The Les Edwards Snooker Challenge Thread

[lesedwards]

Out of interest, parris champion cue?

JP Exclusive.

[alabadi]

Les , that last video you posted , your follow through is still short, you are trying to hit the cueball rather than stroke it, the idea of holding the cue lightly should help with getting through the cueball, try and get your bridge closer and as Pottr said imagine the white isn't there or is a bubble and you trying to push straight through it.

you are almost stopping a the white. you have to relax , over exaggerate the looseness of the grip, hold it as if t will slide out of your hand and try and hit a few like that. don't worry it won't come out of your hand you are not going to hit it hard.

you need to get the feel of the shot and that can only be achieved if you hold the cue lightly

[alabadi]

just seen the video from Pottr impressive cueing not so on the camera work, i got a good look at the carpet though..lol.

boooo to the pic on the wall. that's coming from the Liverpool fan in me.

it would be good if you mount the camera higher and static on top of something so we can get a good look at the way you play the shots, nevertheless it seed you had very good cueball control.

i have found this routine challenging, i spent a few hours today, the best i could manage was 17 , it was more mentally challenging, the repetitive nature of it is what i found hard to master. most shots are similar and one can play the shot several ways and this is what got me. i wasn't able to get precise position even though i landed a few times exactly where i have been a few shots earlier.

maybe i was a bit tired it was around midnight , so i will have to try again in a few days. and see if i can better what i got

[lesedwards]

Les , that last video you posted , your follow through is still short, you are trying to hit the cueball rather than stroke it, the idea of holding the cue lightly should help with getting through the cueball, try and get your bridge closer and as Pottr said imagine the white isn't there or is a bubble and you trying to push straight through it.

you are almost stopping a the white. you have to relax , over exaggerate the looseness of the grip, hold it as if t will slide out of your hand and try and hit a few like that. don't worry it won't come out of your hand you are not going to hit it hard.

you need to get the feel of the shot and that can only be achieved if you hold the cue lightly

I felt when I posted that video I was following miles through. I am totaly lost now and I guess maybe as somone posted I have reached my potential. There are a lot of players with these great looking long back swings but it feels so awkward for me. I try to get my bridge hand closer but the closer I get the closer I am to the CB and then I cannot get my chin close to the cue. I have a real bad setup that cannot be changed a whole lot because of my arm. See my wrist also has very limited movement so it is all kind of a mechanical setup. There is nothing relaxed about it as my right arm is all tensed up and any shot a foot off the rail are tough as I have to balance my palm off the table and keep it steady as my wrist won't bend to get a solid bridge on the table. I have to play a totaly different game then you guys. Same as I do when I play golf, all hunched over to enable me to grip the club with my right hand as I play golf right handed.
Bring on the next Challenge Ted my best was 13

[alabadi]

your bridge hand shouldn't stop you following through. most of the action should come from the elbow of your cueing arm. yo don't have to have a long backswing, however you should leave enough room between you grip hand and chest when in the address position so when you push the cue through to your chest you get through the cueball.

next time when you practice take a look at the distance between your grip and chest you should have between 4-6 inches at least, if not adjust you grip by either taking it back a bit or move your bridge hand forward.

i understand that u have a problem with your bridge arm, however it shouldn't interfere that much with you cueing arm in terms of movement.

[guernseygooner]

Your arm is still way behind vertical. The backswing has nowhere to go. As alabadi said this is nothing to do with your dodgy arm.

Forget challenges, waste of time at the moment and get this sorted because that jabbawocky action will never be reliable in a match and a year down the line this thread will still be going.

[guernseygooner]

I felt when I posted that video I was following miles through. I am totaly lost now and I guess maybe as somone posted I have reached my potential. There are a lot of players with these great looking long back swings but it feels so awkward for me. I try to get my bridge hand closer but the closer I get the closer I am to the CB and then I cannot get my chin close to the cue. I have a real bad setup that cannot be changed a whole lot because of my arm. See my wrist also has very limited movement so it is all kind of a mechanical setup. There is nothing relaxed about it as my right arm is all tensed up and any shot a foot off the rail are tough as I have to balance my palm off the table and keep it steady as my wrist won't bend to get a solid bridge on the table. I have to play a totaly different game then you guys. Same as I do when I play golf, all hunched over to enable me to grip the club with my right hand as I play golf right handed.
Bring on the next Challenge Ted my best was 13

No point getting the bridge closer if you are not adjusting your grip hand.

