Stance/Form... keeping it consistent?

Da Bank

Da Bank

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
One thing I have struggled with lately is choosing the proper stance and form for me and making sure that I am consistent in using that form every time I come to the table. I know there are a variety of stances and forms and everyone is a bit different, but I'd like to see a discussion of the variety of proper forms and the best way to make sure you are consistently using the form that is best for you.

Thanks!

I've often referred back to CJ Wiley's suggestion for taking the proper stance which is

1. Stand up right and find your line
2. Grip your cue and place your stroking hand at your right hip (if you are right handed)
3. Form a bridge
4. Step forward with your toes pointing down the line
5. Place the bridged cue on the stroke line as you bend at your waist.
 
Don't try to imitate someone else's stance. Your stance will be unique to you.

Try this. Keep your eyes and cue on the shot line as you address the cue ball, and allow room to stroke the cue along the shot line. Let your body adjust itself around your cue as it wants to. Adjust your head and shoulders up and down until your pendulum stroke can swing comfortably through it's full arc. Make sure you're comfortable and stable. Chances are that once you are in your set position, you will have a good stance.
 
Mark is right... don't try to imitate anyone else's stance. Your stance should be "comfortable for you", balanced, and such that your head is in a position that you see the line of the shot well

Also, what Mark said about letting your body adjust itself around the cue as it wants to. When I line up, port at arms, on a shot, my feet just start to move on their own. I call it 'shuffling'. I'm not doing it consciously, it just happens. My body knows where to go to get me both in line with the shot and comfortable. They sometimes even continue to move right until the moment my bridge hand hits the table. After that, pendulum stroke and finish well.

If you get down and don't feel comfortable or if something just doesn't feel right, then stand up and start again. Better to restart than to miss and give up the table.

My definition of a good stance is NOT "right foot here, left foot here, hand on hip," etc., rather it is a stance that's comfortable for that particular player, well balanced and STRONG & STURDY. If you're unsteady or moving in your stance, then you might want to try something different.

RandyG, years ago, give me a light "push" in my old stance and I almost fell over... THAT was not a good stance... not balanced and sturdy. BTW, Randy doesn't spend his days pushing students. We have known each other for a lot of years and he can push on me when he wants... and he did warn me that he was going to "see if I was steady in my stance". Of course, I wasn't and it only took me a few minutes to make the adjustments needed to get steady and strong in my stance leaving my stroking arm in the same position it was in my "bad" stance.

Bob
 
Mark Wilson taught me to have the instep of my back foot under the butt of the cue.

So, I stand with my chin on the aim line. Keeping my chin on the aim line I turn my body so that the back foot and the butt of the cue correspond with that line, place my front foot at about a 45 degree angle to the back foot and lower my body into shooting position leaving approximately a 10" bridge.
 
I had another instructor show me something that I found useful in helping students find their own best natural stance.

Stand straight up, feet about 12-18 inches apart. Hold your cue very lightly at the balance point with your grip hand. Now here's the hard part. RELAX!!! Let your body go as loose as possible, allow the weight of the cue to take your grip hand pretty much straight down. Close your eyes and relax even more. Let your grip arm go almost limp. After about 10 seconds, open your eyes and look where the cue is pointing. For some, it may be off at a 45 degree angle, for others it might be straight ahead, or somewhere in between. When you find where the cue naturally wants to go in relation to your stance, you will have a pretty good idea what your stance angle should probably be.

(I tried the whole process backward. I got into my normal stance and then stood up without moving my feet and went through it all. When I opened my eyes, the cue was still pointing straight down my original shot line.)

It can be, quite literally, an eye opening experiment.

Steve
 
pooltchr said:
I had another instructor show me something that I found useful in helping students find their own best natural stance.

Stand straight up, feet about 12-18 inches apart. Hold your cue very lightly at the balance point with your grip hand. Now here's the hard part. RELAX!!! Let your body go as loose as possible, allow the weight of the cue to take your grip hand pretty much straight down. Close your eyes and relax even more. Let your grip arm go almost limp. After about 10 seconds, open your eyes and look where the cue is pointing. For some, it may be off at a 45 degree angle, for others it might be straight ahead, or somewhere in between. When you find where the cue naturally wants to go in relation to your stance, you will have a pretty good idea what your stance angle should probably be.

