cue ball clos to object ball

skipbales

skipbales

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Other than employing an "aiming system", are there any special tips on aiming shots where the cue ball and object ball are close together and the pocket is a long distance off.

These seem to appear to be "easy" shots but I tend to miss them more often than make them. I will be setting up some shots and practicing them to try to get the perspective.

What I have trouble with is sighting the shots due to the distance from the hole and closeness of the cue ball. Unlike shots which are more spaced out, I can only see the pocket out of the corner of my eye on these close cue ball shots.
 
It's the same way you aim any shot.You make the CB contact the exact point on the OB directly opposite the line to the pocket.

Just another good example of why you aim with the CB, not your stick.

It's also a spatial awareness thing. All tables are in the same 2:1 ratio so Just absorb the position of the other pockets and even if you're hitting a bank down-table bank close-in where you the pocket you're going into is behind you not even in your peripheral vision, you should be able to feel exactly where it is.

At longer distances especially, at angles close to 30 degrees you'll have to take throw into account. At close to 90 degrees a small amount of OB swerve can come into effect from the side spin imparted on the OB from the motion of the CB swiping it sideways, but this is small.

From there the trick is to get an exact picture of how the CB and OB are related, their distance, angle, etc... If it helps, take a little extra time with your head over the balls absorbing their position down to microns, and move your head around the a little, getting the picture from all angles.If you have room to to let the CB go a little and don't have to control it exactly, you can stand up just a little bit taller than your normal shooting stance, as long as your tip placement is still exactly where it needs to be. When the OB is that far away from the pocket, if you hit off-center of the CB even a little, the CB squirt will change the contact point enough to miss the pocket.
 
Danimal said:
Here is a simple tip: stand a little higher up on these shots.
Click to expand...

after aiming and aligning from standing behind the balls
do what he says..^^^^^
my house pro gave me the same advice
i am not an instructor
 
On the zero x vids tor Teaches to aim the edge of the cue ball with the edge of the object ball,
It's helped me make more of those types of shots,on close cut shots
 
Standing a little more upright or at least lifting up to get that picture then going back to a lower stance seems to be the common advice. Thanks to all
 
It's possible that you're aiming the shot properly; however you may not be allowing for the added throw that occurs when a sliding cue ball contacts an object ball.

Since you're so close, the cue ball does not have time to gather top spin and connects with the object ball sliding on the fabric. This creates added friction and throws the object ball slightly more than a rolling cue ball.

Since you're hitting long shots, the added throw is amplified over the length of the run.
 
Gene Albrecht had a neat way to visualize these shots. From the pocket you're aiming for, see what the overlap of the balls are, that will show you how much of the object ball to hit. and standing more upright is needed. Hope it helps
 
Imagine the cue ball and object ball forming the shortest line between their centers. The spot where the line exits the back of the cue ball is a great reference point. Aim your cue tip through this spot. You will gain better control over the motion of both balls.
 
frankw said:
Gene Albrecht had a neat way to visualize these shots. From the pocket you're aiming for, see what the overlap of the balls are, that will show you how much of the object ball to hit. and standing more upright is needed. Hope it helps
Click to expand...

Thanks. I will try that.
 
rrick33 said:
It's possible that you're aiming the shot properly; however you may not be allowing for the added throw that occurs when a sliding cue ball contacts an object ball.

Since you're so close, the cue ball does not have time to gather top spin and connects with the object ball sliding on the fabric. This creates added friction and throws the object ball slightly more than a rolling cue ball.

Since you're hitting long shots, the added throw is amplified over the length of the run.
Click to expand...

Good point. I will have to see if I am consistently under cutting the ball. That would point to the throw idea, especially since I am probably hitting most of these shots softly.
 
BilliardsAbout said:
Imagine the cue ball and object ball forming the shortest line between their centers. The spot where the line exits the back of the cue ball is a great reference point. Aim your cue tip through this spot. You will gain better control over the motion of both balls.
Click to expand...

I will also try this. Thanks
 
frankw said:
Gene Albrecht had a neat way to visualize these shots. From the pocket you're aiming for, see what the overlap of the balls are, that will show you how much of the object ball to hit. and standing more upright is needed. Hope it helps
Click to expand...

