Taddah...
The quickest path to a straight, repeatable stroke, and the best metric used to evaluate it.
- Thread starter jimstone
- Start date
Or a stack of three chalks on each side or even a ball on each side.
This video covers useful drills and tests for checking and improving stroke straightness:
And this video covers how to use video analysis to diagnose and improve your stroke:
And lots of advice for improving stroke technique can be found in the videos here:
And this video covers how to use video analysis to diagnose and improve your stroke:
And lots of advice for improving stroke technique can be found in the videos here:
Quickest would probably involve eight hour days on something like this, but more horizontal.
Javelin Tennis anyone?
From the Macro to the Micro
Really now, how long is the interaction between the tip and ball?
Anything after the ball has departed is window dressing.
How about MO Norman?
MAKE it repeatable Is the GOAL.
Really now, how long is the interaction between the tip and ball?
Anything after the ball has departed is window dressing.
How about MO Norman?
If you really want to see if your stroke is straight and you are hitting center of the cuball try the "whitey don't lie" drill, cueball on the foot spot, object ball on head spot, the goal is to shoot a stop shot, after hitting the rail have the object ball come back and hit the cueball and drive it back over the foot spot, you will be doing well to make contact at first, and then having the cueball return within the first diamond, out of the thousands of times I have done this drill I have only had the cueball come back directly over the spot twice, in order to complete this drill you must hit the cueball DEAD CENTER and your cue must travel perfectly straight, the slightest deviation will show where you are going wrong, if the object ball goes to the right you are hitting left of center and vice versa, if the object ball does not return directly over the foot spot your cue is not going through the cueball perfectly straight, this is a humbling drill, don't overdo this drill, spend 5 or 10 minutes and move on but do it every day, you will see the results.
What you recommend is an excellent drill to do
But
The problem with this drill and many others recommended in this thread,
Do not take into account a separate issue that is separate from having a straight stroke
And that is, can you actually align two balls perfectly straight?
Using the drill you recommended if for some reason, I see the center of the second ball a millimeter from the base and I deliver the Q ball with no side spin
To that spot a millimeter off
The object ball is not going to come back directly to my Cue ball
Even though my stroke was perfectly straight, I hit vertical axis. The cueball actually went exactly where I wanted it to, but I didn’t see my Target straight.
Being able to align, squarely or directly two balls in a straight line to aim at those targets is a separate skill from having a straight stroke
I’m on my phone and cannot provide a link but I believe it’s Chris Henry has a training set he calls “the balls”
Where first you work with one ball until you learn how to find vertical axis and deliver a straight stroke
Then you work with a second ball to see if you can line up two balls in a straight line because you have proven that you have a straight stroke
it’s just my opinion
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The English billiards guy. His dad restricted him to just the cue ball.Willie Hoppe comes to mind.guess I will find the book. I can't remember how long he practiced with just one ball when starting out.
I thought it was Australian Billiards.
Walter Lindrum
Oh I see English Billiards but Australian champion.
Oh I see English Billiards but Australian champion.
Yeah that's him. Blanked on the name. I've even cited him as an example of thorough.