Bridge Length

[naji]

Lotta good answers on here.
There are definitely ways bridge length affects your stroke and the shot.

In a nutshell, I think the basic tradeoff is:

Shorter = More accurate, less room for the tip to deviate from the intended contact point.

But there's less room to get the cue up to the necessary speed... so if you have to strain
(aka lunge, jab, poke, stab) at the ball, you increase the chance of your own muscles
steering the stick off course.

Longer = easier to put a full stroke on the ball, less effort to move the cue ball, so the above issue
with muscle strain goes away. But more room for the tip to steer off course. I find the further
back I pull my arm, the more it wants to swing outward, away from my body.

So long bridges can introduce a steering movement (aka a hitch) in the stroke, and may
lead to extra unwanted spin on the cue ball.

But as for your original comment, "the angle of your back arm when it contacts the cue ball"...
You mean the angle of the stick when the tip makes contact?
Are you referring to the horizontal or vertical angle? With a short or long bridge, your stick
should be very level. So vertically, bridge length doesn't really matter.
You shouldn't be angling downward into the ball either way.

In terms of left and right spin, it definitely matters. Over time players will find themselves subconsciously
adjusting bridge length when applying heavy sidespin, as they adjust for deflection.

Good stuff CreeDo, i add, long bridge allow you to see your cue moving back and fourth and detect if it is in line or not, allows you to gauge speed better since your arm is taking bigger swing, and you are actually doing a dry run of the shot; just remember to pause as close to CB as possible to avoid unwanted spin and follow through. Efren does warm up before pause, and two or three warm ups after pause no pause then; tried to copy it helps gauge speed but did not help much with accuracy! i can see hitting CB while arm is warming up is good but who knows..

 

[Lucky_Lew66]

i have noticed that when i lengthen my bridge that i stroke the ball better, i find that when under pressure i short stroke everything so if i lengthen my bridge hand i dont do that. I have always heard you have more accuracy with it close, and scientifically it does make sense,but i dont think the pressure factor and arm freeze and short stroking has been factored in. Also i think it helps to have a little length of the cue out in front of you to help to sight in the shot,like shooting from a gun with a long barrel verses a short barrel, like a lot of snooker players,who are aiming at smaller pockets and need a straighter stroke. I personally know a lot of good players that have very long bridges, plenty of local guys and plenty on the pro tour. Look at SVB he has a long bridge and is deadly and has a powerfull stroke because of his bridge length... I could name several names that do; Earl,Efren, Busty,Niels,Ralph,Johnny,Mika,Corey,basically all the champions do, so the accuracy thing ,while it sounds right,it doesnt prove to be true. One of the exceptions would be Allen Hopkins, also Tommy Kennedy, short jabby strokers but really accurate...

 

[zpele]

i have noticed that when i lengthen my bridge that i stroke the ball better, i find that when under pressure i short stroke everything so if i lengthen my bridge hand i dont do that. I have always heard you have more accuracy with it close, and scientifically it does make sense,but i dont think the pressure factor and arm freeze and short stroking has been factored in. Also i think it helps to have a little length of the cue out in front of you to help to sight in the shot,like shooting from a gun with a long barrel verses a short barrel, like a lot of snooker players,who are aiming at smaller pockets and need a straighter stroke. I personally know a lot of good players that have very long bridges, plenty of local guys and plenty on the pro tour. Look at SVB he has a long bridge and is deadly and has a powerfull stroke because of his bridge length... I could name several names that do; Earl,Efren, Busty,Niels,Ralph,Johnny,Mika,Corey,basically all the champions do, so the accuracy thing ,while it sounds right,it doesnt prove to be true. One of the exceptions would be Allen Hopkins, also Tommy Kennedy, short jabby strokers but really accurate...

The difference is that the players you are referring to are pros who have put thousands and thousands of hours into their stroke.

If you have a perfectly straight stroke like they do then a long bridge length wont really effect you. If you do not have a perfect stroke it will magnify any imperfections. In the case of my original post I was speaking of a couple amatuers- not pros. In their case they did not have perfect strokes and would have been better served by a shorter bridge.

I'm not talking 5-7 inches I'm talking about 10-12 inches away.

They were shooting with a bridge about 15-20 inches away.

 

[randyg]

The difference is that the players you are referring to are pros who have put thousands and thousands of hours into their stroke.

If you have a perfectly straight stroke like they do then a long bridge length wont really effect you. If you do not have a perfect stroke it will magnify any imperfections. In the case of my original post I was speaking of a couple amatuers- not pros. In their case they did not have perfect strokes and would have been better served by a shorter bridge.

I'm not talking 5-7 inches I'm talking about 10-12 inches away.

They were shooting with a bridge about 15-20 inches away.

Yet they are still using a 7-8 inch stroke!

randyg

 

[Pushout]

The difference is that the players you are referring to are pros who have put thousands and thousands of hours into their stroke.

If you have a perfectly straight stroke like they do then a long bridge length wont really effect you. If you do not have a perfect stroke it will magnify any imperfections. In the case of my original post I was speaking of a couple amatuers- not pros. In their case they did not have perfect strokes and would have been better served by a shorter bridge.

I'm not talking 5-7 inches I'm talking about 10-12 inches away.

They were shooting with a bridge about 15-20 inches away.

This makes a lot of sense.