One-Rail Kicking
When I begin teaching students about one-rail kicking, I take the cue ball and put it in the jaws of the side pocket and then place an object ball in the jaws of the corner pocket on the same side of the table. I then ask the group, “Who knows how to make this shot?” A lot of the decent bar players will reply that they can make it some of the time or most of the time. My question to them then becomes, “How would you like to be able to make it all the time?”
According to the book, you should aim the cue ball at the point on the rail in front of the middle diamond of the opposite rail to pocket the object ball. This is mathematically correct because the cue ball is in front of Diamond #4, so you would aim at the point in front of Diamond #2. Now that you know how it works, you may not ever miss another kick shot, right? Of course when you visit your favorite pool room and eager to impress your buddies with your new-found knowledge you gather them around table #1 with the fresh Simonis 860 that was recently installed. Feeling very confident, you set the kick up and hit it exactly how I showed you. To your utter embarrassment, the cue ball hits the short rail half a diamond past the object ball hanging in the corner pocket!
As with most other things in pool, it’s not quite that simple. There are several variables that can alter your outcome, but the object is to simplify your task by understanding as many variables as possible and learning to overcome them. The cue ball’s angle off the rail can change as it is first coming off the rail. This change is caused by the slipperiness of the new cloth. To achieve consistent results you should shoot all of your one-rail kicks cueing at least one tip above the cue ball’s centerline. When you shoot the cue ball from in front of the side pocket to a point on the opposite rail in front of Diamond #2 with over-spin, the cloth on the bed and the rail, which on a new cloth is very slippery, does not rub all of the over-spin off the cue ball as it hits the rail. The cue ball comes off the rail still having some over-spin away from you that causes the ball to curve past the intended target. As the angle widens (becomes Diamond #5 to Diamond #2½ or Diamond #6 to Diamond #3) the ball will curve even further past the hole. As the angle decreases to Diamond # 3 to Diamond # 1½ or Diamond #2 to Diamond #1, the cue ball curves less and less and becomes much truer.
As was discussed in last month’s column on banking, the speed with which a ball strikes the rail can affect the angle of rebound of the ball. The harder you hit into a rail, the shorter the bank will rebound. It is best to choose one medium stroke speed to use for the greatest majority of your kick shots. You can therefore remove another variable from the kick shot equation. By using a consistent medium speed stroke that strikes the cue ball one tip above centerline on every attempt, you should be able to achieve very consistent results.
The mathematics of the diamond system on one-rail banks is only a guide. As the cloth wears the angles get shorter and shorter and become more accurate. On older cloth, especially with high humidity, the angles may actually become too short. On the Diamond #4 to Diamond #2 kick, the difference from a new cloth to an old cloth on a humid day may require adjusting your aiming point from as much as two inches left, above the diamond, to three inches right of the diamond, a total span of 5 inches.
In preparing for a match, set up the aforementioned shot and using the consistent speed and over-spin described, try aiming for the point in front of Diamond #2 and see what your results are. On subsequent attempts, adjust your aiming point to the right or left, depending on which side of the corner pocket the cue ball hit on. After a couple of tries, you should be able to find the spot on the opposite rail that rebounds the cue ball directly to the corner pocket. By comparing the aiming point that the book gives you with the one that actually works, you find how much and in which direction you must compensate to hit the object ball.
So take the guesswork out of your one-rail kicks and simplify the shot by consistently hitting the cue ball the same way. A couple of quick practice kicks and you can gain the information necessary to make quick calculations to determine your aiming point on that table. As with any other pool skill, practice will improve your kicking skills, so devote at least some of your practice time to making basic kicks.
Different cues have different amounts of deflection. Some say it is the type of wood, some say it is the taper on the shaft, and so on. Once you get a cue, the amount of deflection should be consistent. This, however, is not the case.
I am a trick shot shooter. I set up a shot and shoot it over and over again. The object balls and cue ball are in the exact same spot every time. My aim point is the same every time. The amount of spin that I use is the same every time. On some days, however, I find that I am missing my contact point by as much as a half-inch. After some experimenting, I found that it was my wrist. My wrist was controlling how much deflection I would get on a particular shot. I will explain.
