Mastering Your Game
So you’ve got to grips with the basics of Kojammi-Pool but as yet the subtleties of the sport elude you.
Prioritise The Return
Providing you’ve got plenty of ammunition White Balls behind the Live Line, it’s always good to be going for the pot in Kojammi-Pool. Running short? Prioritise the return and ensure you’ve got another ball to play with.
Try A Follow Through, You Might Enjoy It
This is one to only try in the right conditions…
Try to pot with topspin and have your White Ball continue on into the pocket with the object ball. Topspin’s a nice little trick to secure the follow through pot but it’s one that takes a bit of practice. It’s good to note that whilst this tactic will give you a tasty double pot, if it’s your last ball in hand it’ll end your frame.
Go For Two For One
“Two for One” – Roll one, get two back over the Live Line. Aim to hit the reverse face of the object White Ball in order to maximise your chances.
Check out this video on the best angles to catch the White Balls in order to make sure you never run out.
Use The Back Cushion
Running low on White Balls? The back cushion is your friend. Use it to catch the reverse face of your White Balls and send them upfield towards the Player Zone.
You’ll almost always get a return if you pick your angles correctly but beware of accidentally taking the Kojammi Ball downfield with you too.
Leave It If It’s Going In
It sounds simple to say but leave any White Balls that are on their way towards the Kojammi pockets. Providing that is, that you’ve got at least a couple to spare. Often these ‘extra’ points can mean the difference between winning a frame and losing a frame.
Watch Your Time
Keep an eye on your time particularly later on in a match when you start to run low. If your eye is in and you’ve still got a lot of time on the clock, it’s best to pot through the White Balls and aim to pot the Black Ball as a means of getting two frame points. Your opponent will however still have the usual Right of Reply with this option.
If you’re short on time in a frame and setting the score, why not go for the Kojammi Gamble and have a pop at the Kojammi Ball. Cannon it into one of the Kojammi Pockets for a guarenteed two points without the Right Of Reply for your opponent. It might just go in and you will save your time for when you need it.
Play Your Opponent’s Time Out
So you’ve run out of time, give up? NOPE. You’re only then playing for a draw but if your opponent still has time left on their clock they are still playing for the WIN.
Score a high score, keep your opponent on the table and run their clock out to secure a draw.
Control Your Ammo
It’s up to you to control the number of White Balls you keep behind the Live Line as ammunition. As your round progresses and the table starts to clear, you’ll need to feed the White Balls you’ve collected back out onto the table strategically so you don’t run out balls to pot. Remember you’ll still need to hit another White Ball.
Feed the White Balls back to open play by controlling your power on your roll. It’s worth considering where the White Balls you’re rolling back outfield will end up. Try to set up any White Balls you release back to open play as easy pots for your next shot.
When To Go For The Kojammi Ball
Going for the Kojammi Ball can be a useful way to end your round quickly if you are running short on time or if it is of tactical advantage to you.
It might be a tactic you would want to employ if your opponent has had a shocker and scored zero but been on the table for a while during a frame. Ending your round quickly then becomes in your best interest and the best way to do that? Kojammi Ball over the Live Line.
Alternatively, imagine the scenario where your opponent is on 4 frame points and you are on 3 frame points. They’re one frame away from victory but you can still pull it back. Landing a Kojammi Pocket pot at this point would net you two frame points and win you the match but miss and you hand them the win. Worth a gamble??
The Jaws Of Victory
You’re dead certain you can make it. It’s right there over the pocket. You roll, it seems to connect with a sweet click and yet there it is rattling off the jaws of the cushion and back out.
Heartache. Or is it?
Roll with enough pace and it’s definitely coming back to you over the Live Line. You never know, you might just pick up a few loose White Balls on the way back. Sometimes you’ll get a ‘switchback’ where your rolling ball goes in and your object ball comes back. It might be ugly but a pot’s a pot in our book.