The Art Of Accurate Cueing

Pidge

Pidge

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
The Holy Grail of cue sports - being able to hit the white accurately. Some people are born to do it, most, like me have to work their socks off to achieve it.

I will try cover what has helped me to improve my accuracy over the last 20 years the best I can. It likely won't help many, but it may help a few.

I'll start with stillness. This is a game changer and something that a lot think they do well, but when watching themselves play, realise they aren't as still as they think. Look at any sport that is accuracy based and then look at the best in that sport and you will notice just how still they are throughout their process. I see a lot in snooker especially where they have the chin planted to the cue but they don't pull the cue back level and it goes up at the butt end towards the back of the pull back and this causes the head to bob up and down. This ruins a lot of players chances of making the shot. This leads me on to the pull back, the thing that improved my stillness the most. Everyone is different but focusing on pulling the cue back level, no matter the angle of the cue really sky rocketed my game once I practiced it a lot. I hear a lot on here mention about elbow drop; to drop or not to drop, that is the question. Personally I drop my elbow fractionally as I cue the ball because as I pull the cue back level my elbow naturally has to lower and the shoulder lowers slightly too. Because of this my elbow naturally has to drop in order for me to cue through the white level. Watch Ronnie O'Sullivan and you will understand what I mean. His elbow drop is a lot more severe than mine but the method is still the same. Before this gets heated as past threads on this subject have, I will say this.... There is no right or wrong way to hit the ball, this is simply what has worked for me at improving my accuracy.

Whilst I was practicing the level pull back I went through somewhat of a grip transformation too. Before I used to grip the cue with all my fingers throughout the shot but it made it hard to pull back all the way whilst minimising body movement, which I do on nearly every shot regardless of the speed. I had to change my grip to allow a level pull back. How did I do this? I gripped the cue with my index and thumb only. The other fingers just cradle the cue and are relaxed, although my grip is firmer than most. This way the back fingers could release with ease and I wouldn't have to force the release. Pulling back straight then got a whole lot easier.

The stance is another common problem for a person's stillness. Too many go for comfort over what is needed by a stance... Stability. I see a lot standing very side on to the shot that a little nudge would force them to move their feet to gain the I balance back. The stance is basically a triangle. The larger you can make the area of this triangle the more sturdy it will be. I'm not saying have your feet so far apart you risk a groin injury but shoulder width apart is enough for most.

Lastly, another common problem is players trying to do their practice strokes and pull back at 100mph. It isn't necessary, no matter how hard you plan to hit the ball. Watch snooker players play, do what's called "feathering". This is basically very small practice strokes upto the cue ball. This limits movement a lot, especially if you have a tendency to not pause much before hitting the ball. Slow the pull back riiiiight down. Eventually after practicing this you will find a pull back that is slower than you currently do but still feels natural and doesn't make you feel like you need to hit the ball harder because you feel like you're losing power. Mine is quite slow, then I have a pause of about 2 seconds or so which gives me time to settle and keep still if I moved slightly, then I shoot. The pause allows me to move all I want when feathering the ball but as long as I'm still during the pause I will remain still during the shot.

Like I said, this won't be everyone's cup of tea and most won't get where I'm coming from but I focused on stillness when I was 13 when I had a highest break of 56 in snooker. By the age of 14 my highest break was over 100. I believe this was all down to improving my accuracy and limiting my movement as much as possible.
 
Pidge said:
The Holy Grail of cue sports - being able to hit the white accurately. Some people are born to do it, most, like me have to work their socks off to achieve it.

I will try cover what has helped me to improve my accuracy over the last 20 years the best I can. It likely won't help many, but it may help a few.

