Dominant Eye/Opposite Hand

[Terry Davidson]

First of all I agree with vmax (which is amazing considering our history) and I also agree with pottr. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind (and in a lot of other coach's minds too) that we aim when standing behind the shot. There just isn't any other way to accurately get the correct line of aim as you get the best perspective of a shot when standing behind it and if your pre-shot routine is good then you align the body on that selected line of aim.

Then you drop your head straight down on that line of aim and as ALL coaches say you DO NOT start shifting your body alignment when down on the shot. This is where the player is SIGHTING the shot, ideally looking along the cue just the same as sighting a rifle. If, in this SIGHTING position, which is the ADDRESS POSITION you feel you've selected the wrong line of aim YOU DO NOT SHUFFLE YOUR FEET OR UPPER BODY but you DO get back up again and repeat the process. Steve Davis did this all the time especially on shots to closed pockets where the line of aim has to be exact and I've noticed some of the other pros like Muphy and ROS stand back up again and re-set themselves.

For inevermissblue please try this and see how it goes...when standing behind the shot force yourself to not look at the object ball at all (it already sounds silly doesn't it?) and get right down into the address position before setting your feet and upper body and then adjust your line of aim to how you see it in the address position. I doubt very much you will make a lot of pots that way because even though you may do it quicker than other players even you will select your LINE OF AIM while standing behind the shot and if you're a good player you will likely drop your head straight down on that line of aim but it sounds to me as if you probably adjust your line of aim while down in the address position, something which every coach and the majority of good players will disagree with.

But then again it's very nice to know there is an expert on here like yourself who knows everything regarding snooker technique based on the fact that you are a good player (I don't know, just guessing). Even the best players in the world seek out coaches and take their advice.

[tedisbill]

Is it possibly semantics that's the problem here.

I will aim standing behind the shot, pick the line, walk in and get down on the cue. Then once I'm down, I would say I'm still "aiming". I'm making sure that I hit a precise point on the object ball. If I wasn't doing that, I could just close my eyes once I was down.

It's exactly like a guy shooting a sniper rifle. He would get down in the direction of the target 2 miles away, and then the difference between a head shot and a shoulder shot, would be tiny. You wouldn't even be able to see him move if you were observing him. But I'm saying that guy is still aiming there. I think "sighting", is misleading.

[tomwalker147]

Is it possibly semantics that's the problem here.

I will aim standing behind the shot, pick the line, walk in and get down on the cue. Then once I'm down, I would say I'm still "aiming". I'm making sure that I hit a precise point on the object ball. If I wasn't doing that, I could just close my eyes once I was down.

It's exactly like a guy shooting a sniper rifle. He would get down in the direction of the target 2 miles away, and then the difference between a head shot and a shoulder shot, would be tiny. You wouldn't even be able to see him move if you were observing him. But I'm saying that guy is still aiming there. I think "sighting", is misleading.

Completely agree with the above! I personally feel i'm aiming until I've played the shot. We're all guilty from time to time of changing our minds on a shot at the last minute, part of that must be down to aiming surely?

[pottr]

I really dislike this 'natural vs unnatural' debate which is used to justify certain nuances in technique...

I've been called a natural on this forum... I assure you all, it's not the case... I was **** poor when I begun and I practiced an absolute shed load to get to the standard I am now

[markz]

I really dislike this 'natural vs unnatural' debate which is used to justify certain nuances in technique...

I've been called a natural on this forum... I assure you all, it's not the case... I was **** poor when I begun and I practiced an absolute shed load to get to the standard I am now

I agree pottr, my mates all say I'm the most naturally gifted amongst them. Amazing with being such a natural player that I'm the only one putting all the hours in at the practice table.

For me the game is all about repetition, if your comfortable with technique and can deliver the cue straight on the correct line of aim that you have chosen your not gonna go far wrong. I have no idea what my dominant eye is and until recently I wouldn't even concentrate on the object ball because your mind just gets used to working things out. Any problems I've had with my game is from over analysis and then all sorts of doubts creep in. Happy to keep it as simple as possible, less stress!

