Return to my Billiard/Pool Pages
Go to my home page

The Hoppe Diamond

© Copyright 2002, Jim Loy

On the left, we have Willie Hoppe's diagram #74, in Billiards as it Should be Played (1941). This diagram should cause some confusion, as it (like most of the other diagrams in his chapter on the diamond system) is relatively inaccurate. His text clears up some of the confusion, as he says he is aiming at the diamonds on the top of the rails, not at the point of contact. Well, his inaccurate diagrams show the opposite. So he is aiming to the right on all four shots in this diagram. And, it looks like every one of his contact points (where the balls hit the rails) is also inaccurate. He is using running English (left English in this case), by the way. And, Hoppe never used the diamond system.

On the right is Hoppe's diagram #81 (the shot into the upper left corner pocket only applies to the carom billiard games which have no pockets). This one is very inaccurate. It shows that Hoppe is completely ignoring any down-table adjustment. See Three Rail Kicks and Banks for an explanation of this term and of the numbers that I have typed on the rails. His shots at the 1 and 2 diamonds (first rail) come up way short, in my opinion. He seems to think (along with other people) that anything that hits the third rail 2 diamond will go into the corner pocket (upper right in this diagram). Perhaps he is the source of this misconception.

Return to my Billiard/Pool Pages
Go to my home page