why dont pool instructors teach a snooker stance ???

bbb

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the forum has been slow so i thought i would try to provoke some discussion
:smile:
 

Bob Jewett

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the forum has been slow so i thought i would try to provoke some discussion
:smile:
Some instructors do teach or at least suggest a snooker stance. The main problem for a lot of people is that pool tables are lower than snooker tables so it takes more effort to get that low.

If the student/player is primarily going to play on 7-foot tables, it's not clear that being that low is much help.

On a related topic, have you noticed that Ronnie O'Sullivan is rarely "as level as possible"? Curious.
 

M.G.

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the forum has been slow so i thought i would try to provoke some discussion
:smile:

You can stir....

Most pool players and instructors are idiots, clinging to the old crap. It's as simple as that.
And I don't mean it in a mean way - people don't like change and challenging their own views.

A snooker-esk stance offers a lot of benefits, but it does not look as cool as them ball banger stances.
Might be that pool tables are lower, but then you get the fsck down still. 3 point contact on body and you're set.

However, here you'll find a few excellent instructors that know the benefits.
It takes effort, but the reward is huge.

I'll also readily say that van Boening's stance and stroke is terrible. He's still vastly more successful than I am ;)
Chris Melling on the other hand - proper body tension ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b5bNceN12kY

Cheers,
M
 
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bbb

AzB Gold Member
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A snooker-esk stance offers a lot of benefits, but it does not look as cool as them ball banger stances.
Might be that pool tables are lower, but then you get the fsck down still. 3 point contact on body and you're set.


I'll also readily say that van Boening's stance and stroke is terrible. He's still vastly more successful than I am ;)
Chris Melling on the other hand - proper body tension ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b5bNceN12kY

Cheers,
M
i edited your post
deleting what i thought were unnecesary comments
 

BilliardsAbout

BondFanEvents.com
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the forum has been slow so i thought i would try to provoke some discussion
:smile:

Were you thinking of the height of a snooker stance, or the fact that it tends to be more square toward the target with the body?

There are number of commonly accepted ideas that should be challenged. Snooker players stand low and square because snooker pros have said this is best, and for many years.

However, do snooker pros do certain things because they work best or because other pros said to do so when they were young, up-and-coming players? :)
 

bbb

AzB Gold Member
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Were you thinking of the height of a snooker stance, or the fact that it tends to be more square toward the target with the body?

There are number of commonly accepted ideas that should be challenged. Snooker players stand low and square because snooker pros have said this is best, and for many years.

However, do snooker pros do certain things because they work best or because other pros said to do so when they were young, up-and-coming players? :)

i was referring to the more square to the table and chin very low
your other questions are like which came first the chicken or the egg?
 

goettlicher

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
You can stir....

Most pool players and instructors are idiots, clinging to the old crap. It's as simple as that.
And I don't mean it in a mean way - people don't like change and challenging their own views.

A snooker-esk stance offers a lot of benefits, but it does not look as cool as them ball banger stances.
Might be that pool tables are lower, but then you get the fsck down still. 3 point contact on body and you're set.

However, here you'll find a few excellent instructors that know the benefits.
It takes effort, but the reward is huge.

I'll also readily say that van Boening's stance and stroke is terrible. He's still vastly more successful than I am ;)
Chris Melling on the other hand - proper body tension ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b5bNceN12kY

Cheers,
M


I believe that we have just been called an "idiot"!

randyg
 

measureman

AzB Silver Member
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Because its all about looking good.
The snooker stance looks terrible and dorky.
The traditional pool stance looks cool.
I want to look cool not dorky.
But with that said i do like watching the women snooker players with the right camera angle.:grin:
 

BilliardsAbout

BondFanEvents.com
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i was referring to the more square to the table and chin very low
your other questions are like which came first the chicken or the egg?

Not quite. There were a bunch of players who imitated, for example, Willie Hoppe's chicken wing stroke, to no avail.

When I'm told it's necessary to place one's chin right atop the cue stick for Snooker, Billiards or Pool, I sometimes ask, "Do you shoot with your chin or your hand and eye?"

When Allison Fisher came here, she didn't convert her square stance to 45 degrees for pool because "that's how it's done". When fine pool players run over 100 in Snooker, they use their pool stance . . .
 

BC21

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Not quite. There were a bunch of players who imitated, for example, Willie Hoppe's chicken wing stroke, to no avail.

When I'm told it's necessary to place one's chin right atop the cue stick for Snooker, Billiards or Pool, I sometimes ask, "Do you shoot with your chin or your hand and eye?"