Use this shot as an example, which is from our artistic pool program. Take an object ball and freeze it against the foot rail on the second diamond. Place the cue ball on the head spot. The idea is to cut the object ball into the right hand corner pocket. This is actually a cut shot that is greater than 90 degrees. The only way to make this shot is to put a ton of right spin on the cue ball, aim to barely miss the object ball on the left side, and have the cue ball spin off the rail and into the object ball, causing it to slide down the foot rail and into the corner pocket. Because you are putting right spin on the cue ball, you have to account for the fact that the cue ball will deflect to the left. I generally aim my cue stick through the cue ball at the right edge of the object ball. A center-ball hit along that line would cause the cue ball to hit about half of the object ball on the right side. However, because of the maximum right spin on the cue ball, it actually deflects off to the left and barely misses the object ball on the left side
This diagram shows the line of aim with maximum right spin, and the actual path of the cue ball.
Each player’s aim point will be different since each has his or her own unique stroke. This is just how I aim for this shot.
One day I was practicing this shot, aiming the same way and putting the same maximum right spin on the cue ball. Instead of the cue ball missing the object ball on the left, it was actually hitting the object ball on the way down. The cue ball was deflecting between a half and one inch less than it was previously. I tried to adjust my aim with some success, but that isn’t the solution to the problem.
This diagram shows the same line of aim with maximum right spin, but a stiffer wrist and hold on the cue causes the cue ball to deflect less and travel along this path.
That is just a temporary solution that cures the symptom, not the cause.
After some experimenting, I found that the reason why it was deflecting less was because I had a more solid grip on the butt of my cue. My wrist wasn’t flexing like it normally does. Maybe there was something on my mind, or maybe something was bothering me. The point is that with a tighter, more solid grip on the cue, the deflection was reduced. Now I am back to my original aim point. I just make sure that when I stroke the ball, my wrist is moving back and forth as I stroke. The deflection is greater but more consistent, and I also get more action on the cue ball. I heard Mike Massey say this once at an artistic tournament, “Stroke it, don’t poke it.”
Is deflection good or bad? The answer is both. You can never get rid of deflection 100%. That is physically impossible. If cue makers can manufacture cues that cut down on deflection, fine. As long as you like the way the cue hits, go buy one. Once you have a cue, you should try to develop your stroke. You should keep your wrist loose, moving it back and forth with each stroke. You should not strangle the butt of your cue. Hold it with a medium grip. On the way back, you should hold it with two or three fingers; on the way forward, you should hold it with four or five fingers. Loose, but not too loose. Doing this will improve your stroke, but it will also increase the amount of deflection you get. Don’t fear deflection. Learn to control it, and you will see better results.
This is my third column exploring the impact of the cue stick on performance. When I first started this series, I thought it would be a simple subject, maybe worthy of two columns at best. Mostly I wanted to see if switching to a 60-inch cue after playing with a 58-inch Joss for 15 years would help me play better. I’d often wondered if my long limbs and height would benefit from such a switch and wanted to settle the question once and for all.
I have since come to realize several things. Without question, my body requires a longer cue. I wish I had started with one all those years ago. If I accidentally pick up a standard-sized cue today and go to put my gripping hand on the butt, there is nothing there—just air. In other words, I have been cramped up and restricted for 15 years. It is so obvious to me now that it reminds me of the tiger cages made famous during the Vietnam War. No room to stand up, no room to lie down, no room to stretch.
I have never been what is often referred to as an “equipment junkie” and have even admired the ability of some players to play jam-up with a cue off the rack. Now I realize I was, and largely remain, ignorant of the nuances of the cue stick and the effect on advanced play. I’ve heard all the usual conversations about deflection and joint types, of course, but have appreciated them mostly from a marketing sense. I have experimented with different tips but only until I found one I liked, and even then I stayed with the same cue and the same shaft.
Which brings me to my number one insight—the importance of the shaft. The flexibility and taper of a shaft can greatly affect the way a cue plays, and it makes sense to pick a shaft that enhances the way you play. Previous to this insight, I was content in knowing that the “pro taper” my cue was built with was used by most of the top players. I didn’t know that the term was so widely used and the effect on the cue so varied. Now I understand that part of the struggle in getting used to my new 60-inch Dennis Dieckman cue is due to the shaft.
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Dieckman believes in a stiff shaft with a gradual taper from the front going back and substantial thickness prior to the joint. He believes it reduces deflection and allows the cue to hit truer. I agree with the latter, but I’m not so sure of the former. I have no problem with deflection in normal, close-to-center cueing, but I’ve missed a lot of shots where I’ve had to put a lot of juice on the cue. Actually, it seems to me that the graduation in deflection from a little bit of english to maximum english is more pronounced. How much of that is from the length of the cue or other factors, I don’t know.
