Shuffleboard Strategy Tips You Can Use to Improve Your Game

Whether you play at home, bars, or pool halls, if you have played even just a few games of table shuffleboard, then you should start to learn some of the tips and tricks the pros use for control and strategy.

A lot of people know some basic strategy. You want to give your puck enough momentum to reach the higher score zones, but not enough to go over. You also want to avoid under shooting and being outscored by your opponent. These are ideas practically anyone can perceive from watching a few games.

Getting Down to the Basics

To develop a more sophisticated strategy, you will need to apply some of the following ideas in practice until they become standard in your play. You have to account for the fact that not all tables are equal. Sometimes you play on a warped field. If this is the case, learn quickly how to avoid sending your weights off the sides by compensating for any curvature. Even if you play at home on the same table frequently, over time your table can warp without climatic adjusters.

Also learn where your opponent fails and succeeds. Does he or she tend to over shoot? Going for longer shots might make them scratch more often. Do they tend to under shoot? If this is the case, do not worry so much about knocking them off, and instead, focus on long, controlled shots. Shuffleboards and your opponents can change, so your strategy should be dynamic as well.

Using English: The Good Ol’ Sidespin

There are also shooting techniques for more control. Applying English is good for those who tend to use a little too much power in their shots. Using your thumb and forefinger, you can apply backspin to your puck. Note that this can slow it down, so experiment with how much you want to apply. This is used to keep your puck from falling over, so be careful that you are not slowing down your puck too much.

Using Knock Off

Another technique is known as side-wheeling. This is when you shoot from the side of the table and use your third and fourth fingers to guide the puck. Side-wheeling is a method that gives you controlled shots that are risky for the opponent to knock off. Using this, you can keep your puck close to the sides without falling over.

There is always the chance that your overly ambitious opponent might try to knock these off, but in the process, fall into the gutter themselves. This technique is also good for warped tables. Too much curvature means you might have to start from one side anyway.

[READ: Shooting the Ol’ Go Around]

Conclusion

Remember that each table and opponent is different. Use these strategies when you think they will be most effective. Practice with different levels of power and spin to see how well you can master control and precision.

More Shuffleboard Tips:

  1. Table Shuffleboard Tips: How to Look Like You’ve Done This Before
  2. How to Play Table Shuffleboard
  3. Official Shuffleboard Game Rules