How do AZ'ers shoot a stop-shot?
- Thread starter DrClean
- Start date
It depends on how hard I want to send the object ball into the pocket. Never shoot harder than you need to for shape.
I understand what you mean, but if you're playing a stop-shot, the shape is pretty obvious in that the ball just needs to stop. So are you saying you shoot as low and slow as possible while still pocketing the OB and stopping the CB?
It can depend on the equipment. Usually, I'll shoot it fairly firm to keep the object ball and cue ball on track (some bar tables tend to roll off). The cue ball should be sliding when it makes contact with the object ball to stop. Hitting it easy may give you some margin for error for instance if the cue has top spin then it will only roll a short ways same as if it has some draw. It just depends on your stroke, distance, speed, cue ball contact, etc. It's a feel shot that should be developed with practice and experience.
If you are looking for a consistent stop shot, learn pocket weight. What you should be doing is trying to pocket the OB just hard enough to tap the back of the pocket. If you play low english on this type of weight, no matter how far the CB is from the OB, you get a stop shot (or very close and can make little adjustments for cloth). Anything more than pocket weight will result in backspin. This helps get draw and those long shots. Start with a long stop shot and anything more is draw.
Center CB also gives a stop shot, but I find you have to hit it too hard and can lose control on the CB or jaw the OB.
Hope this helps.
I shoot stop shot drill at least twice a month. I use a simple formula based on a 3 speed 1 diamond center ball each additional diamond i add 1/2 tip bottom english i can also increase my speed. The main idea is the cue ball to slide at contact. Most important shot in pool. Reference shot on almost every instructional video.
Practicing stop shots is fun. I like to see how softly I can shoot and still get a stop. I find it rather amazing how softly it can be done.
Dave Nelson
Dave Nelson
Interesting question - seems nobody understands it.
I hit the same place on the CB (very low) and change speed depending on distance.
pj
chgo
Stop
One of the major shots in all games followed closely by the draw shot. An absolute must to learn. As in a draw shot, a little too much is better than not enough. Another big shot to learn is the stop shot that doesn't quite stop but rolls ahead a few inches. I call it the stop and roll. Really just a stun shot. Much tougher to draw the cue 3 or 4 inches than 3 or 4 feet! Many players can draw the heck out of the ball but can't draw it short distances. Lots of variables to both shots. Clean balls, dirty balls, cloth and type of cue ball. The total opposite shot would be the force follow. Not just shooting high! Done right the cue will seem to have its own little motor! General rule for stop and draw shots is if it isn't happening go lower, harder or more follow thru.
One of the major shots in all games followed closely by the draw shot. An absolute must to learn. As in a draw shot, a little too much is better than not enough. Another big shot to learn is the stop shot that doesn't quite stop but rolls ahead a few inches. I call it the stop and roll. Really just a stun shot. Much tougher to draw the cue 3 or 4 inches than 3 or 4 feet! Many players can draw the heck out of the ball but can't draw it short distances. Lots of variables to both shots. Clean balls, dirty balls, cloth and type of cue ball. The total opposite shot would be the force follow. Not just shooting high! Done right the cue will seem to have its own little motor! General rule for stop and draw shots is if it isn't happening go lower, harder or more follow thru.
I shoot with nearly the same tip position & vary the speed. I think there would be less accurate options keeping the same speed & changing tip positions. So, to answer totally honestly, I vary both depending on the distances from CB to OB & from OB to pocket. Plus I am usually adding a bit of some side just to make sure it drifts a bit to the side I want for the next shot & not the other way.
Regards to all,
Regards to all,
Put a ball on the lip of a corner pocket.
Shoot a stop shot on the diagonal from the opposite corner pocket.
If you don't hit it right you will pocket both balls. :grin: (unless you manage a draw shot)
When you can execute this shot you will understand your question.
Shoot a stop shot on the diagonal from the opposite corner pocket.
