Speed and distance

Having the cue-ball come to rest exactly where you want is key to a great run. Here is a drill that will improve your short game where follow and draw can be applied with only a medium speed stroke.

Speed control!

Understanding how hard or soft the cue ball needs to be hit is just as important as knowing how english will effect the ricochet off of the object ball.


Note: To make sure that you are getting the correct speed effects, make sure to test out the same shot 5 or 6 times exactly the same way with the same speed and see how the results differ.

The harder you hit a shot, the more accurate you must be in aiming. Being slightly off could cause the object ball to juggle in the pocket and bounce out rather than fall down. On the other side, hitting too slowly could bring dirt and felt tears against your shot going in.

Practice the following drills to increase your understanding of how speed effects the distance the cue ball will travel after making contact with the taget ball(s).

This drill has 3 parts, and in each part you will attempt to get the cue-ball to come to a rest in a different position or scratch. On your first try, you will want to use follow. The goal is to have the cue-ball fall into the pocket behind the object ball.

Next you should try having the cue-ball stop as soon as it makes contact with the object ball. You should be able to do this without using any english or draw on the shot. This will have the cue-ball end up in position #2.

Then you will want to try and draw the cue-ball back to the exact same spot in which it started. Being able to draw precise distances is probably the most important skill in 9-ball.

practice drill with one object ball

For advanced practice, you should try and understand speed control with a stun shot. The stun shot is performed by hitting the cue-ball center, but contacting the object ball a little off center. Based on the speed you take this shot with, the cue-ball will drift down table at a 90 degree angle.

Tip: You may want to use chalk to remember where you started from and to give yourself a target to aim for.