In this video, it is hard to tell whether or not the cue ball makes contact with the shaft, however, it looks to me like it could have. But the most interesting thing is, these balls were about 1/4-inch apart, and still the cue ball just barely cleared the top of the obstructing ball. If they had been closer together (as in mully's video), the cue ball would have never made it over.
I just measured a toothpick and it was .076". That means the gap in the first video would have been around 1/16-inch (.0625") because a toothpick could not fit between the two balls. That also means the cue ball had to go almost straight up. And if it goes straight up, how can it then go forward to clear the obstructing ball? The leading edge of the cue ball has to travel a lateral distance of at least 4-3/8" in order for the whole ball to completely clear the obstructing ball. Wouldn't the cue ball have to get a "kick" from the shaft in order to do that?
It seems to me that there really must be a foul involved when the balls are this close.
Roger