Plain ball all the time - nonsense

[alabadi]

I use side when its needed, however i think the coaches who say don't use side, its for beginners. because unless they can hit center and pot accurately they really wouldn't be sure of the cueball reaction when playing side and therefore when they miss they wouldn't be sure if it was side or any other fault with their game.

i was told by a coach once not to use side until yo are a regular 50 break player, and when using it to use it sparingly.

but i guess its upto the individual and there are plenty of players who use it almost on every shot , which i find bizarre, nevertheless its their choice. who am i to argue

[lesedwards]

I use side when its needed, however i think the coaches who say don't use side, its for beginners. because unless they can hit center and pot accurately they really wouldn't be sure of the cueball reaction when playing side and therefore when they miss they wouldn't be sure if it was side or any other fault with their game.

i was told by a coach once not to use side until yo are a regular 50 break player, and when using it to use it sparingly.

but i guess its upto the individual and there are plenty of players who use it almost on every shot , which i find bizarre, nevertheless its their choice. who am i to argue

They call it helping side. Maybe I should try it I need all the help I can get.... basically Cliff explained it the best way he hits it about a tip width to the opposite side of where he is hitting the ball so in other words if he is hitting a ball to the left he uses a touch of right hand side. He says it helps to make it.

[Chappy5]

i was told by a coach once not to use side until yo are a regular 50 break player, and when using it to use it sparingly.

Same as me.

You really need to be a seriously good player to use it often and by seriously good i reckon a 50 break average is unders!

I rarely use it and while i am not that good and do not pretend to be ( poor break average here and highest break of 52 ever on a 12ft table ) hitting with side is just so hard to control when potting the ball. 9 times out of 10 i will get the perfect action on the Cue ball but miss the pot and the Cues also come into it as some throw a heap and i am still trying to find my " Perfect " Cue for me in this regard.

I like all my Cues but they all play differently and i am yet to be " In love " so to speak with one!! When i get my MW legend with the Blackspin Ferrule system i may find it but right now i am still searching!

My 2c anyway but there are many more qualified opinions on here than what i have to say!

[Tred]

I remember Eddie Charlton being one of the biggest advocates of centre-ball striking.

He explains it in his commentary on his own Pot Black century break in this video.

http://youtu.be/YXcSBtrTlNE

[Chappy5]

I remember Eddie Charlton being one of the biggest advocates of centre-ball striking.

He explains it in his commentary on his own Pot Black century break in this video.

http://youtu.be/YXcSBtrTlNE

Yep.

There is also a video on here of guy using a broom FFS in a line up drill to score a 70 break with center ball striking every time.

[Leo]

Yep.

There is also a video on here of guy using a broom FFS in a line up drill to score a 70 break with center ball striking every time.

Next time you get up the club pick yourself a broom up, get a line up setup, and you will be very surprised what you knock in

[Chappy5]

Next time you get up the club pick yourself a broom up, get a line up setup, and you will be very surprised what you knock in

lol

[thelongbomber]

They call it helping side. Maybe I should try it I need all the help I can get.... basically Cliff explained it the best way he hits it about a tip width to the opposite side of where he is hitting the ball so in other words if he is hitting a ball to the left he uses a touch of right hand side. He says it helps to make it.

I'm in the camp of not using unless needed and I agree with Alabadi. Cliff using side every shot is a shocker to me and out of respect, I won't comment. CJ Wiley, with all due respect to his skill, it's laughable bollocks. I believe centre ball MUST be endured and practiced to some reasonable level. It's the starting point that any amateur should understand.

Why? If you can have faith in centre ball, IT will show YOU where your alignment and sighting issues are so it's a great fundamental skill to develop and really go after on the practice table for a few months. I did centre ball practising for 6 months before I started landing regular 50+ breaks and I can tell you it's incredibly enlightening to on so many levels. Centre ball will show you things you didn't even realize was possible. It will also show you the natural 90 degree tangent lines and much more.

Most important of all, centre ball will always save you on the key shot or the shot to win. I can't imaging using helping side now to pot balls (I did before) and I would feel like I have gone backwards if I did.

