Warm-up stroke vs final stroke

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papercut

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Hey guys. I'm fairly new to posting to the board, so please forgive me if this is a topic that has been beaten to death before. If so, don't hesitate to tell me to get lost.

Anyway, I've been playing pool for around 10 years. I win a local tournament every once in a while, but I'm nothing too special. Love the game, and usually play 1-2 hours before work everyday.

Ok. Enough of the background...

What is the purpose of the warm-up strokes? I know the textbook answers (get sense of speed of stroke, aiming dead, wrist flexibility, etc.). However, the warm-up stroke has to be different than the final stroke due to the inability to follow through and the need to put the breaks on to stop the cue from running into the CB. I'm noticing that some of my smoothest strokes and best accuracy are when I take no warm-up strokes. I feel as though all I can do on the warm-up stroke is loosen my wrist only while the final stroke can actually have movement in the elbow.

Any thoughts are greatly appreciated.
 
My warm up stroke is not to losen my wrist, test for humidity, flex my muscles or any of that other crap. I use it to verify my contact point and to check my alignment if I notice and outside/in stroke which I am prone to do but I think I have finally corrected. I try to make my practice stroke identicle to my 'stroke' to help reinforce the muscle memory of a good stroke. I don't understand why some people get over the ball and do a dance with the elbows shoulders and wrists then do something totally different when they are ready to hit the ball. Just decide what you want the CB to do, pick your spot and hit the damn thing.
 
The warm up stroke is exactly what you said it's for...to "Check and Re-Check" your alignment, tip position, and to focus on tip to CB position and focus on the target.

Zim
 
Just get down and shoot the shot. If you start to play better than the warm up is useless. If you begin to shoot worse than you will realise the reason for a few warm up up strokes. I think it will become ovious.
 
I'd say do what works best for you. I know one guy who is always going around telling everybody else to stroke exactly like he does. Well he is a good player and all, but not everyone has to play exactly like he does, or like anyone else for that matter.

I think being confortable and having your own style is more important. It's more relaxing and more fun.

I like the players who stare down their shot for 30 minutes and turn their cues this way and that figurin' everything out, then practice stroke about 10 times, then always miss. You can count on it...
 
One of the best player in the poolhall I go to, never takes any warm up stroke... I dont know what he sees or what he is thinking, but he is rarely misses shot or get out of line on his next shot.
 
In experimenting with my stroke, the latest thing I've tried is simply to do warm-up strokes at the speed I think I need to strike the CB, and then without pausing, do my best on the final stroke to maintain that exact speed. So my intent is that the last couple warm-up strokes are identical to the final, except that they're shorter.

Nothing original there, I admit.

I know it's highly recommended that you "accelerate" thru the CB. With this stroke I may be lacking there. But I like the results early on.

An earlier thread was discussing how when you need to strike the CB harder, you don't (usually) need to "muscle" it -- instead you just need a faster stroke.

I remember once reading an article (probably in a 3-cushion publication, because I know some 3-c players) about how the author had observed that American players took, generally, fewer warm-up strokes, and he seemed to be recommending more.
 
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