Grip

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KingJerryO

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I have been analyzing my fundamentals lately and I have noticed a habit that I developed. I'm not sure it is necessarily a bad habit but my rear grip hand knuckles make about a 20 degree acute angle with the line of the cue. I tried turning my hand back into the cue to where my knuckles and cue are perfectly parallel but this feels weird. Is this worth fixing or not. Thanks
 
At what point in your stroke are you at that 20 degree angle? With a relaxed grip (cradle), the angle should change as you move from the end of your back stroke to your finish position.. About the only time my knuckles are on line with the cue is at my set position. By the time I finish my stroke, my knuckles are angled up toward my head.

Steve
 
reply

No the cue does rock in my hand properly in the vertical plane. Im talking about the horizontal (xz) plane. For example, if you place your hand at your side as if standing at attention and then you rotate your fist slightly counterclockwise. That is how I hold the cue. I cradle the cue, and when I get down over the shot I rotate my rear hand slightly counterclockwise to where my pinkie is just still touching the cue. I hope this helps clarify what I'm doing. Thanks for your reply
 
KingJerryO...It's not clear from your explanation. Can you post a video of you doing what you're talking about. Then we can give you a clear answer. To me, it sounds like you're doing something that you shouldn't be. The grip hand (cradle) should be relaxed, with no pronation or rotation of the hand, inside or outside. The knuckles are visible to the side, in a normal swing. They tilt backwards on the backswing...are horizontal at CB address...and tilt forward at the finish of the stroke.

Scott Lee
www.poolknowledge.com

KingJerryO said:
No the cue does rock in my hand properly in the vertical plane. Im talking about the horizontal (xz) plane. For example, if you place your hand at your side as if standing at attention and then you rotate your fist slightly counterclockwise. That is how I hold the cue. I cradle the cue, and when I get down over the shot I rotate my rear hand slightly counterclockwise to where my pinkie is just still touching the cue. I hope this helps clarify what I'm doing. Thanks for your reply
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reply

Im not really sure how to explain it better. When cradling a cue there is only two ways to rotate your hand. That is in the vertical plane, which is what happens naturally when your cue rocks in your cradle on practice strokes. The other way is in the horizontal plane. (When I cradle the cue I sort of turn my hand counter clockwise in the horizontal plane to where my pinkie almost loses contact with the cue.) This stays constant throughout my stroke and my wrist is still straight and there is no tension in it. If this is still not clear I will try to post I pic, but I think this might clarify things. Thanks for the replies
 
Try standingstraight up and holding your cue very lightly at the balance point. Then let your arm COMPLETELY relax. you can even close your eyes. Wait a few seconds and then look at where your cue is pointing naturally. That will give you a good idea of what your natural stance angle should be. If you maintain that natural stance angle, you should find that there is no need to rotate your grip hand at the wrist, if that is what you are describing.

Steve
 
reply

Mr. Jennings, I tried doing what you said, but it didnt change anything. Yes you are right in that I am rotating my wrist(not to be confused with curling the wrist). It is also important for me to note that I'm not doing this during my stroke. I do this when I get down on my shot. I tried to keep the finger pad behind the pinkie knuckle on the cue, but couldnt keep it on there through the stroke. If this is a bad habit, does anyone know how I can correct this. Thanks
 
Maybe the simplest way to approach most "grip" problems is to remember that the wrist muscles are not used on most shots. They should be relaxed. The only muscles below the forearm that are used are the muscles in your fingers, and then just enough to keep the cue from slipping from your hand.
 
KingJerryO said:
Mr. Jennings, I tried doing what you said, but it didnt change anything. Yes you are right in that I am rotating my wrist(not to be confused with curling the wrist). It is also important for me to note that I'm not doing this during my stroke. I do this when I get down on my shot. I tried to keep the finger pad behind the pinkie knuckle on the cue, but couldnt keep it on there through the stroke. If this is a bad habit, does anyone know how I can correct this. Thanks
Click to expand...

OK, it doesn't sound like you are doing anything that would detract from your straight cue movement. This may be one of those "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" situations.

Steve
 
Cueing issue

KingJerryO said:
I have been analyzing my fundamentals lately and I have noticed a habit that I developed. I'm not sure it is necessarily a bad habit but my rear grip hand knuckles make about a 20 degree acute angle with the line of the cue. I tried turning my hand back into the cue to where my knuckles and cue are perfectly parallel but this feels weird. Is this worth fixing or not. Thanks
Click to expand...

Hi, I would like to direct you to this video that will help not only the problem you state above but all other flaws that even some of the top coaches and players were able to detect, check it out and if you are interested in purchasing the cue just get back to me tgwusauk@hotmail.com
video is here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjNU7pQnwaI
I can tell you most people initially think it is a gimmick, until you try it and instantly pick up the faults the players are experiencing, the worlds top coach is now teaching the other top coaches on how this cue works, the top coach in Ireland now uses it as part of the coaching manual there.
 
grip

I know its been a while since I posted here, but I found a snooker pro who grips the cue like I do. I had tried to describe it unsuccessfully but maybe this will help the instructors understand what I mean when I say that my hand is rotated off of the cue. I hold the cue exactly like Ken Doherty. I'm not sure if any of the instructors are familiar with him but my grip is virtually identical to his. If any instructors are familiar with his grip I would apreciate any advice as to if this grip style is not conducive to a straight stroke. Thanks
 
Post a link to this player, or just make your own video, and post it to You Tube. We need to see a sideview, that shows you down in your stance, with the cue at ball address, in the backswing, and the forward stroke.

Scott Lee
www.poolknowledge.com
 
Scott, do you see what I mean now when I said that the rear of my hand is rotated off of the cue. And second, I appreciate your input as you are a highly respected instructor and your opinion carries a lot of weight within the billiard community. Thankyou for taking the time to answer my questions.
 
KingJerryO...Yes I noticed it, and find nothing unusual about it. To me it merely looks like you're gripping the cue with only the thumb and forefinger...which will work fine.

Scott Lee
www.poolknowledge.com
 
A new development

I have been trying to turn my rear hand inward (and fix a chicken wing) to the point that all four fingers are on the cue. Since I never did this, I don't really know how it should feel. I noticed that during my backswing my cue rotates a little bit. As I come forward it rotates back to original position. This is caused by friction between the back fingers and the cue as it heads towards the pause position. Is this normal. Thanks
 
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