Tall player, short cue?

[Oldgit]

ok, for many years I have searched for a decent playing cue and have owned a ridiculous amount of cues in every shape and size, weight and tip size and well as cues from 57in to 60in long.

Yesterday I received a lovely old Barracuda 'Kirkham' cue that used to be used back in the late 1980s by a pretty good amateur player BUT it is only 56.5in long.

I am over 6ft tall (6ft 1in) so have always assumed that (for me) longer is better but to my surprise I took the cue down to my club earlier this morning and had an hour with the cue and to my surprise found that not only could I use the cue but I wasn't even holding it at the end of the butt!! I felt more 'compact' and in control, of course it's early days and I was probably having 'new cue concentration' which always makes me seem to play better!!

I just wondered if any of the taller snooker players on this forum actually use a 56-57in cue?

Cheers
Oldgit 😊

[DeanH]

Glad you have found a nice playing cue for you
From an old film of Ray Reardon he states he uses a 4ft 7.5in cue (=55.5"), I don't know how tall he was but I always had the impression he was 6ft plus and he seemed to play well :wink:

[djax]

I'm six feet tall and use a 55" cue. Originally because of mobility issues, due to an injury. Believing it was a short-term measure? It felt comfortable, so stayed with it.

[thai_son22]

I'm not tall but in terms of proportion, I am 5"6 and have used cues as short as 53". It takes a while to get use to but I did do very well with it.

[old school]

By changing your grip and bridge arm shape a tall player should be able to play with a " short " cue . Before the forum goes into meltdown I will state what I tell my younger team mates when they talk about cue length. It goes like this " my cue is too long " , answer = move your hand up the butt and readjust your elbow to change bridge length to suit, cue is now the right length , " cue is too short " , answer = move the cue 1 or 2 fingers width across your palm ( forwards , compact stance) to adjust grip i.e. grip the cue further down , even just resting the cue on two fingers width of your palm instead of completely through the hand , adjust angle of elbow to suit bridge length , cue is now a playable length. Sometimes I think players can get hung up on cue length , when really if the cue feels and plays " right " thats all that matters . Changing stance and form , grip length and bridge is a way to play with a wide range of cue lengths . I have played with cues from 52 " to 61 " , but I dont play to a particularly high standard and just enjoy my table time these days . I am so glad that the Kirkham plays for you my friend , have replied to PM .

[CueAntW147]

Interesting thread this, i've also tried cues of all weights, shapes and sizes i'm 6ft tall and can play ok with anything 56" to 59" only issue with short cues for me is on some shots where you're over reaching a bit.
But overall played some of my best snooker with a 56.5" cue as compacted my cue action a bit, mind you this can all change on a daily basis sometimes the very same cue can feel great one day and not right the next.....lol
Mind you Mike just noticed when you started this thread so you've probably changed the cue already by now.........lol

[Oldgit]

Interesting thread this, i've also tried cues of all weights, shapes and sizes i'm 6ft tall and can play ok with anything 56" to 59" only issue with short cues for me is on some shots where you're over reaching a bit.
But overall played some of my best snooker with a 56.5" cue as compacted my cue action a bit, mind you this can all change on a daily basis sometimes the very same cue can feel great one day and not right the next.....lol
Mind you Mike just noticed when you started this thread so you've probably changed the cue already by now.........lol

Lol, you know me too well Ant

[CueAntW147]

Lol, you know me too well Ant

57" to 57.5" seems to be my magic number these days mate, had a lovely centre jointed burwat champion that was 56.5" long and loved it.
sadly i convinced myself it just felt too short sometimes on certain shots when reaching a bit further, almost felt like i'd ran out of cue, if that makes sense.
Though i can convince myself of anything at times, you know what its like !

[sanman]

Started of with a 57 inch cue. I am 5 ft 11 inches tall. Nowadays I can't play with a cue under 59 inches. I know a guy who is 5 ft 8 and uses a 61 inch cue. And he plays damn well with it but falls apart with a short cue. Guess it's what's comfy with you

[Ramon]

By changing your grip and bridge arm shape a tall player should be able to play with a " short " cue . Before the forum goes into meltdown I will state what I tell my younger team mates when they talk about cue length. It goes like this " my cue is too long " , answer = move your hand up the butt and readjust your elbow to change bridge length to suit, cue is now the right length , " cue is too short " , answer = move the cue 1 or 2 fingers width across your palm ( forwards , compact stance) to adjust grip i.e. grip the cue further down , even just resting the cue on two fingers width of your palm instead of completely through the hand , adjust angle of elbow to suit bridge length , cue is now a playable length. Sometimes I think players can get hung up on cue length , when really if the cue feels and plays " right " thats all that matters . Changing stance and form , grip length and bridge is a way to play with a wide range of cue lengths . I have played with cues from 52 " to 61 " , but I dont play to a particularly high standard and just enjoy my table time these days . I am so glad that the Kirkham plays for you my friend , have replied to PM .

excellent post.

[trevorwhitemast59.5]

I used to use a 58 " and I've had century's with 60" 57 " and 58 " just because you play well once with it doesn't mean you should stick with it . I'm using a 62 " at the moment and find this much more comfortable . But just because your tall doesn't mean you need a long cue . It depends on your technique . Mark king is over 6ft and uses 57 " he plays with both legs bent that's how he gets round it . If I was teaching someone who just started that was tall tho id alwas try and get them in the correct postion and get them to buy a longer cue . Depends on your arm length ect . ... best way to find out is to get a longer cue or put the extension in . Then set up a black off the spot and play it with top spin off 2 cushions and hold it where it feels natural . This will tell you how long your cue needs to be because that shot is a "long postion " shot where you need maximum cue to execute it . So play that shot with the extention in and where your holding add 1/2 an inch and that's your cue length to how you play .