When Allison Fisher came here, she didn't convert her square stance to 45 degrees for pool because "that's how it's done". When fine pool players run over 100 in Snooker, they use their pool stance . . .

Good point. For years I played a guy that had a nearly straight up stance, his chin a good 2 feet or more above the cue. He was an excellent player.

And maybe it's just me, but I use both stances, traditional pool player style AND a more prone snooker style, depending on the shot. Not even sure why -- probably because I automatically stand in a manner that just feels right for the shot at hand.
 

M.G.

AzB Silver Member
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If you watch closely, the old players like Mosconi, Hoppe weren't even that accurate, with their heads in the clouds. I mean, dead accurate like the current Snooker pros.

The chin-on-cue is all about a consistent sighting, maybe about detecting a wobly stroke. Physics dictate that 3 contact points make for a consistent movement, that's why we include the body as the 3rd (1st is the bridge).

Do and find out what suits your body flaws best - this is really the advice any trainer should give. For me sighting is a problem, that's why I need a consistent starting point.

Cheers,
M
 

FranCrimi

AzB Silver Member
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the forum has been slow so i thought i would try to provoke some discussion
:smile:

There's a lot to be learned from studying snooker stances, but snooker is not pool. Allison Fisher, Karen Corr and Julie Kelly --- all from snooker backgrounds, adjusted their stances to play pool. You may think that they have snooker stances now, but their stances have changed. I watched their transformations from when they first came to the U.S. into their first few years on tour. It was easy for me to observe since I played both along side and against all three of them on tour.

I think the ideal stance for pool has both snooker and pool elements to it.
 
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FranCrimi

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
If you watch closely, the old players like Mosconi, Hoppe weren't even that accurate, with their heads in the clouds. I mean, dead accurate like the current Snooker pros.

The chin-on-cue is all about a consistent sighting, maybe about detecting a wobly stroke. Physics dictate that 3 contact points make for a consistent movement, that's why we include the body as the 3rd (1st is the bridge).

Do and find out what suits your body flaws best - this is really the advice any trainer should give. For me sighting is a problem, that's why I need a consistent starting point.

Cheers,
M

Yes, you can shoot pool with the three contact points, but finesse shots are not those type of players strong suits. In fact, they tend to steer away from finesse shots because finesse shots are touch shots that aren't restricted by a body template. Efren Reyes, for example, is a player who excels in finesse shots. He is about as far away from the three touch points as one can imagine.
 

Bobkitty

I said: "Here kitty, kitty". Got this frown.
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I, myself, do not have much confidence in what I see from most pool instructors. But to refer to them as "idiots" is over the top, my man.
They're not idiots.
Some are, true enough, so full of themselves (especially the fat bellied ones) that they border on the absurd and I think their prices are way out of line for what they provide. However, nobody forces a buyer to buy anything. That is an individual decision.
But for beginners, intermediates, and those who are stuck at a plateau they do provide a useful purpose. There is no question, in my mind, that the video taping alone can furnish very valuable information for study.
I agree with you about the Brit snooker players being so deadly accurate. Everyone, however, especially if they're tall, just cannot physically bend over that far without spreading the legs very wide to help out. That spreading of the legs can result in unknowingly throwing the shooter off the shot line. Again, the video taping would reveal anything of that nature.
My big beef with most instructors is I never see them in action for the cash..be it matching up gambling or in contests. To me, that is the true test of the nerves and practicing what they preach. And I don't like the prices overall.
I think Bob Jewett is an exception to that. I've seen him at work when the prize money was at stake and he doesn't fool around or blow smoke. He can "drill you" and send an opponent home broke and whining.
To say SVB "has a terrible stroke" is ridiculous..no need in even going there.
Bottom line: "Idiots" is a strong word. (in my opinion)
Stay happy.


Truly amazing that some pool players must think our pool instructors MUST be able to win world championships right now! But some nimrods do! Lets see how Butch Harmon (voted the best instructor in golf) can beat the world's number one player; Dustin Johnson (Butch's student). That would be funny. Butch probably couldn't break 90 but that does not hurt his any of his teaching ability. Most of the greatest golf teachers do NOT even play the game in order to discourage this kind of BS. Pool teachers should do the same thing.
 
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gregcantrall

Center Ball
Silver Member
There's a lot to be learned from studying snooker stances, but snooker is not pool. Allison Fisher, Karen Corr and Julie Kelly --- all from snooker backgrounds, adjusted their stances to play pool. You may think that they have snooker stances now, but their stances have changed. .

That is interesting. What changed?
 
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