[itsnoteasy]

I felt when I posted that video I was following miles through. I am totaly lost now and I guess maybe as somone posted I have reached my potential. There are a lot of players with these great looking long back swings but it feels so awkward for me. I try to get my bridge hand closer but the closer I get the closer I am to the CB and then I cannot get my chin close to the cue. I have a real bad setup that cannot be changed a whole lot because of my arm. See my wrist also has very limited movement so it is all kind of a mechanical setup. There is nothing relaxed about it as my right arm is all tensed up and any shot a foot off the rail are tough as I have to balance my palm off the table and keep it steady as my wrist won't bend to get a solid bridge on the table. I have to play a totaly different game then you guys. Same as I do when I play golf, all hunched over to enable me to grip the club with my right hand as I play golf right handed.
Bring on the next Challenge Ted my best was 13

So you just don't do it? Surely it should be a case of work on it until I can do it, I don't get this attitude at all. What GG said is bang on ,you can't pull the cue back if your arm is way behind vertical as its already in the pull back position, because of this you get a very short quick snatchy action as you only have a couple of inches travel to get your cue up to speed so it has to all be done very quickly.

[vmax4steve]

There you go.
https://bambuser.com/v/5286703

I can't see any reason why this stroke can't come through straight Les. Sure you have a long bridge and your cue arm is behind the vertical but this game is different strokes for different folks and you can pot OK with yours. You don't twitch or move on the stroke and providing your eyes are on the object ball at the beginning and end of the shot making process you should be able to pot more consistantly.

Forget this forum for a month or two, forget all this advise that your cue action is all wrong and simply get it into your head that you miss only because you take your eye off the object ball at crucial moments, when getting down into the stance and again on the delivery stroke.
Play practise frames against yourself as much as you can and every time you miss tell yourself that you took your eye off the object ball and remember not to do it next time and carry on.

You don't have to stare at it until you get cross eyed and it goes out of focus, but you need to do a bit more than just look in its general direction. You have to be relaxed about it too, don't be too hard on yourself, you're trying something that doesn't come naturally to you but in order to pot balls you have to look at the target and this has to come first before you tackle anything else.

Try a regimented approach where you do precise things by numbers like

1) stand behind the shot, look at the contact point on the object ball and then at the cue ball and then back to the object ball
2) quick glance to the cue ball as you place your left foot on the line of aim
3) switch eyes to the object ball as you place you right foot and get down into your stance
4) quick glance to the cue ball when you address your tip to it and start your feathers
5) look back at the object ball
6) look back at the cue ball, front pause
7) look again to the object ball, focus on the contact point and keep your eyes on it as you pull the cue back and deliver it forward.

Get a routine like this going and stick to it, because if you don't naturally look at the object ball when you should you have to instill something like this into your method and repeat until it becomes almost second nature. It won't ever be natural to you Les as you have started the game far too late in life, but you can get a regimented approach to work if you are strong willed enough.

[lesedwards]

Thanks guys for all your input. This morning I am going down to do what coach TD says and also others. Put a light pencil mark on the shaft and a Peice of tape on the butt end. I know my arm is way past parallel at times thus the reason when I deliver the cue my hand cannot drive to my chest. My question is your cue hand is never in the same position depending on where the CB is on the table. So I take it you start with a normal shot like shooting the yellow across the baulk line and mark the tape. Also I noticed my grip hand is still not parallel to my arm which TD has tried to get me to change. I will be setting my video up just so I can watch my cueing. I will get there because I am determined to get there.

[Terry Davidson]

Thanks guys for all your input. This morning I am going down to do what coach TD says and also others. Put a light pencil mark on the shaft and a Peice of tape on the butt end. I know my arm is way past parallel at times thus the reason when I deliver the cue my hand cannot drive to my chest. My question is your cue hand is never in the same position depending on where the CB is on the table. So I take it you start with a normal shot like shooting the yellow across the baulk line and mark the tape. Also I noticed my grip hand is still not parallel to my arm which TD has tried to get me to change. I will be setting my video up just so I can watch my cueing. I will get there because I am determined to get there.

