Timing in pool

nine_ball6970

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I see it as smoothness coming through the cue ball. Starts forward slow and speed increases gradually to impact. You see it on shots where they player generates a big stroke with what looks like minimal effort. I always think of watching Roberto Gomez when he draws the cue ball back 10 plus feet with what looks like the stroke speed I use for a stop shot.

It seems to be more pronounced with players who have a longer pause at the transition in general.
 

Bob Jewett

AZB Osmium Member
Staff member
Gold Member
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Here are two other possible timings of the final back stroke and forward stroke.

The first shows a longer pause at the end of the back stroke. Players who have what I call a "significant" pause will keep their cue all the way back and without motion or acceleration for half a second or a second or so.

CropperCapture[145].jpg

This final stroke timing has no pause at the end of the back stroke. When the cue gets to its farthest back position, the arm/hand is already pushing forward accelerating the cue stick forward. There is no time when there is both zero motion and zero acceleration, which is how I define a pause.

CropperCapture[146].jpg
 

mikemosconi

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Correct, they are talking about timing the cue to reach the cue ball at peak velocity. So I always see this crucially as avoiding decelerating into the ball, possibly have too slow of an acceleration, jerking the cue forward such that you aren't generating nearly as much speed as you think you are due to tense muscles.


Yep- timing IS one of the critical factors to success in just about any sport- for those here who are very good players and don't acknowledge timing in pool - they are probably just not aware of it when they play- very possible- it is not normally an awareness skill.

In pool, you have rhythm or as some here called it pace, or tempo- that is the coordinated movement of your body parts that PREPARE you for the final execution of a pool stroke.

The TIMING part refers to the RELEASE of the cue stick at the very MOMENT you SEE the aiming point definitively in your mind's eye - it is the YES moment of releasing your stroke - as Ralph Eckert , the great German 14.1 player refers to it.

Great timing MOST CONSISTENTLY observes the stroke being released at the proper YES moment of SEEING the most clear mind's picture of the shot.

Great sense of timing is a natural for the greatest athletes, however; becoming acutely aware of timing's existence, and its necessity as part of the complete successful pool stroke, can aid one who is not so naturally gifted. One can develop their timing mechanisms to become more effective. The emphasis on pre shot routines is really a method to help develop consistent timing of the pool stroke- without it you can't go too far in the game.

The idea behind effective pre shot routines is to coordinate your body rhythms AND then free up you mind to FOCUS on making the shot- which allows you to TIME the cue stick release at the EXACT RIGHT moment - great players do this most consistently. True in all sports.

Think of what a baseball player does in the batters box prior to pitch delivery, a tennis player waiting for the ball to come over the net, a golfer as they address the golf ball, a great boxer as they set to deliver a punch. The BODY is prepared ( Rhythm), the MIND is relaxed, which in turn relaxes the muscle tension in the body, and then the FOCUS takes over UNTIL the EXACT moment that the mind says YES to the delivery. The effective transition from FOCUS to DELIVERY is TIMING!
 

filerunner

New member
Timing

You choose a speed for the shot then it's up to your rate of acceleration and distance of backstroke to deliver that speed.You draw back and accelerate your cue. If your timing is good, your cue tip strikes the cue ball when it reaches the chosen speed. If you hit the ball too soon or too late(when the cue is de-accelerating), then your timing is off, and you won't get the action on the cue ball you were expecting. That's the way I look at timing anyway. I don't think it means being in the right pool hall on the right day to have a good game or how fast you walk around the table and make your shot.
 

ShootingArts

Smorg is giving St Peter the 7!
Gold Member
Silver Member
Huh?

I think of "timing" as the synchronization of all moving body parts from the beginning of the back stroke to the end of the follow through. That synchronization can be terrible, great and everything in between. Those of you that play golf recognize the importance of good timing. Timing also plays critical roles in throwing a football, or baseball or taking a slap shot in hockey, etc. It increases power and accuracy. In most sports, especially golf, the word "efficiency" is used. A seemingly effortless golf swing but the ball goes a mile. Timing is a cousin to tempo or rhythm, but not the same. If you watch pros like Strickland, Bustamante, Van Boening (and many others), you notice how easily they move the cue ball around the table, especially with racing follow shots or English. Timing is most apparent on draw or small-angle follow shots where the cue ball needs to travel a long way after impact. My 2c anyway...




It took you four years to find two cents?

Nice post!

Hu
 

1pocketguru

Registered
I think of Timing, Tempo, Rhythm this way...timing being somewhat personalized and unique to the players' pre-shot routine and style think of a metronome, it can be fast or slow the key is that it is consistent. Not fast the faster, then slow then faster. Some people tend to be real fast and others slow on average ect. Rhythm has more to do with the energy and environment. If I'm feeling great I may walk around the table fast or if I've been playing all day I might be slower. If I notice my opponent plays fast I might try to play slower ect. The Rhythm is the pace, or tempo of the whole moments. Timing I think is more about the stroke and shot set-up.
 

Patrick Johnson

Fish of the Day
Silver Member
You choose a speed for the shot then it's up to your rate of acceleration and distance of backstroke to deliver that speed.You draw back and accelerate your cue. If your timing is good, your cue tip strikes the cue ball when it reaches the chosen speed. If you hit the ball too soon or too late(when the cue is de-accelerating), then your timing is off, and you won't get the action on the cue ball you were expecting. That's the way I look at timing anyway.
Yup, me too. I think that's the most important definition of timing, anyway.

pj
chgo
 

straightline

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
It's grammatical.

Timing: verb ish is the discotion

Timing: noun ish is the chronology of whatever happening as it happens

Timing: the cafeine latency; is what's happening to me right now
 
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