How do I teach a draw shot?

[Kevin]

I always appreciated Jerry Briesath's comment that "whitey doesn't lie".

You may think you are really hitting it low, but what counts is what is left on the cue ball at the moment of impact with the object ball. Using the stripes, chalking well, looking for the chalk mark on the cueball after, not dropping the elbow, normal stroke follow-through instead of poke-and-stop are all effective, but in the end whitey just doesn't lie.

I took lessons from a local pro, and noticed that on his break and draw shots the ferrule was all the way back into his bridge fingers (without wiping chalk off the tip) during the pause before forward acceleration. He got lots of power on the break, and plenty of spin with very little apparent effort (compared to me attempting to sledgehammer the ball into submission.)

Note also Freddy the Beard's banking book under the heading "some fundamentals never mentioned" recommends shortening the bridge on draw shots, lengthening for follow, all relative to your normal bridge length.

Which reminds me my long-distance draw and accuracy still are weaker elements in my game, so my fundamentals must need more work, results don't lie. Perhaps my internal robot is waving his arms shouting "warning Will Robinson a low percentage shot" so I tighten up, jack up, death-grip the cue and kill action. I'm off to the practice table for some needed quality time.

 

[Skeezicks]

I agree that Randy is a fine instructor and a pretty darn good player as well. I have matched up with him, and I have never seen him with a 15 inch follow-through. I believe he may have been applying his sometimes dry sense of humor to make a point.

He doesn't drop his elbow. His finish point is when his grip hand punches the right side of his chest. These together say no way a 15" follow through.

But, who knows, it could be one of those advanced techniques taught only in the advanced classes.

 

[pooltchr]

He doesn't drop his elbow. His finish point is when his grip hand punches the right side of his chest. These together say no way a 15" follow through.

But, who knows, it could be one of those advanced techniques taught only in the advanced classes.

Not dropping the elbow, and taking every stroke to it's natural finish are cornerstones of what we teach....at EVERY level.
Steve

 

[Skeezicks]

Not dropping the elbow, and taking every stroke to it's natural finish are cornerstones of what we teach....at EVERY level.
Steve

It was some more dry humor.

 

[pooltchr]

My bad.
How about putting a little wink in there so those like me who are a little slow to get it sometimes understand?
Sorry.
Steve

 

[hobokenapa]

Thanks for all the great responses guys. I never expected to log in today and see 44 responses! I will definitely be well prepared to teach the draw shot next week.

 

[renard]

Perhaps my internal robot is waving his arms shouting "warning Will Robinson a low percentage shot" so I tighten up,

That is too funny!!!

 

[BRKNRUN]

I assume you are explaining to these people how & what draw & follow on the CB look like in motion...You would be surprised how many beginners don't know what direction the CB is turning until someone shows them...

Here is how I taught my 12 year old son and it worked within the second stroke...

After I explained what the CB is doing so he has a understanding of what he is trying to accomplish and knew that hitting low on the CB caused draw spin... I told him to set up to shoot the shot with his tip low on the CB...I then told him when he was ready to shoot, forget about the CB and shoot his cue tip at his aim spot on the OB as if he was going to actually just shoot the OB with his cue (instead of the CB).....This causes instant follow through and acceleration through the CB because your tip must go through where the CB is to get to the spot on the OB....(Of course you don't actually follow all the way through to the OB)...

The result is a great draw shot without the "effort" to draw the CB...you are really just shooting a shot with proper speed...

I think that is where a lot of beginners fall short...They are "trying" to draw the ball instead of just letting it happen.


It may not be the BCA or certifed instuctor way, but it worked in no time for my 12 year old....(BTW: It was pretty cool to see the excitment on his face when he did it)

 

[recoveryjones]

This according to Don (the preacher ) Feeney on one of his instructional videos:

Ideally on the majority of all shots you want your forearm hanging down at a 90 degree angle from the elbow in relation to your upper arm when stroking through the cue ball at contact.

For a draw shot:
Don Feeney recommends moving(pre-cocking) the grip hand forearm(a few inches) forward of 90 degrees on the cue stick.He says by doing so, you can help but hit low on the cue ball and get draw.I tried this and it seems to really work,FOR ME.

I't still a Don Feeney suggestion and not RJ's, however, I'd be intrested into hearing what the on board instructors comments might be.

Another thing that enhances draw is a straight stroke,hitting the cue ball low in the center.If you are putting unwanted english on the ball it can have an effect on how much draw you can obtain,especially if you are cross stroking.

Joe Tucker's website is really helpful in determining if you are SEEING the center of the cue ball, where the center really is.If you are cross stroking across the cue ball, rather than stroking straight through, that in itself can effect the quality of the draw shot.A good instructor can help you eliminate the cross stroke.Joe basically says that a good clean (straight) stroke makes effective shotmaking more effortless.

Take some time and watch the "third Eye" video's on this link page.Click on previews and select third eye videos 1,2 and 3 in succesion.
http://www.joetucker.net/start.html

I found the info Joe has to offer there to be really helpful.
RJ

 

[pooltchr]

For a draw shot:
Don Feeney recommends moving(pre-cocking) the grip hand forearm(a few inches) forward of 90 degrees on the cue stick.He says by doing so, you can help but hit low on the cue ball and get draw.I tried this and it seems to really work,FOR ME.

I't still a Don Feeney suggestion and not RJ's, however, I'd be intrested into hearing what the on board instructors comments might be.

RJ

Moving the grip hand forward would have a tendency to keep the tip lower on contact. As the grip hand moves past the 90 degree point, it moves forward and up at the same time. That is going to keep the tip lower.

My problem with this method is it requires a rather significant change in your normal stroke. Most instructors try to teach a consistant repeatable stroke for most shots. I would prefer using the bridge hand to lower the cb/tip contact point as opposed to changing the grip and stroke. But as you said...it works for you.
Steve