I'll start with stillness. This is a game changer and something that a lot think they do well, but when watching themselves play, realise they aren't as still as they think. Look at any sport that is accuracy based and then look at the best in that sport and you will notice just how still they are throughout their process. I see a lot in snooker especially where they have the chin planted to the cue but they don't pull the cue back level and it goes up at the butt end towards the back of the pull back and this causes the head to bob up and down. This ruins a lot of players chances of making the shot. This leads me on to the pull back, the thing that improved my stillness the most. Everyone is different but focusing on pulling the cue back level, no matter the angle of the cue really sky rocketed my game once I practiced it a lot. I hear a lot on here mention about elbow drop; to drop or not to drop, that is the question. Personally I drop my elbow fractionally as I cue the ball because as I pull the cue back level my elbow naturally has to lower and the shoulder lowers slightly too. Because of this my elbow naturally has to drop in order for me to cue through the white level. Watch Ronnie O'Sullivan and you will understand what I mean. His elbow drop is a lot more severe than mine but the method is still the same. Before this gets heated as past threads on this subject have, I will say this.... There is no right or wrong way to hit the ball, this is simply what has worked for me at improving my accuracy.

Whilst I was practicing the level pull back I went through somewhat of a grip transformation too. Before I used to grip the cue with all my fingers throughout the shot but it made it hard to pull back all the way whilst minimising body movement, which I do on nearly every shot regardless of the speed. I had to change my grip to allow a level pull back. How did I do this? I gripped the cue with my index and thumb only. The other fingers just cradle the cue and are relaxed, although my grip is firmer than most. This way the back fingers could release with ease and I wouldn't have to force the release. Pulling back straight then got a whole lot easier.

The stance is another common problem for a person's stillness. Too many go for comfort over what is needed by a stance... Stability. I see a lot standing very side on to the shot that a little nudge would force them to move their feet to gain the I balance back. The stance is basically a triangle. The larger you can make the area of this triangle the more sturdy it will be. I'm not saying have your feet so far apart you risk a groin injury but shoulder width apart is enough for most.

Lastly, another common problem is players trying to do their practice strokes and pull back at 100mph. It isn't necessary, no matter how hard you plan to hit the ball. Watch snooker players play, do what's called "feathering". This is basically very small practice strokes upto the cue ball. This limits movement a lot, especially if you have a tendency to not pause much before hitting the ball. Slow the pull back riiiiight down. Eventually after practicing this you will find a pull back that is slower than you currently do but still feels natural and doesn't make you feel like you need to hit the ball harder because you feel like you're losing power. Mine is quite slow, then I have a pause of about 2 seconds or so which gives me time to settle and keep still if I moved slightly, then I shoot. The pause allows me to move all I want when feathering the ball but as long as I'm still during the pause I will remain still during the shot.

Like I said, this won't be everyone's cup of tea and most won't get where I'm coming from but I focused on stillness when I was 13 when I had a highest break of 56 in snooker. By the age of 14 my highest break was over 100. I believe this was all down to improving my accuracy and limiting my movement as much as possible.
Click to expand...

Good post, just would like to clarify one point to you. You say there is no right or wrong way to do it (stroking). I strongly disagree, and you will also in a moment or two. If what you currently doing with your stroke isn't delivering the cue in a straight and repeatable fashion, then you are doing it wrong and something has to change.

Now, to whether one uses the pendulum stroke, the piston stroke, or the J stroke, it's purely a personal choice to do so. It's just that the pendulum stroke has the least amount of things that can go wrong with it. If ones uses a pump stroke like Busty used to, or a sidearm stroke like Keith does, that's perfectly fine IF it works for them. If it doesn't work for them, then it is wrong for them.
 
Pidge said:
The Holy Grail of cue sports - being able to hit the white accurately. Some people are born to do it, most, like me have to work their socks off to achieve it.

I will try cover what has helped me to improve my accuracy over the last 20 years the best I can. It likely won't help many, but it may help a few.

I'll start with stillness. This is a game changer and something that a lot think they do well, but when watching themselves play, realise they aren't as still as they think. Look at any sport that is accuracy based and then look at the best in that sport and you will notice just how still they are throughout their process. I see a lot in snooker especially where they have the chin planted to the cue but they don't pull the cue back level and it goes up at the butt end towards the back of the pull back and this causes the head to bob up and down. This ruins a lot of players chances of making the shot. This leads me on to the pull back, the thing that improved my stillness the most. Everyone is different but focusing on pulling the cue back level, no matter the angle of the cue really sky rocketed my game once I practiced it a lot. I hear a lot on here mention about elbow drop; to drop or not to drop, that is the question. Personally I drop my elbow fractionally as I cue the ball because as I pull the cue back level my elbow naturally has to lower and the shoulder lowers slightly too. Because of this my elbow naturally has to drop in order for me to cue through the white level. Watch Ronnie O'Sullivan and you will understand what I mean. His elbow drop is a lot more severe than mine but the method is still the same. Before this gets heated as past threads on this subject have, I will say this.... There is no right or wrong way to hit the ball, this is simply what has worked for me at improving my accuracy.

