The shakes

whitewolf

whitewolf

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Must be my age, being out of shape, or whatever. Even in practice when I pause just before pulling the trigger I can never get my cue tip to stay steady - it quivers ever so slightly and it messes up my stroke.

So, I applied a little pressure to my grip and the shaking stopped. My shot making has increased dramatically and I am now much more confident.

I was just wondering if any of you have heard of pros putting a little pressure on their grip for all of their shots?
 
I get that sometimes.....mostly from not eating or coffee or being over ampt from adrenaline overload :).....just breath!

Your not in bad company though, and don't think the top Pros are always rock steady either. Sit close up at a big event and many of the players quiver a little.

Nick Varner, Jim Rempe, are two players I actually played in tourney that had a little shake.....I still got stomped!

G.
 
More Confidence is needed but unfortuntaly we all leak oil. Some more than others. I find it very human :embarrassed2:
 
I have seen many top players that shake... Varner, Stevie Moore, and Ike Runnels to name a few. I'm sure it is not nerves with those guys. What is it that causes this?
 
Worminator said:
I have seen many top players that shake... Varner, Stevie Moore, and Ike Runnels to name a few. I'm sure it is not nerves with those guys. What is it that causes this?
Click to expand...

It's probably what's called an "essential tremor." Kathryn Hepburn had it and you can hear it in her voice, too, with just a touch of tremelo or vibrato.

Or it could be the initial symptoms of Parkinson's. The tremor is harmless 'cept for the shaking; Parkinson's is much more of a serious matter.

I have the tremor and I shake when tired or stressed or after having used those muscles for something else (e.g. sawing by hand, gripping a tool for too long, shoveling snow, etc.)

The way around it that works for me is to just be aware of it and keep on shooting. Btw, one of the treatments for the tremor is beer. seriously.

Jeff Livingston

EDIT: another thing that helps is a good B-complex vitamin.
 
Pressure with grip?

whitewolf said:
Must be my age, being out of shape, or whatever. Even in practice when I pause just before pulling the trigger I can never get my cue tip to stay steady - it quivers ever so slightly and it messes up my stroke.

So, I applied a little pressure to my grip and the shaking stopped. My shot making has increased dramatically and I am now much more confident.

I was just wondering if any of you have heard of pros putting a little pressure on their grip for all of their shots?
Click to expand...

The other posts are ignoring your "remedy" of squeezing the cue to stop the shake. I have my reservations about this. I don't think it's ever a good idea to tighten your grip (unless you're dropping the cue in mid-stroke!). A loose grip is taught by most instructors and is used by most pros.
I would suggest proper breathing first. If that doesn't help, you may use a variation on your "squeeze". Try squeezing the cue and then relaxing your grip hand just before delivery.

Donny L
PBIA/ACS Instructor
Gainesville, Fl
 
Donny Lutz said:
The other posts are ignoring your "remedy" of squeezing the cue to stop the shake. I have my reservations about this. I don't think it's ever a good idea to tighten your grip (unless you're dropping the cue in mid-stroke!). A loose grip is taught by most instructors and is used by most pros.
I would suggest proper breathing first. If that doesn't help, you may use a variation on your "squeeze". Try squeezing the cue and then relaxing your grip hand just before delivery.

Donny L
PBIA/ACS Instructor
Gainesville, Fl
Click to expand...

If it's the tremor, squeezing only makes things worse. Tension increases the shakes. (But if it's the DT's from the night before it might help.;) )

My grip set-up doesn't allow me to squeeze it tight. I agree with ya, that doesn't help the shot.

Jeff Livingston
 
flash5153 said:
A whole lot of confidence in your game helps,,,, and a bottle or 2 of liquid courage aint bad either.
Click to expand...

4-5 bottles cures me, but I don't like doing that all the time. It is too much of a timing issue.:grin: and knowing when to stop.
 
Worminator said:
I have seen many top players that shake... Varner, Stevie Moore, and Ike Runnels to name a few. I'm sure it is not nerves with those guys. What is it that causes this?
Click to expand...

I shake at the practice table, so I know something is wrong. I have a bad back so maybe my arm is trying to support my back.
 
