Swerve

tonythetiger583 said:

I was just wondering if swerve is a constant?

When I shoot slow with lots of spin, I feel like after a certain distance it stops swerving.

Can someone explain what is happening? I don't think I'm running out of english, but the ball seems to stop curving in at some point.

Elevated I could see the swerve wearing off because the drag might be causing the ball to be losing spin.

But does the ball swerve in to a degree and then proceed straight while still spinning sideways?,

Or does it swerve in extremely and then less and less, but still swerving in?

Click to expand...

The swerve is a smooth curve (technically a parabola) that continues until the ball is rolling smoothly on the cloth. If you play a shot with draw, it will be a relatively long distance until the ball is rolling smoothly on the cloth. After that curve, the ball continues in a straight line.

The amount of swerve that will occur, that is, the change in angle of the cue ball's path, is larger for more side spin, more elevation and more draw. The final direction of the cue ball's path is predicted by the same rule that allows you to aim masse shots that was discovered by Coriolis a long time ago and first appeared in English in Robert Byrne's books.

Check out Dr. Dave's site for an explanation of Coriolis's rule.

BTW, if you played with a truly level cue stick, the ball would not swerve.