How do 3C players warm up ?

[mjantti]

I've never seen a live 3-cushion tournament match with top players and my question is how do they warm up ? As tables are different the players might find out if the cushions are playing wide/tight. Any shots with just the cueball (2, 3, 4, etc -cushion shots). Some power shots perhaps to warm up the shooting arm ?

I have no idea. In pool it's just pocketing easy balls to get into right groove and rhythm and checking out the rails and the pockets.

 

[Deno J. Andrews]

I've never seen a live 3-cushion tournament match with top players and my question is how do they warm up ? As tables are different the players might find out if the cushions are playing wide/tight. Any shots with just the cueball (2, 3, 4, etc -cushion shots). Some power shots perhaps to warm up the shooting arm ?

I have no idea. In pool it's just pocketing easy balls to get into right groove and rhythm and checking out the rails and the pockets.

Warming up in billiards seems to me to be more scientific than what the pool players do. Of course, the cushions play a much larger role in our game than in pool, so there is some natural curiosity as to the response of the rubber. Here are the key things I try to discover about the table as I am warming up:

1. For how many rails will the table allow my spin to stay on the ball? This is important because you can control the final angle of the cue ball off the last rail by using spin...that is of course if the table is in the right condition for this sort of play. If it is in the right condition, this will allow for some higher scoring. If the table does not allow too much english to stay on the ball, it is good to know.

2. Does the table play longer or shorter with running english on the ball than my practice table? This is important for obvious reasons.

3. Is there any roll off with the table, and if so, how many CMs per diamond at three speeds (medium roll, roll, soft).

4. What is the condition of the balls? I will test throw which is important when playing position- to make sure the right rail is hit when sending the OB close to the corner. It is also important to know for big stroke shots.

5. The speed of the table.

6. Any table trends? On some tables you will notice the ball will do something consistently that it won't do on other tables. For example- how it comes out of the corner, or if the ball jumps much when you hit the rail, and with a high ball.

The better you get, the more you want to know. There are other things I look for too, but they are not important in this context.

If you need to some suggestions how to find any of these answers, just let me know and I can certainly make suggestions.

Deno Andrews

 

[Bob Jewett]

I've never seen a live 3-cushion tournament match with top players and my question is how do they warm up ?...

Usually each player has a set of specific shots he will try. A common one is to shoot from a corner to the long cushion in the diagonally opposite corner. The cue ball should go five cushions to almost exactly the corner. Two other common shots are something with reverse english and a swing shot (also called an accordion or cross-table shot), both of which are quite table dependent. Usually there will be a set of naturals. The final two shots in most warm-ups are the lag shot and the break shot.

Tournament rules for carom specify five minutes of warm-up for each player just before the match.

 

[AuntyDan]

I thought you guys just need to press your hands to the table bed for a few minutes to warm up ;-)

 

[no-sho]

I thought you guys just need to press your hands to the table bed for a few minutes to warm up ;-)

YOU DA MAN!!!LMAO

 

[cueball1950]

I've never seen a live 3-cushion tournament match with top players and my question is how do they warm up ? As tables are different the players might find out if the cushions are playing wide/tight. Any shots with just the cueball (2, 3, 4, etc -cushion shots). Some power shots perhaps to warm up the shooting arm ?

I have no idea. In pool it's just pocketing easy balls to get into right groove and rhythm and checking out the rails and the pockets.

I always try short 3 rail box shots. make the box longer and try new angles. i will place 2 balls in the corner and take ball in hand to test the accuracy and speed of the rails. i may play it 3 rails once or twice and then i might go as many as 7 or 8 rails to see the reaction of the english and to also test the speed. i may also play some ticky shots or some double reverse the rail shots. But i never practice the break shot. don't know why. just never did. hope this helps some........................................................mike