Whilst I was practicing the level pull back I went through somewhat of a grip transformation too. Before I used to grip the cue with all my fingers throughout the shot but it made it hard to pull back all the way whilst minimising body movement, which I do on nearly every shot regardless of the speed. I had to change my grip to allow a level pull back. How did I do this? I gripped the cue with my index and thumb only. The other fingers just cradle the cue and are relaxed, although my grip is firmer than most. This way the back fingers could release with ease and I wouldn't have to force the release. Pulling back straight then got a whole lot easier.

The stance is another common problem for a person's stillness. Too many go for comfort over what is needed by a stance... Stability. I see a lot standing very side on to the shot that a little nudge would force them to move their feet to gain the I balance back. The stance is basically a triangle. The larger you can make the area of this triangle the more sturdy it will be. I'm not saying have your feet so far apart you risk a groin injury but shoulder width apart is enough for most.

Lastly, another common problem is players trying to do their practice strokes and pull back at 100mph. It isn't necessary, no matter how hard you plan to hit the ball. Watch snooker players play, do what's called "feathering". This is basically very small practice strokes upto the cue ball. This limits movement a lot, especially if you have a tendency to not pause much before hitting the ball. Slow the pull back riiiiight down. Eventually after practicing this you will find a pull back that is slower than you currently do but still feels natural and doesn't make you feel like you need to hit the ball harder because you feel like you're losing power. Mine is quite slow, then I have a pause of about 2 seconds or so which gives me time to settle and keep still if I moved slightly, then I shoot. The pause allows me to move all I want when feathering the ball but as long as I'm still during the pause I will remain still during the shot.

Like I said, this won't be everyone's cup of tea and most won't get where I'm coming from but I focused on stillness when I was 13 when I had a highest break of 56 in snooker. By the age of 14 my highest break was over 100. I believe this was all down to improving my accuracy and limiting my movement as much as possible.
Click to expand...



Good post.....I've been trying to focus on exactly this aspect of my game recently.

Finding the aiming point is the easy part, delivering the cue ball accurately and consistently to that point is the hard part.
 
Yes!
But there is nothing wrong with some warm up pumps before you settle down to shoot.
Warm up pumps can tell you if you're properly aligned and for me, it helps get my mangled stroke hand working smoothly.
 
SilverCue said:
Yes!
But there is nothing wrong with some warm up pumps before you settle down to shoot.
Warm up pumps can tell you if you're properly aligned and for me, it helps get my mangled stroke hand working smoothly.
Click to expand...
The problem is a lot don't settle after there warm up pumps. There warm up pumps become their feathering and they don't have time to settle. A bad habit of many amateurs. Watch the pros break. A lot pump the cue as if they're going to smash the crop out of it but prior to shooting they always feather the cue ball and pull back much much slower than the pumps. Then watch C players break. They pump just as well but rarely take time to feather the cue ball and pull back 100 miles an hour.
 
MiscueBlues said:
Nice post Pidge, thank you
Click to expand...
Agree, nice post.

Stillness is often overlooked, but it's one of the first things you notice when you see a top player shooting.

When some ask if they're staying still on their shots, my usual answer is that if you aren't sure you were still, then you probably weren't. Having zero head movement during a shot is something you can perceive quite well when you actually do it.

Colin
 
If I had to think consciously of all those things to attain control of whitey I would either fall over or never get a shot off. I am sorry but we make this game as simple or as complicated as we want. I still say KISS.
 
Every once in a while (when I notice problems in my stroke like not staying still) I do Tor Lowery's stroke drill of shooting a couple hundred balls from the headstring into a foot-corner pocket. Just CB (not CB into OB) so I'm not thinking anything about pocketing a ball; I'm just "feeling" my stroke. It helps me, YMMV.
 
You ALWAYS seem to make great posts and threads and never seem to get into a pissing contest. Thanks for being a part of AZB's Main forum.

