He hits the ball a lot harder than you or I do. Don't bet him that he can't do 100 one-armed push-ups. (Well, now that might be a good bet, but it wasn't at one time.) He also hits the ball accurately.metallicane said:
Stupid question on drawing the ball
- Thread starter metallicane
- Start date
Bob Jewett said:
I am sure he does, but it certainly doesn't look like it. I guess it is like watching Ernie Els hit a golf ball. It doesn't look like he is generating that type of clubhead speed, but he does. I can hit the ball 300+, but I feel like I am swinging out of my shoes. I am sure it is the accuracy part I need to work on. Any drills?
Do the progressive practice drills in http://www.sfbilliards.com/basics.pdfmetallicane said:
There are five levels of draw drill there. There are a several other draw drills in my on-line article collections from Billiards Digest and On The Break News:
http://www.sfbilliards.com/articles/BD_articles.html
http://www.onthebreaknews.com/JewettIndex.htm
Thank you very much for your help.
Bob Jewett said:
Raw muscle development has very little to do with generating speed which, together with tip delivery accuracy is the reason for powerful draw strokes.
Dr Dave is correct about fast-twitch muscle fiber and especially Type IIb fast-twitch fibers that allow the fastest bursts of energy...but which tire quickly.
The reason that athletes with seeminly idendical musculoskeletal systems excel as either sprinters or distance runners is explained largely by their muscle fiber types.
That is also why pool players with relatively slight builds such as Cory, Busta, Santos etc. can have huge draw strokes.
Massey is living proof that exceptional muscle STRENGTH is not necessarily a negative but it is not necessarily a positive either.
Remember that large muscle structure also weighs more which makes overcoming inertia of rest that much more difficult.
There is no doubt that Massey as far more than the typical 50/50 relationship between fast and slow-twitch fibers in his muscles.
Add that to his exceptional accuracy and you get one of the greatest draw strokes of all time.
Regards,
Jim
draw drills
Happy drilling,
Dave
FYI, there are also some draw drills here:Bob Jewett said:
Happy drilling,
Dave
Patrick Johnson said:
Actually, pretty hard to do given how low it is on the CB but the point of this post is to announce a shocking discovery that this thread prompted me to make.
First, I have a plenty sporty enough draw stroke and I spend virtually ZERO time practicing a super-power draw because the need for it comes up so infrequently in actual play.
Rather, I spend a LOT of time practicing 3 in. up to 3 diamond distance control because those distances come up constantly.
I also spend SOME time on 2 rail draws over 5-6 diamonds but you don't need a power draw to accomplish that.
But here's what I found...and it really blew my mind after all these years.
I used a wide stripe for a CB because the lower edge of the stripe is the miscue limit.
The ball I used has a slight scratch under one of the 9s so there was no doubt which side of the ball the tip struck.
My intended contact point placed the center of the tip (dime radius) slightly below the stripe...which is REALLY low...because I know that the upper portion of the tip...not the center...is what is going to contact the CB.
But I was SHOCKED to see that the chalk patch was all the way up to the lower extremity of the white circle surrounding the 9 (Super Aramith Pro) and that is a QUARTER INCH above my intended contact point!
That means that all this time...on hard draws...I must be dropping my elbow or doing something else goofy to cause the tip to rise above my aim point.
I could have lost a LOT of money betting that the contact point would be well below where it was.
I'm working on a remedy (where are ya when I need ya Scott Lee!!) (-:
But to get bottom of the stripe contact it feels as though I am RAISING my elbow...or at least it feels like a definite downward thrust just before contact and when I do that, the patch is found with its lower extremity right exactly AT the bottom of the stripe and the CB screws back significantly further.
Now I'm going to have to be careful not to over-crank my draws.
I was really stunned by this finding so I just thought I would share.
Regards,
Jim
That is great info. Thanks for the eye opening findings. I think I must drop my elbow as well which leads to more stun shots as opposed to draw shots. I practiced some of Dr Dave and Bob Jewett's stuff last night and saw some improvement. Baby steps.