Tricky Business
Often referred to as 'Artistic Pool,' Trick shots have become much more popular over the last few years. This entertaining and demanding discipline of pool can be categorised into two types, The first of these are Setup shots, in which the balls are set up in a specific formation to steer them towards the pocket. Volunteers from the audience are often selected to try these shots as they are difficult to miss. The second type is the skill shot. These require a good stroke with the que hitting the target ball in the precise place needed to cause the ball to 'whirl' around the table. Some Advanced skill shots include Jumps and Masses, where the ‘que' or white ball, curves on its own.
In a Competition setting these Shots are broken up into 8 categories; These are Trick and Fancy which consist of Setup shots, and example of one fancy shot is having several balls set up so all balls go into different pockets with one stroke of the que.
The second Competition category is Prop, Novelty or Special, These shots are the least likely to come up in a regular game of pool as they often require use of the Rack as a prop or hitting a moving ball or shooting one handed or speed shots which involve hitting several balls within an allotted time.
The Draw and Follow shot requires precise angling in order to hit the que ball in an exact place so it travels in a prescribed way. For example back toward the competitor or continuing along the path it is taking rather than rebounding off any other components on the table.
This is done by causing the ball to either topspin or backspin. The Bank and Kick requires the 'object ball', the ball the que or white ball hits, or the que ball itself to hit the rail a prescribed number of times before entering the pocket. The Stroke requires technique as well as control, as in these shots the balls are often very close together possibly even touching. Jump shots are when the que ball leaves the table to avoid an obstacle. The final competition category is Masse. When the ball has so much spin it deviated from the expected line of play without hitting any obstacles.
There are many different champions giving hints tips and demonstrations on the internet.