If you don't hit it right you will pocket both balls. :grin: (unless you manage a draw shot)
When you can execute this shot you will understand your question.
Stop shots
"English" is generally taken to mean "right or left spin" on the cue ball, so draw or stun is not considered using "English".
If you go to Dr. Dave Alciatore's website (or buy his videos or books), you'll find an excellent explanation what you're seeking.
Generally speaking, for short distance stop shots, you use center or just a bit below center and a "crisp" hit. As the distance increases, you strike the cue ball lower, thereby reducing the need for excessive speed.
You learn stop shots (and most all shots) in increments. Begin with close shots and increase distance gradually until you have confidence in nine foot stop shots.
"English" is generally taken to mean "right or left spin" on the cue ball, so draw or stun is not considered using "English".
If you go to Dr. Dave Alciatore's website (or buy his videos or books), you'll find an excellent explanation what you're seeking.
Generally speaking, for short distance stop shots, you use center or just a bit below center and a "crisp" hit. As the distance increases, you strike the cue ball lower, thereby reducing the need for excessive speed.
You learn stop shots (and most all shots) in increments. Begin with close shots and increase distance gradually until you have confidence in nine foot stop shots.
For a stop shot, you want the cue ball to run out of backspin just after contact. Thats why I call a stop shot, a mini-draw shot. Hit too low and/or too fast, you get draw instead. If distance is involved, you would want to hit lower and/or faster(just like a draw shot). You could hit really low and still get a stop shot, but you would need to use a soft/slower stroke.
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This is a more important issue than most people realize. I believe what most developing pool players do is pick the just-below-center spot on the cueball and then develop an intuition about how hard they need to hit it under the circumstances to get the cueball to stop.
I have found a number of players who are good at stopping the cueball until the speed matters, and then they are lost.
Being able to do a variable-speed stop shot is critically important not just for that stop-shot safety or the one-pocket shot where you need to control the speed of the object ball, but also because that is the way you stun a ball cut at an angle and get the cueball to stay on the 90 degree line. Controlling the distance of the cueball along that stun line is, of course, a big deal.
Im not very good at explaining something like this but there is a mathematical formula based that can be used to determine a perfect stop shot based on the distance and speed that determines the tip position. But with practice and knowledge that the cue ball must slide at contact weather u hit soft or hard can be mastered. Every shot i shoot at any angle i first calculate a stop shot to get a reference to where my cueball will go after contact and then i adjust for position. I think most of us understand the stop shot but it is very hard to get into words. I worship this shot above all others it is the centergistic of my whole game i gage my stroke,my speed, and my alignment during practicing this shot. If u not mastered this shot i will beat your brains in on a pool table. Lol even when i practice jump shots stop stop stop
I do the exact same thing as Pat. With a stop shot, everything is based on striking the CB on vertical center. You can't go lower than "low" on the CB. You can always increase your swing speed. One can hit centerball and just continue increasing stick speed...but quickly you will end up missing some of the time, as the OB hits the pocket too hard. You can still pocket the ball that way (dead center on CB), but your margin of error is a WHOLE lot smaller. Ths is essentially the same thing that Mike Page posted. However you do it, the stop shot is THE most important shot to learn...and master.
Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com
Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com
All very true, of course - stop/stun shots at any speed and distance are a necessary skill.
But when OB speed doesn't matter and you must stop the CB dead, do you vary the tip height or the speed (or both)? Unless it's so close that I'd have to shoot below my "comfort zone" speed, I fix the tip height and vary the speed.
I use the same method for most draw shots.
pj
chgo
If you practice stop shots using a striped ball as the CB, you can see when the back spin transitions to slide and transitions to forward roll. I practice stop shots with a measle ball. That allows me to see any english I accidentally applied to the CB. I seem to often hit a 1/4 tip of left english, because the measle CB will do a half clockwise rotation after stopping. Something in my mechanics I have not figured out...
Why are pool balls round? Why do players wear sneakers when they play?
Must be something in the air
Must be something in the air