'Dominant' Eye Disaster

[Nic Barrow]

If, to improve driving skills, a driving instructor asked a student to do the following what would you say?:
1. Pick up a pen to write something.
2. Now - the hand that did not pick up the pen should NOT touch the steering wheel at all because the 'dominant' hand is obviously the best one to use to steer!

This is the trap a lot of us fall into with aiming - force the eye to choose one over the other, then ignore the other eye completely!

This explains it a bit better:
http://www.thesnookergym.com/dominanteyedisaster

Go to 2min 58 of this video for a usefull exercise to accurately select the preferred eye...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GdXiC0WStZ4

Happy New Year Guys.
Nic

[cuemaxx]

Happy New Year to you too!
Interesting subject this. I like the tip using the diamant shape with youre hands to find out wich eye you are using.

[Strickimicki]

The good looking guy in the video is me.

A quick word to the footage,

even though we did get through the problem of me trying to bring my eye over the cue, things still weren't as I know they can be. I've spent many hours of trying to find the cause of me heart ache, and the conclusion is!
It's a concentration thing: On a good day you don't have to concentrate to hard it just happens. You get down on the shot and everything is super, no double checking, no problems lining things up, just look at the object-ball and let fire. On other days you have to concentrate until your head is fit to burst, and things still are not perfect but sort of OK. Again on other days, you can do what you like and nothing fits together (It's here when you start fiddling with Grip, Stance, Head movement, and other things which in the long run don't help).

The more adapt players out there do aim with a certain eye, call it dominant or preferred eye as you like. But they don't have the problems I do with knowing if they are aiming with that eye or not (I can not tell with which eye I am aiming with until I've fired the shot). I know this probably sounds like I'm a total idiot but I can live with that
Anyway the proof of the matter is: When I'm having one of my good days (hours), I can pot the balls into any pocket from nearly anywhere. And that with my cue under my left eye, right eye, middle of chin, probably between the cheeks or my arse (not tried that yet).

Here just a tip from me,

when you get down on the shot, whatever things look like, no matter if it looks out of line (it probably isn't), concentrate on the point of the object-ball you want to hit and take the shot. Ignore the doubt, believe it's right even if it looks wrong, cue straight and believe everything is as it should be. This should help matters, try this in practice before match play as I can't give any guarantees.

I asked John Higgins once, "What do you do if you just stop seeing the balls as you normally do?" He answered "Pray" LOL

[nrage]

IMO, on a bad day, I do 2 things wrong. 1. Grip the cue too tight. 2. Stop aiming. The latter sounds mad/bizarre but it's actually true. I think I'm aiming, but when I get down on the shot I've gotten down in the wrong place. That comes from not picking and focusing on the target spot on the object ball before walking into the shot. Once down, things don't "look right" and even if I try and just play the shot I will miss. It's far better for me to get back up and concentrate on the target spot, and really aim the shot.

Sounds like we might be different.. but this might be worth considering.

[Erwan_BZH]

I watched the video carefully the other day and found it really interesting. I tried to apply this 'eye dominance' theory a while back but with mixed success. Sometimes I pot everything, sometimes nothing....but more often, it's the second Now, I've noticed something rather strange. When I started snooker, I used to play even sighted because this what seemed the most logical to me. Then I shifted a bit to the right as my right eye is my dominant one....and since then, I've never achieved the consistency I am looking for. Of course, it's not the only reason of my poor play recently (I'll post something on it later I think) but this video may be a start for an explanation...Maybe I should bring my cue back to the left, toward the middle of the chin.

[Sidd]

Very right Nrage as it happens to me as well at times. I think I am aiming but I am not. Maybe that is the time to get the focus back. As for the dominant eye, of course its important but not the last resort I mean one can still live with it and play the best snooker possible without getting the master eye really.

As Nic mentioned above, teaching which hand to touch the steering. I think it does not really matter all that much and as Terry mentioned to me; one can forget about it and do the normal stance and let the brain teach one to use the master eye without altering much of the things.

For instance I am left handed and have a left master eye. I play with one foot forward stance. Now in order to play with my master eye the adjustment that I have to make is as under:

- Either run the chin to the right of the cue and not under it or develop a square on stance and tilt the head to the right. The former would render me the risk of running the cue away from the body unintentionally and the latter would tilt my head but then I have a cylendrical eyesight and wear glasses and would tend to deform the focal length. Hence the best thing is to remain somewhat straight and like I normally do and just use the left eye a little more thna the right one by focusing just a fraction more with the left and leave the rest to the brain to train...

[limecc]

Interesting. Can do your nut in getting the eyes right so I don't bother any more, too many dummies to concentrate on especially on approach to the table, tip to white, chest to cue etc..

For many years I've worn contact lenses, and started because of snooker. As I've got older I noticed increasing difficulty focussing on near objects or reading. The opticians answer is to deliberately wear different strength lenses so I have one eye for near, the other for far, and the brain adapts accordingly.

For my part, I think the importance of this dominent eye thing is vastly over-rated. Get the cue in the centre of the chin as in the model stance and get working on what you perceive to be holding you back most.

[Sidd]

Exactly Limecc....