Is it advisable to orient the cue the same way for every shot?

[cal]

As someone who also occasionally plays a bit of American pool, I was thinking - American pool cues are generally made of a maple shaft with a completely round butt, meaning the orientation of the cue differs from shot to shot, since there's no real way to discern a specific orientation. This obviously works for American pool, but would it translate to snooker too? Has anyone tried a maple cue + round butt?

It would presumably lead to a more uniform wearing of the tip, I wonder if this would be a good thing or a bad thing though. It's also unclear if it would even lead to a "random" orientation of the cue, however - perhaps I would subconsciously prefer a certain orientation, and all I'd be doing would be making it harder to find that orientation.

Thoughts?

[ace man]

I have a maple snooker cue. Yes, I orient the cue the same way for every shot, even with the rest.
Fully rounded butt would be nice, I would welcome such a cue, for ash too. But from what I've seen, most if not all cue makers don't stray away from tradition.
Now I'm sure you could custom order just about anything, but I'm happy with current cue, have gotten used to keeping the same orientation, and have also gotten used to have uneven tip wear.

[mc101me]

I ordered a one piece maple with round butt as I found the lines on ash cues can be distracting. I find that my tip wears evenly now which shows I must be using the cue on different orientations without thinking about it. I also asked that the was no makers badge on the butt as this might influence how I held the cue. I do still have a centre split ash cue which I use when I'm going in a taxi on the lash and I do always play with this on the same orientation which does show on the tip. I never used to have an issue with the lines on ash cues until I used a maple cue for the first time.

[ADR147]

Every top player always holds the cue the same way every shot - not sure if that makes it right though!

[fkhan]

From 1:40 to 2:40 in this video, Barry Stark talks about using the tip the same way on every shot. He also said that using it randomly can cause a change in the expected outcome of the shot.

https://youtu.be/H9Ap4SBgf_M

[cal]

From 1:40 to 2:40 in this video, Barry Stark talks about using the tip the same way on every shot. He also said that using it randomly can cause a change in the expected outcome of the shot.

https://youtu.be/H9Ap4SBgf_M

If I'm understanding correctly, he's talking about when the tip has already been worn in a non-uniform way then you should keep it that way - however if the tip is worn uniformly then I wonder if this still applies.

[tedisbill]

As ADR says, all the top players hold their cue the same way each time. Most players have the 'flat' on the butt end pointing up.

For me it's just another level of consistency. When using an ash cue, it means that on every shot, the grain of the ash always look exactly the same to you. If you rotated the cue, things would look different to you when you're down on the shot. So for me, I just like keeping everything looking exactly the same each time.

Then secondly, the tip is contacting the white ball in the same way each time. How much this actually affects the shot I don't know. I'd imagine it would be very minimal, but every 1% extra we can get is worth having.

[sharkster63]

Good Day, I think that if your cue is perfectly straight then it would not matter where you orient your cue, but in reality the cue's are not always perfect. most players will want the curve of the cue, no matter how big or small to be in a vertical line to the cue ball either upwards or downwards thus avoiding any unwanted side. Better on a round butt, tape can show the holding spot and you have a good hold on the cue, if you are playing with a splice removed it could get awkward to hold, the splice might be on a 45 degree when the cue curve is aligned with curve in right position. Then again, if you have a cue with a curve or bend on a round butt, it could be handy to remove a splice to help you get your cue in the right position every time. Cheers

[vmax]

I have a maple snooker cue. Yes, I orient the cue the same way for every shot, even with the rest.
Fully rounded butt would be nice, I would welcome such a cue, for ash too. But from what I've seen, most if not all cue makers don't stray away from tradition.
Now I'm sure you could custom order just about anything, but I'm happy with current cue, have gotten used to keeping the same orientation, and have also gotten used to have uneven tip wear.

You have also gotten use to the flex characteristics of your shaft when held in that one position, it's minimal yes, but the grain has a factor in the flex and turn the grain around and the flex will change. Most won't notice it but in the upper echelons of the game it could be crucial so all top pros hold the cue the same way every shot. Top cuemakers know this also and is why they reserve their best straight grained timber for their top of the range cues as straight grain means uniformity of flex and resonance along the whole shaft.

[ace man]

You have also gotten use to the flex characteristics of your shaft when held in that one position, it's minimal yes, but the grain has a factor in the flex and turn the grain around and the flex will change. Most won't notice it but in the upper echelons of the game it could be crucial so all top pros hold the cue the same way every shot. Top cuemakers know this also and is why they reserve their best straight grained timber for their top of the range cues as straight grain means uniformity of flex and resonance along the whole shaft.

True. Also, if I try to shoot with the flat part facing down (opposite to how I normally do), it feels strange through the bridge hand. No wonder. Even with frequent wiping with towels, etc...only one part of shaft goes through the V groove for years.

[jonny66]

I'm sure I remember Ken Doherty and Jimmy White speaking about their cues, and either Jimmy or Ken said they use a round butt in order to get more even tip wear. So not all top players have the cue oriented the same on every shot.

[Cue crafty]

I'm sure I remember Ken Doherty and Jimmy White speaking about their cues, and either Jimmy or Ken said they use a round butt in order to get more even tip wear. So not all top players have the cue oriented the same on every shot.

Pretty sure that was Jimmy, and he spins the cue in his grip as a mannerism (or at least used to) but he is a one off in terms of his early days style.

[vmax]

Pretty sure that was Jimmy, and he spins the cue in his grip as a mannerism (or at least used to) but he is a one off in terms of his early days style.

It's my understanding that he turns the cue in his grip hand in order to hold it in the same place because it's a round butt without a mace flat as a marker.

[Cue crafty]

It's my understanding that he turns the cue in his grip hand in order to hold it in the same place because it's a round butt without a mace flat as a marker.

That makes sense, this thread is interesting to me as I've never really worried about this in the past and always hold different positions. Recently I've been struggling a little with concentration during a break, so will be trying to incorporate this in practice to see if it helps with focus on the shot.

[tomwalker147]

That makes sense, this thread is interesting to me as I've never really worried about this in the past and always hold different positions. Recently I've been struggling a little with concentration during a break, so will be trying to incorporate this in practice to see if it helps with focus on the shot.

Cuecrafty, I struggled with this but went for some coaching, sorted my feathers out so they're consistent and have improved vastly. You may already feather the same number of times each shot but worth a go if not