elbow drop/ del hill

[Theguywithaplan]

I just disagree with the dropping of the elbow ,
can only lead to an imperfect cue action....
HE only says it cause o'sullivan does it ,Davis ,Hendry at their best didnt do it..
they are both doing it now and struggling

I think nearly every proffessional drops their elbow nowadays (at least to some degree). Just watch this video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bTv5Q3RN0Ec

[bonoman1970]

every pro nowadays does it yes .........but Hendry and Davis at their best didnt!!!

[bonoman1970]

And they were the best two ever

[Theguywithaplan]

And they were the best two ever

While he is not as good as Hendry or Davis, I have to say that, imo, Shaun Murphy has the best technique of any player past or present, and he drops his elbow. Just talking from a technical side only.

[stephenm2682]

i've just watched a clip of shaun murphy, and he doesn't drop his elbow from what i can see, especially not in the same regards as o'sullivan, as he does it on almost all shots.

[Theguywithaplan]

i've just watched a clip of shaun murphy, and he doesn't drop his elbow from what i can see, especially not in the same regards as o'sullivan, as he does it on almost all shots.

He doesnt on all shots like o'sullivan but most shots medium power or more he will drop his elbow. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2abVGwxTDHQ

[bonoman1970]

This dropping the elbow sh*t has only come in the last 8 or so years with O'sullivan , before then every other player would advocate not dropping the elbow
Dont do it ...... but if you want to go and do it ..be trendy

[Theguywithaplan]

This dropping the elbow sh*t has only come in the last 8 or so years with O'sullivan , before then every other player would advocate not dropping the elbow
Dont do it ...... but if you want to go and do it ..be trendy

I dont do it because its trendy lol. For me it was impossible to keep my body completley still because I was trying to stop my arm going through. Now I can just relax and get through the ball, and my potting has improved like I said previously my best was 9 long blues in a row now 33. And yes, I think dropping the elbow has only come into the game relatively recently but wouldn't you also say that the standard of proffessionals these days is the highest it's ever been?

[Slasher]

It's pointless anyway, by the time you drop your elbow the cue ball is already half way to the object ball. It adds nothing to the shot.

[lennon11]

the way i see it,dropping the elbow is the end result of really driving through the cue ball.so people who think its just about finishing with the elbow in a lower position that at the start of the cue action,have got the wrong idea about how/why dropping the elbow happens.

[Acrowot]

Dropping the elbow only 8 years old???

I was doing it back in the late 40's. It was one of the things that Joe Davis recommended in those days.
:snooker:

[nrage]

It's pointless anyway, by the time you drop your elbow the cue ball is already half way to the object ball. It adds nothing to the shot.

As I understand it, the purpose of the elbow drop is to ensure you do not slow the shot down prior or during contact.

I think it depends partly on flexibility, and how closed you can get your arm before the muscles etc apply resistance and start to slow the delivery. For example there is a guy here at work who cannot bend his arm more than 45 degrees, whereas mine gets to 30 degrees before it meets any resistance.

[Cyril]

Most of the 'old day' players dropped their elbow. Joe and Fred, Pulman, Horace Lindrum and later Spencer and to a lesser extent, Reardon. Another more modern day player who springs to mind who's elbow drops a lot is the former European Open Champ, Tony Jones, but he did use an unusually short cue.

[Terry Davidson]

I'm afraid there are some of you that just aren't getting it at all.

If you accept the fact that the cue must be kept on the same plane throughout the backswing and delivery then the elbow MUST drop in order to do that.

I think the confusion arises on the backswing portion because for most players (not Ronnie or Selby) on a shorter backswing the flexibility of the grip is all that's required to keep the cue on the same plane. If a player is drawing the cue back further, say over 6 inches, then the grip flexibility is not enough to keep the cue butt from rising a bit (7-10 degrees). Therefore when a player uses a long backswing he should attempt to keep the butt at the same height as otherwise he will end up with a 'scooping' motion with the tip of the cue and it will be rising as he approaches the cueball and he would need absolutely perfect coordination to hit the cueball at the desired height.

Also, starting with Joe Davis back in the 40's dropping the elbow on the delivery was a common thing as otherwise you would end up with the 'billiards player's flourish' where the tip of the cue comes off the bridge at the end of the delivery.

On the delivery, if you are doing the correct thing and not tightening the grip until the hand hits the chest then you also MUST drop the elbow, especially on a power shot. Thing about it, you have a cue weighing about the same as 5 snooker balls coming through at high acceleration and you're not going to grip the cue tighter until your thumb hits your chest. Just the weight of the cue will pull your arm through and in order to keep the cue as level as possible you again have to drop the elbow.

For example, on a power shot with an 8 inch backswing, the elbow will drop about one inch and on the delivery with a 10 inch follow-through the elbow should drop around 2 inches (although Joe Davis dropped his further because he had shorter arms PLUS he recommended using the loop bridge on power shots to stop the cue tip from rising at the end of the delivery).

Stopping, or decelerating the cue before the hand hits the chest causes the player to jerk on the shot and in order for the body to complete the power shot smoothly it's necessary to let nature take its course and allow the cue to complete the action and not stop until the back of the thumb hits the chest and squeezes the cue butt against the forefinger.

And Slasher...I would recommend you take another look at your video where you are practicing a table-length screw shot and tell us how much your elbow drops on those shots where you were accurate. My estimate is about 3 inches at least. I'm afraid it's a natural thing to do.

For those who ignore the elbow drop on delivery I would recommend they use the loop bridge (so their tip doesn't rise as it comes through the cueball and hits the lights) but they will be limited in the acceleration they can get through the cueball and thus have a limited choice when a real power shot is required.

Terry

[CoachGavin]

Just like to say that IMO ronnie, lee and murphy seem to drop the elbow much more than 2 inches on a power shot. From a front view their elbow disappears completely.

I agree that the elbow drop is needed to stop a player decelerating into the shot and I know Hendry and Davis did not do it at their peak but Davis did lack cue power and the overall standard is much higher now with most professionals dropping the elbow. Also a player who does drop their elbow tends to stroke the balls into the pockets rather than 'hitting' them which I think is a good thing.