Never heard of anyone not giving any attention to centre cue ball when it isn't straight. Do you always play with side?
Head Positioning
- Thread starter Pidge
- Start date
Sorry Pidge, some topics are hard to explain in writing. But what i said is 100% accurate. I have searched all over the internet world wide, this subject remains hush hush..and i will keep it this way.
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You are just a bottomless pit of secrets and wisdom, aren't you. Unfortunately I don't believe in bottomless pits, and soon enough you have to dig yourself a new pit to crap in.
I'm going to come out and say it, your posts make me think you don't have a clue what you are talking about. At first I put it down to the blatant language barrier but now I know this isn't the case. If you have something to contribute, go ahead and contribute. But when someone wants further information or questions a post you make don't come out with BS such as it being hush hush in the billiards world. Nothing is hush hush in this industry. For the right price you can find out all you ever wanted to know.
I'm still awaiting your book, Naji. Quite looking forward to the release of it.
Playdoubles; Thanks for that link, I found it very useful. Some of us don't know everything and enjoy learning anything we can. His next video with the light reflections was good too.
Man, I was thinking things were just going over this guy's head. Maybe he needs to reposition it. The topic is right there in the OP.
I have to admit , you wrote it nicely, good job. On a friendly note: how do you tell people that you know something that they probably do not know without exposing it? Only two ways i know of:
1- You do not say anything, stay quite, and feel sorry for some stuff you see that is not accurate?
2- You say that you know something, and will tell at the right time
Is there other options?
First off, my entire aiming process is so internalized at this point that I usually just
look at the OB and knock it in.
But when I was learning how to play - I would visualize the contact points on the
OB and CB and "aim" accordingly. If I have a long layoff, I sometimes revert to
that method.
As to side - I don't understand why you would assume I must be using it...
Dale(the word of the day is internalized)
One question for you if i may ask, why SVB, Cory D, and Alex P and others did not excel in snooker type pockets tables; both been playing for years pool, Alex, been playing for years snooker too. It must be something they are not able to achieve, something they are doing wrong, and not consistent about it? They know everything about static steps, such as head position, feet, etc yet still far from reaching C, or B level in snooker..What is it?
Option 3 - head down to your local hardware store and purchase a new shovel. Now, you don't want to buy a pricey shovel as it is going to get covered in crap soon. Getta diggin' boy.
I personally prefer option 1. If you are not going to spill the beans its better not to say anything at all. I'd rather that than for someone to tell me I'm wrong, then when questioned why all you get in response is I can't say. If you are to call someone wrong, you need to be able to back it up when asked.
Experience. I've played snooker since I was 6 and I can assure you snooker players are no more talented as a whole than pool players. They simply cut out all the shit. None of the BS aiming methods or pricey gimmicks. You are taught to find the line the CB must take to contact the OB to pocket it. Simple as that. Part of this is having the head and eyes in the right place so you can judge where you are lined up on the CB accurately. You can choose to believe snooker players are hiding something major from everyone that's why pool players can't make the transition but in reality its down to practicing on a snooker table for years and working their way up the levels.
OK. Here is the issue. You don't get what the OP is all about. The main point, whether it is right or not, is that your sight line is important to the shot. Think of shooting a pistol, and your dominant eye is not directly behind the sights. Maybe you are only lining up the back sight to the target. The video example shows how you perceive a good shot line, but then removing the paper you realize it isn't as good as you thought.
Still means nothing if you do not have a good sight line.
Great, but still, your sight line?
Sight line is not the same as head position
Head position relative to what? the shot line? or the cue ball? or the cue?
If you are going to put 1 tip of left on the cue ball is the cue 1 tip left on your chin assuming that you parallel shift instead of pivot for english? or does your head shift with your cue so you have a different head position relative to the center line of the cue ball / shot line?
I've been exploring this for the last couple of months. The only thing i know for sure so far is that my eyes are very fickle. You have to really control them or the image you perceive will change subtly some how when you go from standing to down on the shot. The best way for me to control them now is - you find the shot line through both the CB and the OB - After you have that when you are getting into your stance / down on the shot it is important to lock your eyes on a target and not move your head / eyes off of the line that it was on when you found the shot line.
