Stabilize Your Bridge....

[buckshotshoey]

I took a little advise from Tor Lowry on the bridge hand. Keep the wrist and base of the thumb flat on the table. It really makes for a stable bridge. Its not always possible to do, but when it is possible, it works. Here's something I found out on my own. While keeping wrist flat on the table, also place forearm and elbow flat on table. It could be a little uncomfortable at first, but it not only helps stabilize your bridge, but also stabilizes your stance. Really helps on those long shots. Give it a try.

This might be something some of you have done for a long time, but I never seen it taught by anyone (forearm and elbow on table). It relatively new to me but I like it.

 

[metallicafan999]

I have used it in the past and it definitely helps on the longer shots that need more accuracy. So keep working on it.

 

[3andstop]

Good advice, getting your forearm and elbow on the table comfortably can really vary from person to person.

IMO the real magic happens with our other arm and ever so light a grip and accelerating follow through.

 

[chefjeff]

The problems I have with laying my forearm on the cloth:

It tends to twist my body into a different-than-usual position.

It makes me get too low on the shot and I can't see the shot so well down there anymore.

It dirties my shirt with chalk so I no longer look the coolest in the room and the women laugh at me....oh wait, they do that anyway.

I'll give it a good try on those long shots that I can't even see anymore. Thanks.


Jeff Livingston

 

[John Brumback]

IMO, on big long power shots you need a little movement with your body and it's hard to do that when you are real low and static,again jmho. John B.

 

[Cardigan Kid]

For my open bridge on stretched out shots I'll have my arm and hand/wrist flat on table. But for my closed bridge, I'll be propped up on the fingers. I've tried to do wrist flat on table with closed bridge, it helps too, but to get high follow it was holding me back a bit.

 

[bdorman]

IMO the real magic happens with our other arm and ever so light a grip and accelerating follow through.

According to what I've learned in the "Myths" thread, this statement has more myths than you can shake a cue at even though I agree 100%.

 

[buckshotshoey]

IMO, on big long power shots you need a little movement with your body and it's hard to do that when you are real low and static,again jmho. John B.

You could be right on the power shot. But for a "normal" speed shots, the head should remain still anyway. I can get a full table stop shot with forearm and elbow on table. But you are correct....a force flow or a draw at that distance is a little tougher .

 

[Colin Colenso]

Bridge Movement

Try some coordination guys, it's not easy, but not too hard to keep the bridge still without cementing one's arm to the table.

Maybe avoid swaying the body like a gorilla when executing the shot, keeping balance and holding the bridge firm in place.

 

[sfleinen]

Try some coordination guys, it's not easy, but not too hard to keep the bridge still without cementing one's arm to the table.

Maybe avoid swaying the body like a gorilla when executing the shot, keeping balance and holding the bridge firm in place.

I agree. Another example of the "loosey-goosiness" in pool player fundamentals from non-regimentation.

Many pros have floating arms and rest their bridge merely on the fingertips (albeit closed bridges -- i.e. the index-finger-pressing-down-upon-the-middle-finger bridge). Mike Sigel is a good example:

The trick is coordination in keeping the bridge still, with no need to cement the whole arm to the table.

-Sean

 

[Pidge]

Try playing with a bent bridge arm, your eyes will widen, and jaw will drop.

Bending it allows for the entire forearm to be placed on the table with ease. Modern snooker players do it more so than players of old. It makes everything more compact and adds extra stability.

 

[John Brumback]

I agree. Another example of the "loosey-goosiness" in pool player fundamentals from non-regimentation.

Many pros have floating arms and rest their bridge merely on the fingertips (albeit closed bridges -- i.e. the index-finger-pressing-down-upon-the-middle-finger bridge). Mike Sigel is a good example:

The trick is coordination in keeping the bridge still, with no need to cement the whole arm to the table.

-Sean

Well spoken,imo.To me..that is one scary looking bridge and stroke right there in that pic. Good example there,Sean,I played him a time or two and you will be thinking he's never going to miss with that set up he has.Well and the stroke JB

 

[Aaron_S]

I agree. Another example of the "loosey-goosiness" in pool player fundamentals from non-regimentation.

Many pros have floating arms and rest their bridge merely on the fingertips (albeit closed bridges -- i.e. the index-finger-pressing-down-upon-the-middle-finger bridge). Mike Sigel is a good example:

The trick is coordination in keeping the bridge still, with no need to cement the whole arm to the table.

-Sean

Yeah, but that guy couldn't play a lick!

I usually tell people that if they don't have a chalk stain on the palm of their hand by the end of the session, they are not getting enough of their hand on the table when bridging.

That being said, I often use the exact bridge shown in the pic above. Perhaps because this is one of the guys I tried to emulate with I was 17.

Aaron

 

[buckshotshoey]

Try some coordination guys, it's not easy, but not too hard to keep the bridge still without cementing one's arm to the table.

Maybe avoid swaying the body like a gorilla when executing the shot, keeping balance and holding the bridge firm in place.

I agree. Another example of the "loosey-goosiness" in pool player fundamentals from non-regimentation.

Many pros have floating arms and rest their bridge merely on the fingertips (albeit closed bridges -- i.e. the index-finger-pressing-down-upon-the-middle-finger bridge). Mike Sigel is a good example:

The trick is coordination in keeping the bridge still, with no need to cement the whole arm to the table.

-Sean

I get what you guys are saying, but I'm not Mike Segal. I agree a good "tri pod" stance is a good thing, and I can do it well. But.....there is a reason a bar stool (just an example) has 4 legs instead of 3.....its more stable. I consider the stance I am talking about as a 4 point stance. Yes you can argue all day that its still a 3 point stance, but its a more stable one. For whatever reason, it works. That's all I'm trying to point out.

