How important is your grip?

JrockJustin

JrockJustin

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I was wondering how important your grip is? For me, keeping my wrist straight is difficult. So for the longest time I it has been bent.Some people tell me to change it and some people tell me it's not important, just do whatever is comfortable for you. Yesterday I tried it and it definitely seemed awkward. But my shots were straighter and I got more movement when I used english. My backswing was limited though and I think that has to do with how tight I was gripping it. Should I keep practicing with the straight wrist or do what is comfortable? Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance!

Justin
 
JrockJustin said:
I was wondering how important your grip is? For me, keeping my wrist straight is difficult. So for the longest time I it has been bent.Some people tell me to change it and some people tell me it's not important, just do whatever is comfortable for you. Yesterday I tried it and it definitely seemed awkward. But my shots were straighter and I got more movement when I used english. My backswing was limited though and I think that has to do with how tight I was gripping it. Should I keep practicing with the straight wrist or do what is comfortable? Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance!

Justin
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Your wrist and your grip are different things. However, as a rule, your wrist should be fairly loose, not cocked. There are GREAT players that have a bent wrist (Keith McCready leading the way) but overall, I don't think I would recommend the practice. Also, even though Keith's wrist is bent, he still maintains a fairly loose grip.
 
Slip stroke

JrockJustin said:
I was wondering how important your grip is? For me, keeping my wrist straight is difficult. So for the longest time I it has been bent.Some people tell me to change it and some people tell me it's not important, just do whatever is comfortable for you. Yesterday I tried it and it definitely seemed awkward. But my shots were straighter and I got more movement when I used english. My backswing was limited though and I think that has to do with how tight I was gripping it. Should I keep practicing with the straight wrist or do what is comfortable? Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance!

Justin
Click to expand...


Well since i have a slip stroke,(DON"T KNOW WHY) just always had it. my stroke must be loose. but it does not slip on all shots.............mike
 
JrockJustin said:
I was wondering how important your grip is? For me, keeping my wrist straight is difficult. So for the longest time I it has been bent.Some people tell me to change it and some people tell me it's not important, just do whatever is comfortable for you. Yesterday I tried it and it definitely seemed awkward. But my shots were straighter and I got more movement when I used english. My backswing was limited though and I think that has to do with how tight I was gripping it. Should I keep practicing with the straight wrist or do what is comfortable? Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance!

Justin
Click to expand...
Your grip shouldn't be loose or tight.
Your thumb and index finger should seal around the cue just tight enough that the cue can't fall to the ground.
Rist and forearm should be straight to the ground at impact. So you are not hitting the ball on your down swing or follow through.
Leave your pinky and ring finger loose on the cue so that the cue is hinged . This will let your stroke flow freely and staight without breaking your rist on the back swing or follow through.
The only part of your arm that should move is from the elbow down.
 
The ledgendary Joe Davis (20 World Championships in Snooker) had a quote about holding a bird in your hand.

It went something like this:

Hold the bird in your hand tight enough so it can't escape,but loose enough so that you don't ruffle a feather.(or perhaps he said, "Kill it"...LOL)

I'm not sure exactly what he said but it was something simuliar to above and it lines up with Shawn Putnam's suggestion of not holding it too tight or to loose.
RJ
 
Thanks...

Shawn Putnam said:
Your grip shouldn't be loose or tight.
Your thumb and index finger should seal around the cue just tight enough that the cue can't fall to the ground.
Rist and forearm should be straight to the ground at impact. So you are not hitting the ball on your down swing or follow through.
Leave your pinky and ring finger loose on the cue so that the cue is hinged . This will let your stroke flow freely and staight without breaking your rist on the back swing or follow through.
The only part of your arm that should move is from the elbow down.
Click to expand...

Great advice, thanks Love Sponge. I'm headed out to practice now...
 
JrockJustin said:
I was wondering how important your grip is? For me, keeping my wrist straight is difficult. So for the longest time I it has been bent.Some people tell me to change it and some people tell me it's not important, just do whatever is comfortable for you. Yesterday I tried it and it definitely seemed awkward. But my shots were straighter and I got more movement when I used english. My backswing was limited though and I think that has to do with how tight I was gripping it. Should I keep practicing with the straight wrist or do what is comfortable? Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance!