Donny Lutz said:
The other posts are ignoring your "remedy" of squeezing the cue to stop the shake. I have my reservations about this. I don't think it's ever a good idea to tighten your grip (unless you're dropping the cue in mid-stroke!). A loose grip is taught by most instructors and is used by most pros.
I would suggest proper breathing first. If that doesn't help, you may use a variation on your "squeeze". Try squeezing the cue and then relaxing your grip hand just before delivery.

Donny L
PBIA/ACS Instructor
Gainesville, Fl
Click to expand...

Thanks Donny.

Everything is very loose up until the pause just before the shot. At that point the squeeze is only between the thumb and forefinger, not the rest of the grip. Odd as it may seem, I can still get plenty of juice on the follow through with little or no effort with the little squeeze.

btw, I did meet Willie Mosconi once and asked him how hard he squeezed the cue......I held out 3 fingers and he squeezed them as if he was holding a cue. His squeeze was light as a feather thought, nonetheless, it was a squeeze. His cue just did not lay in his hand as most of the pool players on this forum would guess. This is part of the reason I am bringing this up, for you theoretical gurus to give some more input.

I will run down to the pool table now and try your suggestions.

I appreciate all the responses so far. Thanks!
 
I have watched and played Ike a few different times. When you first see him shake you think there is no way he can play like that. I don't know exactly why he shakes so bad but that final stroke is as straight as ther come. Don't be fooled it's Deadly.

Junior
 
I try to ignore mine, it comes and goes like many other things, I don't think its a big deal for me. When I'm playing well, in the groove, I don't notice it.
:p
 
The doctor told me I had tremors and if they started to bother me to much he could give me some medication to control it. Good Luck.
 
chefjeff said:
It's probably what's called an "essential tremor." Kathryn Hepburn had it and you can hear it in her voice, too, with just a touch of tremelo or vibrato.

Or it could be the initial symptoms of Parkinson's. The tremor is harmless 'cept for the shaking; Parkinson's is much more of a serious matter.

I have the tremor and I shake when tired or stressed or after having used those muscles for something else (e.g. sawing by hand, gripping a tool for too long, shoveling snow, etc.)

The way around it that works for me is to just be aware of it and keep on shooting. Btw, one of the treatments for the tremor is beer. seriously.

Jeff Livingston

EDIT: another thing that helps is a good B-complex vitamin.
Click to expand...

Jeff:

It's funny you mention this (not "ha ha" funny, but interesting). The famous snooker player, Bill Werbeniuk, *had* to drink about 6 pints of beer before a match to quiet his familial benign essential tremors, and then one pint each frame to keep it in check.

Obviously I wouldn't advocate alcohol consumption of this magnitude as a "remedy" (seeing a physician is the correct and proper step), but it's interesting that alcohol can have this medicinal effect.

-Sean
 
Sometimes I shake so much it's hard to spot a ball without splattering everything around it. Usually, it's too much ganja weed on an empty stomach.
 
I saw a guy in the parking lot last week lighting up some medication, SO I went over to tease him about burning some weed, when he rolled down the window there was no odor. YIKES he was burning something very bad in there. I'd guess crack or meth.. It was late and he was going back in to gamble, honestly I felt pretty bad for him, but I lost all respect at the same time.. Everyone gets a little shaky but that stuff isn't going to fix anything. My Dad passed away from Parkinson's so I urge any members to get regular physicals and be healthy. Being shaky under stress is one thing but if your shaky all the time it might be something else altogether..
 
Try a couple of deep breaths in your PSR...on the last breath, let it out normally until your lungs are at rest (slack). Then pull the trigger. It worked for me for precision shooting (3 position small bore and air rifle), and still works for me if fatigue or nerves are causing a little shake during a pool match.

As far as increasing the grip pressure, I started doing that last year and it instantly improved my consistency on shot making almost 20%. I only grip the cue with my thumb, index and middle fingers, my ring finger and pinky are hanging off the cue. It's not a death grip by any stretch of the imagination, but it's a little firmer than an instructor would recommend. It cured me of snatching the cue (increasing the pressure mid-stroke)...eliminated virtually all unwanted lateral tip movement in my stroke. Works great for me, so I'm not worried what others think!
 
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