Cue Hits Cushion Rail During Follow Through

[stjimmy18-1991]

Hello everyone.

I've noticed that sometimes, not every shot, but sometimes when i deliver the cue it will make contact with the cushion rail wood beneath it. I think this is because i drop my elbow and drive the cue through to my chest but surely hitting the rail seems a bit too drastic. Could i be dropping the elbow too early? Does anyone know the cause of this? I have no upper body movement at all (something im very proud of ) so it can't be that.

Thanks in advance

[Terry Davidson]

stjimmy:

It's not really a bad thing but it does damage the butt of the cue slightly. All it means is you are dropping the elbow a little too much. Check and see if in the address position you have about one chalk height between the butt and the rail. This is the ideal height and should prevent you hitting the rail except perhaps on the odd high-power shot where the tendency is to really drop the elbow severely to get more follow-through.

But still not a bad thing as it means you are very likely accelerating through the cueball very well and if that means a little dent in the butt of the cue then that's a small price to pay I think

Terry

[CoachGavin]

Just ask yourself what would you tell someone if they wanted to hit the rail......you would probably tell them to lower the butt. To do that would mean dropping the elbow. Here's your answer. Like you say you are probably dropping the cue below its original plane as you deliver it. Follow the cue plane on your delivery and you shouldn't strike the rail. It may be possible that you are dropping the cue butt because you are lifting it on the backswing so also check that you follow the plane on the backswing too. Hope that helps.