Justin
Click to expand...
I think a straight loose wrist can give you the longest stroke and the most action on the ball, but players grips are often related to their stance. Holding your wrist differently you may need a different stance. McCready's body is in a completely different position than most players, and puts weight on the shoulder and elbow differently, hence the bent wrist. His form actually may be the easiest on you back and neck. Most snooker stance players have a cocked wrist, and face straight at the shot. Most Americans are more sideways and stroke more across the body, so the straight wrist lets the shoulder move in a different way. Beware of causing yourself problems, many players play great both ways. Earl moves his shoulder during the stroke, no matter what Shawn says. (What's up Shawn? LOL!)

unknownpro
 
My grip is very important, cause i hold the cue at the balance point unless the shot calls for a longer reach. Not to loose not to tight, just right. Cole.
 
TheConArtist said:
My grip is very important, cause i hold the cue at the balance point unless the shot calls for a longer reach. Not to loose not to tight, just right. Cole.
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Do you have any pictures of this?
Because that would be around a foot from where it should be :p.




Mine is a little forward of perpendicular.
 
Shawn said it best about the grip and the wrist. The wrist shouldn't be loose, and it shouldn't be tight. It should be stable, no matter what position you keep it in (in or out). If it's too loose it will wobble from side to side and cock back and forth during your stroke. If it's too tight there will be tension in your arm and in your grip. If you keep your pinky and ring fingers wrapped around the cue on the backstroke, often this will cause you to bend or cock your wrist because of the pressure the cue is putting on the webbing of your hand between your thumb and first finger. If you open your last two fingers on the back stroke, or keep them loose or off the cue altogether, it is much easier to keep your wrist stable and stroke straight.

Some people say that you get more power in your stroke by getting your wrist involved, but I think it's the opposite. Most players don't even realize how much their wrist moves during their stroke, and often that is the reason why they can't stroke straight thru the cueball.
 
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Proper Grip is a Key Element in GREAT STROKE, if your is Wrong your Stroke will not be true.

There are many WAYS to Grip a Cue Butt, and all are correct for the individual they work for.

But the one thing I see many BAD PLAYERS do is as they are Stroking, at the same time they are Tightening Up their Grip like they were holding on to the Cue LIKE THEIR LIFE Depending upon not letting go.

When they do this the Cue DOES NOT Move in a Straight Line.

You Grip should Secure & Control the Cue Butt, but there is no reason to hold like you did when you first started driving, and use the Death Grip on the Wheel.
 
When you mention a straight wrist, do -you mean that the back of the hand is in a straight line with the forearm?
 
BiG_JoN said:
Do you have any pictures of this?
Because that would be around a foot from where it should be :p.




Mine is a little forward of perpendicular.
Click to expand...

Actually i worded it wrong, you are right, i hold it six inches from the balance point, sorry. Cole.
 
So difficult...

When I hold it with a straight wrist it is sooo uncomfortable. But, right when I reached the table to practice I was on fire. And I had so much control over the cue ball. I practiced solid for an hour and felt great. Played my buddy in a race to nine and got crushed. I really felt uncomfortable. It's gotta be mental. I then headed over to my bar for the Wednesday night tournament and cleaned house. But I changed back to my old routine. Go figure...

Pool is such a head game that you must conquer inside yourself before you can compete at a higher level. Right now I am at the whining and anger management level...

Thanks everyone for their advice and please keep it up...love the reading
 
yet another opinion

Most good players I have studied have mastered a variety of grips (and grip techniques). After some discussion with them, I have come to understand many don't even realize it. The complexity of positioning requires us to exhibit a wide range of control over the roll, slide, curvature, etc. of the CB. So, it is my opinion (flamesuit on) that you should concentrate, in the beginning, on mastering your base grip with an eye toward slight adjustments as you advance. My advice is to carefully study better players for techniques you can use in your game. After many years of careful observation, I have written a series of short fundamental studies. It is by no means intended to be the last word or a substitute for your opinion. You can find it at hittcues.com by clicking on the "Transcendental pool" link. It is meant to be read serially (in order) so the next page link is at the bottom of each page. No reason for me to go further here. I hope you find it useful.
Just my opinion, you be the judge
Andy
 
JrockJustin said:
When I hold it with a straight wrist it is sooo uncomfortable. But, right when I reached the table to practice I was on fire. And I had so much control over the cue ball. I practiced solid for an hour and felt great. Played my buddy in a race to nine and got crushed. I really felt uncomfortable. It's gotta be mental.
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Many years ago someone told me that change takes about 21 days to become 'normal'. After years of observation I feel this number is about right. When something that is common to you changes it feels different / uncomfortable for a while, but then it becomes the 'common' feeling. You have to work at maintaining the change, not reverting back to the old way, for those 3 weeks or so, but near the end the change will feel fine. Hang in there.

Dave
 
Thanks Dave...

DaveK said:
Many years ago someone told me that change takes about 21 days to become 'normal'. After years of observation I feel this number is about right. When something that is common to you changes it feels different / uncomfortable for a while, but then it becomes the 'common' feeling. You have to work at maintaining the change, not reverting back to the old way, for those 3 weeks or so, but near the end the change will feel fine. Hang in there.

Dave
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Thanks Dave, I will do my best...

Hey, do you know Todd Pronych up in Saskatoon by any chance?

Thanks again for the advice
 
What Shawn said describes it best. I'll add while standing, let your arm hang straight down relaxed. This is the natural position of your wrist. Dave added 21 days to feel natural which I feel is is about right. Grip pressure is another matter, it should be light for most shots. However more important is keep it consistant. Don't start out light and increase grip pressure. This is a form of steering and can lead to other problems (like rolling your wrist). If you need a (little more) pressure fine (like a break shot) but try to keep it consistant for the shot at hand.

Rod
 
JrockJustin said:
I was wondering how important your grip is? For me, keeping my wrist straight is difficult. So for the longest time I it has been bent.Some people tell me to change it and some people tell me it's not important, just do whatever is comfortable for you. Yesterday I tried it and it definitely seemed awkward. But my shots were straighter and I got more movement when I used english. My backswing was limited though and I think that has to do with how tight I was gripping it. Should I keep practicing with the straight wrist or do what is comfortable? Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance!

Justin
Click to expand...

I think the grip is the most underrated part of the game. I think its second only to “aim”.

I feel that the proper grip allows you to move the cue straight back and through on a consistent basis without any thought at all. If your grip is not correct, you now must rely on eye hand coordination or manipulation which may be on or off on a given day.

There are many vague descriptions of what is a proper grip. Letter J index finger / thumb and first finger pointing to the ground / grip in the fingers / grip in the palm, slightly in, slightly out etc. etc.

I think the best advice was given by Mark Tadd about 5 months ago…. (experiment )with different grips.

I have been doing some experimenting of my own, and found some interesting relationships with the golf grip.

Golf has a Strong / Neutral / Weak grip. Most current day teachings will tell you that the most consistent grip for normal ball striking is a neutral grip. I have found that pool also has a Strong / Neutral / Weak grip.

I have come up with a way to convert my Neutral Golf Grip right into a Neutral Pool Grip. It is hard to explain it online as I will probably confuse you and you would need to know a proper neutral Golf Grip in the first place, but try this.

Take a strong golf grip with your cue and then slide your thumb to the side (you end up out of position) / Take a weak golf grip with your cue and then slide your thumb to the side (you end up out of position) Take a neutral golf grip with your cue and then slide your thumb to the side (perfect position in my opinion and is very consistent back and through during the stroke) The main difference between the golf grip and pool grip is the thumb position and grip pressure points (last three fingers vs. first two fingers)

The real point of all this is I have found a consistent repeatable grip that puts my hand in (what I call) a “neutral” and consistent position.

Probably the most important thing though is to find a way where you can consistently place your grip without looking at it. Especially as your getting down on the shot… I, because of lack of confidence in my grip was “looking back” at my grip during set up (to see if I had it correct)…This took my eyes off the shot and caused me to mess up my alignment. Now I have a confidence that my grip is correct and have no need to “look back” at it during set up…

Hopefully I have not confused you too much…
 
Rod said:
What Shawn said describes it best. I'll add while standing, let your arm hang straight down relaxed. This is the natural position of your wrist. Dave added 21 days to feel natural which I feel is is about right. Grip pressure is another matter, it should be light for most shots. However more important is keep it consistant. Don't start out light and increase grip pressure. This is a form of steering and can lead to other problems (like rolling your wrist). If you need a (little more) pressure fine (like a break shot) but try to keep it consistant for the shot at hand.

Rod
Click to expand...

Thanks Rod...

When i stand and let my arm hang straight down relaxed, there is still a slight bend in my wrist. Before my hand was out like Danny Basavich's but I learned to relax a bit since then. You are right about the consistency. I will continue with that... thanks again
 
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