Sighting The Ball

[tommy_boi]

Just been looking at some snooker videos on youtube about sighting the ball, the guy says when doing this you should be looking at the object ball at all times while standing and not to look at the cue ball until you have put your hand on the table, this is something that i know i am not doing, i do look at the object ball when standing up, but as i get down to the shot i always focus on the cue ball, would this be a big reason why i am not always potting that great, or would it not make much difference to my game?.

[DeanH]

Sight the point on the object ball (i.e. the point of contact the cue all will hit the object ball in the direction you want it to go).
When you go down onto the table to address the cue ball, you can look at the cue ball to ensure you are hitting it in the correct place you want for the type of shot, THEN concentrate back to the point on the object ball, then deliver the cue as if the cue ball was not there ("follow through"), i.e. as if you want the cue to hit the object ball at the point you want. This in effect usually ensures you delivery the cue straight and the cue ball hits the required point.
well, saying that, it is easier to type this than to do so in actuality
but since I read (on TSF, mainly TD, but some others as well) about concentrating on the point of contact (sometimes called "BOB" (back of ball)) and deliver the cue as if the cue ball is not there, I have been striking the cue ball much better and getting some lovely pots in with good cue ball control as well.
Hopefully a coach will come on soon and explain better than me
good luck

[Redphex]

I don't understand why so often it is emphasized to look at the point of contact. Isn't it only with a straight shot that the point of contact is actually on the line of aim?

[DeanH]

I don't understand why so often it is emphasized to look at the point of contact. Isn't it only with a straight shot that the point of contact is actually on the line of aim?

The way I see it (sorry for the pun ) is that concentrating on one point (BOB), which I have assessed to the point on the object where the line of aim imaginatively hits the object ball, ensures that you delivery the cue along that line of aim.

[Redphex]

OK but this is not the point where the cue ball actually makes contact with the object ball. this is where my bewilderment with the use of "point of contact" came from.

[DeanH]

as I said, lets hope a coach will come on a explain better than I can
by the way, BOB is not necessarily the geometric point, but the point that you want the cue ball to hit the object to get the required movement, the line of aim is the line you want the cue ball to travel to get to that point.
I think ?

[alabadi]

I don't understand why so often it is emphasized to look at the point of contact. Isn't it only with a straight shot that the point of contact is actually on the line of aim?

the contact point on the object ball sometimes known as line of sight is different to the line of aim. the only time they are the same is on dead straight shots where you point the cue tip at the actual point of contact. for all other angles there is an offset.

for example for arguments sake lts say you have a 1/2 ball cut the line of aim will be actually pointing the cue to the edge of the object ball. where as the point of contact will be 1/4 ball in from the edge.

so when you are standing behind the shot you should look at the contact point line of sight and then look at the cue ball and find the line of aim that will send the cueball on its path to connect with that contact point.
get into your stance keeping your eye on the contact point as you get down. once your hand hits the table your flick your eyes to the cueball to check that your are actually cueing at the correct point you selected/decided when you were standing.

from now on you just keep your eyes focused on the contact point on the object ball and don't worry about where the cue is pointing this will take care of itself. as long as your technique is sound and u can deliver the cue straight you should be able to send the cueball on the line of aim to hit the object ball at the correct contact point for the pot.

Alabbadi

[vmax4steve]

as I said, lets hope a coach will come on a explain better than I can
by the way, BOB is not necessarily the geometric point, but the point that you want the cue ball to hit the object to get the required movement, the line of aim is the line you want the cue ball to travel to get to that point.
I think ?

Spot on DeanH

And keeping your eye on the contact point ensures the cue stays on the line of aim. For those that don't understand this despite it being explained many times on this forum, simply stop your internal dialogue, take it as gospel and watch you game improve as a result.

[nrage]

BOB is not necessarily the geometric point, but the point that you want the cue ball to hit the object to get the required movement

Just curious, what do you mean by geometric here? And what would be the geometric point?

Are you saying the center of the ghost ball is the geometric point, perhaps?

[DeanH]

If I undrstand it right, the geometric point would be the actual point of contact between the balls, but the point of "aim" and the line of aim and point of concentration will not necessarily that same point, ie for a relatively straight shot, they could very well be the same, but for angles that get finer, this wont be the same, and when the "ghost ball" will come into affect as the point of concentration.
Back to the OP, the point of concentration is not the cue ball but the object ball, whether that be the point of contact or ghost ball, this concrentration enusres the cue is delivered along the line of aim and with follow-through.

[Redphex]

lineofsight.png this is my graphic interpretation from what alabadi said.
which would also mean that I should not look where my cue is actually pointing to when delivering the cue.

[nrage]

If I undrstand it right, the geometric point would be the actual point of contact between the balls, but the point of "aim" and the line of aim and point of concentration will not necessarily that same point, ie for a relatively straight shot, they could very well be the same, but for angles that get finer, this wont be the same, and when the "ghost ball" will come into affect as the point of concentration.
Back to the OP, the point of concentration is not the cue ball but the object ball, whether that be the point of contact or ghost ball, this concrentration enusres the cue is delivered along the line of aim and with follow-through.

As I understand it BOB refers to the "geometric point", it is the point of contact between the balls, and what I concentrate on when I aim (to find the imaginary line of aim, or ghost ball/overlap).

So, for me BOB = contact point = geometric point = point of concentration but != line of aim, center of ghost ball (except on a dead straight shot).

[nrage]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]14039[/ATTACH] this is my interpretation from what alabadi said.
which would also mean that I should not look where my cue is actually pointing to when delivering the cue.

That is my interpretation also.

This is an interesting video about aiming and sighting:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bE1hnDmHhvc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zg2_b2NpvnM

Note - he is not suggesting you use these systems, he is just describing how you might define an aiming system and the things they have in common.

[Terry Davidson]

tommy:

To get back to your original question rather than all this stuff on geometric contact point.

You should keep your eyes on the object ball all the time when getting down into the address position as otherwise you may lose the line of aim since you are no longer looking at the reference point (the object ball). If you shift your eyes to the cueball before your bridge hand is on the table then you will have to re-acquire the correct line of aim when in the sighting position, however the sighting position does not provide the best perspective of the potting angle which is only provided when you are standing up behind the shot with a binocular view from height. This is also why coaches recommend you drop the head straight down.

Once in the address position you then check the cueball and see if the tip (and 'V' of the bridge) is centered on the cueball or at least at the point you want to hit. Where this becomes a problem though is when there's a chance you might foul another ball with the bridge hand so in that case what I do is check the cueball halfway down into the address position to ensure I'm clear and then switch back to the object ball when I still have a bit of height with the eyes.

For newer players not looking at the cueball as they get down is a source of confusion since they don't understand how they can find the centre of the cueball without looking at it so therefore are certain they will not place the bridge hand correctly behind the cueball. All I can say to this is with experience a player will naturally get to the centre of the cueball as it is in his peripheral vision and it will become automatic.

Terry

[alabadi]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]14039[/ATTACH] this is my graphic interpretation from what alabadi said.
which would also mean that I should not look where my cue is actually pointing to when delivering the cue.

That's right, I think all coaches would advise not to look at where your cue is pointing. U should be looking at BOB. This is because the arm will follow the eyes.

If you take any cut angle less than half ball your cue is pointing into thin air, so in that case what will u be looking at.