Hello everybody my name is Erik Hjorleifson, one of the founding members of
Cue Sport Nation (CSN). Recently on behalf of CSN I sat down with one of our leading contributors and instructional writers Paul Potier to ask questions and to learn more about his new online coaching program as well as the face to face coaching program that he is currently offering out of his home base in Calgary, Alberta.
For those of you that are less familiar with Paul it may be because he has spent some time away from the game in the last 5 years, thankfully he is now back doing what he loves. In 2014 Paul played in the Canadian Championships for the first time in a long time and he had top 5 finishes in every division which were 8 ball, 9 ball and 10 ball.
During the 90's and 2000's Paul put together a very impressive competitive resume including two third place finishes at the All Japan Championships, along with a 5th place finish at the World 9 ball Championships. During that time he also represented Canada at the World games on two occasions and captained a Canadian team to a 2nd place finish at the World Team Championships.
Paul has also accomplished many things in the instructional world of pool as well, most notably he was the architect of Pool School in Paradise that ran for 11 years in Vancouver. The instructors for that school were Gerda Hofstatter, Allison Fisher and Mike Massey and it was a very successful venture for a long time. Here is a testimonial from Mike Massey which can also be seen on Paul's site:
http://paulpotier.com/testimonials/
"To anyone who is considering hiring Paul Potier as their coach. My name is Mike Massey. Paul has been my good friend for over 30 years. In that time I have seen him develop himself into a top professional pool player and I have been there to watch some of his great accomplishments first hand. I have also watched him help others to reach their goals of playing well, and some even becoming professional players themselves. Paul and I were partners with Allison Fisher and Gerda Hofstatter for 11 years in a very successful pool school venture called Pool School in Paradise. I can honestly tell you that I believe that Paul is one of the billiard world’s best instructors and coaches. I can attest to the fact that he generally cares for every student he teaches. He is very organized and has a great talent for analyzing players. Paul is quite unique as he is actually a champion himself, so he can truly help someone through the process of becoming a champion. I suggest that anyone who has a passion to improve their game should work with Paul in his new online coaching program."
Mike Massey,
18 time World Trick Shot Champion
Q &A
Cue Sport Nation
Hello Paul nice to be here with you today, tell us what have you been up to in your time away from the game recently?
Paul Potier
Hello Erik I would first like to say that it has been a pleasure working with you and Markus at Cue Sport Nation and am pleased to see the effort that you are putting together to improve the state of cue sports in Canada and around the world. In 2007 after the failure of the IPT it could see the writing on the wall for the billiard industry over the following years to come so I decided to go back to the hospitality industry. I had a newborn baby at home and was forced to change my priorities in life. Five years later after an amicable separation with my wife I found myself itching to get back to the game I love so that is exactly what I did. Given the state of the game in British Columbia which had been my home base for over 20 years I decided to make a move to Calgary where the pool scene is a lot more active.
Cue Sport Nation
Interesting, how has the relocation treated you?
Paul Potier
It has been great the league scene in Calgary is very active as it has been for many years. Currently I am competing as much as i can and have been focusing on my instructional work. I have put together a coaching program that offers 26 hours of coaching at a one time discounted cost of $1000, students also have the option to pay in 5 installments of $250. I have had great response to this offer and am happy to be helping out my students once again.
Cue Sport Nation
We hear that you will now be offering these services online, can explain what you will be doing there?
Paul Potier
After some development with my partner from Oregon I now have the capability to coach online. This is a very exciting avenue for me because now I can reach out to anyone in the world through online communication.
Cue Sport Nation
Excellent, what are the main ways of communicating?
Paul Potier
Students can speak with me directly on Skype, they can also post videos to youtube and I can insert voice over instruction in real time as they are playing. Right now I am offering a free analysis to anyone who may be interested in long term coaching. There is no obligation if you like what you hear you are welcome to sign up to my complete online coaching package. I offer instruction to all skill levels all the way from beginner to pro level players. 2 of my proudest success stories in fact are two women Jennifer Chen and Kyoko Sone who after spending time with me achieved some great heights in women's professional pool.A short example of this online coaching can be found
here on the
PaulPotier.com site under coaching programs.
Cue Sport Nation
Looks great Paul it was fantastic catching up with you is there anything you would like to add?
Paul Potier
Thank you it was nice speaking with you as well, I would like to add that all my instructional courses are fully comprehensive we will not only address all the fundamental components of your game but also work on the mental side of the game which we all know is paramount. I have methods of teaching development of proper habits associated with pool and devlopment of a positive mental attitude and disposition towards this beautiful game that we all love. I would love to hear from you, all my contact information is available at my website http://paulpotier.com/.
Cue Sport Nation
Thanks Paul it was a pleasure speaking with you and we will be in contact again in the future for a follow up on your new online coaching program, good luck!
After sitting down with Paul at the U.S. Open this year and hearing what he had planned for the next year I was immediately interested in taking advantage of an opportunity to take in the knowledge of someone that has been at the forefront of not only competitive pool but also instructional pool for over 30 years.
I have officially signed on with Paul's online coaching program and after our first conversations I can personally tell you that he has answered every question and has brought up aspects of my game that I have overlooked in the past. Being an instructor myself I am always in search of new knowledge and different ways to look at this complex game. I am particularly excited to continue talking to Paul about the mental side of the game. What he has offered so far has stuck with me and I feel like our future conversations will begin to greatly strengthen that part of my game. I would strongly recommend any of our followers to get in touch with Paul and see for yourself what he has to offer.
