I've been watching a lot of Ronnie's matches, and the most peculiar thing I notice with his technique is not his noticeable elbow drop and non-parallel cueing, but his rather unorthodox eye rhythm. It seems that at the moment of strike, Ronnie looks at the cue ball instead of the object ball. Here are some clips that show this:
https://youtu.be/I1ktxJ2ZzEo?t=1089
https://youtu.be/bBA9_MlK3sM?t=147
https://youtu.be/JNLGgfrNavg?t=93
https://youtu.be/SLM-Fg9B-a8?t=1217
He looks at the cue ball as he starts his backswing. At some point in his backswing he changes his gaze to the object ball. He doesn't really have a distinct back pause unlike most snooker players--his transition from backswing to forward swing is smooth. He then shifts his gaze at the cue ball as he strikes it.
Mind you, it's not just Ronnie who has an unorthodox eye rhythm. John Higgins and Mark Williams both look at the cue ball last as well. Perhaps the strangest one of all is Stephen Hendry's--he looks at the POCKET as he cues:
https://youtu.be/DbHiPqR6QxE?t=1145
https://youtu.be/DbHiPqR6QxE?t=1651
https://youtu.be/73Vd6SnP7A8?t=447
Ronnie gets through the cue ball probably better than anybody in snooker, and when he is in deadstroke no one can trump him in the accuracy department. Do you think his unique eye pattern is one of the major reasons why his DELIVERY system is so effective? Discuss.
https://youtu.be/I1ktxJ2ZzEo?t=1089
https://youtu.be/bBA9_MlK3sM?t=147
https://youtu.be/JNLGgfrNavg?t=93
https://youtu.be/SLM-Fg9B-a8?t=1217
He looks at the cue ball as he starts his backswing. At some point in his backswing he changes his gaze to the object ball. He doesn't really have a distinct back pause unlike most snooker players--his transition from backswing to forward swing is smooth. He then shifts his gaze at the cue ball as he strikes it.
Mind you, it's not just Ronnie who has an unorthodox eye rhythm. John Higgins and Mark Williams both look at the cue ball last as well. Perhaps the strangest one of all is Stephen Hendry's--he looks at the POCKET as he cues:
https://youtu.be/DbHiPqR6QxE?t=1145
https://youtu.be/DbHiPqR6QxE?t=1651
https://youtu.be/73Vd6SnP7A8?t=447
Ronnie gets through the cue ball probably better than anybody in snooker, and when he is in deadstroke no one can trump him in the accuracy department. Do you think his unique eye pattern is one of the major reasons why his DELIVERY system is so effective? Discuss.
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