I'm inclined to believe that consistent head placement is more important than actual head placement. I haven't really reached any definitive conclusions in my mind yet though. Still trying to figure it out.
Thanks for the post
If you are going to put 1 tip of left on the cue ball is the cue 1 tip left on your chin assuming that you parallel shift instead of pivot for english? or does your head shift with your cue so you have a different head position relative to the center line of the cue ball / shot line?
I've been exploring this for the last couple of months. The only thing i know for sure so far is that my eyes are very fickle. You have to really control them or the image you perceive will change subtly some how when you go from standing to down on the shot. The best way for me to control them now is - you find the shot line through both the CB and the OB - After you have that when you are getting into your stance / down on the shot it is important to lock your eyes on a target and not move your head / eyes off of the line that it was on when you found the shot line.
I'm inclined to believe that consistent head placement is more important than actual head placement. I haven't really reached any definitive conclusions in my mind yet though. Still trying to figure it out.
Thanks for the post
Before we get off track, I'd like to interject a way of solidifying the correct head position. It's simple and you don't need any gimmicks to get it to work.
First, I'll say that sometimes we may get our head position out of alignment because of aiming the shot using our non-dominant eye. We stand behind the shot and sight it, but our passive eye is looking at the shot. We get down and we're looking across the shot, like in the Youtube video. It's very common and creeps into most players' game as fatigue sets in or a bad PSR is used.
The simple method is to take your bridge hand as you sight the shot standing, and put it up to your nose vertically facing away from your face. The first knuckle of your index finger will be on the tip of your nose forming a wall between your eyes. Does anybody remember how Curly Howard used to stop Moe from poking him in the eyes? Like that.
As you sight the shot, you'll notice one eye is looking at the shot even though the other eye is open and looking at the object ball, too. The eye that sees the shot more predominately is your dominant eye. The placement of your cue stick won't change, it will be where you normally place it below your chin.
What you're doing is eliminating a portion of the binocular vision that your brain receives and chooses to use for its go to picture. You're forcing the brain to choose the mainly dominant picture with as blending from the other eye like you normally do. But now, the other passive eye is supplying depth projection only and not trying to interfere with the dominant eye's aiming.
If you close and open each eye, you'll see which one is supplying the aiming alignment info and which eye is not. Both eyes are open and looking at the shot as you do normally, but they are not fighting each other. The binocular vision is dampened and the brain defaults to its eye that it uses for body alignment.
If this doesn't get flamed, I've got more.
Best,
Mike
First, I'll say that sometimes we may get our head position out of alignment because of aiming the shot using our non-dominant eye. We stand behind the shot and sight it, but our passive eye is looking at the shot. We get down and we're looking across the shot, like in the Youtube video. It's very common and creeps into most players' game as fatigue sets in or a bad PSR is used.
The simple method is to take your bridge hand as you sight the shot standing, and put it up to your nose vertically facing away from your face. The first knuckle of your index finger will be on the tip of your nose forming a wall between your eyes. Does anybody remember how Curly Howard used to stop Moe from poking him in the eyes? Like that.
As you sight the shot, you'll notice one eye is looking at the shot even though the other eye is open and looking at the object ball, too. The eye that sees the shot more predominately is your dominant eye. The placement of your cue stick won't change, it will be where you normally place it below your chin.
What you're doing is eliminating a portion of the binocular vision that your brain receives and chooses to use for its go to picture. You're forcing the brain to choose the mainly dominant picture with as blending from the other eye like you normally do. But now, the other passive eye is supplying depth projection only and not trying to interfere with the dominant eye's aiming.
If you close and open each eye, you'll see which one is supplying the aiming alignment info and which eye is not. Both eyes are open and looking at the shot as you do normally, but they are not fighting each other. The binocular vision is dampened and the brain defaults to its eye that it uses for body alignment.
If this doesn't get flamed, I've got more.
Best,
Mike
Thanks for that video, I forgot I wanted to make one of those.
Snooker guys rule.
I like what Pidge is saying. I am going to try this using the line on the rail where the cloth meets the wood.
steven
Actual head placement leads to consistent head placement. For me, my chin is always square on the cue, always the same part of my chin, which leads to my eyes always looking down the cueing line. If I'm playing with side its the same, so I don't cue across my vision centre which leads to consistency playing with side.