BTW, I like this thread immensely. I KNOW that MOST of us THINK we are still but MOST of us move minutely, some more than others.

I will try to work on my grip a bit more to see if it can help with a more level stroke. Slooooooow backswing is GREAT!


Thanks,

JoeyA

Pidge said:
The Holy Grail of cue sports - being able to hit the white accurately. Some people are born to do it, most, like me have to work their socks off to achieve it.

I will try cover what has helped me to improve my accuracy over the last 20 years the best I can. It likely won't help many, but it may help a few.

I'll start with stillness. This is a game changer and something that a lot think they do well, but when watching themselves play, realise they aren't as still as they think. Look at any sport that is accuracy based and then look at the best in that sport and you will notice just how still they are throughout their process. I see a lot in snooker especially where they have the chin planted to the cue but they don't pull the cue back level and it goes up at the butt end towards the back of the pull back and this causes the head to bob up and down. This ruins a lot of players chances of making the shot. This leads me on to the pull back, the thing that improved my stillness the most. Everyone is different but focusing on pulling the cue back level, no matter the angle of the cue really sky rocketed my game once I practiced it a lot. I hear a lot on here mention about elbow drop; to drop or not to drop, that is the question. Personally I drop my elbow fractionally as I cue the ball because as I pull the cue back level my elbow naturally has to lower and the shoulder lowers slightly too. Because of this my elbow naturally has to drop in order for me to cue through the white level. Watch Ronnie O'Sullivan and you will understand what I mean. His elbow drop is a lot more severe than mine but the method is still the same. Before this gets heated as past threads on this subject have, I will say this.... There is no right or wrong way to hit the ball, this is simply what has worked for me at improving my accuracy.

Whilst I was practicing the level pull back I went through somewhat of a grip transformation too. Before I used to grip the cue with all my fingers throughout the shot but it made it hard to pull back all the way whilst minimising body movement, which I do on nearly every shot regardless of the speed. I had to change my grip to allow a level pull back. How did I do this? I gripped the cue with my index and thumb only. The other fingers just cradle the cue and are relaxed, although my grip is firmer than most. This way the back fingers could release with ease and I wouldn't have to force the release. Pulling back straight then got a whole lot easier.

The stance is another common problem for a person's stillness. Too many go for comfort over what is needed by a stance... Stability. I see a lot standing very side on to the shot that a little nudge would force them to move their feet to gain the I balance back. The stance is basically a triangle. The larger you can make the area of this triangle the more sturdy it will be. I'm not saying have your feet so far apart you risk a groin injury but shoulder width apart is enough for most.

Lastly, another common problem is players trying to do their practice strokes and pull back at 100mph. It isn't necessary, no matter how hard you plan to hit the ball. Watch snooker players play, do what's called "feathering". This is basically very small practice strokes upto the cue ball. This limits movement a lot, especially if you have a tendency to not pause much before hitting the ball. Slow the pull back riiiiight down. Eventually after practicing this you will find a pull back that is slower than you currently do but still feels natural and doesn't make you feel like you need to hit the ball harder because you feel like you're losing power. Mine is quite slow, then I have a pause of about 2 seconds or so which gives me time to settle and keep still if I moved slightly, then I shoot. The pause allows me to move all I want when feathering the ball but as long as I'm still during the pause I will remain still during the shot.

Like I said, this won't be everyone's cup of tea and most won't get where I'm coming from but I focused on stillness when I was 13 when I had a highest break of 56 in snooker. By the age of 14 my highest break was over 100. I believe this was all down to improving my accuracy and limiting my movement as much as possible.
Click to expand...
 
JoeyA said:
You ALWAYS seem to make great posts and threads and never seem to get into a pissing contest. Thanks for being a part of AZB's Main forum.

BTW, I like this thread immensely. I KNOW that MOST of us THINK we are still but MOST of us move minutely, some more than others.

I will try to work on my grip a bit more to see if it can help with a more level stroke. Slooooooow backswing is GREAT!


