Rail Shots...

Kyzyl

Kyzyl

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Been having a real problem with rail shots lately. Not because I have to hit the upper half of the snowball, but because my bridge is hanging halfway off the edge of the table. How are these shots approached, never read anything on this topic, so I'm wondering how you guys would handle this

Something like this: Straight shot on the 9, easy shot usually, but very difficult if the cue ball is on the rail. Accuracy counts on these long shots, but very hard to obtain when your hand is halfway off the table and you have about 2 inches of cue extension. These shots force your usual bridge hand (6-8 inches from cue ball) to about 2-3 inches.

Any opinions? Thanks...

CueTable Help

 
Use an extended rail bridge. Put the ends of your fingertips on the edge of the rail. Now your bridge distance between your hand and the CB will remain the same, and you can use a nice smooth delivery of the cuestick and a SOFT stroke to pocket this shot.

Scott Lee
www.poolknowledge.com
 
The bridge I like to use in a situation like this is to leave your pinky finger and index finger extended, curl under your two middle fingers, then push the curled finger against the edge of the rail with your extended pinky and index finger on top of the rail. Form a V with your thumb, and lean into this bridge with body weight slightly maintaining your form and a low approach to sighting.

I have found this to be an extremely solid bridge.
 
I use an open bridge all the time and on shots like this, I will lay my hand down where middle and index fingers are right behind cueball and on the felt part of the rail. Rest the cue on my thumb and table with index finger as my guide. Where index finger points is where cue will follow. Use a soft follow stroke as mentioned already and make the ball.

If the table as narrow rails, I too feel like I am off the back of the rail but use same bridge.

ez
 
whatever bridge you use follow the slope of the rail with your cue to avoid squirting off the top of the cue ball. What you diagrammed is a monster tough shot for me.
 
I like an open bridge for this too because you can get much lower (important for accuracy on rail shots). My normal open bridge is more "open" than most - my index finger is pointed more toward the cue ball, partially out from under the shaft. When bridging on the rail I go even further and lay my index finger alongside the shaft rather then under it, with all four fingers flat on the rail and my palm off the edge.

With the stability of four fingers flat on the rail, having the palm of my hand off the edge of the rail is an advantage, allowing my thumb to form the V from below with the shaft directly on the rail.

This puts my bridge at about the outer edge of the rail (say 6-8 inches from the ball), which may be short for some players. I use a relatively short bridge anyway, and I think a short bridge is probably preferable anyway for rail shots where tip/ball accuracy is so critical.

pj
chgo
 
One clue - Aim the bottom half of your tip into the top of the cushion, right behind the cue ball. IT WORKS! No more miscues!

And you can shoot harder this way too.
 
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I do two things to help me on this shot. First, I use a modified "Satan" bridge. My ring finger and middle finger are locked on the edge of the rail, my forefinger and pinky are on the top of the rail. This is my open rail bridge. This allows me to stay as level as possible, and is rock-steady. The second thing I do is cock my grip wrist slightly. Instead of my wrist assuming its usual neutral position, I cock it slightly forward. This forces the tip to stay down through the stroke, which avoids the tendency to raise the cue up on this shot.

-djb
 
I usually chastise myself or congratulate my opponent for leaving me there and hand over the money! Don:mad:
 
I've found shortening and firming one's grip aids accuracy for shots like this especially if the ball need only be cinched.

_Rick
 
Scott Lee said:
Use an extended rail bridge. Put the ends of your fingertips on the edge of the rail. Now your bridge distance between your hand and the CB will remain the same, and you can use a nice smooth delivery of the cuestick and a SOFT stroke to pocket this shot.

Scott Lee
www.poolknowledge.com
Click to expand...
I agree with everything Scott said plus i've always been told to keep a little downward pressure on your shaft at the bridge and make sure your fundamentals are all correct. This is not an easy shot with the cue ball on the rail and it requires all of your concentration and your best execution to make this ball.
 
Kyzyl said:
Something like this: Straight shot on the 9, easy shot usually, but very difficult if the cue ball is on the rail. Accuracy counts on these long shots, but very hard to obtain when your hand is halfway off the table and you have about 2 inches of cue extension. These shots force your usual bridge hand (6-8 inches from cue ball) to about 2-3 inches.
Click to expand...

This is a real stroke tester. It's not like the long-straight in draw shot, which mostly tests how hard you can stroke with reasonable accuracy, but instead this one tests how truly you can hit center ball.

Hitting so close to the top of the ball with a not-quite level stick (this shot miscues if you really hold your stick level) is something you would never do with the CB out on in the clear. Hitting off-center at all causes enough swerve to give you no hope of pocketing the ball. Also, even hitting center ball isn't good enough if your stroke didn't get there in a straight line; if your tip swoops to the center of the ball, hitting the top of the ball like this, your tip will continue in that direction after contact, and this swiping motion across the top of the ball will swerve it. The only way to get the CB to go the direction you're aiming is to stroke dead straight to (and through) the dead center of the part of the ball you can see. Many people don't have a stroke that will do this regularly.

Practice stroke fundamentals, with special concentration on how your tip finishes after contact. If it goes in a straight line to your finish and stops dead, that's a good stroke. If you sort of glance off the CB one direction or another, you're not going to have any luck with rail shots.

-Andrew
 
Thank you everyone for replying, you have all helped me more than you know with these difficult shots. That is why I came here with this particular problem.

Thanks again everyone. :)
 
3andstop said:
The bridge I like to use in a situation like this is to leave your pinky finger and index finger extended, curl under your two middle fingers, then push the curled finger against the edge of the rail with your extended pinky and index finger on top of the rail. Form a V with your thumb, and lean into this bridge with body weight slightly maintaining your form and a low approach to sighting.

I have found this to be an extremely solid bridge.
Click to expand...

A very accurate description of the extended rail bridge Scott mentioned.
(Doom...your's also hit the nail on the head.)
Steve
 
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