Polishing/Waxing The Cue Ball

[DrCue'sProtege]

last night i had a fairly long draw shot on the '3' to get position on the '4' ball. the '3' was near the 2nd diamond from the corner pocket, close to the long rail, about 6 inches off the rail. the cue ball was about 3 diamonds down, almost straight in, and i had to draw it back about 6 feet, almost down to the short rail.

i knew i had to really juice the cue ball for this long draw shot. so when i stroked it, i missed the shot, the '3' jarred. i just stood there and thought about how the pros on TV never have to stroke a draw shot that hard. so i polished my cue ball, set the shot up again, stroked it smooth and straight, and the Cue ball came back down the table just like it was supposed to, with good position.

not really sure what my question is here, i dunno. am i taking advantage of being able to polish my cue balls all the time? but when the pros are on TV they are playing with new balls and new cloth and dont have to juice long draw shots as a result. and shots like i just mentioned above are almost effortless to them.

so am i wrong for keeping my cue balls slick?
what do you other posters out there do?

DCP

 

[Bob J]

not really sure what my question is here, i dunno. am i taking advantage of being able to polish my cue balls all the time? but when the pros are on TV they are playing with new balls and new cloth and dont have to juice long draw shots as a result. and shots like i just mentioned above are almost effortless to them.

so am i wrong for keeping my cue balls slick?
what do you other posters out there do?

DCP

When the balls are clean and shiny, it's definitely easier to "juice" the Q ball. One of Bob Byrne's drills is to draw the cue ball along the short, or end rail, and sink a ball in the jaws of the opposite corner. After I clean and polish the balls, I can pretty easily make this shot DOWN THE LONG RAIL! When the balls have been used awhile, it's much more difficult.

At the pro tournaments I've been to, it's common practice to see the balls retrieved after every match and placed in a cleaner. I've always felt everything works best when clean, including the balls, the table, the cue, and your hands.

 

[Frank_Glenn]

When the balls are clean and shiny, it's definitely easier to "juice" the Q ball. .

I use orange juice and vodka for force follow and prune juice and gin for draw. What do you juice your balls with. PS don't wander outside after the prune juice and gin.

 

[Bob Jewett]

so am i wrong for keeping my cue balls slick?
what do you other posters out there do?

I only wax the cue ball for amusement.

If you compete, you should try to make your practice conditions like your competition conditions.