Pool Trick Shots / Fundamentals: Avoiding the Scratch

Learn how to avoid scratching in this pool trick shots video tutorial from Howcast. Expert: Andy Segal

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Let pool champion Andy Segal teach how how to do trick shots in these Howcast videos.

 
 

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"Hi. I'm Andy ""The Magic Man"" Segal. I'm here at Willow Billiard in Hoboken, New Jersey doing some trick shots and pool instruction. So if you're ready, let's get started. All right. Now, how do you know when a shot's a scratch shot? Well, a lot of people think that when the ball is right on the spot, it's a scratch shot. Well that's actually wrong. The ball on the spot is not a scratch shot. What I like to think about is a three-point basketball line. From the corner pocket Pretend this is the foul line. The three-point line would come out here, around up here, and then back down. That's the scratch line. So if I shoot the eleven ball in the corner, there's no scratch. But, instead of here, if I was up here on the three point line, that's actually the scratch line. Okay? So, now how do you avoid the scratch if the ball is on that three point line? Well, one of the ways is to use the concept of the, of the position play, from that video. Remember, the tangent line is going to go this way, right into the scratch, if I'm shooting the stop shot. So if I want to pull it back from that tangent line, I would use back spin, and that would alter the direction of the cue ball to avoid the scratch. Like that. "

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  • Andy Segal

    Andy Segal is a pool trick shot champion from Huntington, New York. He began as a professional nine-ball player in the 1990s, playing out of Amsterdam Billiards in New York City. He has won many televised competitions such as Trick Shot Magic (2009 and 2010), The World Cup of Trick Shots (2006, 2008 and 2009), the WPA World Artistic Pool Championship (2007, 2011 and 2012), and the Masters Championship (2005, 2007 and 2009).