Hu:
I couldn't agree more with your observations about the tight/compact style. Personally, I shoot with a snooker style, shoulders square to the shot, both feet pointing directly into (and not angled out from) the shot, thereby making all my legs joints point into the shot for consistency. The only modification I've made is that I use primarily a closed loop bridge, not an open bridge. Used to use the "overlapping finger" (i.e. index finger located on top of, and pressed down onto, the first joint of the middle finger -- a la Filipino style), but I've since migrated away from it for a couple reasons.
What I was trying to point out with the "compact style" observation, was more due to the inherent characteristic of the slip-stroke itself -- and that is the significantly forward placement of the grip hand during the practice strokes. This forward placement of the grip hand is, of course, necessary to put the grip hand forward of perihelion in the pendulum, so that when it's time to initiate the slip stroke, the back hand is moving downwards and away from the grip area of the cue, in effect -- and for a very split second before gravity takes effect -- leaving the cue "suspended" in mid air until the hand reaches the grip area where the regrip takes place. (I use the gravity analogy with loose license here; obviously gravity is ALWAYS pulling down on the cue and is never really "suspended" in mid air, but rather to point out the speed of the regrip -- it has to be quick enough so that the cue doesn't "re-rest" into the hand and be affected by the backward motion of the gripping hand prematurely.)
I played with a slip stroke for a long time, and still have it in my bag o' tricks when I need it, or when I'm bored with my play and want to change things up a bit. That slip stroke sure feels good, and "magical" as you'd observed. But after studying and playing snooker these past couple of years, I'd found that the slip stroke's slip-and-regrip actually very slightly threw a little yaw into my cue delivery -- very, very slight, mind you -- but this became strikingly evident on a snooker table, when I thought I was dead-nuts straight on a straight-in long shot, and ended up bobbling the ball between the rounded areas of the snooker table's pocket corners. I didn't notice it on the pool table, because one doesn't need the level of accuracy that's required on a snooker table. But that yaw was there nonetheless, and I had to make quick changes to adapt (unfortunately the slip stroke went into the long-term storage bins of my mind).
Nowadays, my grip hand is anchored to the point on the grip I choose when I pull the trigger (I may make minor adjustments on the placement of my grip hand on the grip area when I'm down on the shot, but once I begin my practice strokes, it's anchored there, and maintains control of the cue at all times -- no yaw introduced during that uncertain time while the "cue's in the air" during a slip-and-regrip).
Oh, and cue ball travel? Boo, hiss. As you probably noticed from my avatar's moniker, and past posts from me concerning rotations games like 9-/10-ball, I'm not a fan of crazy cue ball action. I like short/tight games like straight pool and one-hole (but can move and play up-table games in the latter). If I had my way, all my games would be a "Cosmo" like the old-timers like to call them -- every shot a stop shot!
Great thread and great conversation I'm seeing in it! Whenever I see this thread "go bold" in the list of threads -- meaning a new post in it -- I open it up right away, for I'm sure to see something interesting to read!
P.S.: you might have to watch Johnny Ervolino's nice extended run for a little while to catch a camera view of his slip stroke, but you'll see it plain as day. Johnny's slip-and-regrip is quicker than Wayne Norcross's, but that's because Wayne has a little bit more "casual" stroke than Johnny Ervolino's.
-Sean
