Who has the most fundamentally sound stroke?

Kim Bye said:
In terms of perfect mechanics. Earl Strickland has many of the qualities to look for, so does Mika Immonen and Thorsten Hohmann.
How Bustamante comes up in a thread about perfect fundamentals, I have NO idea...

And BTW. Watching newer videos of SVB, has has tweaked his stroke, he now has a longer backswing pause and his break mechanics is simply amazing!
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Earl was a major elbow dropper and his follow involved twisting his wrist.
 
Ronnie O'Sullivan

Ronnie O'Sullivan has about as great mechanics as is humanly achievable. With either hand, no less!

Straightest shooter I've seen. :thumbup2:
 
Sundappen said:
Ronnie O'Sullivan has about as great mechanics as is humanly achievable. With either hand, no less!

Straightest shooter I've seen. :thumbup2:
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This isn't true at all. He is one of the best players to ever hold a cue but you would get laughed at on the snooker circuit if you said Ronnie had the best fundamentals known to man. He admits it himself... He isn't textbook by any stretch of the imagination but he has made it work. His cue action has a little sideways movement and he drops the elbow far too soon to be able to teach it. He is a natural player and natural players usually develop what others would consider bad habits but for them at least they turn out to be good habits.
 
A superior stroke will allow a person to control the cue ball with precision but...it also allows a person to create maximum spin, if needed.

I haven't seen anybody who can make a cue ball dance, like Rafael Martinez can! If we're talking about acceleration through impact and the tip staying on the ball for the longest time possible, because of acceleration instead of deceleration, Rafael stands out more than anybody in my opinion.
 
As far as a "fundametal" stroke, I'd go with Chang Yu Lung, Landon Shuffet and Ricky Yang. All solid as hell.
 
Drop The Rock said:
I know this has been a topic before but its usually, "Who has the best stroke?" which is

very subjective. Disclaimer: SVB is a hell of a player but no, his stroke is not what you would call fundamentally sound, it just looks cool. Shane's elbow goes from angled towards his body to straight up and down his wrist makes a similar motion. Despite being one of the best players in the world his stroke isn't something a coach would teach. Tor Lowry and Mark Wilson have excellent definitions on a orthodox stroke.

ALSO this isn't about "Whatever works" or "Well ____ pro does this" Cue action and body mechanics are two different things.

My choice would be Charlie Bryant. If you have ever seen him play in person or watching shoot stroke shots, you know what I'm talking about.

Please only pick one player.
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I like Allison Fisher's stroke.
 
Stephen Hendry's stroke when he was in his prime (90s) has got to be the most fundamentally sound cue action I've ever seen. His may not produce as much cue power as Judd Trump's or Stephen Lee's, but it's the consistency of his stroke that made him a 7-time World Champion, and for a few years the best cueist in the world.

I agree with Pidge's assessment of Ronnie O'Sullivan's cue action. During his practice strokes, his cue is not parallel to the table, with the butt of the cue well above in the air. It's his natural gift for timing that allows him to drop his elbow in such a way that the cue is parallel to the table at the moment of strike. This deviation from parallel cueing is also evident from other top cueists like Mark Selby and Shaun Murphy. Apparently this delivery system allows one to accelerate through the ball more. I'd put his cue action with Efren Reyes' and Earl Strickland's in the same group--unorthodox but effective.

You see a lot more variation in cue action styles from pool players. If we only talk about pool players, I'd say Gareth Potts has the best textbook stroke. Which is funny, because he is a Chinese 8-ball pool player, and he doesn't even play in the States (not that he wants and needs to play there anyway).
 
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I do......of course......but that's only when I'm not nervous....
.........damn nerves, that shit is holdin me back:)
 
He's THAT smooth.

I was told that Melling heard the key to a good stroke was elbow grease, so he had a silicone socket installed in his elbow.

JoeyA
 
Some names I am surprised that have not been mentioned (perhaps I just missed them). Hohmann, Souquet, Sigel.
 
TwinkleToes said:
A superior stroke will allow a person to control the cue ball with precision but...it also allows a person to create maximum spin, if needed.

I haven't seen anybody who can make a cue ball dance, like Rafael Martinez can! If we're talking about acceleration through impact and the tip staying on the ball for the longest time possible, because of acceleration instead of deceleration, Rafael stands out more than anybody in my opinion.
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I have had the pleasure of watching him play as well and what monster and free stroke he has. He can do things with the cue ball that are pretty unbelievable. I think we all forgot about Corey as well
 
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