Tips for Helping You Stoke Properly.

Think of your hanging forearm as a pendulum. A pendulum is a weighted, mounted object that uses gravity to swing back and forth freely, like the arm on a grandfather clock. Now, cradle the cue stick lightly in your hand, using the weight of the cue to swing your forearm freely back and forth. If you find yourself gripping too tightly to the cue, it will be very difficult for it to swing freely. If you catch yourself dropping your elbow with each stroke, you may be adding unwanted twist or rotation to your stroke.

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Think of your elbow as a hinge. A hinge allows two parts to move back and forth on a line with limited rotation. Your shoulder, on the other hand, is a rotary joint. When a rotary joint is involved in the pool stroke it can mean problems for your follow through. When you drop your elbow, you activate your shoulder's rotary joint which can cause miscues from unpredictable rotations.

 

Remember these 3 tips to perfect your pendulum pool stroke:

• Get your cue tip as close to the cue ball as possible in your warm up strokes.

• Make sure your forearm is perpendicular at the point of contact.

• Work on hinging only at the elbow, without getting your shoulder involved.