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Hide the cue ball behind another ball

A safety works best when your opponent can’t see the ball they must hit. Use another ball as a wall.

  • Safety
  • Intermediate
  • 10-second clip

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Your opponent must hit the 1 ball next.

Try it in the Pool Hall
Made on the Pool Hall table.

Why it matters

If your opponent has no straight path to the ball they must hit, they have to kick off a cushion, and kicks are hard. Hiding the cue ball behind another ball is often easier than leaving it far away. If their kick misses the ball they must hit, it is a foul and you get ball in hand.

How to do it

  1. 1

    Find a ball near the ball your opponent must hit next. That ball is your wall.

  2. 2

    Plan to hit the object ball softly, so the cue ball stops on the far side of the wall.

  3. 3

    Make sure a ball reaches a cushion after contact, or it is a foul.

  4. 4

    Check from your opponent’s side: can the cue ball see any part of the ball they need?

Common mistake

Forgetting the cushion

A soft safety where no ball reaches a cushion after contact is a foul, and it gives your opponent ball in hand. Plan the safety so the object ball or the cue ball reaches a cushion.

Try it tonight

Exercise · Intermediate

Hide behind the 2

The 1 ball and the 2 ball near a long cushion, as shown. Hit the 1 ball softly to the cushion and stop the cue ball behind the 2 ball, so the 1 ball is hidden. Every attempt counts.

  • Pass: 4 of your last 5
Try it in the Pool Hall