🎱 Your Follow Shot Needs Work

Follow shots, taking an loss, and the US Open

Author

Madison Gazda
August 28, 2025

Hey there and welcome back to Stroke of Confidence.

This week we’re digging into two crucial topics: how to execute a solid follow shot, and how to mentally handle a match that doesn’t go your way. Both are important tools to have in your arsenal at the table.

If you’ve been enjoying the newsletter, hit that forward button and send it to someone on your league team. We get more new readers each week and most of that is thanks to you sharing it. Appreciate you all.

P.S. Want to ask us a question about pool? Submit it here.

This week’s topics:

  • Follow shot tips

  • How to handle a loss

  • 2025 US Open highlights

Let’s dive in:

Be a follower

Ever heard “Draw for show, follow for dough”? There’s a reason people say it. While draw shots are flashy, follow shots are smooth and reliable. A solid follow shot lets you move the cue ball more naturally and avoid complicated position shots. Once you get it down, it becomes one of the most reliable tools in your game.

Here’s some tips on how to get there:

  • Tip position matters: Follow only works if your tip hits the cue ball in the right spot. Too low and you a stun or slow roll. Too high and you could miscue or put more spin than you need and lose position.

  • Level your cue: Keep your cue stick as parallel to the table as possible. A level stroke ensures that energy is delivered directly into the cue ball.

  • Finish your stroke: Your stroke shouldn’t end the moment your tip hits the ball. A full follow-through helps maximize the forward spin and ensures you're not decelerating before contact.

  • Precision beats power: You don’t need to crush the ball to get good follow. You just need to hit high enough on the cue ball with a smooth stroke and full follow through and let the spin do the work.

  • Progressive distance drill: Set up a straight-in follow shot and shoot it so the cue ball rolls one diamond past the object ball. Then move the cue ball back and repeat, trying to roll it two diamonds past. Keep adding distance and note the changes in speed and stroke needed to get the same cue ball travel.

  • Challenge yourself with rail shape: Practice shots where you make an object ball, then the cue ball rolls forward and contacts a rail. This builds shape precision and simulates real-game position play.

If you want to see how the pros use follow, check out this video below from Jasmin Ouschan. She goes over important topics such as the difference between rolling and following, the effect of follow on the cue ball path, and how follow impacts the behavior of the object ball.

Practice Pro Pocket Reducers

If you’re serious about leveling up your shotmaking, this one’s a no-brainer. The Practice Pro Pocket Reducers have been one of the simplest and smartest items I’ve added to my practice routine.

This tool slides right into your table’s pockets and cuts off about 1/3 of the opening. That’s smaller than anything you’ll face in an actual game. So if you can make balls on this setup, you can make them anywhere.

Why I like it:

  • Instant feedback: You’ll know immediately if your aim is off. These tight pockets don’t lie.

  • Better aiming discipline: You stop getting away with sloppy shots. Center pocket becomes the standard, not the exception.

  • Confidence boost: Once you go back to regular pockets, they feel huge. Suddenly that long cut doesn’t seem so bad.

  • Quick setup: They slide in easily and stay put during practice. No need to mess with your table or do anything special.

  • Portable: Toss them in your cue case or backpack and bring them to any practice session.

Downsides:

  • Not for beginners: If you’re still working on basic mechanics, this can feel discouraging at first. Start slow and use it for shorter shots before moving to full-table play.

  • Not game realistic: Parts of the game like cheating the pocket to create an angle become much harder or not possible. These are better used for just pocketing practice.

If you want to train your precision and tighten up your shotmaking, I highly recommend giving these a try. They’ve made a noticeable difference in my ability to aim with intention and execute under pressure. You can grab a set here: Practice Pro Pocket Reducer

*Buying through this link helps support the newsletter at no extra cost to you.

You win some, you learn some

When a match doesn’t go your way, the spiral can come fast. You start second-guessing your stroke, your decisions, your prep, your confidence. One bad rack suddenly feels like your whole game is falling apart.

The good news is that it’s not. And how you respond to it is where the growth actually happens. Try this next time you walk away from a rough one:

  • Give yourself some credit: You showed up and you competed. That’s more than most people ever do. Your game doesn’t need perfection. It needs patience and consistency. Losing is part of it. Confidence is choosing to keep going.

  • Zoom out: A single match doesn’t define anything. Look at how you’ve been trending over the last month. One loss feels big in the moment, but it’s usually just a blip in the bigger picture.

  • Watch the tape if you have it: It can be painful but do it anyway. Look for patterns. You’ll spot things you couldn’t feel in real time.

  • Pick one thing to fix: Take one mistake or bad habit from your match and turn it into a drill for the next week. The goal isn’t to overhaul your whole game. Just pick something you struggled at and chip away until it becomes a strength.

  • Everything has a beginning and an end: What happened in the last shot, rack, or match doesn’t bleed into the next one unless you let it. Every new time you step to the table is a clean slate.

Everybody takes losses. What separates strong players is that they know how to learn from it and move forward. They treat each match as its own thing, take what they need from it, and keep showing up with the same intent. Progress happens from being willing to step back up after a rough day and keep putting in the work.

2025 US Open

Aloysius Yapp finally did it. After years of coming close, he took down the 2025 US Open with a gutsy 13–11 win over world number one Fedor Gorst. The match was everything you could ask for. Yapp jumped ahead 10–5, Gorst clawed all the way back to 11–11, and in the end, it came down to who could handle the pressure. Yapp calmed his nerves, cleaned up the last rack, and let it all sink in.

But this wasn’t just about one tournament. This win made it three straight Matchroom majors for Yapp this year. He took the UK Open, the Florida Open, and now the biggest title of them all. With the win, he’s jumped to world number two on the nine-ball rankings. Yapp isn’t just hoping to win anymore. He’s here to take over. Check out the match highlights from Matchroom Pool below:

🟢 EFREN BATA REYES YALIN 10-BALL OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP - IN PROGRESS
Aug 27–30 | 10-Ball | Watch
Pacman’s Cue Club, Mandaluyong City, Philippines

🟢 ZEN CUSTOM CUE & YUAN 8 OPEN
Sep 02–05 | 9-Ball | Watch
Yuan 8 Billiards Club, Shanghai, China

🟢 2025 China Open
Sep 06–14 | 9-Ball
Shanghai Pudong Yuanshen Stadium, Shanghai, China

🟢 2025 Predator WPA Men's 10-Ball World Championship
Sept 20–28 | 10-Ball | Watch
Ho Chi Minh City Vietnam

🟢 Saigon International Women 9-Ball Open
Sept 20–25 | 9-Ball | Watch
Ho Chi Minh City Vietnam

🔎 Got a question about pool?
Submit it here
We’ll feature it in a future newsletter.

That’s it for this week. Get your reps in, take the losses in stride, and don’t forget to have fun. It is a game after all!

See you next Thursday.

P.S. Want to sponsor our newsletter and get your business in front of thousands of pool fanatics? Reach out to us at [email protected].