Is a longer bridge useful?

[ronscuba]

=(((Satori)));4327148....

In aiming for pool there are three individual lines that don't always match up.

1) aim line- the line the cue is on
2) sight line- the line your center of vision is focused on
3) shot line- the actual line the cueball travels.

......

I guess everyone is a little different, but for me, all 3 lines match up on non english shots.

The cueball rolls on it's center axis, so regardless if the shot is straight or a cut, the aim line and shot line are the same because the CB is rolling/touching the table at it's center.

Once I decide how much cut I need, my sight line is the same as the aim and shot line.

On long shots, I focus on an intermediate spot on the line. My eyes take too long to focus on the something 8 feet away, so I focus on a spot on the line 2-3 feet away.

For myself, having all 3 lines the same has helped my pocketing on non english shots. The lines are the same, my cue shaft pulls back and goes forward on the line.

 

[ENGLISH!]

I guess everyone is a little different, but for me, all 3 lines match up on non english shots.

The cueball rolls on it's center axis, so regardless if the shot is straight or a cut, the aim line and shot line are the same because the CB is rolling/touching the table at it's center.

Once I decide how much cut I need, my sight line is the same as the aim and shot line.

On long shots, I focus on an intermediate spot on the line. My eyes take too long to focus on the something 8 feet away, so I focus on a spot on the line 2-3 feet away.

For myself, having all 3 lines the same has helped my pocketing on non english shots. The lines are the same, my cue shaft pulls back and goes forward on the line.

I think part of what Satori meant was that those lines are not directed at the actual 'target' which is the contact spot of the two(2) balls.

All 3 of your lines are at a point to the outside of the line between the two(2) contact points.

In a sense, you are 'aiming' parallel to that line.

Or...I could be wrong.

Best,
Rick

 

[(((Satori)))]

I think part of what Satori meant was that those lines are not directed at the actual 'target' which is the contact spot of the two(2) balls.

All 3 of your lines are at a point to the outside of the line between the two(2) contact points.

In a sense, you are 'aiming' parallel to that line.

Or...I could be wrong.

Best,
Rick

This is right. The shot line is between the two contact points. This becomes more evident when shooting a shot that has deflection. On shots without english the shot line runs parallel to the aim line and of you look at the contact point while your center of vision is centered above your cue stick then you sight line follows neither the shot line or the aim line but instead it runs diagonally between the two.

 

[(((Satori)))]

I've shot competitive precision rifle and combat pistol for most of my life, since early childhood. CJ's right about pistol shooting, especially combat shooting; most shooters pay little attention to the sights...you point at the target much like pointing your finger; you can be very accurate, or at least accurate enough. Take a laser pointer and just look at a target in the room, point and lase. Most of the time you'll hit the target straight off, with no sights. It's what most shooters call "snap shooting" or "instinct shooting". Trust me, in combat situations you don't have time to line up sights, you rely on muscle memory and a good position/technique.

In both rifle and pistol shooting, you rely on a good position that is centered on the "natural point of aim". Your position is balanced and stable, not fighting against itself to stay in line. With a good position, you point at the target, close your eyes, lower your weapon and relax....then with eyes still closed, assume the position again and open your eyes. Where the weapon is aimed is your natural point of aim. Shift your feet until you're back on target. In this position, you're not fighting against muscle tensions, pushing or pulling to get back in position.

Same thing in pool. This is why foot placement is so important. If you're having to twist/push/pull against yourself to get on line, then you're likely to have consistency problems. IMHO, shooting pool is much more like combat shooting and less like precision sniping...especially since pool cues don't come equipped with Leopold scopes!

I agree 100%. I made a thread in the aiming section titled ghostball aiming that describes how I aim.

It intrigues me though when someone consciously aims and consistently gets it right. I am a firm believer in the way I do it, picture and shoot. The "aiming" is done while standing by seeing the shot and naturally lining up where it looks right, and after you drop in to your stance you feel if the shot feels right. There are books though that teach to fine tune your aim while down on the shot. Im not going to say they are wrong but what are they aiming at? It is hard imo to accurately consciously aim while down on the shot, for one, because you don't have the right perspective to line up the contact points. As I said the shot line varies from the aim line if you look from the cue stick to the contact point and the variation is not consistent. How can you consistently accurately consciously line up the contact points when you are looking at then from an angle? And the angle changes depending on how thin the cut is and how close the cueball and object ball are.


The other reason it is hard to consciously aim while down on the shot is because the factors that have to be precisely accurate are way to much for the conscious mind to consistently get right. Can anyone consciously find the center of the ghostball to aim at accurately? Even if you aim Shane's way you would need to be able to accurately determine the point of your shaft to center your vision over, and then aim that part of the shaft at the edge of the ob. This sounds tough to me, and if you are using english you would need to be able to accurately adjust for the amount of side, plus the exact amount of deflection, and the exact amount of curve, to find the exact spot that you need to aim at and sight in order to pocket the ball. How anyone can consistently consciously do this is beyond me. I guess they do though, Shane says he does, I want to know more about it.

How does anyone consciously aim and get the results Shane does?

 

[(((Satori)))]

I am tired and going to bed. I hope ^^^^^ makes sense.

 

[ENGLISH!]

This is right. The shot line is between the two contact points. This becomes more evident when shooting a shot that has deflection. On shots without english the shot line runs parallel to the aim line and of you look at the contact point while your center of vision is centered above your cue stick then you sight line follows neither the shot line or the aim line but instead it runs diagonally between the two.

That 'in side' contact to contact line is what CJ refers to as one of the advantages of TOI. If you are inside on the cue ball you are more on that contact line than if you are using outside or even center.

 

[ronscuba]

Originally Posted by ENGLISH! View Post
I think part of what Satori meant was that those lines are not directed at the actual 'target' which is the contact spot of the two(2) balls.

All 3 of your lines are at a point to the outside of the line between the two(2) contact points.

In a sense, you are 'aiming' parallel to that line.

Or...I could be wrong.

Best,
Rick


(((Satori)));4327738]This is right. The shot line is between the two contact points. This becomes more evident when shooting a shot that has deflection. On shots without english the shot line runs parallel to the aim line and of you look at the contact point while your center of vision is centered above your cue stick then you sight line follows neither the shot line or the aim line but instead it runs diagonally between the two.

You are both correct. Only clarification is, I only care about the contact point when I estimate how much cut to use. Once I make that decision and commit to it, I no longer look at the contact points or the contact point line. I establish a line that is parallel to the contact point line and then forget about contact points.

This lets me have 3 lines that are all the same. The line the CB center will roll, the line my shaft is on, the line my eyes focus on. No crossed lines, no confusion on what line to focus on. One master line that I stroke the cue on.

Everyone has their own system. This one works well for me on non-english shots.

The longer bridge helps with the sighting and cue alignment to the line.

 

[ENGLISH!]

You are both correct. Only clarification is, I only care about the contact point when I estimate how much cut to use. Once I make that decision and commit to it, I no longer look at the contact points or the contact point line. I establish a line that is parallel to the contact point line and then forget about contact points.

This lets me have 3 lines that are all the same. The line the CB center will roll, the line my shaft is on, the line my eyes focus on. No crossed lines, no confusion on what line to focus on. One master line that I stroke the cue on.

Everyone has their own system. This one works well for me on non-english shots.

I'm with you.

My eye (head) pattern may go back & forth from contact point line to the 'estimate line' a time or two, but when I stroke it, I am looking down my cue line.

Best,
Rick