But there is one thing about shafts of which I am now convinced. It is harder to put english, and especially draw, on the ball with a stiffer shaft. Dieckman, when I mentioned it to him, insisted that it was a result of my technique, even though I had no problem drawing the cue ball with my Joss. Well, I thought, maybe it has to do with the extra length and the resultant shift in timing and balance.
So I checked with several other sources. Tony Simpson, a Schuler Cue representative, maintains that a more flexible shaft allows the cue tip to stay in contact, or “cling,” to the surface of the cue ball longer, hence imparting more spin. I was relieved to hear that Ray Schuler, the founder of Schuler Cues, was also an advocate of a stiffer shaft and amazed that the company has ten different shaft tapers available in their retail line and about 150 others available for custom work. I never realized that players could be so particular about their shafts.
I talked with Buddy Hall down at the U.S. Open and looked at a custom shaft that Nat Green of South East Cues had made for him. Instead of a normal 14-inch pro taper, it came a full 16 inches back from the tip without any increasing taper. Buddy slid it through his bridge hand to demonstrate how the unvarying dimension of the shaft allowed his bridge to remain constant. We took it into the practice room and hit a few balls. When I pulled the cue ball back to the rail with english, the shaft flexed like crazy, but just a touch of juice sent the ball completely down table.
Since then, as I’ve adjusted to my new cue, I’ve been able to jazz the white ball up with more and more confidence. I appreciate the finesse of a more flexible shaft, but I like the authority of the stiffer shaft. In the least, I am willing to experiment further. So was it the shaft? Was it the length? Or was it the technique? Turns out, it’s a combination of the three.
Good luck & good shootin’!
The term “psychology” is often included in conversations about pool, probably because the sport is considered to have such a significant mental component. I’m using the term in this column, however, somewhat differently than usual. I’m not referring to the understanding of psychology that will help you psych out your opponent or take advantage of his or her mental weaknesses. I’m focusing on the internal aspect of psychology—the one that you take into competition with you.
If you have reached the point of development where you can effortlessly run a couple of racks back to back, then you have achieved a high level of skill. You should theoretically be able to do this whenever the table situation allows you a good place to start. Hopefully you do this most of the time, but what about when you don’t? What happens when you miss a high-percentage shot that you are totally capable of executing?
It can’t be a physical problem, because you have already trained your body how to perform it. You could go home and shoot it another hundred times, but that’s not training, that’s punishment. You don’t need to learn the shot—you already have. The obstacle that prevented you from doing that which you were capable of doing was not physical—it was mental, emotional, or psychological. In fact, it must be unconscious to boot, or you would have already removed or eliminated it from affecting you. If you knew what it was, you would get rid of it.
Let’s suppose you have become aware of a habit of being easily distracted. When you are running balls you do fine, but when you get into trouble, you’ve noticed that you are always fundamentally and mentally distracted by something—your opponent, a spectator, your surroundings, or something internal. So you decide to replace that bad habit with a new one. Instead of focusing on distractions, you will focus exclusively on the ball and on the pattern.
Since you are the “master of your own domain,” to steal a “Seinfeld” phrase, whatever you say will be, should come to be. But then again, the next time in competition, you get distracted by something and instead of dispassionately focusing on the ball and pattern, you focus on the distraction, get angry, and ultimately surrender the match to your opponent.
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What happened? Why didn’t you do what you said you would? One possible answer can be found in the dynamics of pool competition itself. A competitive sport is not like music, where everyone is cooperating together to focus on the music. In a confrontational sport, your opponent’s goal is to defeat you. This type of interaction has the potential to fire off, or reactivate, any unresolved issues you may have concerning self-expression and personal power. Have you ever been in a situation where you were powerless, perhaps as a child? Most of us have been. Perhaps you even tried to stand up for yourself and got slapped down. If you haven’t resolved these kinds of issues, the emotional content is still there, inside your body and your psyche. It’s waiting to be pulled to the surface by any situation that remotely resembles the original. A confrontational moment at the pool table can be such a catalyst.
The goal is to transcend these events so that you are free to perform in the moment and are not being impacted by something from the past. Whenever you run into a psychological obstacle during a match (whenever you don’t perform at the level of which you are capable), find a quiet and safe place as soon as possible after the match and sit down and close your eyes. Ask yourself questions. What stopped me? What got in my way? What was affecting me? Why am I angry?
Allow whatever mental images you have to come to the surface. Don’t judge or evaluate them, but just stay with them until you get the whole picture, emotions and all. Share your insights with someone you trust, and do it with the intention of letting them go. Next time you’re in competition, maybe you’ll have a little more freedom to perform. Maybe you’ll even be able to focus on just the ball and the pattern!