Try playing with a bent bridge arm, your eyes will widen, and jaw will drop.

Bending it allows for the entire forearm to be placed on the table with ease. Modern snooker players do it more so than players of old. It makes everything more compact and adds extra stability.

Now that you mention that Pidge, I do have a well bent elbow when forearm is flat on table. Helps me get down over the cue with chin centered. Good observation on the snooker players. I will get on youtube and check some of them out.

 

[NitPicker]

Isn't the height of snooker tables a little higher than pool tables? I think also the sprawl of green makes it easier for them to get more of their entire arms on the table. I can shoot like that if I try, but for as much as it might make my bridge more stable, it hinders other mechanics in my stroke as others have mentioned.

My bridge tends to be more like Sigel's shown in the picture, but I have recently begun getting my palm rested on more shots. What I have found more than anything is that having more weight on my palm tends to cause less shoulder fatigue after long sessions.

Bridge stability is very important, no matter how you do it. Me personally, I need to work on better stability for shooting over balls and rail shots when I use an extended rail bridge.

 

[Pidge]

Isn't the height of snooker tables a little higher than pool tables? I think also the sprawl of green makes it easier for them to get more of their entire arms on the table. I can shoot like that if I try, but for as much as it might make my bridge more stable, it hinders other mechanics in my stroke as others have mentioned.

My bridge tends to be more like Sigel's shown in the picture, but I have recently begun getting my palm rested on more shots. What I have found more than anything is that having more weight on my palm tends to cause less shoulder fatigue after long sessions.

Bridge stability is very important, no matter how you do it. Me personally, I need to work on better stability for shooting over balls and rail shots when I use an extended rail bridge.

True the larger baize means more room to plant the forearm on, but for the majority of shots you have other balls taking up that space, and the black end of the table becomes congested so the space is quite limited. Also, you can bend the elbow and rest it on the rail if space becomes a problem, its not the entire forearm but you're still more compact and stable.

 

[NitPicker]

There are times when more of my arm is rested on the rail. I tend to use different bridges depending on the shot, so I would have to say I use all techniques at some point or another.

 

[Pidge]

There are times when more of my arm is rested on the rail. I tend to use different bridges depending on the shot, so I would have to say I use all techniques at some point or another.

And I have to say that's the best way to be. In a perfect world id like to be able to bend my elbow on all shots, but it just isn't possible. Sometimes my elbow will be above my head, sometimes severely bent, sometimes slightly bent and other times locked. What matters is that what ever bridge or elbow position I use, is stable and aids cueing.

 

[sfleinen]

Yeah, but that guy couldn't play a lick!

I usually tell people that if they don't have a chalk stain on the palm of their hand by the end of the session, they are not getting enough of their hand on the table when bridging.

That being said, I often use the exact bridge shown in the pic above. Perhaps because this is one of the guys I tried to emulate with I was 17.

Aaron

Another thing might be that Mike discovered early on with his closed bridge (which is that index-finger-pressing-down-upon-the-middle-finger type, misnomered the "Filipino" closed bridge), is that by doing this -- i.e. lifting the palm up off the table, and rotating the bridge forward into the shot -- he orients the "V"-channel [that his index and middle finger are creating] vertically -- which resembles the "V"-channel in the open bridge. It's much more accurate that way, because it lets the natural rise of the cue (as the taper travels in that "V"-channel) to be vertically, and not side-to-side if the "V"-channel were laying on its side. Any side-to-side variance is skew (or yaw) and introduces error into the shot.

Normally, with the index-finger-pressing-down-upon-the-middle-finger style of closed bridge, the inherent "V"-channel created by the index and middle fingers is laying on its side:

• like this for a right-handed (lefthand bridge) player: ">"
• like this for a left-handed (righthand bridge) player: "<"

Lifting the palm up off the table rotates the hand forward, "lifting" and rotating that "V"-channel so it's more vertically-oriented, as shown in that picture of Mike.

Another way to do that -- which is the way I prefer -- is to "scrunch" your bridge hand into a ball, pulling the index/middle fingers backwards (inwards) to do the same. You can see that in Alex's closed bridge:

The idea being to create a vertically-aligned "V"-channel that the cue can reliably ride in, without skewing from side-to-side.

-Sean

 

[John Brumback]

Another thing might be that Mike discovered early on with his closed bridge (which is that index-finger-pressing-down-upon-the-middle-finger type, misnomered the "Filipino" closed bridge), is that by doing this -- i.e. lifting the palm up off the table, and rotating the bridge forward into the shot -- he orients the "V"-channel [that his index and middle finger are creating] vertically -- which resembles the "V"-channel in the open bridge. It's much more accurate that way, because it lets the natural rise of the cue (as the taper travels in that "V"-channel) to be vertically, and not side-to-side if the "V"-channel were laying on its side. Any side-to-side variance is skew (or yaw) and introduces error into the shot.

Normally, with the index-finger-pressing-down-upon-the-middle-finger style of closed bridge, the inherent "V"-channel created by the index and middle fingers is laying on its side:

• like this for a right-handed (lefthand bridge) player: ">"
• like this for a left-handed (righthand bridge) player: "<"

Lifting the palm up off the table rotates the hand forward, "lifting" and rotating that "V"-channel so it's more vertically-oriented, as shown in that picture of Mike.

Another way to do that -- which is the way I prefer -- is to "scrunch" your bridge hand into a ball, pulling the index/middle fingers backwards (inwards) to do the same. You can see that in Alex's closed bridge:

The idea being to create a vertically-aligned "V"-channel that the cue can reliably ride in, without skewing from side-to-side.

-Sean

Yes but Alex wouldn't use that bridge if he was following his ball.If he had to use follow
he would look just like Mike:wink: