Microadjustments - Conscious vs. Subconscious?

Oikawa

Oikawa

Well-known member
What is your methodology for doing microadjustments when down on the shot? Any discussions related to microadjustments are welcome, but am especially curious about the differences between conscious and subconscious approaches. Will post my own approach later when I have time.
 
Oikawa said:
What is your methodology for doing microadjustments when down on the shot? Any discussions related to microadjustments are welcome, but am especially curious about the differences between conscious and subconscious approaches. Will post my own approach later when I have time.
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I like to just feather the cue a bit and see if it's being stroked dead straight. If it wavers at all I might try moving my back hand just a bit. If it doesn't straighten up with barely any adjustment, it's time to get up and re-set. No matter what I'm doing to the CB, if my warm up strokes but mainly the feathering isn't straight the shot will not go exactly as I pictured it. You have to demand perfection to get perfection. Sometimes good enough really is good enough, but you can't be upset if good enough fails and you didn't hit it exactly.
 
My current way of doing microadjustments is to be as conscious and strict as possible about them in terms of how I do them.

When I'm standing, I intuitively pick my best guess of the correct shot image (CB/OB overlap), commit to it and go down on the shot.

When I'm down on the shot, the key for me is to never move my shot image, or in other words, I don't allow myself to microadjust by moving my head/body sideways such that the shot image changes, I only adjust by moving the stick by moving my bridge hand and my backhand by small amounts. The way I do this adjustment is simply by focusing on the OB and the cue in my peripheral vision, and moving the bridge/backhand such that the overlap between the OB and the cuestick feels correct intuitively, while also pointing at the correct point on the CB. I do it by alternating between the hands, each time doing an even tinier adjustment; so first I will slightly move the backhand, then do an even smaller movement on the bridge hand to have the tip point at the correct point on the CB again, then do an even tinier adjustment on the backhand again, goign back n' forth like this, until both are 100% correct. Usually 2 times of both (backhand->bridgehand->backhand->bridgehand) is enough to lock in even very precise shots, I only go for a 3rd time or more if it still feels off e.g. I accidentally had an unstable bridge hand and moved it.

Once the cue is pointing exactly where it feels correct, I will start my shot routine and do my best that the cue goes perfectly straight towards wherever it points.

All of these backhand/fronthand adjustments are very small (barely noticable by someone watching), if i go down and see that I'd have to move by a lot I will simply get up. The idea is that you have a threshold for how much you allow yourself to adjust, since being originally off by an oddly large amount will typically mean something went wrong in your approach/setup, and you should restart, but being off by a few millimeters with your bridgehand is natural and shouldn't be something you have to stand back up for, since you can adjust it reliably to be millimeter perfect once down.

A very stable and relaxed stance (so you don't move sideways at all once you're down and can easily stay still) is necessary for this method to work well. I achieve this by having a wide stance in terms of my foot positions, and by having my bridge hand bend such that the elbow touches the table on the side. Both of these things increase balance and are easy to implement.
 
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i don't know if anyone else does this but my way of making microadjustments when down on the shot is by turning my wrist very slightly during the practice strokes to finalize my aiming process and get the cue online. during this time as i'm taking my practice strokes, my upper arm/elbow may also move marginally sideways but i don't know if this happens in order to coordinate the movement of the wrist.
All of this happens subconsciously btw, i never think about it.
 
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Oh boy, can of worms.

Some people will say they never make ANY adjustments when down on the shot, and other say (You'll see em do it too) they make a lot of adjustments or micro adjust when down on the shot.

I personally try to make no adjustments when in my final "down on the shot" stance. I may adjust while getting down, or while I am bringing my cue to my bridge, but once my palm is on the table, and I am fully leaned over on the shot, I don't move besides my practice strokes. I find that if I do adjustments, it's because I don't trust what my initial assessment of the shot was. Whether that be I misjudged the angle, or the speed / english needed. I figure if I make those decision standing up, why would I adjust when down on the shot? Resetting is free, but missing a ball because you made a poor adjustment when down on the shot costs... A lot..

I am not saying it's good one way or another for anyone but me, but for me, I can't make adjustments, or I start guessing. All my brainwork happens standing up looking over the table / shot. When I am in my shot making position, the only thing on my mind is the object ball, cueball, and what I want them to do. I visualize that happening, and my body follows through.
 
Conscious adjustments are acceptable, and so are subconscious ones—provided they occur during the final stroke and are contextually appropriate (not stemming from poor aim or an erratic stroke).

However, if a student is subconsciously wiggling the cue stick during their address or stance, that signals a serious issue.
 
BilliardsAbout said:
Conscious adjustments are acceptable, and so are subconscious ones—provided they occur during the final stroke and are contextually appropriate (not stemming from poor aim or an erratic stroke).

However, if a student is subconsciously wiggling the cue stick during their address or stance, that signals a serious issue.
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Are you saying an adjustment is fine as long as it occurs only during the final stroke? Is that during the final back and forward stroke or just the final forward stroke? Either way, I don't think it's a good idea and I could be mistaken but I don't think it's what the OP is getting at.

Whenever micro adjustments have been mentioned I've always taken it to mean when the tip is addressing the CB and eyes going back and forth from CB to OB. Long before the final stroke.

I've always thought of it as getting intensely dialed in on the microdot. That's just me. Could be totally wrong.
 
z0nt0n3r said:
i don't know if anyone else does this but my way of making microadjustments when down on the shot is by turning my wrist very slightly during the practice strokes to finalize my aiming process and get the cue online. during this time as i'm taking my practice strokes, my upper arm/elbow may also move marginally sideways but i don't know if this happens in order to coordinate the movement of the wrist.
All of this happens subconsciously btw, i never think about it.
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Don't mess with the stroking hand when adjusting.
Move your body then get set or bridge hand.
 
JoeyInCali said:
Don't mess with the stroking hand when adjusting.
Move your body then get set or bridge hand.
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what is the reason though? the way i see it which ever micro adjustment you choose to make you will always alter your body alignment slightly from your initial alignment you had before making the adjustments. so why is altering the position of your wrist slightly more fundamentally wrong than altering the position of your backhand/bridge hand or shoulders?
 
z0nt0n3r said:
what is the reason though? the way i see it which ever micro adjustment you choose to make you will always alter your body alignment slightly from your initial alignment you had before making the adjustments. so why is altering the position of your wrist slightly more fundamentally wrong than altering the position of your backhand/bridge hand or shoulders?
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Your body should line up to your natural stroke line.
 
Oikawa said:
What is your methodology for doing microadjustments when down on the shot? Any discussions related to microadjustments are welcome, but am especially curious about the differences between conscious and subconscious approaches. Will post my own approach later when I have time.
Click to expand...
I'm finding as I get older I'm having to occasionally check my dominant eye's shot line.
Noticing subtle tip offset that doesn't jibe or missed balls. Once I know what's happening, I'll close the lazy eye that has somehow taken control and allow my dominant to reset the OS, so to speak.
For me, that can take anywhere from 15 to 30 seconds once I open the lazy eye and check which one my brain has awarded custody for the moment.😉👍🏻
 
Mensabum said:
I'm finding as I get older I'm having to occasionally check my dominant eye's shot line.
Noticing subtle tip offset that doesn't jibe or missed balls. Once I know what's happening, I'll close the lazy eye that has somehow taken control and allow my dominant to reset the OS, so to speak.
For me, that can take anywhere from 15 to 30 seconds once I open the lazy eye and check which one my brain has awarded custody for the moment.😉👍🏻
Click to expand...

I have the same issue, only my reset mechanism is not so reliable.
 
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