Changing handedness?

Banks

Banks

Banned
First off..

Happy International Left-Handed Day!

I've been considering trying to switch to my normally dominant hand(right). Sorta tough to think about after spending years playing lefty.

Has anybody else switched up their shooting hand after a long time playing?
 
Only for practice shooting off handed shots. What do you feel you would gain by switching?
 
dr9ball said:
Only for practice shooting off handed shots. What do you feel you would gain by switching?
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I'm naturally right-handed for virtually everything else. Once in a while, I'll shoot a bit righty and certain things seem a bit easier. It could be because I get a better outcome than I expect. I can also break fairly well righty with putting too much into it. Using a more dominant hand, wouldn't that have a higher likelihood of control, such as avoiding things like unintended twisting? Sometimes I wonder if switching over to righty would bring my game up after a little while. I also prefer to jump and do perpendicular masse shots righty.

Edit: Also, I think I'm right-eye dominant, so the cross-dominance may play a role.
 
Banks said:
I'm naturally right-handed for virtually everything else. Once in a while, I'll shoot a bit righty and certain things seem a bit easier. It could be because I get a better outcome than I expect. I can also break fairly well righty with putting too much into it. Using a more dominant hand, wouldn't that have a higher likelihood of control, such as avoiding things like unintended twisting? Sometimes I wonder if switching over to righty would bring my game up after a little while. I also prefer to jump and do perpendicular masse shots righty.
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You're a freak of nature John!!! :grin:

JC
 
JC said:
You're a freak of nature John!!! :grin:

JC
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Nah, I just don't know what the hell I'm doing. :eek:

I think I'm going to have to skip the singles this fall. Will probably do the team event unpaid from work. :( If I knew I could pull in $150/day gambling, I'd give it a shot, but it could just as easily go the other way. Especially if I get suckered into a game by somebody with a big ole diamond table at home.
 
I dunno, I think so much of pool is experience and muscle memory, would be a shame to throw away
all the work you've done on your left hand. It might be a long time just to reach your current level,
can your ego handle shooting below your capabilities for a solid year+, constantly second guessing
whether you missed because of the hand choice?
 
There are advantages to being able to shoot with both hands, so if you decide to become proficient as a righty, don't loose your proficiency with your left.
 
Banks said:
First off..

Happy International Left-Handed Day!

I've been considering trying to switch to my normally dominant hand(right). Sorta tough to think about after spending years playing lefty.

Has anybody else switched up their shooting hand after a long time playing?
Click to expand...

Just fyi, I'm in the same boat as you. Never tried to change it up completely, but have done it enough I'm reasonably comfortable in a pinch.

People have tried to get me to play APA, I tell them the only way I would is if I played right handed exclusively just for the sole purpose of getting that much better.

Of course, once it got serious at Nationals or something, I'd switch over to lefty, make a couple shots, get called out and DQ'd right before the cash.
 
CreeDo said:
I dunno, I think so much of pool is experience and muscle memory, would be a shame to throw away
all the work you've done on your left hand. It might be a long time just to reach your current level,
can your ego handle shooting below your capabilities for a solid year+, constantly second guessing
whether you missed because of the hand choice?
Click to expand...

That's sort of why I'm up in the air about it. There are certain shots that feel a little more natural shooting righty. The question is, would spending all of that time and energy to switch over have better long-term results or would it be better off spent trying to improve as I am. As for my ego, I'm also not sure.. I was giving a friend the breaks last night and gave another ball up just so I could have a chance to break. Lost all of his 6 or 7 bucks back. Damnit damnit damnit.

If I could get through the hurky-jerky motions of some shots, sometimes I think I could end up playing better righty. Was curious if anyone here has done that.

Diamond69 said:
Just fyi, I'm in the same boat as you. Never tried to change it up completely, but have done it enough I'm reasonably comfortable in a pinch.

People have tried to get me to play APA, I tell them the only way I would is if I played right handed exclusively just for the sole purpose of getting that much better.

Of course, once it got serious at Nationals or something, I'd switch over to lefty, make a couple shots, get called out and DQ'd right before the cash.
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If I had to start my opposite side from scratch, I wouldn't even consider it. I can still run a rack and probably play at about an APA 5 or 6 righty. It's mostly the long shots that I have problems with. Close up, I'm pretty comfortable and can still spin the ball.

I know one thing is for sure..