Good luck & good shootin’!
In the last issue, I told you how I switched to a longer cue in hopes of improving my game. I gave you all the reasons why a 6-foot-plus guy like me, with long arms and legs, should benefit from such a move. I related all the pros and cons I had collected from top players about switching to a longer stick and the two most important observations I made on my own. One: Shorter players who hold the cue in the middle of the wrap have an advantage because the balance of the cue itself helps to keep it on line. Because of this, the best short players almost always have very loose strokes. Two: Tall players, who have to grip the cue stick at the very butt, have a disadvantage. They are pushing the entire mass of the cue from behind. Because of this, the best players almost always have very controlled strokes.
Well, I’d love to tell you that my game went up a ball and a half after switching to a longer cue, but I can’t. I’ve been playing with my new 60” cue from Dennis Dieckman for about two months now, and it’s still a struggle. Sometimes I am hitting the balls with a confidence and power I never experienced with my 58” Joss, but mostly I find myself continually having to adjust things that were nailed down a long time ago. In fact, it seems that the things that I spent the most training time on in the past are now the things that are most out of whack. My power draw shot, for example, went through a period of being unpredictable and, for a few bystanders, even dangerous. Sometimes whitey would refuse to come back, and when I tried to force the issue by cueing lower, I’d send it bouncing off the table. It took a long time to figure out what was happening.
I discovered two things. One: A longer cue balances different then a standard cue, and by that I don‘t mean to imply any fault. My new cue is well-balanced, and the balance point, relative to length, is not much different than my Joss. But it balances, or fits, in my hands much differently. It feels different. I was cramped a bit on the shorter cue, and now that I have the room to stretch out, I am. My gripping hand has a tendency to move toward the rear, and my bridge has a tendency to lengthen. I couldn’t do that before because I ran out of cue stick. This whole phenomenon has thrown off the timing of my stroke, and the cue tip is not always contacting the surface of the cue ball when I expect. I have to reprogram this relationship, and that is going to take some time.
Secondly, and I haven’t exactly figured out why this is so yet, but when I look at the positioning of the cue tip to the cue ball during the set-up, what I see is not accurate. I am addressing the cue ball lower then my eyes and experience tell me that I am. I have to bring it up a bit to get the expected results. This explains the bouncing cue balls, of course, but once again this is going to take some time to establish consistency. I can maintain it in the beginning of a session, but it breaks down over the long term. My body seems to revert to the earlier training as it tires.
Overall, I remain convinced that all this stuff will eventually gel, and I expect to be playing some better pool in the future. Even though this big ole cue sometimes feels like a club compared to my little Joss, I feel stronger at the table and I think that is a good star to follow. Besides, I’m a firm believer in signs, and I’m happy to tell you that in the first tournament I played with my new cue stick, I was the last man standing. That‘s worth a little optimism, not to mention some additional training time.
According to the book, you should aim the cue ball at the point on the rail in front of the middle diamond of the opposite rail to pocket the object ball. This is mathematically correct because the cue ball is in front of Diamond #4, so you would aim at the point in front of Diamond #2. Now that you know how it works, you may not ever miss another kick shot, right? Of course when you visit your favorite pool room and eager to impress your buddies with your new-found knowledge you gather them around table #1 with the fresh Simonis 860 that was recently installed. Feeling very confident, you set the kick up and hit it exactly how I showed you. To your utter embarrassment, the cue ball hits the short rail half a diamond past the object ball hanging in the corner pocket!
As with most other things in pool, it’s not quite that simple. There are several variables that can alter your outcome, but the object is to simplify your task by understanding as many variables as possible and learning to overcome them. The cue ball’s angle off the rail can change as it is first coming off the rail. This change is caused by the slipperiness of the new cloth. To achieve consistent results you should shoot all of your one-rail kicks cueing at least one tip above the cue ball’s centerline. When you shoot the cue ball from in front of the side pocket to a point on the opposite rail in front of Diamond #2 with over-spin, the cloth on the bed and the rail, which on a new cloth is very slippery, does not rub all of the over-spin off the cue ball as it hits the rail. The cue ball comes off the rail still having some over-spin away from you that causes the ball to curve past the intended target. As the angle widens (becomes Diamond #5 to Diamond #2½ or Diamond #6 to Diamond #3) the ball will curve even further past the hole. As the angle decreases to Diamond # 3 to Diamond # 1½ or Diamond #2 to Diamond #1, the cue ball curves less and less and becomes much truer.
