In amateur play, most frames are going to be decided in the colours, so some dedicated practice is essential to winning. This is especially true if you play 6 red snooker. Spending some time here on the practice table will win you a lot more matches. When you can consistently run the colours you are almost never out of a game.

Some common shots on the yellow.

Here are some common routes from the yellow to green. Each colour has several common routes that must be played differently depending on where exactly the cue ball lands. Practice each of these shots individually with different cue ball placement to find the most consistent positional route and potting angle. Then begin to string them together into a full run. Breaking the run down this way will be more effective than just trying over and over again to run out if you are struggling.

Variations

Beginner
If clearing the colours is not within your current ability, try setting reds on the spots and running them in any order, re-spotting them after every shot. This is good practice for making pots off the spots.

Run the yellow green and brown in any order, re spotting after every pot. Keep track of your high run.

Intermediate
Play shape off the black back onto the yellow and run them again. Track how many successful clearances you can make in a row.

Advanced
Do not touch a cushion.

Pot every ball 3 times before moving on to the next one.

Pot a black between every other colour.

Tips

Find your problem shots and work on them. The most common problem is going from brown to blue. If you get perfect on the blue the clearance is very easy, three straight in shots. Too high, low, or straight can be disaster. Master this shot through repetition.

Find a variation or series of shots that you can consistently make 50% of the time. Instead of clearing the table 1 in 10 attempts, work the yellow, green, and brown, for 10 minutes, then move onto a different section.

Focus on position. Running the colours looks very easy when you get the cue ball just where you want every shot. Work on cue ball control instead of swinging a wild pots when you get out of line.

Snooker Drills

Stroke Drills