It would always give me an extra excuse to use. :)
 
Banks said:
If I could get through the hurky-jerky motions of some shots, sometimes I think I could end up playing better righty. Was curious if anyone here has done that.
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I think I know what you mean.

In theory we're supposed to handle all strokes pretty much the same way
and not have 10 different stroke movements with a level cue.
In reality when I use my off-hand for certain shots like soft low outside to drag the ball
off a rail as much as possible... there was that hurky jerky motion. When I finally fixed it,
I end up getting too much action with the cue ball a lot of the time.

Almost makes me wonder if my stroke is better with the off hand cuz it's free of bad habits.

I dunno, if you feel like a right hander trapped in a man's body, then I guess go ahead and switch :P
I can't imagine going through life using both for different shots and situations.
 
pick a hand & pick an eye

I think the key here is to make sure your "handedness" as you call it and your visual line up are correct

you can use either hand and / or either eye but unless you have the correct eye sighting down the shaft you are in for a tough time

If you want an extreme example of how flexible a person can be, look at Phil Michelson. He is naturally right handed but always felt more comfortable hitting a gold ball left handed and does so in a hall of fame fashion.

go with what "feels" right to you and then make sure your line of sight is correct
 
I am ambivalent on the specific issue. But it made for an awesome ending in that movie.... The shooting gallery ;D

Sent from my Nokia Lumia 920 Windows mobile phone using Board Express
 
Wow this is awesome I thought I was the only person who shot like this,,, I'm a Righty but I Shoot pool lefty,,, i do everything else righty besides drive,, i can drive with either hand,, I Stared playing pool when I was 12 and I must of taught myself to Shoot lefty and the funny thing is I didn't even realize I shot lefty till someone on my team taught i was a lefty till I told him,, I can shoot righty a LiL bit but not even close to how good I can shoot Lefty but in anycase its cool to know there are more of us out there lol and hey if you can Learn to shoot with both hands that's even better,,, having options is always a good thing
 
I wonder how much time the 'Mozart of Snooker' spent grooming both hands? If you haven't seen this remarkable display, worth your 7 minutes, IMO.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IrfLch52g4Y

Anyway, I also do everything else right handed and play pool lefty (albeit poorly :o). Sigel is another I believe?

At any rate, for us mortals, I would stick with the hand you are most comfortable with and go from there...unless you want to "shake things up inside you". :grin-square:

Best wishes.

~Razor
 
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I think CreeDo touched on it. While I have a better motion at the moment as a lefty, sort of like an artistic feel, shooting righty if it's not so spasmatic the shot feels much more deliberate. I dunno, I'll probably try to play for a couple of weeks righty outside of league and serious play.
 
Banks said:
I think CreeDo touched on it. While I have a better motion at the moment as a lefty, sort of like an artistic feel, shooting righty if it's not so spasmatic the shot feels much more deliberate. I dunno, I'll probably try to play for a couple of weeks righty outside of league and serious play.
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I'm truly in the same boat you are. I'm naturally a right-handed person, with a strong tendency to be truly ambidextrous in many things. However, I have a eye condition that causes double-vision almost all the time, unless I cock my head in just the correct position.

While I've always written right-handed, I picked up a cue stick and gun to shoot left-handed from Day 1.

A long time ago, back in the day, it occurred to me what I was doing by shooting with "the wrong hand". I switched over to a righty one day and while it felt weird, I didn't lose much in performance. So, I started putting a bit more effort into it and now I can shoot either way and not really think about it.

My modest record is a 2-pack in 9B from both sides of the plate, of which I achieved as a righty first......on an Olhausen no less :eek: .

Anyway, I shoot primarily as a lefty, but never give it a second thought when it's time to switch over to a righty to get correct body position for a shot.

I've also noticed my stroke is much stronger by switching to my off-hand. I can draw the hell out of a ball and generally get more action. Now, there are times I get excited and scoop it for a miscue, but that's just me trying to do too much when I should just "trust it".

I've seriously thought about suffering for a year or so and playing as a righty, as I think I could actually reach a higher level. My vision is much clearer from that side and I don't experience any double-vision, as it puts my head in the correct position to avoid that malady. However, I know it would take a lot of work to get the "consistency" and muscle memory that I have now from the left side.

Obviously, I'd love to shoot at a high gear from both sides and I'm sure at some point I'll be more than proficient at that.

Keep us posted.....
 
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