Reddit mentions: The best billiards & pool books
We found 43 Reddit comments discussing the best billiards & pool books. We ran sentiment analysis on each of these comments to determine how redditors feel about different products. We found 19 products and ranked them based on the amount of positive reactions they received. Here are the top 20.
1. Byrne's New Standard Book of Pool and Billiards
- Used Book in Good Condition
Features:
Specs:
Height | 9 Inches |
Length | 7 Inches |
Weight | 1.47 Pounds |
Width | 0.843 Inches |
Release date | July 1998 |
Number of items | 1 |
2. Winning One-Pocket...As Taught by the Game's Greatest Players
Specs:
Height | 11.25 Inches |
Length | 1.25 Inches |
Width | 8.75 Inches |
3. Banking with the Beard: Secrets of a Master Banker
Used Book in Good Condition
Specs:
Height | 9.25 Inches |
Length | 7.5 Inches |
Weight | 0.86 Pounds |
Width | 0.5 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
4. The Illustrated Principles of Pool and Billiards: More Than 200 Full-Colour Illustrations and Photographs
Specs:
Release date | May 2017 |
7. Pool Table Assembly: Detailed and Illustrated Instructions for Most Pool Tables
- Arctic Cooling Arctic C1 Mobile USB Charger w/Solar Panel General Features: Silver color
- USB interface (Mini-B (F) input, Standard-A (F) output)
- Built-in lithium-ion rechargable battery (4440 mWh capacity)
- Hybrid charging capability; charges via USB or solar panel Three (3) Status LEDs
- Adapters included for Nokia, Samsung, and Sony Ericsson cell phones
Features:
Specs:
Height | 11 Inches |
Length | 8.5 Inches |
Weight | 0.43 Pounds |
Width | 0.17 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
8. Pokemon Trading Card Game 'Playmat'
- Ultra soft, high-quality, knee high Gone Fishing cat socks
- Approximately fits women's shoe size 5-10
- Fun and funky cat socks, with reinforced 2-ply heel and toe
- Our threads are certified by OEKO-TEX Standard 100, which means we leave out harmful chemicals to keep your skin safe and happy
- STYLISH, COMFORTABLE, STRETCHY - Your toes will be cozy in these eye-catching, thick, comfy socks
Features:
10. The Science of Pocket Billiards
Used Book in Good Condition
Specs:
Height | 11 Inches |
Length | 8.5 Inches |
Weight | 1.6 Pounds |
Width | 0.75 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
11. Codex: Space Marines
- Used Book in Good Condition
Features:
Specs:
Height | 11.06297 Inches |
Length | 8.11022 Inches |
Weight | 2.0502990366 Pounds |
Width | 0.66929 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
12. The "Encyclopedia" of Pool Hustlers: A rowdy assortment of anecdotes, insights, encounters, and esoteric knowledge of the legendary pool hustlers of the second half of the 20th century
- Encyclopedia of Pool Hustlers
- pool hustlers
- pool players
- pool champions
- Freddy the Beard
Features:
Specs:
Is adult product | 1 |
Height | 9 Inches |
Length | 6 Inches |
Weight | 1 Pounds |
Width | 0.61 Inches |
13. Upscale One-Pocket
Used Book in Good Condition
Specs:
Height | 8.75 Inches |
Length | 5.5 Inches |
Weight | 0.7 Pounds |
Width | 0.75 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
14. Capelle's Practicing Pool
Used Book in Good Condition
Specs:
Height | 10 Inches |
Length | 7.75 Inches |
Weight | 1.3 Pounds |
Width | 0.75 Inches |
Release date | January 2006 |
Number of items | 1 |
16. Warhammer 40,000 Rulebook
- ALWAYS HAVE FRESH CHAMPAGNE: There is nothing more disappointing than discovering that your pricey, delicious bottle of champagne has lost its fizz the next day. Maybe you've tried hacks like using a teaspoon in the neck, ordinary wine toppers, or decanting your bubbly, but nothing really works. Now, you realize it's time to safeguard your bubbles with a high end champagne sealer that really seals your champagne bottles.
