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Darren Appleton


Instruction Articles:
• March 2024
More for the Road


• February 2024
Four for the Road


• January 2024
Corner the Market


• December 2023
Look Ma, No Cushions


• November 2023
We’re in the Money


• October 2023
Four-level Drill


• September 2023
More Money Ball


• August 2023
No rails, part II


• July 2023
Look Ma, No Rails!


• June 2023
Triangle To Triangle


• May 2023
Zone Blitz


• April 2023
Money Ball Drill II


• March 2023
Money Ball Drill


• January 2023
The Dreaded Shootout


• December 2022
Alternate Universe


• November 2022
Close Quarters


• October 2022
Corner to Corner


• September 2022
Diamond in the Rough


• August 2022
Draw Bridge


• June 2022
I Detect A Pattern


• June 2022
Stay Close to Work


• May 2022
Amateur Approved


• April 2022
Two for One


• March 2022
The Straight Secret


• February 2022
The Correct Shot


• January 2022
End Game, Part II


• December 2021
Buying Off The Shelf


• November 2021
Look, Ma! No Rails!


• October 2021
The Oval Drill


• September 2021
Getting In Shape


• August 2021
Corner-To-Corner


• July 2021
V For Victory


• June 2021
More Pattern Drills


• May 2021
Patterns and speed


• April 2021
See a pattern?


• March 2021
Blind Man


• February 2021
Five Up, Five Down


• January 2021
Don’t Lag Behind


• December 2020
Head games


• November 2020
Life on the Edge


• October 2020
The Family Tree


• September 2020
A Dip of the Tip


• August 2020
The Big Diamond


• July 2020
Nine-Ball One-Hole


• June 2020
You’ll Kick Yourself


• May 2020
Tight Quarters


• April 2020
Cue Ball Control


• March 2020
Straight Cueing


• February 2020
Saddle up!


• January 2020
9-ball Crossover


• December 2019
Ride Those Rails


• November 2019
Up and Down


• October 2019
Money Balls


• September 2019
Captain Zig-zag


• August 2019
15-Ball, No Rails


• July 2019
One Extra Ball


• June 2019
Two-Pocket Drill


• May 2019
Up and Down


• April 2019
Ultimate Rotation


• March 2019
In A Good Spot


• February 2019
Center Cut


• January 2019
Breaking Bad Habits


• December 2018
Monster!


• November 2018
X marks the spot


• October 2018
Striking It Rich


• September 2018
So Many Options


• August 2018
Put Hangers On Rail


• July 2018
Mirror, Mirror II


• June 2018
Mirror, Mirror


• May 2018
“V” for Victory


• April 2018
Up and Down


• March 2018
Kick Into High Gear


• February 2018
Up and Down


• January 2018
Up To The Challenge


• November 2017
Taking A Break


• October 2017
End Game Safeties


• September 2017
Get Comfortable


• July 2017
Shape Up For Summer!


• June 2017
The Selection Process


• May 2017
Two For One


• March 2017
Banker’s Holiday


• February 2017
Great Eight


• January 2017
Getting Into Shape


• December 2016
Hocus, Focus


• November 2016
Kicking Into High Gear


• October 2016
More Drill Bits


• September 2016
Hand Model


• August 2016
Breaking Tradition


• July 2016
Drawing On Experience


• May 2016
Proper Practice


• April 2016
Drilling For Improvement


• March 2016
Mind Games


 
A Ghost of a Chance
April 2017

The ghost ball aiming system can help your whole game.

One of the interesting and challenging elements we added to the World Pool Series is the use of spot shots as a tiebreaker for matches. In fact, in the first event, I lost to Lee Vann Corteza in the tiebreaker. Part of the reason I lost was that I didn’t take the time to go through the proper pre-shot routine. And part of that routine on long shots is using the ghost ball aiming technique. All pros have an aiming technique that they favor, but they really only use them a few times a match. Most of the time it’s muscle memory from having played the same shots so many times. But sometimes, particularly on long cut shots, you will see them use an aiming strategy to be sure of the contact point on the object ball. I use the ghost ball.

I use the ghost ball a lot at home to practice long cut shots. That’s been one of my weaknesses, so I practice these a lot.

For practice, I set up the shot as shown in the diagram. I am trying to pocket the 7 in the corner pocket from up near the break spot. I place a ghost ball (in this case the 13) in line with the 7 to the corner pocket. I leave the ghost ball in place and I practice hitting that ghost ball dead in the middle. I practice that 10 or so times, until my sight adjusts to the aiming point. Once I have the feel, I continue to shoot on that line until I can see it really well. Eventually, I can see which edge of the ball I need to hit. This drill has really helped my success on long cut shots.

This is also a drill I teach my students all the time. With the ghost ball in place, their strokes loosen up because there’s no pressure. It’s a dead shot. They start to trust their stroke. Sometimes I leave the ghost ball in place while they are aiming and then pull it away when they shoot. It’s amazing how often they make it. Once I’ve taken the ghost ball away for a series of attempts, I tell them to visualize the contact point on the object ball as if the ghost ball were in place.

Remember, aiming systems are fine, but you still have to execute the stroke. When my students try this shot before I employ the ghost ball, they miss most of the time. The most common problems are jumping up on the shot and unintentionally putting English on the cue ball. But once they are shooting at the ghost ball, the stroke becomes easy and free.

The key to practicing these shots is to always use center cue ball. The more you work on using center cue ball, the more consistent you will be hitting the center of that ghost ball. And once you’re seeing the contact point on the intended object ball, you’ll be much more successful when the ghost ball is not there. Most of the top players focus on center cue ball. Your stroke has a better chance of holding up under pressure than when you are continually spinning the cue ball. It’s way too easy to hit the ball too thick or too thin when you’re spinning it.

Obviously, in a match you can’t put a ghost ball into position to find the proper contact point on the object ball. I walk around the table and get in line with the shot and I put an imaginary ghost ball into place. That’s how I determine where the contact point is on the object ball. After that, you have to trust your stroke and aim the center of your cue ball to where the center of that ghost ball would be.

Above all, commit to that contact point before you get down on your shot. That is the problem I had against Lee Vann. I didn’t use the ghost ball system on those spot shots, and I was looking for the point on the object ball after I was over the shot. That’s the exact wrong way to do it. If you are looking for the point after you get down on the shot, you’re going to be down for too long and that makes it much more difficult to execute a good stroke.

One of the things I love about this drill is that you get a lot of feedback. It’s a simple system. Some other systems require you to stand in a certain place or in a certain way and aim at a certain point. I don’t believe in those. It’s too much to handle, especially in the heat of a game. This is particularly true for amateurs. Too much information is just going to cloud a player’s brain. Try this drill every day for a few weeks. First, shoot 10 times with the ghost ball in place. Then shoot 15 with the ghost ball removed. You should make 10 of the 15 shots without the ghost ball in place. And remember, use center cue ball. At the start, you may even feel like you are getting worse, but over time you will be amazed at how much this helps your whole game.

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