"The Filipino Stroke"

[Bazooka Tooth]

Anyone know a website or something that explains "The Filipino stroke"?

What Im refering too is the bridge that Efren and other Philippine players shoot with, the pinch of their fingers....Im just curious about that bridge and would like to give it a shot.

 

[Tommy-D]

> I've always thought that Billy Incardona described it best when he called it the "violin" stroke. If you look close enough,they all hold the cue very lightly,and usually only use one finger and the thumb,just like you hold a violin bow,and it looks like they are gliding it across the strings. I saw a video of Bustamante playing 10 ball just goofing off somewhere,and Dawn Hopkins said she asked him or one of the other Filipino players about it. She was told that a long time ago,there was a player in Manila that played even better than Efren,and that was the way he played,so everyone copied him. I've also thought that the real loose wristy stroke was just a way of getting the cue ball to roll and spin better on slow/wet cloth and rails without adding extra muscle and force to the shot. In the experiments I've done,the subtle grip/stroke changes most of them employ make it easier to do certain things. On the other hand,I am 100% convinced that unless using an exotic stroke like that comes to you naturally,DO NOT try and force yourself to play like that. There are so many moving parts in their strokes that just about anything can go haywire at any time,and may help breed inconsistency,adding years to your learning curve instead of subtracting them by building a more repetitive stroke motion. Tommy D.

 

[Bazooka Tooth]

Thanks for the response, I didnt realize there was so much too it, but Id still like to see a website or something that explains it thoroughly and perhaps has pics/diagrams...I dunno lol, it seems pretty effective if learned correctly...

 

[seiyaryu55]

I agree. Dont bother to try to FORCE that stroke. If your stroke naturally develops like that then fine. Forcing it will just make your stroke inconsistant. Playing with a stroke like Bustamante doesnt guarentee that you'll be as good as he is.

I doubt you'll find a website because it isnt a set stroke. They are all slightly different.

 

[skins]

we use to call this the "south chicago" stroke. when i'm free flowin and in stroke this is how i play. i add a "slip stroke" in there also and like another poster said it looks like your playing a violin. in case anyone doesn't know what a slip stroke is it's when you hold a little further up in the wrap area, take your practice strokes and on the final stroke as you pull the cue back you let the cue go and "slip" your hand down the wrap area kind of sliding it along the wrap while the cue hangs in mid air and finally finding your place to grip and finishing the follow through. it's a stroke i learned from a great bank player and one pocket player named Louis Colquit in south chicago heights ill. he used to play all the time with ipt player Ike Runnles another great bank and one pocket player. this stroke looks awfully cool if done right and even more impressive if you can play well with it.

 

[sicbinature]

There is a video on youtube called, Efren's stroke analysis. The video shows Efren hitting balls in real time and super slow motion from several angles. Pretty cool, check it out.

 

[unknownpro]

Thanks for the response, I didnt realize there was so much too it, but Id still like to see a website or something that explains it thoroughly and perhaps has pics/diagrams...I dunno lol, it seems pretty effective if learned correctly...

Everyone thinks it's harder so no one teaches it, lmao. Effective is an understatement. Earl lengthened his bridge after watching Efren. Staying loose and using a long bridge and follow through are the keys to the Phillipino stroke. To stay loose on power shots you must always use enough speed on your cue so you don't have to try and accelerate through the cueball, just let it glide through. On soft shots you must stroke slowly enough to allow a full follow through. Keeping loose and following through all the way allows the arm and cue to react naturally to the impact of the shot and give you consistent results (consistent deflection) with english at different speeds and distances.

unknownpro

 

[skins]

There is a video on youtube called, Efren's stroke analysis. The video shows Efren hitting balls in real time and super slow motion from several angles. Pretty cool, check it out.

from the side view in slow motion this is the perfect example of the "slip" stroke i talked about.

 

[CaptainHook]

> I've also thought that the real loose wristy stroke was just a way of getting the cue ball to roll and spin better on slow/wet cloth and rails without adding extra muscle and force to the shot. Tommy D.

I find this part of your post very interesting and wondering what the conditions are or were in the Pool Halls where Efren, Busta and Parica grew up. Most likely they did not have A/C.

 

[Tommy-D]

> I used to know a guy that played at about a B level that was married to a Filipina woman,so he went there to visit her family 3-4 times a year. He said the places he played might as well have been in the middle of the rainforest,because it was so hot and humid. Makes sense to me. Tommy D.

 

[Dhakala]

Here's the link to the Efren video.

At about the 40-second mark, it shows his bridge hand. His thumb seems to be resting pad-up on the table, with the pad of his index finger pressed against the pad of his thumb. Looks like an incredibly painful position.

I learned a loose grip while growing up in South Chicago, too. I cradle the cue in my crooked fingers rather than gripping it between thumb and fingers. Basically, I just let the cue rest in the cradle that my hand forms naturally when it's utterly relaxed and hanging at my side.

This loose grip is just part of my overall goal of eliminating tension from my stance. The back hand hangs straight down; the back of the hand aligns with the forearm; the wrist is not bent inward or outward. The muscles of the bridge arm must also be limp and soft; elbow slightly bent, not locked. When muscles are tensed, it is impossible to keep a limb still. There will be quivering as opposing muscles vie to pull the limb in opposite directions. If muscles are tensed, one set of muscles is likely to prevail at the moment a stroke is released, pulling the stroke off its intended course.

 

[Craig Fales]

If you ask me Efren's stroke isn't what I would call "Filipino"....it's more traditional with all four fingers on the cue....the only one I see hold the cue really loose is Bustamante....
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