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The Follow-Thru – The Third Transcendental Milepost and the Metaphor

Like many endeavors, the craft of this game rests in ownership of the fundamentals, while the art of the game is in the ownership of a mindset. Most players experience advancement in a burst/regression pattern much like an equity chart with a trend line moving up. I believe this is 90% technique and 10% mindset (or some other disproportionate percentage). However, when mindset is balanced, advancement can be rapid and limits are not well defined. Some players experience a quantum shift and I suspect this is what we are all hoping to accomplish. I have personally observed and questioned several players who have managed this quantum shift in their skill level in a relatively short period of time. I believe this is 90% mindset. This has always been a curiosity to me. I have driven several hundred miles to talk to players I “heard” had experienced the shift. None of them can describe the experience in definitive terms but ALL of them have been having a lot of fun. I have been told its like being “in touch with God” and “a window opening”. Oddly, I have discovered that a large percentage of these people soon quit the game for another interest and I believe their resignation can be attributed to disappointment and/or boredom. I have seen people who have come from other sports, such as golf, basketball or tennis, and these players will normally rise to the same approximate level in pocket billiards as they did in their earlier endeavors. So what do these people have in common? All players “possess” a certain amount of talent, a certain amount of drive or love for the game, and a certain attitude or ability to concentrate. I believe the difference/similarity lies in their ability to manage their mindset (the last two of the “possessions”) and maintain a balance in their lives.

We have all seen the “player” whose “window won’t open” and is using drugs as a desperate substitute for concentration, gambling as a substitute for drive and the game as a proxy for a life. He has no goal, plan or guiding principals. Pool seems “easy” and the gift remains unappreciated. I believe this is why most pool players end up broke and disrespected. I also believe this is why pocket billiards does not enjoy the same success with the general public as other games with far less usership. This can be cured with follow-thru. I believe any person with the drive or “love for the game” can accomplish the first four transcendental mileposts as they relate primarily to technique. Beyond that, the management of mindset becomes a life-art and only a few can successfully navigate it. I have to choke down my inclination to snatch-up pool players (many of whom are my friends) when I witness their acts of defiance and waste of their god-given talents. So, if you are planning to play this game for the rest of your life (like I do), set some goals and follow-thru. There is some money in the game these days and the upper limits have not been tested…but I digress.

The follow-thru lies between the instant prior to contact and the moment the ball leaves the end of you cue. This is a very short period but quite critical because several things must occur (or not occur) for a successful shot to be accomplished. Let’s discuss what cannot occur first.

• You cannot be moving. Your head must stay down and you eyes must be following the action of the balls. Your body must be still…enough said. Watch the object ball go in the pocket.
• You cannot be ambivalent. This shot is your decision, don’t cripple it with doubt, fear or fantasy. If you aren’t sure, pull up. If something happens, like you hit a piece of chalk with your hand, pull up. If your mind wanders, pull up. It is not a crime to pull up and “think long-think wrong” is a hustlers technique. 

Here’s what must simultaneously occur when you pull the trigger:

• You must have a plan…it must be plausible and reality based.
• You must get down and stay down. This is called concentration and is physically manifests as motionless. The practice strokes are all about guaging the proper alignment, spin, and speed. The follow-thru is about witnessing the result.
• You must direct your will at the object ball. This is called aiming…initiation of the contact stroke is about your decision…the follow-thru is about your will.
• The contact stroke is just like any of your practice strokes except at the approximate moment of contact with the cueball the elbow begins to drop (gravity fed), the fingers close around the cue (the grip), the wrist inclines slightly, and the cue (line of force) pushes through to the target. The elbow reaches home, the cueball contacts the object ball and both react to the force.
• You must witness the entire event…pay attention…this is the source of all knowledge about your game. When you begin really looking, you will notice that your cue stays in contact with the cueball longer on some shots than on others. You can not only see this but you can feel it in your back hand and hear it. You will also notice that when you are in-stroke, the longer the better and conversely when you are not in-stroke…the shorter the better (almost). The difference in contact times lies in the rate you accelerate your follow-thru. You can increase this sweet spot through practicing with different acceleration patterns. You will find that the following visualization will help you gain control of your contact time by teaching you to increase acceleration in the last half of your follow-thru (from contact to the moment your elbow reaches home).

Pay close attention to your upper arm and, in particular, your elbow (the moving fulcrum of the compound pendulum). What you will find here is the ability to direct your follow-thru with the drop of your elbow…it is the key to much finer speed control, low speed accuracy and concentration of power. Visualize the gravity effect on your elbow as though it has a string on it pulling it straight down to its resting place (limit of motion). Your will (cueforce) is in your elbow. It is the source from which you extend cueforce thru your hand, the cue, the bridge, the cueball, the object ball and is finally received by the cloth, pocket and/or rail. Visualize the energy transmitted through this path with a scheme (color or number) to signify magnitude as it is diminished by the firmness of your grip, stiffness of your cue, softness of the tip, friction of the cloth, spin on the balls, angle of the hit, the spring of the rail(s) and back of the pocket.

Once again…you be the judge. We’ll come back to this later when we examine the wrist.

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