IMPROVE YOUR “POO By Anthony Beeler
but the boy thought that he could still do better. He started to enter swimming competitions and eventually won his first race. His parents cheered Next, he entered an ocean race and won it in his first attempt. His parents cheered and clapped, but the boy thought that he could still do better. So, he stood on the beach and looked out over the ocean, out to the horizon beyond. He wondered what the limits were on what he could achieve and whether he had reached his limitations yet.
By now, you are probably questioning what a picture of a boy in a swimming pool has to do with learning how to play pool. Have you ever heard the story about the little boy that wanted to learn how to swim? His parents took him to the local swimming pool and enrolled him with an instructor. After a few weeks, he had learned the basics of swimming and could perform a few strokes. His parents cheered and clapped, but the boy thought that he could still do better. So he kept going to swimming classes and after a few more weeks, he was able to swim across the pool. His parents cheered and clapped, but the boy thought that he could still do better. After a few more months, he was able to complete a few laps of the pool. His parents cheered and clapped, but the boy thought that he could still do better. He started to enter swimming competitions and eventually won his first race. His parents cheered and clapped, but the boy thought that he could still do better. So he kept going to swimming classes and after a few more weeks, he was able to swim across the pool. His parents cheered and clapped, but the boy thought that he could still do better.
In a sense, pool players are a lot like that little boy. As an instructor, I embrace the philosophy of Continuous Improvement (CI). Unlike other models, Continuous Improvement is not a one-time process. It is a powerful way of improving that focuses on the continual efforts made by a player to improve his or her game. In K-12 education this process could be linked or referred to as response to intervention (RTI) strategy. The first thing you need to do is assess yourself. I suggest that you take a test (diagram of your next 25 misses during match play) that will show you where some of your weakness areas lie. Not only do I want you to diagram the shot, but I also want you to diagram the overall layout of balls (what you are trying to get position on next). The shots I am referring to should be makeable a good percentage of the time. I don’t want you to spend time diagramming impossible shots. Look for patterns as to why you miss makeable shots and then practice each shot that you diagrammed 100 times. As you practice each shot, I want you to score yourself using the following scoring guide: Give yourself a “0” if you miss the shot. Give yourself a “1” if you pocket the ball but do not get position on your next shot. Give yourself a “2” if you pocket the ball and
After a few more months, he was able to complete a few laps of the pool. His parents cheered and clapped, 3
