Grip Question

BeiberLvr

BeiberLvr

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I was messing around the other day with trying to emulate Ronnie Osullivan's grip.

It was my understanding that he only grips with the back 3 fingers, and keeps his index finger off the cue.

I seem to remember someone here [maybe Fran??] saying that played that way, but it might have just been for practicing something.

I had really good results on long straight in shots and long force follow shots, but was hit or miss on the power draw strokes.

Anyone else try gripping the cue this way? I'll probably mess around with it a little more next time I play.
 
I have, when I stated putting a hair of right english on the ball when wanting to hit center while playing one pocket. It was actually starting to play one pocket that brought the flaw to my attention.

It works well, but I think I am just too use to using the index finger in other sports to adopting it full time & be comfortable. I will go to it if the long straight shot is not on for a given day, as I will also go to letting the cue slip through.

You probably won't agree but I think having that finger off allows for a more level cue going into & through the ball if one is using a full pendulum stroke... as the butt end is not lifted up as much during the 'finish'.

That might be why you are not getting as much draw with it. You could be hitting the tip a bit higher on the CB than you think.

Take it for whatever it is worth to you. No need to reply with any criticism.

It's as much for others as it was intended for you.

Best Wishes to ALL.
 
ENGLISH! said:
I have, when I stated putting a hair of right english on the ball when wanting to hit center while playing one pocket. It was actually starting to play one pocket that brought the flaw to my attention.

It works well, but I think I am just too use to using the index finger in other sports to adopting it full time & be comfortable. I will go to it if the long straight shot is not on for a given day, as I will also go to letting the cue slip through.

You probably won't agree but I think having that finger off allows for a more level cue going into & through the ball if one is using a full pendulum stroke... as the butt end is not lifted up as much during the 'finish'.

That might be why you are not getting as much draw with it. You could be hitting the tip a bit higher on the CB than you think.

Take it for whatever it is worth to you. No need to reply with any criticism.

It's as much for others as it was intended for you.

Best Wishes to ALL.
Click to expand...

Thanks for your reply. Your post warrants no criticism from me.
 
I use it depending on the cue I am playing with it at the time.

BeiberLvr said:
I was messing around the other day with trying to emulate Ronnie Osullivan's grip.

It was my understanding that he only grips with the back 3 fingers, and keeps his index finger off the cue.

I seem to remember someone here [maybe Fran??] saying that played that way, but it might have just been for practicing something.

I had really good results on long straight in shots and long force follow shots, but was hit or miss on the power draw strokes.

Anyone else try gripping the cue this way? I'll probably mess around with it a little more next time I play.
Click to expand...
 
Having seen Ronnie's grip up close he holds it very loosely. He grips primarily with the middle finger, then the ring finger tends to stay around the cue apart from deep screw shots. The little finger comes away from the cue apart from on soft shots. The index finger has zero influence on the cue and its tip rarely touches the cue... Which is needed to pull back as far as he does on most shots otherwise his pull back would be limited.

This type of grip promotes very little wrist involvement hence why you get good results on long, straight and follow shots. With screw back if you are used to a little wrist involvement for the extra power needed it does limit you. That is why Ronnie had such a noticeable elbow drop on deep screw shots. He needs the extra power that he doesn't get from the wrist.

Hopefully this goes some way to explain his grip. There are a lot of top snooker players that have a similar grip. Liang who is currently playing in the UK finals uses an almost identical grip on most shots from what the tv cameras allow me to see.
 
Last edited:
Back of the hand grip like "Ronnie"

BeiberLvr said:
I was messing around the other day with trying to emulate Ronnie Osullivan's grip.

It was my understanding that he only grips with the back 3 fingers, and keeps his index finger off the cue.

I seem to remember someone here [maybe Fran??] saying that played that way, but it might have just been for practicing something.

I had really good results on long straight in shots and long force follow shots, but was hit or miss on the power draw strokes.

Anyone else try gripping the cue this way? I'll probably mess around with it a little more next time I play.
Click to expand...

Here's a video from Gareth Potts the World Chinese Eight Ball Champ 2014 (not sure of the year). Gareth is British and knows Ronnie. Here's his take on the grip. He mentions Ronnie's grip at (50 sec) into video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=esxnl7ZsFjE
 
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bigskyblue said:
Here's a video from Gareth Potts the World Chinese Eight Ball Champ 2014 (not sure of the year). Gareth is British and knows Ronnie. Here's his take on the grip. He mentions Ronnie's grip at (50 sec) into video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=esxnl7ZsFjE
Click to expand...