Thanks,

JoeyA
Click to expand...
Thanks for the kind words, it made my day :-)

A lot of people, especially those who have reached a decent level of play but are still progressing tend to avoid a slow back stroke. The slow back stroke let's you see all the bends and kinks in it and let's you also feel it in the grip and shooting arm. This can't be right! I have a perfect stroke!! No, it just shows you what flaws you have that you can't see or feel with a fast back stroke. Rather than deal with the issues they go back to the fast and loose style because it makes them think they're shooting straight.

Again, thanks for the kind words :-)
 
JoeyA said:
You ALWAYS seem to make great posts and threads and never seem to get into a pissing contest. Thanks for being a part of AZB's Main forum.

BTW, I like this thread immensely. I KNOW that MOST of us THINK we are still but MOST of us move minutely, some more than others.

I will try to work on my grip a bit more to see if it can help with a more level stroke. Slooooooow backswing is GREAT!


Thanks,

JoeyA
Click to expand...

I can't remember how many times I've been told to keep my head still when I thought I already was.

The funny thing about the slow backswing is when you start doing it, you feel like it's excruciatingly slow. But if you video tape yourself, it's not nearly as bad as you think.
 
Pidge said:
The Holy Grail of cue sports - being able to hit the white accurately. Some people are born to do it, most, like me have to work their socks off to achieve it.

I will try cover what has helped me to improve my accuracy over the last 20 years the best I can. It likely won't help many, but it may help a few.

I'll start with stillness. This is a game changer and something that a lot think they do well, but when watching themselves play, realise they aren't as still as they think. Look at any sport that is accuracy based and then look at the best in that sport and you will notice just how still they are throughout their process. I see a lot in snooker especially where they have the chin planted to the cue but they don't pull the cue back level and it goes up at the butt end towards the back of the pull back and this causes the head to bob up and down. This ruins a lot of players chances of making the shot. This leads me on to the pull back, the thing that improved my stillness the most. Everyone is different but focusing on pulling the cue back level, no matter the angle of the cue really sky rocketed my game once I practiced it a lot. I hear a lot on here mention about elbow drop; to drop or not to drop, that is the question. Personally I drop my elbow fractionally as I cue the ball because as I pull the cue back level my elbow naturally has to lower and the shoulder lowers slightly too. Because of this my elbow naturally has to drop in order for me to cue through the white level. Watch Ronnie O'Sullivan and you will understand what I mean. His elbow drop is a lot more severe than mine but the method is still the same. Before this gets heated as past threads on this subject have, I will say this.... There is no right or wrong way to hit the ball, this is simply what has worked for me at improving my accuracy.

Whilst I was practicing the level pull back I went through somewhat of a grip transformation too. Before I used to grip the cue with all my fingers throughout the shot but it made it hard to pull back all the way whilst minimising body movement, which I do on nearly every shot regardless of the speed. I had to change my grip to allow a level pull back. How did I do this? I gripped the cue with my index and thumb only. The other fingers just cradle the cue and are relaxed, although my grip is firmer than most. This way the back fingers could release with ease and I wouldn't have to force the release. Pulling back straight then got a whole lot easier.

The stance is another common problem for a person's stillness. Too many go for comfort over what is needed by a stance... Stability. I see a lot standing very side on to the shot that a little nudge would force them to move their feet to gain the I balance back. The stance is basically a triangle. The larger you can make the area of this triangle the more sturdy it will be. I'm not saying have your feet so far apart you risk a groin injury but shoulder width apart is enough for most.

Lastly, another common problem is players trying to do their practice strokes and pull back at 100mph. It isn't necessary, no matter how hard you plan to hit the ball. Watch snooker players play, do what's called "feathering". This is basically very small practice strokes upto the cue ball. This limits movement a lot, especially if you have a tendency to not pause much before hitting the ball. Slow the pull back riiiiight down. Eventually after practicing this you will find a pull back that is slower than you currently do but still feels natural and doesn't make you feel like you need to hit the ball harder because you feel like you're losing power. Mine is quite slow, then I have a pause of about 2 seconds or so which gives me time to settle and keep still if I moved slightly, then I shoot. The pause allows me to move all I want when feathering the ball but as long as I'm still during the pause I will remain still during the shot.

Like I said, this won't be everyone's cup of tea and most won't get where I'm coming from but I focused on stillness when I was 13 when I had a highest break of 56 in snooker. By the age of 14 my highest break was over 100. I believe this was all down to improving my accuracy and limiting my movement as much as possible.
Click to expand...

