There are plenty of examples of players choking or bottling it in snooker. As soon as the winning line comes into sight, it seems to get further away. The key in this situation is just staying with the shot, just like any other shot, to ignore the stage in the game and treat it like the first shot.

Once a player places extra significance or meaning on a shot, it can increase the pressure. This may mean some game playing using the sense and feelings you get when you are just warmed up. Players often use a trigger words to get the concentration and focus required to play with correct level of intensity.

Trigger words can provide a quick connection to a state - an anchor in NLP terms and also focus the mind away from other thoughts that can be counterproductive. The trigger word can also help the player get the rythmn of cueing and timing right.