Open / Closed Bridge Rules?

FrankieD said:
:nanner: Officially hijacked!
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Frankie,

You're from Chicago & just joined AZB this month.

If you don't mind me asking, what encouraged you to join AZB?

Best Wishes,
Rick

PS Sorry for the turn your thread took. Perhaps it can be moved to the Aiming Forum & you can start another one focused on 'bridges only'.
 
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Ghosst said:
Just wait until the arguments start...
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To calmly & civilly present one's logical side of a debate or disagreement is to present one's argument.

Have you never heard of a lawyer's closing argument in a courtroom.'
 
randyg said:
There are several ways to "aim". Stick aiming is a very popular method. So is aiming with the cue ball.

What have you been taught?

randyg
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I've not been taught to aim with the shaft. As I said, I've only ever heard of this on AZ.
 
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The harder you swing, eventually the natural elbow drop will become part of the shot and the tip will rise vertically as I strike whitey....better close it up. When using and Open V bridge more of the object ball and cue ball are seen. Real Humid conditions would be a consideration to Open it up all the time. Generally never an Open bridge on the break.
 
I use an open bridge on almost every shot. Only time ill use a closed bridge is when I'm hampered and can't use the open bridge. On power draw shots the closed bridge fails me. Also, my cue has a 10.5mm tip with quite a drastic conical taper so its all over the place with a closed bridge. I can't see the ball either if I'm hitting high on the white, and even though I'm not looking directly at the white its nice to know its still there!

There is no right or wrong way to bridge for a given situation. What ever feels comfortable. I also don't know why pros use an open bridge more often. All I can put it down to is the pros generally get right down on a shot, so the open bridge gives them a clear view of all the cue ball.
 
Pidge said:
I use an open bridge on almost every shot. Only time ill use a closed bridge is when I'm hampered and can't use the open bridge. On power draw shots the closed bridge fails me. Also, my cue has a 10.5mm tip with quite a drastic conical taper so its all over the place with a closed bridge. I can't see the ball either if I'm hitting high on the white, and even though I'm not looking directly at the white its nice to know its still there!

There is no right or wrong way to bridge for a given situation. What ever feels comfortable. I also don't know why pros use an open bridge more often. All I can put it down to is the pros generally get right down on a shot, so the open bridge gives them a clear view of all the cue ball.
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Your last paragraph you said....''There is no right or wrong way to bridge for a given situation''.

Did you learn that from a book?
 
Island Drive said:
Your last paragraph you said....''There is no right or wrong way to bridge for a given situation''.

Did you learn that from a book?
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Yeah, I can lend it you if you'd like.

Its called "how to use chopsticks for dummies".
 
It is pretty simple, use whichever bridge that feels most comfortable for you. I myself use an open bridge because it it is less constricting on the stroke, as long as your stroke is level and true, that is all that really matters!!!
 
For snooker players, the open bridge lets you see the entire shaft for maximum accuracy in terms of aim. It's possible to play with a closed bridge, but I wouldn't recommend it if you want to be any good at snooker.
In pool as well, I feel that always using a closed bridge can be somewhat of a "crutch" , so for new players, I believe starting out with an open bridge is more beneficial in terms of developing a straight, clean stroke.

That being said, my personal "rules" are closed bridge for break shots and power draw shots, and open for everything else.
 
JoeW said:
With a closed bridge the meaty part of the index finger rests on the cue stick. This is a relatively soft area. I have noticed that I tend to unintentionally steer the cue stick into this fleshy area and this leads to a missed shot.
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I don't have a problem with the closed bridge on the open table. The cue rests on the "V" made by my middle finger and thumb. The fleshy part of my index finger is over the top of the shaft and does not seem to cause a problem.

However, on certain shots, not too far from the rail, but not too close, I seem to wrap my index finger around the shaft and end up with the shaft resting on the fleshy part underneath. It took me a while to realize what was happening. Although, this bridge felt comfortable, and I thought it seemed stable, turns out it was a bad bridge.

The moral of the story is you really have to pay close attention to when you miss to figure out a pattern to lead you to see why you miss. In this example, it was this particular bridge I was using.

Another example is that I miss far more shots cutting to the left than to the right.

So pay attention to all the variables of a shot - especially which bridge you are using - to find the patterns behind why you miss.

Also.... I saw a bridge Jim Rempe was using on a video. Looked weird, but I tried it. It is uncomfortable and feels really awkward, but guess what, it works.

Fatz
 
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ENGLISH! said:
If you don't mind me asking, what encouraged you to join AZB?
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My parents had a table growing up. I recreationally played in bars for much of my 20s. Bought my own table about 6 months ago and in the spirit of just bettering my own game, I stumbled on this forum. I am a member of quite a few car/motorcycle forums, so I figured I'd sign up here. Forums always seem to have a wealth of insight that books, dvds, manuals just seem to miss. Sure you have to weed out the thread de-railers and non contributing posts, but there is always good information to be had if you're willing to tap into it.


ENGLISH! said:
PS Sorry for the turn your thread took. Perhaps it can be moved to the Aiming Forum & you can start another one focused on 'bridges only'.
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No worries. I'm not complaining about the hijack, just pointing it out. Besides, I do believe I have the gist of what I was after.
 
FrankieD said:
My parents had a table growing up. I recreationally played in bars for much of my 20s. Bought my own table about 6 months ago and in the spirit of just bettering my own game, I stumbled on this forum. I am a member of quite a few car/motorcycle forums, so I figured I'd sign up here. Forums always seem to have a wealth of insight that books, dvds, manuals just seem to miss. Sure you have to weed out the thread de-railers and non contributing posts, but there is always good information to be had if you're willing to tap into it.

No worries. I'm not complaining about the hijack, just pointing it out. Besides, I do believe I have the gist of what I was after.
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Frankie,

Thanks for the reply. Welcome to the forum. There is much good info but there is also some mis information or at least differing opinions.

Good Luck & Best Wishes,
Rick
 
ENGLISH! said:
To calmly & civilly present one's logical side of a debate or disagreement is to present one's argument.

Have you never heard of a lawyer's closing argument in a courtroom.'
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Why did you feel singled out? Guilty conscience?
 
greyghost said:
why do snooker players always use an open bridge and not a closed :groucho:
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CB weighs quite a bit less, makes a big difference.

I use the open bridge for 90% of my shots in pool, but I also grew up playing snooker so that might be my main influence.
 
FrankieD said:
I am completely aware that a player's bridge, whether open or closed, can be very subjective. Early on, I had concocted my own theory that a closed bridge is more stable, therefore I should be using the closed bridge as much as possible.

I've been watching more and more videos of pros that use an open bridge on open table shots and they clearly make more balls than I do. I then consciously made a point to use an open bridge more often with some success and it got me thinking.

Are there any rules of thumb on which bridge I should be using depending on distance, angle, english, etc. I do understand that most players use a closed bridge for a power a power draw, but are all other shots totally player choice?
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All you have to do is watch "some" pros play. You will notice all sorts of different bridges, bridge distances, cues, PSR's, stances, etc. Its almost like watching mixed martial arts, everybody has a different style. Its up to us to figure out what works best for us.

My opinion is, there is no correct way to bridge, no subset of rules to adhere to. I try to do whats comfortable, and cant really explain why I switch back and forth. With so many other things to worry about, the bridge should be way down on the list. If you can hit a power draw shot with an open bridge, do it. I don't mean to say ridiculous open knuckle bridges are ok.
As long as you have a reasonable, stable bridge, do whatever works for you.
 
Frankie, apologies for starting the hijack...I was just trying to explain why I use mostly an open bridge. But sometimes, only a closed bridge will do. Just keep stroking, and bridge selection becomes almost automatic to you. I don't really think about it that much these days.
 
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