[tomwalker147]

I agree pottr, my mates all say I'm the most naturally gifted amongst them. Amazing with being such a natural player that I'm the only one putting all the hours in at the practice table.

For me the game is all about repetition, if your comfortable with technique and can deliver the cue straight on the correct line of aim that you have chosen your not gonna go far wrong. I have no idea what my dominant eye is and until recently I wouldn't even concentrate on the object ball because your mind just gets used to working things out. Any problems I've had with my game is from over analysis and then all sorts of doubts creep in. Happy to keep it as simple as possible, less stress!

Repetition repetition repetition.... key for any sport! I remember missing just off straight pinks into the middle in a couple of matches (on tight star tables but no excuse) so the next few times I practised I dedicated 20/30 minutes to that shot, until I couldn't remember the misses. I have a fair amount of natural talent, but have made subtle changes and put in a hell of a lot of practice to be able to play the game to a half decent standard now.


As Pottr mentions above he has worked his proverbials off in practice and that's true, i've witnessed it. I know that for all the natural talent he has, if he is struggling there are technical fundamentals he falls back on to get back to playing well!

[tetricky]

I really dislike this 'natural vs unnatural' debate which is used to justify certain nuances in technique...

I've been called a natural on this forum... I assure you all, it's not the case... I was **** poor when I begun and I practiced an absolute shed load to get to the standard I am now

Sure, my point is that while practicing what I thought was right for many years, did not make me any better. What I was doing, mimicking by sight what others did, was only part of the necessary process. when I learned what to actually do for me, and understand the process better, I improved with less practice. Practice faults all you want, and there's a glass ceiling at every level. Snooker clubs are full of people doing exactly that. It's not 'natural'...but some people naturally get down in a position that is workable...I didn't.

Often people who have less talent, understand the process better than people who are better players...because they have to in order to get something approaching average out of themselves. You see it in every sport. No amount of practice will make me a pro. Not at any point. I don't have the touch, feel, and precision. I haven't got 'it'.

[Terry Davidson]

I guess I should clarify the aiming vs sighting thing. I think I started that but only to differentiate between what you do when standing behind the shot and what you do when in the address position and looking along the cue.

They are both aiming functions but the aiming done in the address position is the more precise one. So call it aiming and instead of 'sighting' call it 'precise aiming' or something if the semantics bother you.

All I'm saying is your INITIAL aiming is done when standing behind the shot and everyone does it. There's no secret in that. What the 'secret' is (if you like) is what comes next and that's dropping the head straight down on the line of aim and taking up the address position and if you do that correctly your cue should be on the correct line of aim, which you then confirm to yourself by doing the more precise aiming when feathering and at the front pause.

Don't care about which eye you sight along the cue with, dominant or other as long as you do the same thing consistently so you can train your brain. Personally I think it's better if a player uses his opposite eye (right-hander but using left eye to aim when at address) as it gives a more compact set-up.

[tedisbill]

Thanks, Terry. That clears that up then!

[GeordieDS]

I must say i love these debates,I'm reading these last two pages and thinking yeah he's right but he's right as well then Potrr pops up and he's right also?
I suppose what I'm thinking is if it works for you then it's right, it's a mind **** of a game isn't it but that's what makes it so addictive

[Zhuge]

(Since we are on this topic, hope to seek answers instead of opening another thread)

Question to all Gurus,

Well I'm R-eyed R-handed playing under my R eye for as long as I can remember. I've always been struggling with my vision due to my non-snooker glasses but since I'm on contact lenses 3 weeks ago, I've started playing much better especially at long pots. When practising straight blue with CB at baulk line, I've discovered that my vision on playing under my strong R-eye is not exactly straight. After some tinkering, my straightest vision is when the cue is dead straight under the chin and with my head turns 5-10 degrees to the Right (horizontally), which is confusion me to hell as I've been playing under my dominant R-eye for years. Not sure if the contact lenses are affecting my vision but I don't think I can play without them anymore as days with glasses are just too painful.

