Tip Of The Week

 

Number: 21 Jim Tellier October 2011

 

TOPIC: Alignment

 

CATEGORY: All Skill Levels

 

INTRODUCTION:

If youve been playing for a while, you probably have a fairly decent awareness of how you align yourself to make a shot. If youre new to the game, or having issues with missing shots and not really understanding why, some attention to fundamentals is always a good idea. No matter how long you play the game, you simply cant always let things run on auto-pilot its necessary to consciously go back and revisit basics now and then.

 

TECHNIQUE:

There are three important lines that you must always be aware of when lining up a shot. In order of importance (most important first):

         The line (path) from the Object ball to the pocket

         The line from the Cue ball to the Object ball

         The path that the Cue ball will take after it hits the Object ball

I put them in that order because a) the most important thing is to make the shot, and there are often multiple ways in which the Object ball may be hit to cause it to follow the desired path to the pocket. A simple example of that is cheating the pocket.

Without introducing a lot of complexity, you need to also keep in mind that other factors may come into play as well, that will influence how you choose the line from CB to OB. Two of these are throw and English. More on those topics in a future article! The actual choice of the CB to OB path is not what were going to cover here. What were interested in is: Whats the best way to position yourself at the table, holding the cue stick comfortably, consistently, accurately in such a way that you will deliver a good, straight stroke, and be able to get the CB to follow the path you have decided on to reach the OB?

Some key points to check for when you approach your shot:

         Make sure your bridge hand is securely planted on the table

         The grip you use on the butt of the cue should be as light as possible: the tighter the grip, the more tendency there is to pull the cue out of alignment as you stroke it

         Your arm position should be as vertical as possible. From the shoulder, down through the upper arm, elbow and forearm, check that everything stays in that vertical plane as you move back and forth in your practice strokes.

         Your eyes should be able to sight down the line of the shot --- at least while you are establishing your aim. Not everyone can put their head in a position directly over the top of the cue and still be able to deliver a consistently smooth stroke. If you cant do that --- dont do that! But at the least, keep your eyes level when aiming, and pay attention to the results of your efforts!

When you start to monkey with your fundamentals, you might notice a short-term setback in your results for a while, as you get accustomed to the changes. But if the changes are good, and you keep with it, you will become a stronger player.

 

[ This Tip Of The Week is mostly condensed & paraphrased from an article by Tom Simpson, a nationally known BCA Master Instructor and founder of the National Billiard Academy in Columbus, OH. Tom has a lot of tremendous articles on the web, many of them posted on his own website: http://www.poolclinics.com/articles.html ]