Good post. I made a thread earlier about the back stroke. I believe that the slow backstroke and perfect transition to the forward stroke (which requires perfect stillness and alignment) is the key to great play and the lack of this is why so many people seem to struggle and stagnate at the low B/C-level. It is particularly common on the last backswing before a powerful stroke, to anticipate the hit and bring the cue back too fast. With a bad stance (unstable) or alignment (slightly off line), this will pull the cue off line. The stillness of the body is particularly critical on this final transition. I base this last opinion on my observations only as I have yet to see it discussed at length in any book. There are also those who believe that the slow, final backstroke gives they eyes time to refocus on the object ball (if you don't have a prolonged back pause), which I think is a reasonable hypothesis.
 
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Accuracy

Neil said:
Good post, just would like to clarify one point to you. You say there is no right or wrong way to do it (stroking). I strongly disagree, and you will also in a moment or two. If what you currently doing with your stroke isn't delivering the cue in a straight and repeatable fashion, then you are doing it wrong and something has to change.

Now, to whether one uses the pendulum stroke, the piston stroke, or the J stroke, it's purely a personal choice to do so. It's just that the pendulum stroke has the least amount of things that can go wrong with it. If ones uses a pump stroke like Busty used to, or a sidearm stroke like Keith does, that's perfectly fine IF it works for them. If it doesn't work for them, then it is wrong for them.
Click to expand...

Good points.

Of course striking the cue ball accurately is only half the process. One can hit the CB right where you want to but miss the shot if your aiming at the object ball (or your stroke) is flawed. Your comment addresses this somewhat.

Believe it or not, I know an "instructor" who teaches that for accuracy one should place the bridge hand as close as possible to the cue ball. Of course this will make it easier to strike the CB where you want, but will not do much for where you strike the OB or the rail if that's your target.
 
Donny Lutz said:
Good points.

Of course striking the cue ball accurately is only half the process. One can hit the CB right where you want to but miss the shot if your aiming at the object ball (or your stroke) is flawed. Your comment addresses this somewhat.

Believe it or not, I know an "instructor" who teaches that for accuracy one should place the bridge hand as close as possible to the cue ball. Of course this will make it easier to strike the CB where you want, but will not do much for where you strike the OB or the rail if that's your target.
Click to expand...

Well, I have recommended that also on here. It doesn't change ones aiming abilities, but does greatly reduce steering of the cue. It can be a great band-aid on certain shots where extreme accuracy is required. Assuming of course that one can aim it correctly.
 
Pidge...Good post overall, but I have to agree with others in that "pulling the cue backwards in a straight line" is not only unnecessary, but for many will be very detrimental in their efforts to strike the cue accurately. Because the contact between CB and cuetip is momentary at best, it doesn't matter how you deliver the cue...with a piston stroke like you describe, or a pendulum swing (which is level at contact with the CB, and finishes with the tip on or near the cloth). That makes it a choice, and the piston stroke offers no advantages, and several disadvantages. That said, one can cue however they choose. The only real effective element of the cradle is that is it perpendicular to the cuestick at strike, and that the cradle pressure should remain the same throughout the range of the stroke (backwards and forwards).

I am in total agreement with keeping your head (and body) still when the cueing motion is in place, your information about the stance, and your advice to slow down the final backswing, with some sort of pause at the end. You're right, it all comes down to a choice. With me and those that I teach, that's a pendulum swing, a perpendicular & loose cradle, and a perfectly timed throwing motion, with a natural finish, which has the exact same beginning and end for the majority of shots. Cheerio! :thumbup:

Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com

Pidge said:
The Holy Grail of cue sports - being able to hit the white accurately. Some people are born to do it, most, like me have to work their socks off to achieve it.

I will try cover what has helped me to improve my accuracy over the last 20 years the best I can. It likely won't help many, but it may help a few.

