Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing many of these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

There are two classes of pool players in the world. The serious shooter is dedicated to finding ways to gain better control how the cue ball rolls around the table. Most players enjoy pool because, well - it's fun This book is written for you guys. This is an introduction to the idea that defensive shooting is just as important as offensive shooting. Here is something to remember: there are no rules that require you to play stupid shots. When you have a table layout with a shot that is too tough, you really do not have to figure out some crazy way that the object ball MIGHT (maybe) get to a designated pocket. How about this as a simple solution? DON'T try to make the shot. Instead, shoot something that prevents your opponent from winning the game. If you do this, your opponent has a difficult situation. You can let him invent silly reasons to miss. You come back to the table with a good chance to win (or get closer to a win). Let him play all offense all the time. You play a few safeties and let him give you the opportunity to win. When this book falls into your hands, there is stuff you can use immediately. Besides the tips, there are techniques, exercises, and a few tricks that help you win more games. Yes, you can even use these to beat better shooters. Consider this book to be the digest version of the Safety Toolbox. A couple of hours of study, combined with some practice table time, and you are suddenly a tougher shooter. Let your opponents use the bar-banger style of calling fantastic hero shots, such as, "5 ball, four rails, off the 7 and into the side pocket." This book will add some competitive maturity to your playing style. I don't need to wish you good luck. This book and some of your time is all you need to begin winning more games. And here's a useful benefit from the book - you don't have to outshoot your opponent. Simply prevent him from winning.

For a nation with a long and proud military tradition, one token stands above all others as a mark of recognition for the ultimate acts of individual feats of arms: the Victoria Cross. Awarded for one reason alone--to mark extreme acts of great heroism by British and Commonwealth servicemen in the face of the enemy--it is unquestionably the hardest club in the world to gain entrance to. Its holders--ordinary soldiers, sailors and airmen--are linked by an uncommon bond of exceptional bravery, displayed often at great personal risk and against impossible odds. The VC has been awarded only thirteen times since the end of the Second World War in 1945. Three of these awards were made to recipients who had paid the ultimate sacrifice while demonstrating gallantry beyond the call of duty. Forged in battle, from the shell-scarred hills of Korea, to the windswept marshland of East Falkland and today's counter-insurgency operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, each one of these VCs has a uniquely inspiring tale to tell. This is their incredible story.

These drills and exercises are based on the concept of progressive advancement. Start with an easy setup, prove that you can make that 4 out of 5 times, and then make the shot slightly more difficult. Keep on pushing the limits as far as the table edges allow. Bring this to the table along with your paper reinforcement rings (donuts) and you are ready to improve yourself. Study this material in two steps. 1. THINK FIRST. In the comfort of your favorite easy-chair or recliner, review each table layout and thoughtfully consider the ball positions. Consider what you would have to do. The table layout might require different shooting speeds (slow, medium, fast), different spins (draw, follow, side/English). Make a list of your practice requirements for your current skills and identify the exercises necessary. 2. Take the book to the practice table with your donuts and work on owning the shots you selected. Pencil in where your Comfort and Chaos Zones meet on the exercise (and mark the date). Over time, you may need to buy a second book just to keep track of all your notations. This is true table knowledge that will enhance your abilities as the Intelligent Shooter. These layouts, when diligently practiced, ensure that you will improve, consistently and rapidly. Learn the fastest and quickest ways to: Pocket tough shots Predict cue ball paths Enhance position play skills Improve table management skills Increase Balls Per Inning (BPI) average Build self confidence & competence This book is available in US (amazon.com) and Europe (*.uk, *.fr, *.de, *.es, *.it). Also see the author's Billiards Blog on the Billiard Gods web site.

My NEW book on playing pool will help you to win every game!

Inside this book are all the answers to hundreds of common questions about the Green Game: FAQs about the sport FAQs about gambling FAQs about playing situations FAQs about practicing FAQs about playing equipment FAQs about teaching & learning Rules for 25 different pool games Glossary of hundreds of pool terms This book is available in US (amazon.com) and Europe (*.uk, *.fr, *.de, *.es, *.it). Also see the author's Billiards Blog on the Billiard Gods web site.

This is the mind set that a serious player must learn. This is how Sun Tzu would teach table billiards. It is the Philosophy of War as it applies to the Philosophy of Pool. The words of the famous and ancient Chinese general Sun Tzu have been read, studied, and applied by millions of students of warfare and those who compare their livelihood to be a similar life and death competition. Many advisers to the movers and shakers of the world have made their fortunes by converting his words for the applications in sports, business and politics. This 2500 year old treatise on how to wage war has a direct application to the tactics and strategies used in table billiards. Your viewpoint of how you to play will shift and adjust from "on the table" to "above the table" viewpoint. This book is available in US (amazon.com) and Europe (*.uk, *.fr, *.de, *.es, *.it). Also see the author's Billiards Blog on the Billiard Gods web site.

How many times has your game died because of a bad cue ball control choice? (Actually, do you really want to remember how many times that happened?) This has been a big personal problem in the decades that I've played the Green Game. There are so many speeds to hit the cue ball and so many ways to make it spin. That means even dead-easy shots become very complicated when you have to get shape for the next shot. There are literally hundreds of options. I'm not a feel player, able to intuitively shoot by instinct. I'm a scientific player, who likes to figure what, how, and why a shot can work (and way too often, not work). Finally, I got tired of guessing the correct cue ball speed and spin, and decided to apply some intelligence to this weakness in my game. (Of course, I have no objection to winning because someone else does something foolish.) I mapped out several hundred common shooting situations, with the cue ball, 1 ball, and 2 ball. Then I shot each layout, over and over, trying out different speeds and spins. Everything was tested and retested - and then repeated over and over. The table layouts in this book are the results from those months and months of testing with tens of thousands of shots. This is why these are Cheat Sheets. Basically - I've done all the suffering for you. You need to add some reality to these shots. First, try the shot with what you think works. Then use the provided cheat tip. Once successful, repeat again. Then setup on the shot and shoot it with your eyes closed. Once you realize you can dial in the speed and spin to get consistent results, the learning curve goes much faster. All it takes is some dedicated practice time to prove you can do it - and that is when you start winning more games. What you learn in this book will not stop all of your bad shooting decisions. It WILL reduce the number of mistakes. That is why, after you buy this book that I provide an email connection in the book. I am very interested that you get good value.