- SUPERIOR QUALITY BOTTLE SEALER: This stainless steel champagne stopper has been designed and manufactured to the highest quality standard in the German tradition of the Cilio brand. Made with a brushed stainless steel shell, it's built to deliver a perfect seal every time. This bottle stopper will become one of your must have bar accessories. As beautiful as it is functional, you'll wonder how you ever got along without it!
- LEAK-PROOF SIDE STORAGE: The Cilio champagne bottle sealer's patented seal allows you to store champagne in the fridge without worrying about mess or leaking. The airtight seal is designed to be 100% leak proof even when the bottle is lying down. Aside from the side storage convenience, the flat top ensures that your bottles will fit perfectly in your wine refrigerator.
- EASY TO USE: Our bottle sealer is quick and uncomplicated for busy people who don’t want to fuss with difficult sealers. Simply place the champagne sealer over the top of your uncorked bottle, press firmly, and the sealer will automatically provide a leak-proof seal. When you are ready to have another glass of bubbly, just press down on the top of the sealer and remove the stopper. It’s that easy!
- CILIO TRADITION OF QUALITY: Cilio, a partner of Frieling for more than two decades, is well known for making high quality tabletop, serving, and bar accessories. They place great emphasis on combining timeless design and functionality to bring you the highest quality products, and this philosophy of greatness runs throughout their entire product line.
Features:
17. The Pocket Book of Pocket Billiards: The Rack, The Rules―And A Working Pool Table
Specs:
Height | 12.125 Inches |
Length | 7.25 Inches |
Weight | 0.81 Pounds |
Width | 11 Inches |
Release date | May 2011 |
Number of items | 1 |
19. The Art of War versus The Art of Pool: How Sun Tzu would play pocket billiards
- The MAXIMUM 1/2 Inch Impact Rated Bolt, Nut & Lug Nut Remover/Extractor Set is the perfect toolkit for removing stripped, damaged, rounded off and rusted bolts & nuts, and as a stripped lug nut remover for shorter profile lug nuts. Superior gripping power, with sharp cutting edges
- MULTI-FUNCTIONAL USES: Has hexagonal flats for use with flat wrench, pliers, adjustable wrench, sockets or VISE-GRIP locking pliers. 1/2" impact rated square drive, which can be used with air tools
- IMPACT RATED WITH THICKER WALL CONSTRUCTION: Made from impact rated 6-point high carbon steel (chrome-molybdenum steel, with black-oxide finish). Thicker walls to provide the strength needed in a socket to remove larger sized nuts or bolts. The high carbon steel construction provides superior durability, corrosion resistance & maximum gripping power.
- PERFECT TOOLKIT FOR ALL KINDS OF JOBS: Includes 5 socket sizes, all 1/2 inch drive, for all kinds of job applications. The ideal bolt remover for car repairs & restorations. Sockets work on SAE/Metric sizes - 3/4” (19mm), 13/16” (20-21mm), 7/8” (22-24mm), 15/16” (24mm), & 1” (25mm).
- LIFETIME WARRANTY: For your confidence the MAXIMUM Impact Rated Bolt & Nut Remover & Extractor Tool Set is backed up with a no time limit warranty against defects in workmanship and materials.
Features:
Specs:
Height | 10 Inches |
Length | 7 Inches |
Weight | 0.39 Pounds |
Width | 0.21 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
🎓 Reddit experts on billiards & pool books
The comments and opinions expressed on this page are written exclusively by redditors. To provide you with the most relevant data, we sourced opinions from the most knowledgeable Reddit users based the total number of upvotes and downvotes received across comments on subreddits where billiards & pool books are discussed. For your reference and for the sake of transparency, here are the specialists whose opinions mattered the most in our ranking.
tl;dr: I think you can improve a lot just with more knowledge. I reached APA7 pretty fast, despite a shitty stroke and bad habits, by just absorbing a ton of books, videos, and websites. I had to work on execution and fixing those habits to reach APA9 speed. At no point did I ever become any kind of serious tournament or money player, it's very possible to improve without doing those things, despite what "they" say. But there's a limit to how far you can go on knowledge only, you WILL need to practice and spend hours at the table, and you will need to enter pressure situations if you want to perform well in tournaments, league, etc.
--------------------------
● Playing better players is a bit overrated - you don't just magically absorb someone's skills by playing against them. I'm not saying it's bad, but find people that are willing to teach and answer questions... don't just hit balls with someone and be their rackboy.
If you figure watching the better player shoot will help you learn, then you can double your learning by just watching 2 better players shoot against each other.
There's a lot to be said for shooting people who are very close to your level, or just a hair better. You both learn together, and (hopefully) talk things over and figure stuff out. And you both feel like you can win, which is important. It makes things more competitive. A lot of people improve simply because their ego can't tolerate losing to 'that one guy'.
● People will also tell you that you need to just enter a bunch of tournaments, or gamble. That's only half-correct. Tournaments train one specific skill - handling pressure. They don't teach you stuff like advanced cueball control, or how to compensate for english, or how to aim a kick shot. You don't get those skills just because you paid your $20 and now you need them to win.
● So how do you get better? Well, there are two areas where everyone could stand to improve - knowledge and execution.
Of these two things, knowledge is much easier to get. You can get it from the internet, books, or by watching and talking to those local pros. It's free/cheap, and takes very little effort... there's no reason you can't max out your knowledge ASAP.
The trick is to make sure you get correct knowledge, because the pool world is unfortunately full of bad info. I wanna recommend some books which I know are good, because the info is easily tested and confirmed, and that's exactly what I did in a lot of cases.
Byrne's Standard Book of Pool and Billiards - comprehensive explanation of all sorts of useful concepts, explanations of how the balls will react on certain shots, and why, and how to take advantage of it... lots of specific shots to master... safety and runout strategy... pretty much everything you could need.
The 99 Critical Shots - If you want specific shots to practice, and a lot of the same useful info, but much shorter and cheaper... this is for you. As a 6 you maybe know most of this, but I bet you don't know all of it, and you can get a copy for $1.50.
If you feel like reading is for losers, you can learn off websites too -
Everything on Dr. Dave's website and videos is outstanding. Tested and proven both on paper, on video, and in the real world. http://billiards.colostate.edu/pool_tutorial.html ...see also http://billiards.colostate.edu/threads.html ...and http://billiards.colostate.edu/pool_secrets_gems.html .
Or, just watch his videos - it's great to actually see the info put into action: https://www.youtube.com/user/DrDaveBilliards
These tips I think are just about right for someone around your speed - https://www.reddit.com/r/billiards/comments/6oo5e7/tip_compilation_various_tips_kicking_systems/
--------------
As far as execution goes, you do need to spend hours on the table. But before doing anything else, you want to first make sure you have good fundamentals and a normal, textbook stroke. I can't say it strongly enough:
IF YOU DON'T FIX YOUR BAD HABITS NOW THEY WILL FUCK YOU LATER.
I had several that I needed to unlearn, and they still screw up my game to this day. I wish I could go back in time and learn how to stroke straight, not spin the cue ball all the time, and develop a correct stance. Don't be me, get your bad habits and stance issues under control now. Everything after that will come much easier. Don't hesitate to pay for a lesson from a pro instructor to have them go over your stroke and fix any problems they see. If you don't wanna spend money, you can video yourself and try to evaluate it, or upload it here and we'll give you some feedback.
Other key things that helped me learn how to execute better:
● Get out of your comfort zone and try new things. Don't just stick to the shots you know, try new shots. That doesn't mean try 2-rail banks every time you step to the table, I mean try "new" shots that you know you need to master, but haven't yet.
For example, maybe you suck at jumping and this situation comes up where you're hooked on the 5. You might be tempted to just kick it, but you KNOW any pro player will jump this ball and make it. So suck it up and try the jump, even though you suck at it. You need that practice. Don't chicken out and kick just because you're scared of missing and losing.
Whatever shots you hate and you're tempted to avoid, make yourself do them. Hate shooting the CB off the rail with heavy inside spin? Of course you do, we all do. But there will be times when you have to do it, so when the situation comes up, don't avoid it.
● Practice while you play. When you shoot with friends for fun, don't just stick to the safe comfortable stuff because you're worried about losing. You gotta make self-improvement a higher priority than winning every rack. If you miss and lose, so what? It doesn't cost you anything.
You might think "I don't need to try that spin shot right now, I'll just hit 50 of them when I go practice on sunday afternoon". Don't kid yourself... most people don't have the discipline to do that. They either don't practice at all, or do it for a few weeks and then lose interest, or they forget about that spin shot they said they'd practice. Even if you DO practice religiously, you will probably spend far more hours playing than practicing. Don't let those hours be wasted by refusing to learn new skills.