I'll start with stillness. This is a game changer and something that a lot think they do well, but when watching themselves play, realise they aren't as still as they think. Look at any sport that is accuracy based and then look at the best in that sport and you will notice just how still they are throughout their process. I see a lot in snooker especially where they have the chin planted to the cue but they don't pull the cue back level and it goes up at the butt end towards the back of the pull back and this causes the head to bob up and down. This ruins a lot of players chances of making the shot. This leads me on to the pull back, the thing that improved my stillness the most. Everyone is different but focusing on pulling the cue back level, no matter the angle of the cue really sky rocketed my game once I practiced it a lot. I hear a lot on here mention about elbow drop; to drop or not to drop, that is the question. Personally I drop my elbow fractionally as I cue the ball because as I pull the cue back level my elbow naturally has to lower and the shoulder lowers slightly too. Because of this my elbow naturally has to drop in order for me to cue through the white level. Watch Ronnie O'Sullivan and you will understand what I mean. His elbow drop is a lot more severe than mine but the method is still the same. Before this gets heated as past threads on this subject have, I will say this.... There is no right or wrong way to hit the ball, this is simply what has worked for me at improving my accuracy.

Whilst I was practicing the level pull back I went through somewhat of a grip transformation too. Before I used to grip the cue with all my fingers throughout the shot but it made it hard to pull back all the way whilst minimising body movement, which I do on nearly every shot regardless of the speed. I had to change my grip to allow a level pull back. How did I do this? I gripped the cue with my index and thumb only. The other fingers just cradle the cue and are relaxed, although my grip is firmer than most. This way the back fingers could release with ease and I wouldn't have to force the release. Pulling back straight then got a whole lot easier.

The stance is another common problem for a person's stillness. Too many go for comfort over what is needed by a stance... Stability. I see a lot standing very side on to the shot that a little nudge would force them to move their feet to gain the I balance back. The stance is basically a triangle. The larger you can make the area of this triangle the more sturdy it will be. I'm not saying have your feet so far apart you risk a groin injury but shoulder width apart is enough for most.

Lastly, another common problem is players trying to do their practice strokes and pull back at 100mph. It isn't necessary, no matter how hard you plan to hit the ball. Watch snooker players play, do what's called "feathering". This is basically very small practice strokes upto the cue ball. This limits movement a lot, especially if you have a tendency to not pause much before hitting the ball. Slow the pull back riiiiight down. Eventually after practicing this you will find a pull back that is slower than you currently do but still feels natural and doesn't make you feel like you need to hit the ball harder because you feel like you're losing power. Mine is quite slow, then I have a pause of about 2 seconds or so which gives me time to settle and keep still if I moved slightly, then I shoot. The pause allows me to move all I want when feathering the ball but as long as I'm still during the pause I will remain still during the shot.

Like I said, this won't be everyone's cup of tea and most won't get where I'm coming from but I focused on stillness when I was 13 when I had a highest break of 56 in snooker. By the age of 14 my highest break was over 100. I believe this was all down to improving my accuracy and limiting my movement as much as possible.
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"pulling the cue backwards in a straight line" is not only unnecessary, but for many will be very detrimental in their efforts to strike the cue accurately. Because the contact between CB and cuetip is momentary at best, it doesn't matter how you deliver the cue.
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Amazing.....
 
Pidge said:
The Holy Grail of cue sports - being able to hit the white accurately. Some people are born to do it, most, like me have to work their socks off to achieve it.

I will try cover what has helped me to improve my accuracy over the last 20 years the best I can. It likely won't help many, but it may help a few.

I'll start with stillness. This is a game changer and something that a lot think they do well, but when watching themselves play, realise they aren't as still as they think. Look at any sport that is accuracy based and then look at the best in that sport and you will notice just how still they are throughout their process. I see a lot in snooker especially where they have the chin planted to the cue but they don't pull the cue back level and it goes up at the butt end towards the back of the pull back and this causes the head to bob up and down. This ruins a lot of players chances of making the shot. This leads me on to the pull back, the thing that improved my stillness the most. Everyone is different but focusing on pulling the cue back level, no matter the angle of the cue really sky rocketed my game once I practiced it a lot. I hear a lot on here mention about elbow drop; to drop or not to drop, that is the question. Personally I drop my elbow fractionally as I cue the ball because as I pull the cue back level my elbow naturally has to lower and the shoulder lowers slightly too. Because of this my elbow naturally has to drop in order for me to cue through the white level. Watch Ronnie O'Sullivan and you will understand what I mean. His elbow drop is a lot more severe than mine but the method is still the same. Before this gets heated as past threads on this subject have, I will say this.... There is no right or wrong way to hit the ball, this is simply what has worked for me at improving my accuracy.