BilliardsAbout said:
Imagine the cue ball and object ball forming the shortest line between their centers. The spot where the line exits the back of the cue ball is a great reference point. Aim your cue tip through this spot. You will gain better control over the motion of both balls.
Click to expand...

I don't think I understand either of these suggestions, so please say more.

frankw -- Do you mean to stand behind the target pocket and look back at the overlap of the two balls? How does that help? The same overlap (e.g., half a ball) could require quite different cut angles for the shot depending on how close together the two balls are.

BilliardsAbout -- What do you mean by "forming the shortest line between their centers"?
 
AtLarge said:
I don't think I understand either of these suggestions, so please say more.

frankw -- Do you mean to stand behind the target pocket and look back at the overlap of the two balls? How does that help? The same overlap (e.g., half a ball) could require quite different cut angles for the shot depending on how close together the two balls are.

BilliardsAbout -- What do you mean by "forming the shortest line between their centers"?
Click to expand...

Sure--ignore the intended pocket for now.

1. Find the "full line" between cue ball and object ball.

http://billiards.about.com/od/AimPrimer/ss/Aim-Primer-5-Contact-Point-And-Half-Ball-Line.htm#step2

2. The exit point on the cue ball, along the extended full line in my diagram, center cue ball. Let's call it the "full line cb spot".

For any given cut shot on the object ball--or at least for cuts at a wide variety of angles, the flcs is a superb place to aim the cue stick through. It gives superior control over both balls.

If I have to turn my body to the full line at a very oblique angle, to cut a nearby object ball to a faraway pocket, I still aim my cue tip penetrating the cue ball through the flcs... try it. --Matt
 
The difficulty for me with very close shots is the impact of tiny aim adjustments over the long roll. What would be a normal half ball hit on a normal shot becomes a 7/16 ball hit and a half ball misses. It is hard to get "far enough away" from everything to see the angles well. Standing a little more erect then dropping down is helping and I am still tracking to see if throw is a big factor.

If it is throw which is hurting my aim I will experiment with a slight increase in the cut as well as compensating English to see which is easier for me to aim.
 
BilliardsAbout said:
Sure--ignore the intended pocket for now.

1. Find the "full line" between cue ball and object ball.

http://billiards.about.com/od/AimPrimer/ss/Aim-Primer-5-Contact-Point-And-Half-Ball-Line.htm#step2

2. The exit point on the cue ball, along the extended full line in my diagram, center cue ball. Let's call it the "full line cb spot".

For any given cut shot on the object ball--or at least for cuts at a wide variety of angles, the flcs is a superb place to aim the cue stick through. It gives superior control over both balls.

If I have to turn my body to the full line at a very oblique angle, to cut a nearby object ball to a faraway pocket, I still aim my cue tip penetrating the cue ball through the flcs... try it. --Matt
Click to expand...

It sounds like that might be OK for some range of cut angles, if you want to put outside english on the CB. But for thin cuts, you could be outside the miscue limit, or getting unwanted throw or squirt.
 
skipbales said:
The difficulty for me with very close shots is the impact of tiny aim adjustments over the long roll. What would be a normal half ball hit on a normal shot becomes a 7/16 ball hit and a half ball misses. It is hard to get "far enough away" from everything to see the angles well. Standing a little more erect then dropping down is helping and I am still tracking to see if throw is a big factor.

If it is throw which is hurting my aim I will experiment with a slight increase in the cut as well as compensating English to see which is easier for me to aim.
Click to expand...

...Because you are correct, you need to stand up a bit and walk around the cue ball. I likely stand several feet to one side of where you're standing to shoot the same shot.
 
AtLarge said:
It sounds like that might be OK for some range of cut angles, if you want to put outside english on the CB. But for thin cuts, you could be outside the miscue limit, or getting unwanted throw or squirt.
Click to expand...

Have you tested my technique already?

Shooting through the flcs would put outside english on the shot in an excellent manner, just enough spin to help counteract throw.
 
Two things...make sure you're high enough to see the contact point on the OB...the closeness will lie to you when you get down behind the CB every time, so stay up through the whole shot.

Don't cheat yourself with a jabbing, short stroke. Unless they're within a chalk cube's distance apart and the shot's straight in, a normal stroke will still clear the CB at the point of contact. Choking up on the stroke when you don't need to can cause a lot of problems.
 
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