I can still live with this new condition of vision but my biggest problem is consistency as tilting the head at 5 to 10 degrees varies and affects my accuracy alot at tight angle potting.

Any advice are most welcomed as I hate tinkering without directions and proper supervision. :dejection:

Z

[tetricky]

I've just had a re-read. I agree with this:

I agree totally. It's the biggest load of rubbish that goes about by coaches - that all aiming must be done standing up. Totally ridiculous to suggest you're not aiming once you're down on the cue.

and I think this, is the best analogy:

...It's exactly like a guy shooting a sniper rifle. He would get down in the direction of the target 2 miles away, and then the difference between a head shot and a shoulder shot, would be tiny. You wouldn't even be able to see him move if you were observing him. But I'm saying that guy is still aiming there. I think "sighting", is misleading.

I've taught people to play, and had them close their eyes when down on the shot to show them the importance of their body alignment on the shot. Without looking at the balls people can generally hit a white ball cleanly into a corner pocket without looking....but they don't pot many balls when you put one between the white and the pocket (even dead straight). Open the eyes when down on the shot, with the correct alignment in the stance, and they start potting.

So for me while standing up it's a question of choosing the shot, visualising what you want to happen, and getting the stance in alignment with the intended shot, then once down on the shot it's the precise aiming. I think of them as alignment, and then when down aim.

[vmax4steve]

Well I can tell you gospel here VMAX that I personally never look at the point of contact when standing up and have always naturally got down on the table to find my line of aim which is registered in my head where to hit when I'm feathering. Why on earth do I need to look at the contact point when standing up when It comes naturally when I'm addressing the ball. We've all played that particular shot thousands of times we know where to hit it.

So you don't see the line of aim until you're down in your stance Leo ? Then how come it's registered in your head ? answer: because you've looked at it when standing up behind the shot or when walking around the table towards the cue ball. Don't go into any kind of denial about this Leo, you might not be aware of it but you do it just like I do, without having to consciously think about it, all it takes is a quick glance, but without that glance you're down in your stance and shifting around because it doesn't feel right.

I think folk over complicate the term 'aiming'.

Agreed, looking would be a more realistic term, simply look at want you want to hit and let your brain take over.

I really dislike this 'natural vs unnatural' debate which is used to justify certain nuances in technique

No, not technique pottr, what's natural is that you look at the correct target on the strike, which is something that is really difficult to do if it doesn't come naturally. After that it's all about practise.

[tetricky]

(Since we are on this topic, hope to seek answers instead of opening another thread)

Question to all Gurus,

Well I'm R-eyed R-handed playing under my R eye for as long as I can remember. I've always been struggling with my vision due to my non-snooker glasses but since I'm on contact lenses 3 weeks ago, I've started playing much better especially at long pots. When practising straight blue with CB at baulk line, I've discovered that my vision on playing under my strong R-eye is not exactly straight. After some tinkering, my straightest vision is when the cue is dead straight under the chin and with my head turns 5-10 degrees to the Right (horizontally), which is confusion me to hell as I've been playing under my dominant R-eye for years. Not sure if the contact lenses are affecting my vision but I don't think I can play without them anymore as days with glasses are just too painful.

I can still live with this new condition of vision but my biggest problem is consistency as tilting the head at 5 to 10 degrees varies and affects my accuracy alot at tight angle potting.

Any advice are most welcomed as I hate tinkering without directions and proper supervision. :dejection:

Z

You may have astigmatism in the eye (your optician will tell you). You can get astigmatism correcting contact lenses. Personally I just make do with ordinary lenses, and try to learn to compensate, but it's a variable that will undermine performance.

[Byrom]

Wow read this thread - where are my paracetamol?