Whilst I was practicing the level pull back I went through somewhat of a grip transformation too. Before I used to grip the cue with all my fingers throughout the shot but it made it hard to pull back all the way whilst minimising body movement, which I do on nearly every shot regardless of the speed. I had to change my grip to allow a level pull back. How did I do this? I gripped the cue with my index and thumb only. The other fingers just cradle the cue and are relaxed, although my grip is firmer than most. This way the back fingers could release with ease and I wouldn't have to force the release. Pulling back straight then got a whole lot easier.

The stance is another common problem for a person's stillness. Too many go for comfort over what is needed by a stance... Stability. I see a lot standing very side on to the shot that a little nudge would force them to move their feet to gain the I balance back. The stance is basically a triangle. The larger you can make the area of this triangle the more sturdy it will be. I'm not saying have your feet so far apart you risk a groin injury but shoulder width apart is enough for most.

Lastly, another common problem is players trying to do their practice strokes and pull back at 100mph. It isn't necessary, no matter how hard you plan to hit the ball. Watch snooker players play, do what's called "feathering". This is basically very small practice strokes upto the cue ball. This limits movement a lot, especially if you have a tendency to not pause much before hitting the ball. Slow the pull back riiiiight down. Eventually after practicing this you will find a pull back that is slower than you currently do but still feels natural and doesn't make you feel like you need to hit the ball harder because you feel like you're losing power. Mine is quite slow, then I have a pause of about 2 seconds or so which gives me time to settle and keep still if I moved slightly, then I shoot. The pause allows me to move all I want when feathering the ball but as long as I'm still during the pause I will remain still during the shot.

Like I said, this won't be everyone's cup of tea and most won't get where I'm coming from but I focused on stillness when I was 13 when I had a highest break of 56 in snooker. By the age of 14 my highest break was over 100. I believe this was all down to improving my accuracy and limiting my movement as much as possible.
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Great post and if I'm not incorrect --- classic snooker style.

I've watched Allison Fisher pull her cue back level for a few decades now. I have tried it and found that it does require some hand manipulation through the stroke. Your and others solution of gripping with your thumb and index finger isn't my thing. However, if the grip you're referring to is more of deep into the 'V' between both fingers, which I think I've seen often with snooker players, I find that more favorable than the former.

One thing I don't agree with (but I do understand why it's done) is what you didn't mention here, which is the bent bridge arm. That can be changed to a relaxed straight arm with a simple stance adjustment that doesn't compromise alignment or stability. In fact, I find that a straighter arm actually increases stability and also provides viewing at arm's length.
 
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Scott Lee said:
Pidge...Good post overall, but I have to agree with others in that "pulling the cue backwards in a straight line" is not only unnecessary, but for many will be very detrimental in their efforts to strike the cue accurately. Because the contact between CB and cuetip is momentary at best, it doesn't matter how you deliver the cue...with a piston stroke like you describe, or a pendulum swing (which is level at contact with the CB, and finishes with the tip on or near the cloth). That makes it a choice, and the piston stroke offers no advantages, and several disadvantages. That said, one can cue however they choose. The only real effective element of the cradle is that is it perpendicular to the cuestick at strike, and that the cradle pressure should remain the same throughout the range of the stroke (backwards and forwards).

I am in total agreement with keeping your head (and body) still when the cueing motion is in place, your information about the stance, and your advice to slow down the final backswing, with some sort of pause at the end. You're right, it all comes down to a choice. With me and those that I teach, that's a pendulum swing, a perpendicular & loose cradle, and a perfectly timed throwing motion, with a natural finish, which has the exact same beginning and end for the majority of shots. Cheerio! :thumbup:

Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com
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I mentioned about those that have their chin planted to the cue, like many snooker players. So in that aspect, making the cue travel anything but level to your set up will cause all kinds of head movement and upper body movement so I have to disagree with the method mentioned having no advantages.
 
"The Art Of Accurate Cueing"

It's actually more just a skill than art.
Very developed skill but an art it is not.
 
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