I disagree with Gareth. I don't believe Ronnie's index is ever on the cue so it could not be released on the backswing. If you watch a shot from behind, you can see the back of his hand opens.
 
Pidge said:
.....

This type of grip promotes very little wrist involvement hence why you get good results on long, straight and follow shots. With screw back if you are used to a little wrist involvement for the extra power needed it does limit you. That is why Ronnie had such a noticeable elbow drop on deep screw shots. He needs the extra power that he doesn't get from the wrist.

......
Click to expand...

Is it recommended to change your grip depending on the shot ? For example use this type of grip for short and medium stroke shots and something different for power shots ?

I like this grip for soft and medium shots, which is mostly how I play. However, on situations when I need power, the grip seems to restrict my stroke length. I think keeping the pinky on the cue is restricting the longer stroke.
 
Imo you only need the first two fingers. Loosely.
No instructor has told me to use the last two fingers too.
 
ronscuba said:
Is it recommended to change your grip depending on the shot ? For example use this type of grip for short and medium stroke shots and something different for power shots ?

I like this grip for soft and medium shots, which is mostly how I play. However, on situations when I need power, the grip seems to restrict my stroke length. I think keeping the pinky on the cue is restricting the longer stroke.
Click to expand...
No grip is really recommended in snooker. Hold it how ever you want, just don't let it stop the cue from travelling level or stop you from hitting the white where you intend. Its a highly personal thing in snooker. Instructors will take your natural grip and make minor adjustments if needed.
 
I have seen Cory use this grip on long straight ins when the cueball is on the rail. He never hits this shot hard and is cinching the shot with this grip.

ronscuba said:
Is it recommended to change your grip depending on the shot ? For example use this type of grip for short and medium stroke shots and something different for power shots ?

I like this grip for soft and medium shots, which is mostly how I play. However, on situations when I need power, the grip seems to restrict my stroke length. I think keeping the pinky on the cue is restricting the longer stroke.
Click to expand...
 
BeiberLvr said:
I was messing around the other day with trying to emulate Ronnie Osullivan's grip.

It was my understanding that he only grips with the back 3 fingers, and keeps his index finger off the cue.

I seem to remember someone here [maybe Fran??] saying that played that way, but it might have just been for practicing something.

I had really good results on long straight in shots and long force follow shots, but was hit or miss on the power draw strokes.

Anyone else try gripping the cue this way? I'll probably mess around with it a little more next time I play.
Click to expand...

Right. That was me. I do play mainly with the back three fingers --- pinkie on the cue unless a shot requires some wrist action.

I do leave the thumb and index finger on the cue, but they do nothing -- no grabbing --- and there is no pressure on those fingers.

The first two fingers release slightly and go with the cue as it moves forward.

I mostly use a full fist grip with power draw shots.
 
Did anyone see Bergman's grip with the back fingers completely off the cue and curled up to the side? It's like an extreme phillipino grip.

It works for him quite well.
 
Cardigan Kid said:
Did anyone see Bergman's grip with the back fingers completely off the cue and curled up to the side? It's like an extreme phillipino grip.

It works for him quite well.
Click to expand...

I saw it a couple of times but did not get a real good look at it.

I've tucked the last two(2) fingers when I was having an issue of putting a touch of unintentional right hand english on the ball. It seemed to solve the issue but it's not the most comfortable to play with continuously. So... I will sometimes go to it on those long straight ones.

Best Wishes to You & Yours...

& All.
 
I grip the cue pretty much like Ronnie does, with the feeling of the cue resting on my middle finger and maybe a little bit on my ring finger. I don't consciously try to raise my index finger up and away from the cue, but I have done that just for giggles with no apparent ill effect on my stroke.

Basically, the cue just lies there and pivots on the middle finger. I think this is a more natural way to hold the cue since the thumb and middle finger fall in line with each other when the hand completely relaxed and is hanging straight down. This is also how I hold a fly rod when casting, and a violin bow when playing that instrument. The Suzuki violin teachers stress this grip a lot. They call it "the circle of power" because it promotes a relaxed power in the fingers.
 
Cardigan Kid said:
Did anyone see Bergman's grip with the back fingers completely off the cue and curled up to the side? It's like an extreme phillipino grip.

It works for him quite well.
Click to expand...

Here's a good shot of it.
 

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