Pleasures of Small Motions: Mastering the Mental Game of Pocket Billiards

Each chapter offered great advice on the mental game of pool. Immediately after reading the book, I could tell that my game had picked up a notch. (And exactly one month after reading the book, my 8-ball skill level in my pool league was also raised a notch.) I learned to stop putting pressure on myself to play my "best game" in high-pressure situations (think about it: if your "best" game happened all the time, it would be your "normal" game) and instead concentrate on playing MY game, the one that I am accustomed to playing most of the time. I also learned to stop concentrating on making the ball - something that I already know how to do - and to start concentrating on the mechanics of my stroke, something that frequently causes me to MISS the ball! I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to improve his or her game, regardless of skill level. This book will teach you to think realistically about your game and to put your existing talents to better use.

After you hone your basic shotmaking skills, pool is almost entirely a mental game. There are precious few books on the topic of the mental side of pool and billiards (I know of only three), and this is by far the best of them. The author is a sports psychologist (and pool player), and he explodes a lot of the "mental myths" of pool, including undoing some bad advice written by pool pros and wanna-be pros who meant well but didn't know what they were talking about psychologically speaking. The prose is also a nice read, especially for a nonfiction book. I can especially recommend this volume for intermediate players who are having a hard time dealing with league or tournament competition pressure. Fancher may give you some mental tools to quit being a "Count Choke-ula".PS: If you order this used, be sure you are getting the revised 2002 edition.

Simply put, this book delivers. No mystical nonsense about Being In The Moment With The Ball. No bad science about Spanking Your Inner Child.What it does is deal very well with the different mental approaches to practicing versus competing, the dangers of self-talk, the acquisition and maintenance of effective self-confidence - you know, the useful stuff. It gives sound advice, and then tells you why the advice is sound, based on what science knows about the human mind and body.If you want drivel based on the fictional pseudo-Zen teachings of "The Master," you won't find it in this book. Myself, I've never met a Zen monk over a five-and-ten game of nine-ball, so I'll put my trust in good ol' Western science, thanks.

Since I have to give this book "stars" to post about it, publically I give it five--as one would assume most authors would about their books. Such self-doubts as I may have needn't be advertyised, right? Anyway, the stars aren't my idea, but oh, well.The point of this "review," though, is to tell readers of the first edition how this edition differs.This edition is about fifty percent larger than the original, organized into twelve chapters (and an "interlude") rather than the original seven. The new material is mostly about competition, motivation, and the place of the body in the mental game. In addition, new material has been worked into various chapters to elaborate or clarify.

If you're a serious player, this may be the most important purchase you'll ever make to improve your pool game. Once you are proficient at pocketing balls, getting shape, breaking, safety play and kicking, it's your mental game that determines if your skills will "come out to play today" or not. If you usually play much better in practice or when nothing is on the line than when in serious competition, this book is for you. Dr. Fancher teaches you how to use competitive pressures to your benefit. Believe it or not, you actually have the capacity to play better in competition than in practice by using the methods contained in this wonderful book. It's worked wonders for my game. I've surprised myself many times over the past year with sterling play during pressure packed matches. If I could rate this book higher than 5 stars, I would without hesitation.