a negative feedback loop that will see you confidence descend on a downward spiral if things go wrong or even worse a positive feedback loop which gives you the impression you will never miss again. Snooker is a confidence game. The ups and downs are you enemy.

In the modern game there is the side issue of the balls that are used now and the sheer number of bad contacts and kicks that are ever present in every frame played. The modern phenolic resin balls are a softer material than the old super crystalates they replaced, therefore they can't be be so highly polished, therefore there is more friction between the balls on contact, therefore there are more prolonged contacts and the object ball or cue ball or both will take a different path than what the contact should dictate. Players of my generation are aware of the difference, younger players aren't and many believe they simply missed a ball when there isn't the tell tale jump of the ball/s on a definite kick, but a poor contact will lead to a miss or loss of position and while a ball will not jump off the cloth the sound on contact is slightly different and generally the pot is missed thick. Me and my mate practise together with my own set of old super crystalate balls and our standard is far better than when we play league with Aramith phenolic resin balls. Basically the supers are the balls we learned with and our subconscious game comes back to us as the balls do what we expect of them, maybe one kick in seven frames with the supers as opposed to seven kicks a frame with the Aramith TC's.