Les:

The important point is this...in the address position (anywhere on the table) the grip arm forearm should be vertical. You should grip the cue in different locations when the cueball is somewhere where you can't grip the cue in your normal place (where the tape is). For instance, when playing off the cushion or near to the cushion you have to choke up on the cue.

To get everything right, place the cueball about 6" in front of the brown spot and get down into the address position as if you were going to shoot the spots. Place the cue so you have about 12" between the 'V' of your bridge and the back of the cueball (NOT 12" from the tip). Now adjust your grip hand until the forearm is exactly vertical and place the tape at the front of your grip.

But before you do that get your grip adjusted so you don't have the hand slanted forward as you are doing now. Make sure you have the wrist cocked out a bit but you don't need to have the back of the palm tight against the butt of the cue (this is why your grip is slanted forward). Hold the cue nearer the fingertips but be sure to keep the thumb vertical and pointed at the floor.

Try and get comfortable with a backswing of somewhere around 5-6". I know you've tried this before with little success however I think what you actually did is try it for a few shots or maybe a few frames and decided you didn't like it and went back to your short 2-3" backswing. Les...in order to make a change in technique a player HAS TO STICK WITH IT for at least 2 weeks, not 2 frames.

Remember to keep the grip loose and in this case of changing the technique start out with the grip overly loose so it feels you have no control over the cue. You do have control but initially it will feel very strange to you but keep with it for awhile.

[lesedwards]

Les:

The important point is this...in the address position (anywhere on the table) the grip arm forearm should be vertical. You should grip the cue in different locations when the cueball is somewhere where you can't grip the cue in your normal place (where the tape is). For instance, when playing off the cushion or near to the cushion you have to choke up on the cue.

To get everything right, place the cueball about 6" in front of the brown spot and get down into the address position as if you were going to shoot the spots. Place the cue so you have about 12" between the 'V' of your bridge and the back of the cueball (NOT 12" from the tip). Now adjust your grip hand until the forearm is exactly vertical and place the tape at the front of your grip.

But before you do that get your grip adjusted so you don't have the hand slanted forward as you are doing now. Make sure you have the wrist cocked out a bit but you don't need to have the back of the palm tight against the butt of the cue (this is why your grip is slanted forward). Hold the cue nearer the fingertips but be sure to keep the thumb vertical and pointed at the floor.

Try and get comfortable with a backswing of somewhere around 5-6". I know you've tried this before with little success however I think what you actually did is try it for a few shots or maybe a few frames and decided you didn't like it and went back to your short 2-3" backswing. Les...in order to make a change in technique a player HAS TO STICK WITH IT for at least 2 weeks, not 2 frames.

Remember to keep the grip loose and in this case of changing the technique start out with the grip overly loose so it feels you have no control over the cue. You do have control but initially it will feel very strange to you but keep with it for awhile.

Okay I will give it a go. I will just shoot the spots and take a video from the side position to see what everything looks like. I know J6 says I spend too much time with my videos but if he lived where I live and played like I do he would do the same. If I lived across the pond I would have weekly coaching.

[Leo]

Okay I will give it a go. I will just shoot the spots and take a video from the side position to see what everything looks like. I know J6 says I spend too much time with my videos but if he lived where I live and played like I do he would do the same. If I lived across the pond I would have weekly coaching.

Its because of your videos that people can advise you Les, without them it would be all guess work.

[lesedwards]

Its because of your videos that people can advise you Les, without them it would be all guess work.

With in the hour I will give this a go. I know I can do it and I think that's what upsets TD as he has seen me do it. Like potting long blues and screwing back into baulk after a half hour of coaching with TD at my house on my old table.

[lesedwards]

Here I am back to basics..... Time to get it right because I am not going back here again....LOL
Also not on video I potted 10 straight blues in a row from baulk line. While everything was up loading.

https://bambuser.com/v/5288378
https://bambuser.com/v/5288346
https://bambuser.com/v/5288462