[Byrom]

Ok lets me put some of these myths to bed - first of all you can hit plain ball and do the line up as there are various reds to play onto Nick barrow also does this on a video I saw - secondly that same guy who makes 70 doing this can in fact make a max though on the line up as I saw him do a max video with a normal cue and he did not hit everything plain ball. Also if someone is using a touch of inside - it is hard to detect on TV or video unless you are close up.

Secondly Alabardi - that is his point of view not to teach using side until you can make a 50 then I don't agree with your coach who said that or indeed any coach who does say this - they think they are correct because they read it in a book somewhere but they are not correct they are plain ball wrong - I think it is easier to make breaks if you learn someone of someone who can use side and explain what it does and stuff - you can find your own way on this too - what does a coach do with pupils who naturally do this to pot balls - does he tell them to stop?

Eddie Charlton - what did he win again - more than Cliff was it? More than Robertson or was he better than any of the top 32 today? Lot of coaching dinosaurs out there teaching this stuff because they read it in a book - they are wrong I think.

Let me say this to any coaches or players out there in Canada - who don't get it yet? - Why are you questioning the methods of the best player you ever had in the history of your countries existence over the thoughts of anyone else?

Because personally I would listen more closely to the guy who has won the events like the world title the masters title and had the televised 147's

[thelongbomber]

Followup to my previous post. Can someone make a big break WITHOUT side? I very much doubt it. The only way I can see you using centre ball on all shots was if you got PERFECT position on every shot and ONLY needed centre ball. How often does that happen? Incredibly rare, I would suggest. Mayyyybeee if you are completely in the zone and already were playing well that day or many days prior AND it was a perfect environment AND you made a big break, then MAYBE you could hit centre ball for a big break.

For everyone else, sometimes side is needed to re-position the cue ball for the next shot, but it should continue to be respected and used sparingly. Laziness might be the reason to use side, but under pressure, it will very often fail you.

[Byrom]

Ok so you sure now? Use sparingly and all that?

So a pupil comes to you and he naturally uses a touch of inside left to pot to the right and visa versa do you tell him -cut it out?

[alabadi]

Ok so you sure now? Use sparingly and all that?

So a pupil comes to you and he naturally uses a touch of inside left to pot to the right and visa versa do you tell him -cut it out?

why would you use side if you are not hitting a cushion, also when you say inside left to pot to the right. do you mean the pockets to the right. i say this this because i would imagine if you put some left hand side on the cueball it will squirt slightly right which in effect push the cueball left. which if you didn't adjust the aiming you could hit the OB thin.

i have seen pros use a bit of side on just off straight shots, but usually the would you opposite side to where the OB is going just to counter the just off straight shot

[thelongbomber]

Ok so you sure now? Use sparingly and all that?

So a pupil comes to you and he naturally uses a touch of inside left to pot to the right and visa versa do you tell him -cut it out?

No, I make the student understand this: the balls are round, the table is flat and the cue is a wooden stick with something softer at the end to allow you to spin and move the cue ball around with precision. The fundamentals are 95% physics and physiology and 5% feel and touch (the x-factor).

Nobody "naturally" uses a touch of inside to pot balls, they do it because they either were told to do it, or found it by mistake or through experimentation. If the student pursues the game much more deeply to truly understand it, they MIGHT question using side to pot balls, or they might not and just use it for the rest of their playing career.

Is it wrong or right? Well, I suppose it's neither wrong or right if they can produce results: knock in big breaks and have a complete game with safety and more in order to win.

The way I see it though, mostly centre ball will be more reliable and easier to use and allow for much more consistency. I can come to a table cold and knock in long balls and make a break.

[lesedwards]

why would you use side if you are not hitting a cushion, also when you say inside left to pot to the right. do you mean the pockets to the right. i say this this because i would imagine if you put some left hand side on the cueball it will squirt slightly right which in effect push the cueball left. which if you didn't adjust the aiming you could hit the OB thin.

i have seen pros use a bit of side on just off straight shots, but usually the would you opposite side to where the OB is going just to counter the just off straight shot

Yes if you are making a pink off the spot to the left pocket you would use a touch of right side.

[Byrom]

Yes if you are making a pink off the spot to the left pocket you would use a touch of right side.

Les Edwards 1 rest of Canada 0