How to keep up the Timing in Snooker.

[beebokhan]

Hi,
I am playing snooker from past 8 years and have 2 centuries so far. The problem is i cant keep up good timing for long, its like all of a sudden my timing goes out.
please help me out on this.

[Terry Davidson]

Your question is a bit too general. In order to help you with what's happening you will have to be more specific and tell us what actually happens.

If it's your rhythm then ensure you use both a front and rear pause. The front pause (0.5 to 1 sec) is in the address position just before your final (slow) backswing and of course the rear pause (0.5sec) is at the end of that slow backswing before you start your delivery.

Ensure your backswing is long enough to delivery the power you require for the shot (just in case you are shortening your backswing as your timing gets worse).

Remember to develop ONE swing thought. An example would be 'KEEP EVERYTHING SMOOTH', or 'KEEP CHIN ON CUE', or 'DRIVE THROUGH AND BEYOND THE CUEBALL'.

Terry

[Wayne G]

Remember to develop ONE swing thought. An example would be 'KEEP EVERYTHING SMOOTH', or 'KEEP CHIN ON CUE', or 'DRIVE THROUGH AND BEYOND THE CUEBALL'.

Terry,

When do you implement the one swing thought? Just before the front pause or during pauses? Thanks.

[liquidsymphony]

i think you should try to record yourself with a cam . video never lie ! it's really helpfull and you'll see immediatly what's wrong : not long enough pauses , short cue action , ... etc
every players as they get older change unintentionaly and slowly their playing , stance or else.

[Terry Davidson]

wayneG:

Everything Smooth and Chin On Cue would be at the front pause before the final backswing and the Drive Through and Beyond could be either at the front pause or even better done at the rear pause (which I will be trying out today to see how it goes).

liquid:

You are ABSOLUTELY right! EVERY player will experiment with different this and different that and this is usually as you play longer. I find the younger players just get down and hit the ball and never think about technique (which is not really a bad thing as they are perfectly natural) but as a player gets older (and this includes the pros) they start to think 'well maybe if I tried this it might add 14 points to my game' or 'gee - I don't have a rear pause like most of the top pros so maybe I should try and get one as I think I will be a better player' (read Terry Davidson here).

A video camera and a decent playback software system where you can watch either frame-by-frame or else super slow motion will immediately show the player what's going wrong. Another great thing is the 360 Trainer by Gravity Cue which also gives instant feedback if your grip is too tight or backswing/delivery too fast or if you have some upper body movement enough to throw the cue off-line.

Terry

[liquidsymphony]

terry could you tell me more 'bout this 360 trainer by gravity ? you can PM me if you want , i'm really curious about that system ( never heard of it before )
thx

[Terry Davidson]

liquid:

Go to 'gravitycues.com' and all the details are there. It's a cue with a spring just above the butt which will break if there's anything wrong with the backswing or delivery. It's especially effective for those players who tighten the grip too early in the delivery (which is one heck of a lot of players) and as it gives instant feedback you can work out quickly why the cue is breaking and solve the problem.

I use it a lot with my students and myself since it will tell me everything I need to know to get my grip correct and consistent. For instance, if you're trying to screw a ball and get less screw than you expected it will be because you tightened the grip too early and the cue broke with the tip rising before it hit the cueball so the player will know he has to work on not tightening the grip until well after the cueball has been struck.

It makes it very useful with students as it shows them right away where they'rfe going wrong.

Terry

[beebokhan]

Thanks Terry, I was expecting your reply.
I am new to the site and this is my first post here but i have read most of your replies and appreciate your knowledge and concern to help players. Also i would like to thank Wayne and all the other members who is helping players by their posts.
What i want to share is whatever i have learnt in snooker i did it by myself with the help of snooker videos.
Earlier i wasn't very serious about snooker but from past 3 years i am very serious about it.
I never knew what timing is and what should be the perfect stance and all but after learning through the videos i figured that every player has his groove of playing snooker and you have to find that groove. i found my groove after some time and it was a great feeling, i feel like clearing the table all the time and time the ball really well but the problem is i can't stay in my groove for long. I don't know i might sound silly but this is happening to me and i am struggling from past 3 years. Its like i get it back and after few days if goes away by itself. Please help me out.

[liquidsymphony]

many thx terry . really fascinating system .

[Terry Davidson]

beebokhan:

Sorry, there are just too many things that can happen which will cause a player to lose his rhythm and timing and I will not sit here and try and type out every one. In other words, your question is still too general for any coach to answer.

You have 2 options if you want to solve this. Best option is to go and see a good coach and have him check your technique and see what is causing the timing to go. The next best option is to video yourself WHEN YOU'RE HAVING THIS PROBLEM and then get the video up on youtube and send us a link to it so we can actually see what's happening.

We cannot coach blindly in this format. You will have to give us specific items regarding the timing. In most cases the problem is you are not driving the cue through the cueball once you get a little tired. Try and accelerate through and beyond the cueball, driving the grip hand into the chest.

Another solution would be to purchase a 360 Training Cue which gives you instant feedback (I have no financial interest in the 360 Trainer)

Terry

[liquidsymphony]

beebokhan after having read many post from terry you can trust him as he seem's really to have huge knowledge of the game . posting a video on youtube is a great idea

Another solution would be to purchase a 360 Training Cue which gives you instant feedback (I have no financial interest in the 360 Trainer)

Terry

terry even if you had financial interest in the 360 trainer we would still respect your knowledge and you involvment