… simple and meaningful reminders for important things good pool players do

And this saying, by Joe Rogan and attributed to Earl Strickland, is in a category all its own:
“Pool is a beautiful game played by ugly people.”

This and other maxims/saying/quotes are available on shirts, mugs, caps and posters at DrDaveBilliardTshirts.com.

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See also:
Top 100 Tips/Tricks/Gems
Top 100 Myths
Glossary of Cue Sports and Gambling Terms and Phrases

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Dr. Dave keeps this site commercial free, with no ads. If you appreciate the free resources, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to show your support:

Aiming and Shot Making

1. Aim while standing, not while shooting.
2. Just don’t miss.
3. Where you look is where the ball will go.
4. Percentages don’t matter if you make the shot.
5. Never ever chalk your cue tip prior to a miscue.
6. Don’t put too much “English” on the ball (i.e., never use more sidespin than is required for a shot). … and … Don’t put too much “American” on the ball (i.e., never use more speed than is required for a shot).
7. Hit a Million Balls (HAMB) is the only fool-proof “aiming system.”

Break

8. Don’t use more power than you can control.
9. Squat the rock after the break (i.e., leave the CB in the center of the table to have the most options after the break).

Cue Ball Control

10. Draw for show … follow for the dough. … or … Draw for flash … follow for cash.
11. There’s nothing worse than good position if you miss the shot.
12. If you already have position, don’t play for it.
13. Don’t try to get perfect shape when good shape will do (i.e., just take what is offered).
14. Center ball can do it all, and the center of the table is your friend.
15. Take care of your cue ball and it will take care of you.
16. Let one finger stay and the other will point the way. (concerning the 30° rule peace-sign technique)

Defense

17. The best offense is sometimes a good defense.
18. Keep your soldiers on the table (don’t clear your balls in 8-ball until you are ready to run out).
19. Playing a tough shot is better than playing a tough safety.
20. A “real man” doesn’t play safe unless he wants to win.

Excuses

21. It’s not the cue … it’s you. It’s not the arrow … it’s the Indian.
22. Don’t cry in your beer, it will just get diluted.

Gambling

23. Never give a sucker an even game.
24. Never gamble with a man named after a City or a State.
25. If you can’t find the one being hustled in the pool room, it’s you.
26. Life is a game. Money is how we keep score.
27. A penny saved is a penny earned. [Benjamin Franklin] … and … A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. … Don’t count your chickens before they hatch.
28. The game of billiards has destroyed my naturally sweet disposition. [Mark Twain]

Grip

29. Hold the cue in your hand like a bird … don’t crush it to death, but also don’t let it go.
30. The grip should be like shaking a lady’s hand. Don’t crush it, and don’t be weak and limp wristed.
31. Don’t grip it and rip it (use a light and relaxed grip and smoothly accelerating stroke).
32. Don’t use a “death grip” on the cue.

Instruction

33. Real knowledge is to know the extent of one’s ignorance. [Confucious]
34. You don’t know what you don’t know. Or, if you knew what you didn’t know, you wouldn’t not know it.
35. Give a man a fish … feed him for a day. Teach him how to fish … feed him for life. [Anne Ritchie]
36. He who seeks shall find. [Matthew in The Bible]
37. A good teacher is one who listens and learns. The same can be said for a student.
38. Information is not knowledge.
39. An investment in knowledge pays the best interest. [Benjamin Franklin]
40. Wise men don’t need advice. Fools won’t take it. [Benjamin Franklin]
41. When you finish changing, you’re finished. [Benjamin Franklin]
42. Don’t believe everything you hear and read. Do what works best for you. Different strokes for different folks.
43. Those who can’t play teach.

