This drill is from the PAT, which is a Playing Ability Test designed by Ralph Eckert, Jorgen Sandman, and Andreas Huber. Ralph is a professional pool player and trick shot champion as well as a top coach, I’m not sure of the other two gentlemen’s playing credentials but they are both well renowned national level coaches in Europe.
The PAT has three levels and is a point-based test. You typically perform each exercise multiple times, scoring points for each successful attempt based on the parameters of the exercise. There are exercises for cue ball control, shot making, and position play. As you move from level to level some of the exercises change, but more typically the exercises are similar but with increasing difficultly, either by adding distance, more balls, or more difficult goals to the exercise.
The drill diagrammed above is the Follow and Draw drill and is excellent for working on both of those skills. Line up 6 balls as diagrammed along the third diamond, and starting two diamonds away place the cue ball so it’s straight in with the first object ball. For Level 1, the object is to make the 1 ball and leave the cue ball near the corner pocket, no more than 1 diamond in either direction. Do the same thing with the 2 – 6 balls. For Level 2, you must make each ball AND follow it into the pocket, which requires both careful alignment of the balls as well as a smooth and straight stroke.
For the draw portion of the exercise, use the same setup as above. For Level 1, make the ball and draw it back to within 2 diamonds of the top rail. For Level 2, the object balls are placed 1 diamond further away, or even 2 diamonds further away, and you must draw back to the end rail within 1 ½ diamonds. You can see how this can become more and more difficult very quickly.
This is a great practice drill for follow and draw. If too difficult as diagrammed, move the balls closer together and/or closer to the pocket. Focus on a smooth stroke, shooting only as hard as needed to accomplish the goal. It’s not a power follow or power draw drill, the emphasis should be on clean pocketing of the object balls and smooth but strong action on the cue ball. I would recommend doing at least 3 if not 5 repetitions of both follow and draw regularly until you can execute the shots confidently.
If you are more interested in the PAT, you can check out their website at http://www.pat-billiard.com/ and also check out YouTube for some sample exercises, including this one, being demonstrated by none other than Thorsten Hohmann.
The PAT has three levels and is a point-based test. You typically perform each exercise multiple times, scoring points for each successful attempt based on the parameters of the exercise. There are exercises for cue ball control, shot making, and position play. As you move from level to level some of the exercises change, but more typically the exercises are similar but with increasing difficultly, either by adding distance, more balls, or more difficult goals to the exercise.
The drill diagrammed above is the Follow and Draw drill and is excellent for working on both of those skills. Line up 6 balls as diagrammed along the third diamond, and starting two diamonds away place the cue ball so it’s straight in with the first object ball. For Level 1, the object is to make the 1 ball and leave the cue ball near the corner pocket, no more than 1 diamond in either direction. Do the same thing with the 2 – 6 balls. For Level 2, you must make each ball AND follow it into the pocket, which requires both careful alignment of the balls as well as a smooth and straight stroke.
For the draw portion of the exercise, use the same setup as above. For Level 1, make the ball and draw it back to within 2 diamonds of the top rail. For Level 2, the object balls are placed 1 diamond further away, or even 2 diamonds further away, and you must draw back to the end rail within 1 ½ diamonds. You can see how this can become more and more difficult very quickly.
This is a great practice drill for follow and draw. If too difficult as diagrammed, move the balls closer together and/or closer to the pocket. Focus on a smooth stroke, shooting only as hard as needed to accomplish the goal. It’s not a power follow or power draw drill, the emphasis should be on clean pocketing of the object balls and smooth but strong action on the cue ball. I would recommend doing at least 3 if not 5 repetitions of both follow and draw regularly until you can execute the shots confidently.
If you are more interested in the PAT, you can check out their website at http://www.pat-billiard.com/ and also check out YouTube for some sample exercises, including this one, being demonstrated by none other than Thorsten Hohmann.
