Week 3: The Straight Shot
A practical continuation of Week 2 — turning the stance and cue action into a repeatable straight stroke.
8 March 2027
Learning objectives
- Repeat the observe-enter-set-aim sequence from Week 2 without skipping steps.
- Deliver the cue in a smooth backswing and forearm-driven stroke.
- Follow through and stay down after impact instead of standing up immediately.
- Diagnose a likely technical cause behind a repeated miss.
- Use a cue-line test to check delivery consistency.
- Learn
This week reinforces a stable upper body, a relaxed grip, a smooth backswing, a stable upper arm, forearm-driven delivery, a full follow-through, and staying down after impact rather than standing up immediately. The common errors below are worth checking against your own stroke.
- See
Before/after diagrams show the cue travelling straight through the cue ball against the cue deviating left or right, and how body movement during the stroke causes cue-line errors.
- Think
Given a pattern of repeated misses, work out the likely technical cause from the setup and stroke covered this week and last.
- Play
Repeated straight-shot practice: fixed-position straight shots and gradual consistency drills, including a cue-line test and a simple practice log.
- Table check
Complete a short straight-shot consistency drill and identify one technical issue to improve.
Common errors to check for#
- Changing foot position after lowering into the stance.
- Squeezing the grip during delivery.
- Moving the upper arm excessively.
- Twisting the wrist.
- Lifting the body during impact.
- Steering the cue sideways.
- Stopping the cue immediately after contact.
- Repeatedly missing to the same side.
The cue-line test#
Strike the cue ball straight toward a cushion. If the delivery is reasonably straight and the contact is appropriate, the cue ball should rebound broadly back along the same line, as on the left. Drift to either side, as on the right, points to one of the errors listed above. This is a diagnostic check for consistency, not a test of perfection.
Keep a simple practice log#
A simple way to notice your own patterns: play 10 straight shots, in sets of 3, and record the result of each as one of:
- Made
- Missed left
- Missed right
This isn’t a graded score. It’s a way to notice whether your misses cluster to one side — which usually points back to one of the setup or stroke errors above, rather than bad luck.
Weekly quiz
Complete this week's graded quiz.