Just something of note Pidge... To be able to center your cue on your chin and be able to see center on the cueball, the shot line and the contact point on the cueball means that your eyes are working together and using parallax to focus both fovi on those 3 different objects...
As we get older or if our eyes don't work so harmoniously center chin is a hard thing to handle without adjusting the plane the eyes are on... I am assuming since you said square on your chin that both eyes are on a plane 90 degrees to the cue... For some players this will not work and at some point it may stop working for you....
I would move left or right off the centered position right up to the point that you lose the ability to see those things simply because you will reduce the work of the eye that is doing the aiming and force the other eye into a more quiet role... Usually this move will be to the dominant side......
This doesn't sound like much of a change and it really isn't but fatigue happens regardless of age and anything we can do to extend the time we can play before it sets in is a good tweak......
I am sure you have went cross eyed from long sessions and this tweak will extend the amount of time it takes for that to happen.....
Good shooting....
Chris
Thanks for that. You're right, I do go cross eyed and can't seem to focus at times and I've noticed my head automatically turns slightly when this happens. It turns ever so slightly to the right, and pushes my left eye into a more dominant position on the shot. It probably isn't enough of a shift to be noticeable by someone watching me play, but it makes a massive difference to me. Over the last few years I've noticed the blurred vision happens sooner, normally after about 6 or so hours of play, or if I'm feeling tired to start with it can be straight away. Looking back 6 years or so when I was in my teens I didn't have this problem, so like you say. As you age things have to change.
I'm surprised my last post never got a comment. Here's a link. http://nzphoto.tripod.com/sterea/3dvision.htm#binoc
I came across this method after experimenting a few months ago and researched it on the net. I use it on those nights when I'm not hitting the balls too well or I'm a little fatigued.
It can be a benefit to any player that isn't lining up correctly, beginner or advanced. It requires nothing more than applying it while you normally look at your shot. If you are looking across the shot or not seeing the shot, it will tell you why. Your brain will go to the default alignment and not allow the eyes to fight for dominance.
If you see the shot centered on your chin or nose, your eyes will still blend to get the correct picture. You're still looking at the object ball past your hand, allowing your brain to receive the correct distance information and normal alignment.
I use it occasionally in the middle of a set when I feel like my focus has strayed and I need to reset my PSR. I move my stick out of my frontal vision and don't let it influence my sighting. I look at the shot, raise my hand up to look at the shot again, and adjust if needed. If I'm looking across the shot or off to the side, my eyes show me where I need to be.
After using it for a while you should be able to shoot normally with your eyes in the right place. If you lose your alignment again, you do a quick check to get back on track.
Best,
Mike
I came across this method after experimenting a few months ago and researched it on the net. I use it on those nights when I'm not hitting the balls too well or I'm a little fatigued.
It can be a benefit to any player that isn't lining up correctly, beginner or advanced. It requires nothing more than applying it while you normally look at your shot. If you are looking across the shot or not seeing the shot, it will tell you why. Your brain will go to the default alignment and not allow the eyes to fight for dominance.
If you see the shot centered on your chin or nose, your eyes will still blend to get the correct picture. You're still looking at the object ball past your hand, allowing your brain to receive the correct distance information and normal alignment.
I use it occasionally in the middle of a set when I feel like my focus has strayed and I need to reset my PSR. I move my stick out of my frontal vision and don't let it influence my sighting. I look at the shot, raise my hand up to look at the shot again, and adjust if needed. If I'm looking across the shot or off to the side, my eyes show me where I need to be.
After using it for a while you should be able to shoot normally with your eyes in the right place. If you lose your alignment again, you do a quick check to get back on track.
Best,
Mike
question: is your vision center consistent for line of cue stick or consistent for line of cue ball travel?
im pretty sure im lined up on center of cue ball to ghost ball, which means my cue stick is in substantially different spots on my chin for different english (spin for our english friends).
my game is inconsistent, im definitely open to suggestions, thanks
im pretty sure im lined up on center of cue ball to ghost ball, which means my cue stick is in substantially different spots on my chin for different english (spin for our english friends).
my game is inconsistent, im definitely open to suggestions, thanks