Johnny Henson, Professor Pool One of the most common and most misunderstood performance killers in billiards is the failure to separate practice mode from playing mode. This is where analysis paralysis lives, and where many players unknowingly sabotage their own ability. Analysis paralysis occurs when practice-mode thinking leaks into performance-mode execution. Instead of allowing trained…
Tag: pool
Sports, March 2026
Play Your Best Pool: The Parallel Between Shooting a Gun and Shooting Pool
Johnny Henson, Professor Pool Whether you’re standing behind a firearm or leaning over a pool table, the act of “taking a shot” has more in common than most people realize. Both activities require discipline, alignment, body control, and mental focus. However, the most revealing similarity lies in the reasons people miss their shots. In both…
Sports, February 2026
Play Your Best Pool: Don’t Let a Missed Shot Define Your Game
Johnny Henson, Professor Pool Every pool player has experienced this: you line up for an easy shot, take your stroke, and watch the ball miss. Whether it rattles in the pocket, overcuts, or falls short, that single moment can stir up frustration, self-doubt, and tension. While the mishap itself is just a small part of…
Sports, January 2026
Play Your Best Pool: Three Simple Steps to Improving Your Game
Johnny Henson, Professor Pool There are three things that can help every billiard player play much better in a short period of time 1. Players must realize that they can’t teach themselves. Books, videos, and the tip of the day from other players will never replace having lessons from a professional instructor. 2. Hiring a…
Sports, December 2025
Play Your Best Pool: Staying Relaxed and Positive When Not at the Shooting Table
Johnny Henson, Professor Pool We all miss shots and play dumb shots. It happens to all of us, and we get mad or down on ourselves. The difference between the better players and the weaker players is how well they control their emotions and actions when they are not shooting. Over the years I have…
November 2025, Sports
Play Your Best Pool: Understanding Lapse of Focus
Johnny Henson, Professor Pool I feel one of the main reasons players never reach their full playing ability is lapse of focus while playing. Every time you miss a shot when you are playing, think about the reason why you missed. Why did you fail to leave your cue ball where it needed to be…
Sports, September 2025
Play Your Best Pool: What Holds Players from Reaching Their Full Potential
Johnny Henson, Professor Pool Why are many of the top 100 professional players in the world ranked there year after year, while many other great players never achieve that upper level of success? It is the same reason why most of the top amateur league and tournament players are ranked at the top year after…
Generals, September 2025
Unit Happenings – September 2024
Speedo-Palooza-Thong Pete Watson It’s the Dog Days of Summer, when the monsoons are a no-show, so it’s time to break out your Speedos and Thongs and throw a Pool Party! The Buffoon Patrol, also known as the Activity Committee, plied several residents of Unit 16B with copious amounts of Jägermeister until one of them unwittingly…
Sports, August 2025
Play Your Best Pool: Improving a Few Parts of Your Game in a Short Time
Johnny Henson, Professor Pool When most players try to improve their games they sometimes work on too many changes all at once. It makes me think of the old quote: “Jack of all trades and master of none.” With this thought in mind, I want you to focus on just the shots that you miss…
Sports, July 2025
Play Your Best Pool: Things to Consider When Buying a New Cue Stick or Shaft
Johnny Henson, Professor Pool Over the years cue sticks have evolved a lot. In 1978 I was playing with house sticks in the local pool hall in Big Spring, Texas, when the owner encouraged me to order a cue from a friend of his in Colorado Springs, Colo. His name was Bill Stroud, the owner…