Pool Aiming Practice — Ghost Ball & Contact Point Drills
Three methods + 4 progressive drills
Why 90% of beginners cut wrong
Most beginners have a single intuition: "aim at the object ball, the ball goes in."
It doesn't. The object ball doesn't go to the pocket on its own — it leaves in the direction of the contact normal at impact.
So what you actually aim at is not the object ball. It's the position the cue ball must reach to push the object ball toward the pocket.
This lesson teaches three industry-standard aim methods for finding that position, then drills each one until it's reflex.
Method 1 · Ghost Ball
Imagine an invisible ball — the ghost ball — sitting directly behind the object ball, on the line from the pocket through the object ball's center.
Aim the cue ball center at the ghost ball center. Done.
Most intuitive method. Best for beginners and short / medium cuts. Toggle "Ghost ball" in the aim-aids panel and the white outline shows up on the table.
- Pocket, object ball, and ghost ball are collinear
- Ghost ball center sits exactly one diameter (2R) behind the OB center
- Aim cue ball center at ghost ball center
Method 2 · Contact Point
On the surface of the object ball, find the point that faces directly away from the pocket (the red dot in the diagram).
Aim such that the matching point on the cue ball hits that contact point. Same geometry as the ghost ball method, just looking at the surface point instead of the imagined ball position.
Better than Ghost Ball for steep cuts — the ghost ball lives further away from the OB at thin cuts and your eyes lose track of it. Toggle "Contact point" to see the dot.
- Contact point is on the OB surface, opposite the pocket direction
- Hit it with the matching point on the cue ball
- Preferred for steep cuts and snooker (smaller pocket margin)
Method 3 · Fractional Aim (Overlap)
From the shooter's point of view, the cue ball visually overlaps the object ball by some fraction. That fraction maps to a fixed cut angle:
- Full ball (overlap 100%) ≈ 0° → straight shot
- 3/4 ball ≈ 14° → slight cut
- 1/2 ball ≈ 30° → medium cut (cue edge at OB center)
- 1/4 ball ≈ 49° → thick cut
- 1/8 ball ≈ 60° → razor thin
Anchor on 1/2 ball = 30° and 1/4 ball = 49°; interpolate everything else. Fastest method for experienced players.
- Visual overlap fraction maps to cut angle (geometric law)
- Anchors: 1/2 ball = 30°, 1/4 ball ≈ 49°
- Fastest in practice once internalized
Method comparison
| Method | Intuitive | Precision | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ghost ball | ★★★ | ★★ | Beginners; short to medium cuts |
| Contact point | ★★ | ★★★ | Steep cuts; snooker; precision shots |
| Fractional | ★ | ★★★ | Experienced players; rapid sizing |
In practice you blend: rough-aim with Ghost Ball, refine with Contact Point, sanity-check with Fractional.
Four drills below. Aim aids are progressively disabled. 70% pot rate to pass.
Drill 1/4 · Straight-in (build confidence)
Cue, object, and pocket are collinear. Aim at the object ball center — no cut needed. All aids on.
Drill 2/4 · 30° cut with all aids
Use Ghost Ball. Aim the cue ball at the white ghost outline behind the OB. Click "New layout" for variations.
Drill 3/4 · 30° cut, no Ghost Ball
Ghost Ball aid is OFF. Use the Contact Point method — find the red dot on the far side of the OB and hit it with the matching cue ball point.
Drill 4/4 · 45° cut, all aids OFF
All visual aids disabled. Pure judgment. Use "New layout" to drill different positions.