(I tried the whole process backward. I got into my normal stance and then stood up without moving my feet and went through it all. When I opened my eyes, the cue was still pointing straight down my original shot line.)

It can be, quite literally, an eye opening experiment.

Steve
Click to expand...

wow, I'm definitely going to try this.

I've always known getting comfortable in your own unique stance is important,so you guys have only verified that. I have found that pointing your front foot down the shot line is very helpful and most good players do it, it is something that helps me so I continue to do it.

I guess what you all are telling me is that you all could not really tell me how you stand and what your form is specifically when addressing the ball properly, you just feel it. I'm going to keep this in mind and work harder at making sure I am comfortable and my natural swing is in line when I get down.

My biggest problem is that i will often get down for a shot and my stroke will be all over the place, and other days I just "feel it" in terms of being comfortable at the table and my stroke is perfectly straight. I am experienced enough to perform a basically perfectly straight stroke, but if I get down and it isn't happening I have trouble correcting myself to get back in line. Does this make sense? It seems that the answer to this is to just keep adjusting until you "feel" it. Right?


UPDATE: I just tried the above quoted advice out and I've gotta say that it is some BRILLIANT advice. My cue naturally angled across my body at about a 30 degree angle.. I was able to keep the cue parallel and address the table with the cue hanging at this natural angle and instantly my stroke felt completely natural and perfectly straight. This is THE way to "feel" your form.
 
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Da Bank said:
I guess what you all are telling me is that you all could not really tell me how you stand and what your form is specifically when addressing the ball properly, you just feel it.
Click to expand...

We could tell you how we make our stance, but it doesn't matter how we make a stance. Everyone is unique in size, shape, and physical limitations. We can do is guide you in finding your unique stance.

It's much easier for an instructor to guide you in person than through this forum. There may be subtle things that you're not aware of and we cannot see, that if adjusted might be the key. The position of your eyes is a common one.

Yes, you will feel it. You will be comfortable and you will be able to stroke straight and smooth. You will also see the shot line accurately.

Now that you have found a stance that works for you with pooltchr's method, you need to memorize it and develop a consistent ball address to ensure you get into that stance every time.
 
I have seen several of my students stand with their feet on the centerline. You can literally draw a line through their heels and for many of them, this produces a narrow and unbalanced stance. For some it produces tension in their lower back. When I have them widen their stance (slightly sometimes does it) they have reported feeling more balanced and more relaxed, both of which are good in my opinion for playing pool.
 
pooltchr said:
I had another instructor show me something that I found useful in helping students find their own best natural stance.

Stand straight up, feet about 12-18 inches apart. Hold your cue very lightly at the balance point with your grip hand. Now here's the hard part. RELAX!!! Let your body go as loose as possible, allow the weight of the cue to take your grip hand pretty much straight down. Close your eyes and relax even more. Let your grip arm go almost limp. After about 10 seconds, open your eyes and look where the cue is pointing. For some, it may be off at a 45 degree angle, for others it might be straight ahead, or somewhere in between. When you find where the cue naturally wants to go in relation to your stance, you will have a pretty good idea what your stance angle should probably be.

(I tried the whole process backward. I got into my normal stance and then stood up without moving my feet and went through it all. When I opened my eyes, the cue was still pointing straight down my original shot line.)

It can be, quite literally, an eye opening experiment.

Steve
Click to expand...

I tried this today. It works great. I appreciate the input from the instructors here. This is why I read AZ. This is another piece of the puzzle in my ever improving game. Thank you again.
 
chevybob20 said:
I tried this today. It works great. I appreciate the input from the instructors here. This is why I read AZ. This is another piece of the puzzle in my ever improving game. Thank you again.
Click to expand...

Come on down to Charlotte for a couple of days. Your ever improving game will no doubt continue, perhaps at an even quicker pace.
:grin:

Steve
 
the main thing is where you the shooter are most relaxed and balanced.
if you are not comfortably balanced you will not make the shot. well most of the time anyway
 
bridgwater said:
the main thing is where you the shooter are most relaxed and balanced.
if you are not comfortably balanced you will not make the shot. well most of the time anyway
Click to expand...

