The idea of air stroking in pool goes beyond normal sports preparatory ritual actions such as waggles, ball bouncing or implement twirling etc.. Obviously the player is not yet fully down on the shot, if he is air stroking. Besides approaching the shot to put the cueing side foot on the shot line, and superimposing the cue vertically in a very real way on the line, the alignment is just starting. If the cue is simply lowered in one piece to the line, the alignment is missing a key element, movement.
The pool stroke is a movement dynamic. If the vertical arm, the upper arm and the cueing hand don’t line up perfectly with the bridge the cue will exhibit a slight sidling movement. With even a minimal misalignment, resultant micro sideways action can cause the tip to either hit slightly off center or have a skewed impact across the face of the cue ball. Either way side is imparted. This is why movement alignment through air stroking is key.
Try some air strokes. The odds are you don’t pay much attention to anything other than a smooth sliding of the cue in the bridge, and possibly subconscious or conscious mental rehearsal, as the body prepares. Likely the bridge and upper arm are not yet being prepared to align. The elbow opens and closes, anticipating the shot, with the grip hand opening and closing in sync. If at this point the bridge is not aligned but is left of the cueing arm stroking line, the cue will move sideways to the left ahead of the bridge as the stroke moves forwards and vice versa if located to the right of the stroke line. I suggest another area of focus is needed to help achieve eventual alignment.
Move the cue with it set in the bridge. This air stroking let’s you see the cue travel. The elbow simply opening and closing in a one handed scenario would travel in a straight line. Starting with the cue in the bridge adds a new variable. If the bridge is on the one handed travel line, the cue runs straight, you will see it. This is why the pro taper is a roughly 15" doweled barrel rather than a fully tapered shaft. Air stroking let’s you move the bridge hand finding the alignment that runs straight. Now a one piece placement of the cue first vertically superimposed on the path to the target and next lowering it on line, moves towards completing alignment. The movement forces the vision center to look down the line of the moving cue. It will only be perceptually moving in a straight line, not just pointing straight, if the vision center is aligned as well. I use an open bridge for most shots which makes deviation easier to see. If my cue is in the bridge and I am air stroking my cue dips up and down in a straight line as the length of cue beyond the bridge changes, if it is aligned with the cueing motion.
Without movement a stationary cue is pointed somewhere. If you position yourself directly over that line you can feel aligned. It can create the illusion of being lined up. Problem is if the cueing hand moves and the bridge is not on the line, the only time the cue seems to be pointing in the right direction is at that one point in its travel. The illusion happens with a static cue. The tip looks to be at the desired contact point. It’s like a stopped clock being right, twice a day. The cue appears to be pointed right in that one place. Once moving the distance from bridge to hand lengthens and shortens as the cue is moved back and forth. The cue moves back then ahead in a subtle sideways fashion. However, other problems sometimes arise from subconscious adjustments our bodies make. At some level our mind may realize that the cue travel isn’t staying on line. By twisting the grip hand the cue path can be altered. Even pros are affected. I see cueing hands twisting inside on one shot then outside on the next. For right handed players the outside rotation moves the cue butt to the right, countering right drift. The inside rotations shift the butt to the left, compensating for left drift. Timed rotations can correct deviations as they occur, up to a point. Varying cue speeds make timing difficult. Problem is that the only time the cue appears aligned is at the point where it initially addressed the ball. If the tip is nearly touching the ball at that point the skew may be minimal through impact. Its only an issue on the shots that are misaligned. Without the movement and the focus on its straightness we don’t sense the drift on a still sighted cue. When the tip stops pointing at the intended contact point and stops, most players switch focus to the object ball then cue ball in alternating fashion. The debate is about where the eyes are when contact is made. The problem that question creates is that the straightness of the cue travel gets lost in the focus on technique. Plus, the farther the tip is from the ball at that initial aim address the more the skew will move it off center during the actual contact through the ball. But a shot is more than the direction the cue sends the ball.
A pro golfer whose putter was hot when interviewed was asked about his control. He said the key was confidence in knowing the line the putt would go on. Once the line wasn’t an issue the concentration could hone in on the pace. Pool has a similar dynamic. The shot is both pocketing and position. Air stroking let’s the player focus on the pace while simultaneously fine tuning the straight cueing. The easier the pot the more the focus can fall on speed. The touchier the pot the more the focus falls on alignment.
The bottom line is that air cueing serves a multitude of functions. From rehearsing the stroke to bringing awareness to bear on the straightness of cueing. Adding a moving cue to the cueing line aligns the eyes, the bridge and the closing elbow, allowing the grip hand to remain passively on line. simply holding the cue without twisting. The opening and closing elbow determines the path and alignment clues. A vertical thumb throughout the stroke tells us alignment was successful. You can air test it above the ball first.