● If you do drills, do them with a specific purpose. Don't ever just hit balls without a goal. You're too advanced for that to help you much. Work on a specific shot... rail cuts, thin cuts, long straight shots, position drills, banks, whatever. And keep track of your results, so you know if you're improving or not. For example, don't just bank 50 balls and say "ok I practiced banks". Keep track (you can use your phone) of how many you made out of 50. Is it more than you made last week? Or 5 weeks ago? If not, why not?
● If you miss a ball, set it up and shoot it again, and don't just shoot it until you make it once. Shoot it until you make it several times in a row.
● Always be paying attention to your fundamentals. Even if they're already pretty good, bad habits can creep in if you don't pay attention.
● Be careful of laziness and wishful thinking. I explain more on that here: https://forums.azbilliards.com/showpost.php?p=2429822&postcount=16
● For the jump specifically from 6 to 7, I'd say mastery of inside english and uncommon position routes is crucial. You gotta get good at moving the cue ball along the safest path. Good pool is identifying 10 potential fuckups and identifying the solution that should prevent at least 9 of them. That sometimes means moving the cue ball with funky english or more force than you're comfortable with.
Here are some example shots that hopefully show what I mean. Some may disagree with the routes or say "I'd do this instead" or "you could totally do the other route here" or whatever... that's fine, focus on the theory more than on whether everyone agrees which route is best.
https://pad.chalkysticks.com/97d8d.png
https://pad.chalkysticks.com/6d4f3.png
https://pad.chalkysticks.com/1bee7.png
https://pad.chalkysticks.com/2a00b.png
...ok, this thing is long enough. If you made it this far, I guarantee you'll be a 7 in less than 24 hours, or your money back :)
As someone who has done this a few times, my best advice is to hire someone else to do it. It's a pain in the ass! I'll give you a short rundown of what all is involved to help you make a decision, but honestly, you're probably going to want to hire professional pool table movers/assemblers which will probably run you around $200. When I did it, I used a guide like this:
Congrats on your purchase, though! Having a pool table in your house is totally worth the pain of getting it there, I promise :)
I played the TCG years ago and I'm still playing the 3DS games, but I've got a Christmas wishlist here that sparked some questions. Can someone help me?
99 Critical Shots is overrated and one of the worst books for a beginner in 2018. Before you jump down my throat, remember that being old and popular doesn't make something good.
It was a good book in 1977.
I'll let Bob Jewett point out the issues (page 13). He's much more generous than I am—I honestly don't think 99CS worth reading considering the wealth of other excellent material that's available.
Better books would be Illustrated Principles, Byrne's Standard, and Byrne's Complete Book of Pool Shots. Even PYBP or Science of Pocket Billiards would be better.
99CS is outdated and surviving largely on nostalgia, and personally there is not a single piece of information in the book that I didn't learn better from somewhere else.
Actually it gives some 100% incorrect information at least once, regarding rail shots. I literally had a guy defending it by saying "well beginners won't understand the complicated truth so the (incorrect) rule of thumb is fine." Right then is when I realized that some fools will defend the book because they think they should, rather than on its merits.
Don't be that guy.
Rant: Over
PoSM is easily the best book ever written on the mental game.
Kinda funny, the best and the worst right next to each other.
Check out the works from Robert Byrne, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Byrne_(author), if you would enjoy reading and watching instructional materials about pool. I don't know if there's anyone on the planet who knows more about the game than he does.
Here would be my recommendations:
Byrne's Standard Video of Pool Volumes 1, 2 and 5. (3 and 4 are trick shot videos so they're not that important). The only issue is that only 5 is on DVD. 1 and 2 are on VHS and you'll need to grab them used off Amazon or Ebay.
If you want to read I would suggest Byrne's New Standard of Pool and Billiards
These are the materials that helped me, hopefully they can help you too. Good luck!
I will have to concur with the posts here. I cut my teeth on Robert Byrne's books. The 99 Critical Shots in Pool is a great book as well.
If you are looking for a book on One-Pocket, then Winning One-Pocket...As Taught by the Game's Greatest Players is the way to go. However, good luck on getting your hands on a copy.