You won't make the shot if your eyes are not in the proper position for you, or you're not aligned well and can't stroke the cue straight. You also have to aim correctly.
 
pooltchr said:
Come on down to Charlotte for a couple of days. Your ever improving game will no doubt continue, perhaps at an even quicker pace.
:grin:

Steve
Click to expand...

I may just take you up on that. It's been two years since my instruction with Stan Shuffett and I'm due. I will see him again but I also feel that it may be usefull to get other opinions. Thank you.
 
something similar in Bert's Advanced Fundamentals

pooltchr said:
I had another instructor show me something that I found useful in helping students find their own best natural stance.

Stand straight up, feet about 12-18 inches apart. Hold your cue very lightly at the balance point with your grip hand. Now here's the hard part. RELAX!!! Let your body go as loose as possible, allow the weight of the cue to take your grip hand pretty much straight down. Close your eyes and relax even more. Let your grip arm go almost limp. After about 10 seconds, open your eyes and look where the cue is pointing. For some, it may be off at a 45 degree angle, for others it might be straight ahead, or somewhere in between. When you find where the cue naturally wants to go in relation to your stance, you will have a pretty good idea what your stance angle should probably be.

(I tried the whole process backward. I got into my normal stance and then stood up without moving my feet and went through it all. When I opened my eyes, the cue was still pointing straight down my original shot line.)

It can be, quite literally, an eye opening experiment.

Steve
Click to expand...


There's something similar in Bert Kinister's Advanced Fundamentals DVD. Indeed an eye opening experiment.
 
chevybob20 said:
I may just take you up on that. It's been two years since my instruction with Stan Shuffett and I'm due. I will see him again but I also feel that it may be usefull to get other opinions. Thank you.
Click to expand...

Stan is a great instructor. We teach very similar programs, simply because the information in our classes has been proven over time to be effective. That being said, I have been to classes with about 6 different master and advanced instructors, and have managed to learn something new from each of them. Sometimes, it's not the information as much as it is the way it is presented. For example, I was teaching a class with 4 other instructors a couple of years ago. While working on one of the workshops with a student, for some reason, she wasn't getting the concept we were working on. I called Bob over and we traded students for that workshop. Different personality, different presentation, and he had her on track in about 5 minutes.

Anyway, I would be happy to work with you whenever you are up to it. Meanwhile, keep working on what Stan showed you. It's good stuff!!!

Steve
 
It s like Steve says- sometimes it s just a bit different how the instructor is transporting his knowledge to the student. And i love it everytime to be able to get an insight how another instructor is explaining something.
The way the instructor-program is also very similar to the way the members of the SPF is teachin (from that what i read and heard til now (-:
To get lessons from several qualified instructors is a great experience- and good for every student.

lg
Ingo
 
pooltchr said:
I had another instructor show me something that I found useful in helping students find their own best natural stance.

Stand straight up, feet about 12-18 inches apart. Hold your cue very lightly at the balance point with your grip hand. Now here's the hard part. RELAX!!! Let your body go as loose as possible, allow the weight of the cue to take your grip hand pretty much straight down. Close your eyes and relax even more. Let your grip arm go almost limp. After about 10 seconds, open your eyes and look where the cue is pointing. For some, it may be off at a 45 degree angle, for others it might be straight ahead, or somewhere in between. When you find where the cue naturally wants to go in relation to your stance, you will have a pretty good idea what your stance angle should probably be.

(I tried the whole process backward. I got into my normal stance and then stood up without moving my feet and went through it all. When I opened my eyes, the cue was still pointing straight down my original shot line.)

It can be, quite literally, an eye opening experiment.

Steve
Click to expand...

Yeehah! :-)

This is the way i try to show my students as often as possible, too.

And it s a great thing to make it understandable for the student. To be in this *anantomical* line is very useful.
But in a few cases (really few) it s for some guys not useful. I ve had some guys which having bad problems with their *spine*. And their relaxed position wasn t really funny....lol- it was about almost parallel to their body^^

But all in all the advice about the *anatomical stance* is really great. Together with showing the correct *anatomical length* of the stroke one of the most important things in my opinion- and usualy i try to start with these 2 things with each student.


lg from overseas,

INgo
 
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