The pro told you that air stroking was important to improving. It wasn’t what you wanted to hear. But, was he wrong? The difference between each level of expertise is often the ability to make finer and finer distinctions. Little differences that make a difference. He told you one place to look.
The pool stroke is a movement dynamic. If the vertical arm, the upper arm and the cueing hand don’t line up perfectly with the bridge the cue will exhibit a slight sidling movement. With even a minimal misalignment, resultant micro sideways action can cause the tip to either hit slightly off center or have a skewed impact across the face of the cue ball. Either way side is imparted. This is why movement alignment through air stroking is key.
Try some air strokes. The odds are you don’t pay much attention to anything other than a smooth sliding of the cue in the bridge, and possibly subconscious or conscious mental rehearsal, as the body prepares. Likely the bridge and upper arm are not yet being prepared to align. The elbow opens and closes, anticipating the shot, with the grip hand opening and closing in sync. If at this point the bridge is not aligned but is left of the cueing arm stroking line, the cue will move sideways to the left ahead of the bridge as the stroke moves forwards and vice versa if located to the right of the stroke line. I suggest another area of focus is needed to help achieve eventual alignment.
Move the cue with it set in the bridge. This air stroking let’s you see the cue travel. The elbow simply opening and closing in a one handed scenario would travel in a straight line. Starting with the cue in the bridge adds a new variable. If the bridge is on the one handed travel line, the cue runs straight, you will see it. This is why the pro taper is a roughly 15" doweled barrel rather than a fully tapered shaft. Air stroking let’s you move the bridge hand finding the alignment that runs straight. Now a one piece placement of the cue first vertically superimposed on the path to the target and next lowering it on line, moves towards completing alignment. The movement forces the vision center to look down the line of the moving cue. It will only be perceptually moving in a straight line, not just pointing straight, if the vision center is aligned as well. I use an open bridge for most shots which makes deviation easier to see. If my cue is in the bridge and I am air stroking my cue dips up and down in a straight line as the length of cue beyond the bridge changes, if it is aligned with the cueing motion.
Without movement a stationary cue is pointed somewhere. If you position yourself directly over that line you can feel aligned. It can create the illusion of being lined up. Problem is if the cueing hand moves and the bridge is not on the line, the only time the cue seems to be pointing in the right direction is at that one point in its travel. The illusion happens with a static cue. The tip looks to be at the desired contact point. It’s like a stopped clock being right, twice a day. The cue appears to be pointed right in that one place. Once moving the distance from bridge to hand lengthens and shortens as the cue is moved back and forth. The cue moves back then ahead in a subtle sideways fashion. However, other problems sometimes arise from subconscious adjustments our bodies make. At some level our mind may realize that the cue travel isn’t staying on line. By twisting the grip hand the cue path can be altered. Even pros are affected. I see cueing hands twisting inside on one shot then outside on the next. For right handed players the outside rotation moves the cue butt to the right, countering right drift. The inside rotations shift the butt to the left, compensating for left drift. Timed rotations can correct deviations as they occur, up to a point. Varying cue speeds make timing difficult. Problem is that the only time the cue appears aligned is at the point where it initially addressed the ball. If the tip is nearly touching the ball at that point the skew may be minimal through impact. Its only an issue on the shots that are misaligned. Without the movement and the focus on its straightness we don’t sense the drift on a still sighted cue. When the tip stops pointing at the intended contact point and stops, most players switch focus to the object ball then cue ball in alternating fashion. The debate is about where the eyes are when contact is made. The problem that question creates is that the straightness of the cue travel gets lost in the focus on technique. Plus, the farther the tip is from the ball at that initial aim address the more the skew will move it off center during the actual contact through the ball. But a shot is more than the direction the cue sends the ball.
A pro golfer whose putter was hot when interviewed was asked about his control. He said the key was confidence in knowing the line the putt would go on. Once the line wasn’t an issue the concentration could hone in on the pace. Pool has a similar dynamic. The shot is both pocketing and position. Air stroking let’s the player focus on the pace while simultaneously fine tuning the straight cueing. The easier the pot the more the focus can fall on speed. The touchier the pot the more the focus falls on alignment.
The bottom line is that air cueing serves a multitude of functions. From rehearsing the stroke to bringing awareness to bear on the straightness of cueing. Adding a moving cue to the cueing line aligns the eyes, the bridge and the closing elbow, allowing the grip hand to remain passively on line. simply holding the cue without twisting. The opening and closing elbow determines the path and alignment clues. A vertical thumb throughout the stroke tells us alignment was successful. You can air test it above the ball first.
The pro told you that air stroking was important to improving. It wasn’t what you wanted to hear. But, was he wrong? The difference between each level of expertise is often the ability to make finer and finer distinctions. Little differences that make a difference. He told you one place to look.
Last edited: