you should be accelerating the cue on your shot not decelerating
pause on back stroke
- Thread starter jcpoolgod
- Start date
you should be accelerating the cue on your shot not decelerating
In my opinion, done properly, yes. I think what exactly a "pause" is can be misunderstood by some players and hurt their game.
It should be ingrained as a trained habit that comes as a result of good timing and fluid motion, not as a concious move. It's not an abrupt "frozen statue" move - which produces a jerky, hard to control stroke. It's a slow, easy, smooth transition, a gathering at the end of the final backstroke, which initiates the down swing.
Here's a pretty good video showing two different styles - the quicker transition swing of Earl Strickland versus the lazy slow swing of Buddy Hall. If you watch Buddy Hall play, I think he has the pause down to a science. They both have magnificent strokes, but Buddy has the obvious pause. Earl is one of the straightest shooters who's ever played the game and Buddy Hall has the among the finest touch of any player I've seen - so here you have the two different styles to compare.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08G-5-XrH2Q&feature=related
Watch the whole thing - Buddy's swing is a thing of beauty.
Chris
(Part 1 of the 1988 match shows more of Earl, part 2 more of Buddy).
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Allison Fisher
Allison is so consistent & deliberate that I found studying her pause using the wind/rewind option on my Direct TV recordings of her was quite helpful.
Allison Fisher has had some success with this technique.....
Allison is so consistent & deliberate that I found studying her pause using the wind/rewind option on my Direct TV recordings of her was quite helpful.
It's very simple, what ever works for you. If something works well for you, no matter
how crazy it may seem, don't change a thing.
I agree
The pause works for the most part but when a great player named Cliff Joyner developed a pause in his stroke it looked like it had the opposite affect.
The pause works for the most part but when a great player named Cliff Joyner developed a pause in his stroke it looked like it had the opposite affect.
Since I've incorporated the pause into my stroke, my pocking percentage has gone up !!! I swear by it.
I also included a rather long pause on my last forward stroke .... like the final chance to check my aim.
IT WORKS !!!
I also included a rather long pause on my last forward stroke .... like the final chance to check my aim.
IT WORKS !!!
To me, the pause in the pool stoke, that being the momentary delay between the rearward stroke of the arm and the forward stroke, should not receive any special attention regarding stroke mechanics, but rather be considered as one of many necessary elements of the overall pool stroke.
If I may expand on the Ghost's excellent analogy with the golf swing. Pro golfer Bob Murphy would pause at the top of his golf swing almost long enough for a three count. Nick Price, on the other hand, had almost no decernable pause at the top of his golf swing at all. Both golfers are hall-of-famers.
Therefore, I believe the pause, as it it is called, is but simply one part of an over-all practiced, and individually developed delivery of the cue to the back of the cue ball.
If I may expand on the Ghost's excellent analogy with the golf swing. Pro golfer Bob Murphy would pause at the top of his golf swing almost long enough for a three count. Nick Price, on the other hand, had almost no decernable pause at the top of his golf swing at all. Both golfers are hall-of-famers.
Therefore, I believe the pause, as it it is called, is but simply one part of an over-all practiced, and individually developed delivery of the cue to the back of the cue ball.
That is why I said when I am NOT shooting well I am decelerating
junkyarddog
when you decelerate into the cueball you stab/peck at it, this causes vibrations down the cue that transfer to the cueball then to the object ball. throwing the ball of line.
There are different opinions on this. Some feel that it's best to contact the cue ball when you're neither accelerating nor decelerating, but "coasting" just after acceleration, because that's when the stroke speed is not changing constantly and therefore when you can be most sure of the exact speed of your shot.
There are also different definitions of decelerating. It could mean the natural slowing of your stroke after it has reached its peak speed (i.e., coasting as I described above) or it could mean decelerating on purpose in order to shorten your followthrough. I think you're talking about the latter when you say accelerating is better than decelerating, and I agree (although sometimes decelerating on purpose is unavoidable). But lots of people also argue that accelerating at the moment of impact produces more "action" on the cue ball, which is not true.
I agree stabbing/pecking can throw your stroke offline, but I wouldn't describe that as "vibrations down the cue".
pj
chgo
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I have two pauses, well three if you count the one after the shot.
Pause 1: almost touching the cueball. I'll hang out here for a two or maybe three seconds, to get relaxed and balanced and all that hippy groovy stuff. Then I go back, (quite _slowly_... don't think anyone else has mentioned that bit. Still a work in progress for me, but I find it quite useful)
Pause 2: right at the back, but not staying there for several weeks like Allison does. Think of when you throw a ball straight up, just when it is about to start falling.
Unlike gravity though, I don't want constant acceleration. I try for maximum acceleration when the tip hits the white.
Pause 3: this is hopefully a happy time, as the pocket goes pop! and my tip is roughly the same distance past the cueball's original position as it was behind the cueball at pause 2.
Of course, we're all different. I just saw the venerable Allen Hopkins play for the first time, and I almost had to hide behind the sofa. But the balls went in all the right places. Consistency is what counts, right?
-Tim
Pause 1: almost touching the cueball. I'll hang out here for a two or maybe three seconds, to get relaxed and balanced and all that hippy groovy stuff. Then I go back, (quite _slowly_... don't think anyone else has mentioned that bit. Still a work in progress for me, but I find it quite useful)
Pause 2: right at the back, but not staying there for several weeks like Allison does. Think of when you throw a ball straight up, just when it is about to start falling.
Unlike gravity though, I don't want constant acceleration. I try for maximum acceleration when the tip hits the white.
Pause 3: this is hopefully a happy time, as the pocket goes pop! and my tip is roughly the same distance past the cueball's original position as it was behind the cueball at pause 2.
Of course, we're all different. I just saw the venerable Allen Hopkins play for the first time, and I almost had to hide behind the sofa. But the balls went in all the right places. Consistency is what counts, right?
-Tim
patrick,
when you decelerate people grab the cue, on there follow through, they choke it and send vibrations down the cue which causes you to stab peck at the ball.
My coaching techniques are completely different to any other instructor in the US, i teach the elbow drop, and when you say that accelerating through the cueball doesnt get more action, i can prove you wrong im sorry to say, i have coached people and given them more cue power than they have ever had, by teaching them to get through the cueball.
a golfer doesnt quit at the golf ball, a tennis player doesnt quit at the ball, they all hit through the ball.
the pause is the start of the accelerating from a stop.
For Charter?
But Randy, I can reach overhead and pull the cord to get off at *my* stop, can't I?
j/k,
-Sean
But Randy, I can reach overhead and pull the cord to get off at *my* stop, can't I?
j/k,
-Sean
But Randy, I can reach overhead and pull the cord to get off at *my* stop, can't I?
j/k,
-Sean
Nor can I my friend.....
randyg
What ball is thrown off line??? SPF=randyg
I like to pause at the back stroke. For me, my stroke is much straighter.
Yep!
Everything you do prior to the final forward stroke is to either gather information, or to get into position to make that final forward stroke. The forward stroke stands alone, not a part of anything else. I'm not saying the rest isn't important, because it all contributes to the success of the shot. But ultimately, it comes down to being able to move the cue stick forward in a straight line.
Steve