A few observations on the stroke

JimmyWhite

JimmyWhite

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Greetings AZB players

I have been studying JA's and SVB's stroke/fundamentals for quite a while and I want to point out two details I have noticed on their stroke.

(1)I noticed a detail on JA's stroke which puzzled me. In his practice strokes, he moves only his lower arm back and forth and his elbow is still, but on the final backswing before pulling the trigger, he moves his lower arm, while lifting his elbow and shoulder a bit more than usual. This results on a less vertically straight cue movement (it moves in a more wave-like motion, as the butt is raised and is higher than the tip) before going through the ball. I am pretty sure he does that. I think Shane does this as well.

Follow these two video links and see what I am talking about.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFeLlvCN-0s#t=0m17s
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uu8d72pOgQs#t=02m40s

Aren't you supposed to keep your elbow still while taking your practice strokes and your final backswing? (I am not talking about after stroking the ball, they both drop their elbows and I do it too)

(2)Also, I think the wrist of both are crooked on the inside. Why would someone do that? Doesn't it create unnecessary tension?

See the shot on this link and see what I am talking about: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJHmXPG_YQI#t=11m36s

Details, I know, but I think they are pretty important to discuss.
 
JimmyWhite said:
Greetings AZB players

I have been studying JA's and SVB's stroke/fundamentals for quite a while and I want to point out two details I have noticed on their stroke.

(1)I noticed a detail on JA's stroke which puzzled me. In his practice strokes, he moves only his lower arm back and forth and his elbow is still, but on the final backswing before pulling the trigger, he moves his lower arm, while lifting his elbow and shoulder a bit more than usual. This results on a less vertically straight cue movement (it moves in a more wave-like motion, as the butt is raised and is higher than the tip) before going through the ball. I am pretty sure he does that. I think Shane does this as well.

Follow these two video links and see what I am talking about.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFeLlvCN-0s#t=0m17s
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uu8d72pOgQs#t=02m40s

Aren't you supposed to keep your elbow still while taking your practice strokes and your final backswing? (I am not talking about after stroking the ball, they both drop their elbows and I do it too)

(2)Also, I think the wrist of both are crooked on the inside. Why would someone do that? Doesn't it create unnecessary tension?

See the shot on this link and see what I am talking about: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJHmXPG_YQI#t=11m36s

Details, I know, but I think they are pretty important to discuss.
Click to expand...

Yes, I've notices that Shane has a hitch in his elbow in the transition from the back stoke to his final follow through. I assume this is just a cause of his personal fundamentals because I don't understand what advantage that hitch would bring for anyone else to implement into their game.
 
JAW725 said:
Yes, I've notices that Shane has a hitch in his elbow in the transition from the back stoke to his final follow through. I assume this is just a cause of his personal fundamentals because I don't understand what advantage that hitch would bring for anyone else to implement into their game.
Click to expand...

So I am not the only one who notices it right? It is there. That's a relief. (I am not crazy :p)

I also don't understand the advantage of it. Any ideas?
 
Check out Buddy Halls smooth as silk stroke. That is the one I would love to be able to duplicate.
 
From my experience, The hitch you see is something that isn't practiced that some players pick up naturally over time.
As for the wrist, turning it inward (or outward) allows for a larger range of motion and more wrist action. Efren would he an extreme example of this. Again, for most players this is something picked up naturally over time and a lot of players don't even realize they do it.
 
Neil said:
If you took a thousand people and filmed them, you would find that each one has their own little idiosyncrasies in their setup and stroke. Out of that thousand, you will find about 20-30 people that play really well.

That's 20-30 people out of a thousand that have been able to accurately duplicate their own individual idiosyncrasy. The rest can't and the results show in their skill levels which will be all over the chart.

What this means, is that just because you see someone really good do something, does NOT mean that you can do the same thing and get away with it. The pros are pros because of repeatability. They have an uncanny knack for it, no matter how they stroke. The rest of us are much better off keeping things as simple as possible to attain that repeatablility.

One hears a lot about such and such a pro has a great stroke, and such and such a pro has a terrible stroke. Well, if you are a pro, you have a great stroke, period. The "conventional" stroke is what it is because it is the easiest to repeat for the masses, has the least amount of things that can go wrong, and is the best way to troubleshoot your own stroke if and when things go south with it. And, if you don't have that repeatablilty, going to the classic fundamentals is the best place to start to get that repeatablility. If you already shoot very, very, well, you have a good stroke no matter what it looks like, and their is no need to change it if it works repeatedly for you.
Click to expand...

Good point. I have never tried to model my stroke after someone else. I just try to eliminate any unnecessary movement and keep it simple. It seems to me that trying to mimic someones stroke could be bad for you, especially if you don't have similar body types.
Start with the sound basics and your stroke will develop itself.
 
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