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Position zones

You don't need to stop the cue ball on one exact spot. Pick an area where the next shot is easy, and send the cue ball through it the long way.

  • Position play
  • Level 2 · Lesson 5 of 8
  • 5 min read
  • 2 exercises
pocketposition zonenext object ballalong the zone: short or long still worksacross the zone: short or long misses it
Speed errors happen along the cue ball’s path. A path along the zone still ends inside it if the cue ball stops a little short or long. A path across the zone misses it with the same error.

How it works

After each shot, the cue ball has to stop somewhere you can make the next object ball. There is rarely just one good spot. Usually there is an area where the next shot is easy. That area is the position zone.

A zone is often long and narrow. It runs along the line from the next object ball to its pocket, on the side that gives a small cut angle. Inside the zone you can make the next object ball, and you still have an angle to move the cue ball to the shot after that. A zone also has a distance limit. Too close to the object ball, the cue ball is hard to move. Too far away, the object ball is hard to make.

Your speed is never perfect, so the cue ball stops a bit short or a bit long. That error happens along the cue ball's path. If the path runs along the zone's length, a small speed error still leaves you inside the zone. If the path crosses the zone, a small speed error takes you out of it. So choose a path that goes into the zone the long way.

Leave an angle on the next ball when you can. A straight-in shot makes the cue ball hard to move: it can only go forward or back. A small cut lets you send the cue ball where the following shot needs it.

Step by step

  1. 1

    Look at the next object ball and its pocket. Picture the area where that shot would be easy, with a small angle.

  2. 2

    Check the shot after that. Choose the side of the zone that lets you get there.

  3. 3

    Find the cue ball paths that reach the zone: follow, draw, stun, or off a cushion (Level 2, Lessons 1 to 4).

  4. 4

    Choose the path that runs along the zone, not across it.

  5. 5

    Check the path for scratches and for balls in the way.

  6. 6

    Choose the speed for the middle of the zone, then play the shot.

Common mistakes

  • Aiming for a perfect spot

    You'll miss it most of the time. Plan for an area.

  • Crossing the zone

    A path that cuts across the zone leaves no room for speed errors.

  • Getting straight in

    Without an angle, you can't move the cue ball to the next shot.

  • Planning only one ball ahead

    The best zone for the next ball depends on the shot after it.

Practice this

  • Exercise · Level 2

    Zone target

    Set up a half-ball cut into a corner pocket. Put a second object ball where you want to play next. Mark the corners of a zone with chalk or coins. Make it about half a diamond wide and two diamonds long, running along the line of the next shot. Make the first object ball and get the cue ball into the zone. Then try the same shot with a path that crosses the zone, and compare.

  • Exercise · Level 2

    Three-ball run

    Spread three object balls on the table, away from the cushions. Ball in hand, make all three in any order. Before each shot, say out loud where your zone for the next ball is.

Check yourself: 10 tries at the zone target. In 7 of them, the object ball drops and the cue ball stops inside the zone. Then you’re ready for the next lesson.

Note: if you are not sure which path is safer, choose the one where a small speed error still leaves you a makeable shot with an angle.