Eisenhorn is probably the best possible place to start in 40k. You get every possible angle of 40k explored in this omnibus as well as a some fantastic characters. Add Ravenor for flavor.
After that, dive into the military side of things with Gaunt's Ghosts. This covers primarily the Imperium vs Chaos side of the conflict, but also the internal conflicts the Imperium suffers from.
Now that you're thoroughly acquainted with the human side, view the universe through the eyes of the super-human Space Marines in The Ultramarines Omnibus. This series shows the strengths (and weaknesses) of the Space Marines as well as introducing the terrifying Chaos Space Marines more thoroughly.
Cry for death to the False Emperor with Soul Hunter. Follow up with the sequels in Void Stalker and Blood Reaver to get a very interesting perspectives from the Renegades.
Finally, finish your introductory odyssey with The Horus Heresy. You'll be reading how the modern universe came to be.
This is a "fuck-ton" of reading and will keep you busy for 6 months to a year or more before you finish. These series are the best of the best in the novel side of things. There are huge amounts more in the Army Codexes ^^that ^^you ^^should ^^be ^^able ^^to ^^find ^^for ^^$0 ^^on ^^"sharing" ^^sites and other excellent novels. PM me anytime and I'll happily answer questions/suggestions.
I was in your shoes 25 years ago, and picked up Byrne's standard book of pool and billiards, and it was excellent. I have given copies out over the years to friends who wanted to learn. I still own a copy myself. Check it out: http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0156005549?pc_redir=1411030730&robot_redir=1
Consider reading the below while watching. Great for beginners, but anyone would learn a lot from it, and it will really help you understand what you're watching for.
http://www.amazon.com/Byrnes-Standard-Book-Pool-Billiards/dp/0156005549/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1344037432&sr=1-1&keywords=byrne+billiards
Banking with the Beard comes in both book and video. Freddy 'the Beard' Bentivenga, a Hall of Fame bank player started publishing about 10 years before his death.
Here is a link
https://www.amazon.com/Banking-Beard-Secrets-Master-Banker/dp/0976622815/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1527094544&sr=8-1&keywords=banking+with+the+beard
I suggest you stick with your intuition. Keep it as your base, and add aiming systems to augment, if they work for you. Use aiming systems to double-check when it doesn't look right to your eye, or you need a little help. For me, the mirror system helps on some shots. Half the time I can kick or bank my way out of a safety.
This book helped me tremendously. It's not over-complicated and teaches you pretty much everything you need to know. I'm not a pro, but it seriously boosted my game. http://www.amazon.com/Byrnes-Standard-Book-Pool-Billiards/dp/0156005549
I've been playing for years. Few things that helped me... other than constant practice.
Read this: Byrne's Book of Pool and Billiards
This book explains tons of different 'pool' games, as well as theory and whatnot.
Watch this:Pool Hall Junkies If your not pumped for playing pool after watching this, you should just quit now.
I'm sure you saw the links to the shaman origin I showed below. I have posted book excerpts for Perpetual Oll Persson from Know No Fear and Mark of Calth.
Of course, 1st Edition Rogue Trader also had characters like Inquisitor Obiwan Sherlock Clousseau.
www.belloflostsouls.net/2010/04/the-most-awesome-40k-character-of-all-time.html
https://www.amazon.com/Warhammer-40-000-Rogue-Trader/dp/B001DF0OIO
https://www.amazon.com/Byrnes-Standard-Book-Pool-Billiards/dp/0156005549
Byrne's New Standard Book of Pool and Billiards
Tor Lowry YouTube
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/076116250X/
If they reprinted Unearthed Arcana I might consider it. That and the wilderness/dungeoneer's survival books really took it to the next level for me as a kid.
http://www.amazon.com/Official-Advanced-Dungeons-Dragons-Unearthed/dp/0880380845/
http://www.amazon.com/Dungeoneers-Survival-Advanced-Dungeons-Dragons/dp/0394554159/
http://www.amazon.com/Wilderness-Survival-Miniature-Collectors-Edition/dp/B000WLXB4O/
Actually not that expensive on amazon if you check the used offers
Here is the mobile version of your link
There are probably some more tips of course, but this could be a good start.