Life

44. Pool is my life. My girlfriend is my hobby.
45. Life is tough, but it sure beats the alternative. … and … If you’re going through hell, keep going.
46. Don’t sweat the small stuff … and it’s all small stuff. [Richard Carlson]
47. Action speaks louder than words.
48. Life is short. Live today as if there is no tomorrow.
49. The only things certain in life are death and taxes. [Benjamin Franklin]
50. Don’t judge a book by its cover. … and … Nothing is as easy as it seems. … and … Nothing is a difficult as it seems.
51. Honesty is the best policy. [Aesop]
52. The grass is not always greener on the other side of the fence.
53. It only takes one bad apple to spoil the bunch.
54. When you come to a fork in the road, take it. [Yogi Berra]
55. Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life. [Confucious]

Mental Side

56. The game is 90% mental. The other half is physical. [Yogi Berra]
57. Think long … think wrong. … and … If you think, you stink. … and … Don’t suffer from Analysis Paralysis.
58. Good decisions come from experience. Experience comes from making bad decisions. [Mark Twain]
59. Sports do not build character. They reveal it. [Heywood Broun]
60. It ain’t over till its over. [Yogi Berra]
61. Without trust, your game goes bust. … and … To succeed, you must first believe you can. [Nikos Kazantzakis]
62. The secret to getting ahead is getting started. [Mark Twain]
63. The fancy crowd-pleasing shot is for them … the shot after is for me.
64. Do not dwell in the past. If you do, history tends to repeat itself.
65. Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference. [Winston Churchill]
66. A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new. [Albert Einstein]
67. If at first you don’t succeed … try, try, try again. [William Hickson] … and … Never, never, never give up.
68. The glass is half full, not half empty. … and … Every cloud has a silver lining. [John Milton]

Practice

69. The harder you work, the harder it is to surrender. [Vince Lombardi]
70. Practice makes perfect, especially perfect practice. Imperfect practice makes permanent.
71. The more I practice, the luckier I get. [Jerry Barber]  … and … “Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.” [Seneca, the Roman philosopher]
72. Success is 10% inspiration and 90% perspiration. [Thomas Edison]  … and … There is no substitute for hard work.
73. Without hard work, nothing grows but weeds. [Gordon Hinckley]
74. By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail. [Benjamin Franklin]
75. Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. [Albert Einstein]
76. Amateurs practice a shot until they make it. Pros practice it until they can’t miss.

Shot Selection

77. There are several shots, but only one right one. … and … There’s always a shot … you just have to find it.
78. If you take care of the simple ones, the hard ones take care of themselves.
79. Not every table banks the same, but every table cuts the same.

Strategy

80. I’d rather be lucky than good. [Lefty Gomez] … and … An ounce of luck with worth a pound of skill (or effort).
81. Make every easy shot, and make every shot easy.
82. Ignorance is bliss (don’t over think things). [Thomas Gray]
83. Take what’s offered (i.e., don’t get fancy if it’s not required).
84. Keep It Simple, Stupid (KISS). [US Navy] … and … Make everything as simple as possible, but not simpler.
85. Billiard is the fine art of thinking ahead. It is not just a game, but first and foremost a challenging sport which, in addition to physical condition, requires the logical thinking of a chess player and the steady hand of a concert pianist. [Albert Einstein]
86. Don’t try to run out unless you can. … and … Don’t move balls if you don’t need to. … and … Don’t play a shot that can lose the rack unless that shot can also win you the rack. [Danny DiLiberto}

Stroke

87. Stroke it, don’t poke it.
88. If you don’t stroke straight you shouldn’t aim straight.
89. Don’t be a jerk (with your transition from the backstroke to the forward stroke).
90. Let your cue do the work.

Winning

91. It’s not the will to win that matters — everyone has that. It’s the will to prepare to win that matters. [Paul “Bear” Bryant]
92. Winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing. [Vince Lombardi]  … and … Failure is not an option.
93. Winning is a habit; unfortunately, so is losing. [Vince Lombardi]
94. The easiest way to win is to not let the other guy shoot.
95. It is easier to have fun when you are winning.
96. Show me a good loser and I’ll show you a loser. [Vince Lombardi]
97. To be a good loser is to learn how to win. [Carl Sandburg]
98. When it means everything, play as if it means nothing.
99. When the going gets tough, the tough get going.
100. I would rather play a gloating winner than a sobbing loser.

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Dr. Dave keeps this site commercial free, with no ads. If you appreciate the free resources, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to show your support: