Bridge arm elbow bend?

A

azbluemach1

Member
So I was watching A. Fischer and I noticed an extreme variety in the amount of elbow bend with the bridge arm 3 shots in a row. The first had an extreme bend, like a ~ 90 angle. The next shot had the bridge arm elbow locked straight and the 3rd was somewhere in between.

Fischer is a pretty damn consistent player, so I was a bit surprised to see this much variation in one of the fundamentals. None of the shots seemed difficult to bridge to.

Thoughts?
 
azbluemach1 said:
So I was watching A. Fischer and I noticed an extreme variety in the amount of elbow bend with the bridge arm 3 shots in a row. The first had an extreme bend, like a ~ 90 angle. The next shot had the bridge arm elbow locked straight and the 3rd was somewhere in between.

Fischer is a pretty damn consistent player, so I was a bit surprised to see this much variation in one of the fundamentals. None of the shots seemed difficult to bridge to.

Thoughts?
Click to expand...

If your bridge hand is in the right place,
and your eyes are in the right place,
it matters not what angle your elbow joint makes.

Dale
 
I often wondered about this as well.

Robert Byrnes, on his Standard Tape of Billiards Vol. I, gives very few "rules" to follow with his instruction on how execute a what he calls a classic stroke, but one of them is a locked elbow.

I don't think Scott Lee feels it's important to do this or not, from what I remember.
 
i dont think bridge arm is that important either.....as long as your preshot routine is solid and youre properly lined up, and your backhand is perpendicular to the floor when your cue tip is almost touching the cueball.....
 
I have recently experimented with this myself. Keeping my bridge arm completely straight is uncomfortable for me, especially during long sessions. I find a slight bend is much easier to maintain and has the added benefit of dampening any unwanted movement.
 
Well

Sometimes you feel like you're 'bent', sometimes you don't .....:rolleyes:

This was discussed at length 2-4 weeks ago in a previous thread.
 
It depends on the type of shot called for and where on the butt you want your back hand. Notice that Grady plays consistently w/a bent elbow. Power shots lend themselves to a straight elbow and long bridge. Not necessairly so on more delicate shots.
 
Another factor might be the position of other balls on the table. I believe they play all ball fouls, so you don't want to be close to any balls you don't need to be close to.
Steve
 
Oart of this has to do with her stance. Notice that both her feet are pointing toward the shot. That means her shoulders are nearly perpendicular to the shot. Having the bridge arm straight out would be uncomfortable. Instead, a bend at the elbow is much better.
 
8ballEinstein said:
Oart of this has to do with her stance. Notice that both her feet are pointing toward the shot. That means her shoulders are nearly perpendicular to the shot. Having the bridge arm straight out would be uncomfortable. Instead, a bend at the elbow is much better.
Click to expand...

Try it and see for yourself.
 
Inconsistent bending the bridge arm elbow can alter your mechanics in subtle ways. An obvious way it changes your mechanics is your grip hand position. When bending the elbow, be sure to make the necessary adjustments maintain your mechanics.

Unless there is interference on the table that necessitates bending of the arm, it is best to use a consistent bridge arm to promote consistent mechanics. K.I.S.S.
 
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POOl

scottycoyote said:
i dont think bridge arm is that important either.....as long as your preshot routine is solid and youre properly lined up, and your backhand is perpendicular to the floor when your cue tip is almost touching the cueball.....
Click to expand...

WHAT IS PROPERLY LINED UP???
 
imo, the bent bridge elbow is purely a matter of comfort...and there is no right or wrong. you do what's right for FOR YOU for the shot.
 
she was a snooker player, all snooker players bend their arm at various angles, they also stand square to the table, watch some youtube snooker matches and you'll see what i'm talking about.
 
Depends on the shot, I have come to find that some shots just feel better when my arm is bent a certain way. I used to lock my elbow a lot but it seems that I found myself reaching and not being able to finish the stroke.

Eric.
 
scottycoyote said:
i dont think bridge arm is that important either.....as long as your preshot routine is solid and youre properly lined up, and your backhand is perpendicular to the floor when your cue tip is almost touching the cueball.....
Click to expand...

I thin maybe it's only important in that it determines how far from the cue ball your head, and thus your eyes will be. For more touchy softer shots (side pockets shots most often) I find bending the bridge arm brings my head closer to the cue ball and makes accuracy easier. For longer more powerful shots where stroke is essential, staying back from the cue ball is essential for accurately lining up the shot especially when the object ball is a long ways away as you need to get lower too.

Maybe this is what Fischer is doing?

Ed
 
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