Stroke flaw

desertfox14.1

Registered
As I am learning pool and practicing stop shot drill, I have noticed my cue ball goes from dead stop to further and further left of a center-ball hit as the distance increases, despite my sight picture telling me that my aim is still correct. At five diamonds, I still make the ball most of the time (7 of 10) but I see it’s because I have unintentionally put right-english on the cue ball the harder the hit. It gets worse when the butt is elevated, like shooting off the rail, and really bad shooting stop or draw shots from behind or over balls.

The local hot-shots give mixed signals. One player said it’s because I’m left-handed and right-eye dominant. One guy told me it’s my stance because it gets worse as I elevate the cue. Another guy told me it’s my grip. Maybe is a combination of them...

My question is, how do you determine what is the actual problem? I’m sure some people will suggest to go back to the coke bottle, but are there drills to identify and fix the problem? I’m hoping it might be obvious to one of you.

Thanks.

PS: The drill I practice is similar to Dr. Dave’s VEPP 1:11 straight-in visual alignment drill.
 

Pidge

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Its next to impossible without seeing you shoot. All we can do is make wild suggestions and we could be here all day.

Generally from people I've worked with, the further the shot the more 'umph' they try to give the cue ball, especially on draw which is why long draw shots.

The reasons vary from person to person but one that tends to crop up is grip pressure as distance increases. Try squeezing the cue when down on a shot but without hitting the white. How does the tip react? Does it go right, left, up or down? If it goes right this could be why you get unintentional right English.

If you have the opportunity to upload a video of you performing the shots you have issues with from various angles then I'm sure the community can get you on a path to correcting it in no time. Without this we could be here years and you could end up with really bad advice along the way....

If you don't want to upload then fair enough. But filming yourself for your own analysis would be beneficial too.
 

FranCrimi

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Being that you're cross-dominant, it could very well be your stance. It would make sense that you are putting some unwanted right spin on the ball. The fact that it's occurring on distance shots means that it's a slight error and not a major one.

It sounds like your arm may be coming in slightly to the right, across the line of the shot as you stroke towards your dominant eye.

As Pidge wrote, there's no way to know for sure on spec, but it won't hurt you to work on your alignment and stance. Try turning a bit more towards your cue stick and see if that helps.
 

Scott Lee

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I answered your email to me, but I have not heard back from you yet! :thumbup:

Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com

As I am learning pool and practicing stop shot drill, I have noticed my cue ball goes from dead stop to further and further left of a center-ball hit as the distance increases, despite my sight picture telling me that my aim is still correct. At five diamonds, I still make the ball most of the time (7 of 10) but I see it’s because I have unintentionally put right-english on the cue ball the harder the hit. It gets worse when the butt is elevated, like shooting off the rail, and really bad shooting stop or draw shots from behind or over balls.

The local hot-shots give mixed signals. One player said it’s because I’m left-handed and right-eye dominant. One guy told me it’s my stance because it gets worse as I elevate the cue. Another guy told me it’s my grip. Maybe is a combination of them...

My question is, how do you determine what is the actual problem? I’m sure some people will suggest to go back to the coke bottle, but are there drills to identify and fix the problem? I’m hoping it might be obvious to one of you.

Thanks.

PS: The drill I practice is similar to Dr. Dave’s VEPP 1:11 straight-in visual alignment drill.
 
Top