By now, you've certainly heard of the value of a pre-shot routine (PSR). You might have even spent time trying to build one. Take a moment to verbalize what your routine looks like before reading further. Did you describe something like this? "I chalk behind the shot, see my contact point, step in, take three practice strokes, and fire."
truth is, it really doesn't matter if you take three practice strokes, or three hundred, or zero. What matters is the one stroke that hits the cue ball. Here is our three-step framework for maximizing the effectiveness of your pre-shot ritual with consistency valued over counting:
Build Your Mindless Routine: The 3 P's of Pool
That sounds like a routine you want to have. Now, let’s consider what a real routine is. Think about this: When you cross your arms, which arm goes over the other? When you brush your teeth, which tooth does your brush touch first? I'd bet you brush almost the same number of strokes for the same amount of time every time you brush, and you've probably never counted them. These are real routines. They are so ingrained that you perform the same action without conscious thought. It would take concerted practice and effort to change them. The motions are so rote that trying to do something different feels unnatural. The reality is that every experienced player already has an automatic pre-shot routine which may or may not look like what you've read or seen it's supposed to look like. The difference is that the best players know how to harness their inherent routine to set themselves up for 1. Pondering: Think in the Thinking Position success—automatically and mindlessly.
(Embracing the Left Brain)
It doesn't matter how many practice strokes you take. The 6
SPM Billiards Magazine
This is where you plan. After identifying the shot and