john higgins cue action

[jas19]

Has anyone noticed how far John Higgins' tip is away from the cue ball at address position. The tip must be at least an inch away from the cue ball. This seems to go against almost every coaching instruction yet Higgins is still able to time the ball consistently and still keep his cue arm at vertical at address. Does it really matter if tip is not as close to the white as possible at address? Any thoughts on this please

[The Statman]

My tip is too far from the cue-ball and I make a couple of 30 breaks a week.

So maybe I am an exception to the rule. Or maybe John Higgins is!

[thedynamite]

It just proves that there is no right or wrong way to play snooker no matter what the coaches preach

[The Statman]

It just proves that there is no right or wrong way to play snooker no matter what the coaches preach

Yep, absolutely.

Especially since many beginners pick up the basics when they are early teenagers - as they grow and find more shots available because of their height, they are bound to just adapt in their own way and once that is ingrained, as long as the player is comfortable and does not have any serious faults, it is more dangerous to force a textbook style than to allow the player to continue naturally.

[wildJONESEYE]

sometimes coaching just knocks your natural game to shreds.

if it isn't broke don't fix it.

[nrage]

It just proves that there is no right or wrong way to play snooker no matter what the coaches preach

I wouldn't agree with that statement exactly...

I think a more accurate statement is that everyone plays snooker in a slightly different manner, and that many of these differences are unimportant or make very little difference to the overall level of snooker they play at.

That said, if you do 15 things slightly wrong, you're likely to be playing at a level which is 15 x <a small bit> less than you could be playing at. And, the worst part is that these things can sometimes prevent you from improving your ability in various areas of the game. If for example you cannot consistently pot 4 balls in a row (due to a cueing fault) you don't have much of a chance to focus on positional play, and it will improve at a much slower rate - if at all, until you learn to cue straight.

Really, at best you can say that John Higgins can play to world class standards with his cue 1 inch away from the white at address position. But, this small detail (being 1 inch away) is probably largely irrelevant because he is getting down on the line of the shot every time and delivering the cue dead straight every time (or almost). But.. if he delivers the cue badly, or is across the line of aim then this 1 inch will make some difference to the results, and he would be better of with a 1/2 inch, or less there instead.

So, some things, while very minor, might make a difference .. but unless you're perfect in every other respect and your 1 fault means you're 3mm away from potting frame ball in the world championship final, it probably isn't something to focus on.

[Rii]

I would say that, in theory, it shouldn't matter at all, as long as he is following through parallel to the table. Del Hill advocates following the slope of the cue during pull-back, following down at the same slope, and then when your arm is vertical (i.e. at your initial address position) go through the white ball parallel to the table.

So whether he's 0.5", 1", or even 2", as long as he follows through parallel to the table it, evidently, doesn't make that much of a difference.

[cally]

It does make a difference though IMO, if your further away from the CB at address you will get a false indication of where you think your 'striking' the cue ball. Thus making it very difficult too find centre etc...

[nrage]

It does make a difference though IMO, if your further away from the CB at address you will get a false indication of where you think your 'striking' the cue ball. Thus making it very difficult too find centre etc...

Yep, and if you're cueing across the white for any reason, the further away you address the white, the further across the white you will end up, at the point of contact and the more side you will add.