Safety Play in Pool: How to Win Without Making a Ball
A safety is a shot where your goal is not to make a ball, but to leave your opponent with no good shot. Strong players often win more games with safeties than with runouts. You don't need to be a great shot-maker to play good safeties; you need to know a few patterns.
The rules every safety must follow
A safety is still a normal shot. In most games you must hit the correct ball first, and then a ball must go in a pocket or some ball must hit a rail after contact. If you just roll the cue ball up behind a ball and nothing hits a rail, it is a foul. In 8-Ball and 10-Ball you may also need to call "safety" before the shot; ask how your event plays it.
When to play safe
- The shot you have is hard and a miss would leave your opponent an easy out.
- You can't get from the ball you are shooting to the next one.
- Your opponent is a much stronger shot-maker than you.
- In 8-Ball, your opponent has trouble balls and you have a chance to lock them up.
The main kinds of safety
- Hide the cue ball. Put the cue ball behind another ball so your opponent can't see the ball they need to hit (a "snooker").
- Distance. Leave the cue ball and the object ball at opposite ends of the table, ideally with one of them on a rail. Long shots are hard to make, and harder to make with position.
- Freeze to a rail. A cue ball frozen on the rail is hard to cue and hard to control.
- Two-way shot. Try the shot, but with a speed that leaves your opponent safe if you miss. This is the best option when it is available.
Three safeties anyone can learn
- Thin cut to the far rail. Barely clip the object ball so it goes to a rail, and send the cue ball the length of the table.
- Stop behind a ball. When a blocker is near the object ball, hit the object ball softly to a rail and stop the cue ball behind the blocker.
- Roll up in 8-Ball. Push the cue ball gently behind one of your balls so it blocks your opponent's shot, while a ball still reaches a rail.
Kicking out of safeties
Once you start playing safeties, your opponent will too. Learn one-rail kicks using the diamonds: they are the best answer to a good safety. Read how to kick in pool, then try the kick drill and the kick shot trainer.
Next: learn to plan your runs with 8-Ball pattern play, or try a game of One Pocket, where almost every shot is part offense, part safety.