Here is the story about this book. During those early couple of decades when I got bitten by the Pool Passion Bug, the idea of winning the game by purposely dogging a shot or two was considered cowardly and the shooter was a yellow-bellied weakling, deserving of sneers and insults. Nowadays, a well-played safety is applauded by railbirds, and feared by those who can't kick or jump the cue ball. I watched many games where the sure-to-lose player, seemingly by accident, prevented the obvious-to-win player from winning. (Well, I was a little slow to learn some things, but eventually, I realized what was happening.) Defensive shooting skills are as important to winning as offensive shooting skills. I started applying this radical idea of defensive shooting to my own game - and suddenly I was winning a lot more matches - even against better players. What an eye-opener this was. And yes, occasionally I get accused of cowardice. I don't care - I won, they lost. This book is the accumulation of over ten years of study and analysis of defensive and safety shooting options. The phrase, "Knowledge is Power" sums up the contents of this book and I want to pass on these hard-learned lessons to you. These are the advanced defensive strategies and tactical tools used by professionals and road players. Just reading this material will improve your winning percentage by 10%. Yes - you do need to practice the cue ball and object ball positioning skills in the book, but just knowing the how, when, and why to play the safety will make winning a more common experience in your life. Basically, the contents of this book teach you how to trick and trap your opponent into helping you win. Winning is so much easier when you can identify your opponent's weaknesses and use them against him. There is even ways to use your opponent's strengths against him. (Who would have thought that?) You will learn about basic safety types, how to analyze opponents, use simple tricks and traps to prevent your opponent from winning, and the necessary precision exercises (which will also help your offensive game). It will be more fun to win more games

Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing many of these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing many of these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

Three Cushion is the highest art form in billiards. To carom three balls and make contact with three rails ranks amongst the most difficult billiard disciplines. Sport, artistry and physics meet impressively, shown in text and graphics in this book. This twovolume work represents the most comprehensive three-cushion publication to date, dealing with all areas of the game, illustrated by more than 1800 graphics. Volume 1 deals with the basics of the game: The right shot selection - set up - stroke execution - stroke types - Precise aiming - correct speed - physical principles. The main section, organized into pattern groups, discusses

"A tremendously satisfying road story. What makes Running the Table so special is not the pool prowess of its protagonist but the unlikely bond between two wildly different young men who find each other through an exhilarating, often infuriating game."--Los Angeles Times
Running the Table spins the outrageous tale of Kid Delicious, an affable skilled pool shark from New Jersey, and his studly if less talented setup man, Bristol Bob. Wertheim follows this mismatched pair of sidekicks as they go underground to learn the art of the hustle while experiencing the highs and lows of life on the road. Their four-year odyssey takes them from podunk pool halls to slick urban billiard rooms across America, some nights taking down as much as $30,000 and others ending up with just enough gas money to get home. With every stop the action gets hotter, the calls get closer, and Delicious's prowess with a cue stick becomes more widely known. Ultimately the Kid sheds his cover, becoming perhaps the biggest sensation in professional pool since Minnesota Fats. Wertheim paints a lasting portrait of an insanely talented and magnetic hustler who is literally larger than life.
"Renders the trappings of a road player's life . . . readers are taken on a sweet and varied ride."--Sports Illustrated

Originally published in London in the 1920s as a revised and enlarged edition based on Hoyle's early works of the 1700s. The book is an illustrated compendium of over eighty games and their varieties including card, billiard and board games. These are fully explained with rules and advice on play. Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. Home Farm Books are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

Originally published in the late 1800s, this is an anthology of articles on billiards by a master of the game, and is full of invaluable information that is still practical and relevant to the modern day reader. Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

Originally published in the 1930s. Every stroke discussed and advised on in this book has been played and measured by the author who was the finest billiards instructor of his day. The numerous diagrams and photographs will prove of inestimable value to all who are keen on improving their game. Contents Include: Playing Conditions Ball Contact Cannons Safety Play Use of Side Screw and Side Angles Spectacular Strokes Common Faults Losing Hazards Ball to Ball Contact How to Pot Billiard Knowledge etc. Keywords: Safety Play Cannons Billiards Billiard 1930s Faults Angles Strokes Keen Screw Stroke Pot Photographs Contact Game

The secrets of billiards--taught by two of its greatest players

Pool legend Steve Mizerak has teamed up with Ewa Mataya Laurance, the Striking Viking, to write A Quick-Start Guide to Pocket Billiards, an essential resource for players of all levels to learn the skills required to attain proficiency at the game and then take their games to the next level.

In clear, step-by-step instructions and friendly language, it teaches readers how to:

• Think like a pro
  
• Select and hold the perfect cue
  
• Sink balls
  
• Analyze and set up shots
  
• Play the offensive in a game
  

Here is the companion book to the landmark Byren's Standard Book of Pool and Billiads--what every pool player needs to perfect his or her game. Byrne treats the finer points of the game with the comprehensiveness and clarity that have won him a loyal readership among the many thousands of players who have taken up the game in the recent pool boom.

This book is a biographical story based on the true life of Combread Red", a legendary and colorful professional pool player and gambler. In billiard circles, he is known as the "Living Legend".