Another noobie question

[Carpy2009]

Hi all, sorry for seeming to ask so many questions, but i was playing with a couple of my team mates yesterday, when one of them out of the blue said that i hit the ball to hard, i asked him if he meant on the shot i had just played?, and he said no, he meant all the time, good to know i said lol. So my question is if i am hitting the balls firmly or hard, should i opt for a firmer/harder tip, as i have been told i would need to change a soft tip quite a often, is this true?.
cheers Carpy

[DeanH]

or...
stop hitting the ball too hard all the time?

[Nifty50]

Lots of amateurs hit the ball too hard. Maybe they like the sound of the ball smacking into the back of the pocket. The truth is that, most of the time, you don't need to hit the ball hard if your technique is good. Look at O'Sullivan. When he's in amongst the balls he just strokes the cue ball around. You only need to hit the ball hard enough for it to drop into the pocket. There will, of course, be certain shots which need a bit of power.
I think beginners tend to hit the ball hard as they think that's how you get a bit of zip on the cue ball. The harder you hit it the more you'll be able to screw back lol. Not so!

[Mark187187]

I'm guessing you are hitting hard particularly when trying to generate spin, because your action and timing isn't there yet. Problem is, this is probably making you miss more often. I always think it's better to play within your limitations. So concentrate on cueing straight and only hit as hard as you can control. Save the deep screw shots until you've begun to master them in practice.

[Carpy2009]

Thanks all, i did not even realise i was hitting the ball hard, which according to my team mate i do on every shot, not just screw shots, i thought i was just trying to play the shot the best i can, i should really get a few lessons, but due to not driving and not having the finances (unemployed due to caring for my disabled spouse full time) this is not going to happen anytime soon, so i must try and figure out what i need to do and what i need to stop doing by using the internet lol.

[Mark187187]

Thanks all, i did not even realise i was hitting the ball hard, which according to my team mate i do on every shot, not just screw shots, i thought i was just trying to play the shot the best i can, i should really get a few lessons, but due to not driving and not having the finances (unemployed due to caring for my disabled spouse full time) this is not going to happen anytime soon, so i must try and figure out what i need to do and what i need to stop doing by using the internet lol.

I wouldn't worry about lessons. I'd guess 95% of people on this forum haven't. You could always post a video on here so people can give advice.

[DeanH]

I have moved this thread to the Coaching Questions section so hopefully our resident coaches will see and maybe come up with some tips for you to try to have a better idea on how lightly you can hit the cue ball and get better results
You said "not just screw shots" which to me means you are trying too hard to try to get movement from the cue ball, this to me sounds like you are not striking the cue ball in the right place in and not in the right cue action (the dreaded word - timing); and trying for "power" to get movement - which I doubt you get; and I bet you grip the butt too much and grip it really hard.
You will be surprised how much movement of cue ball you can get with not hitting the cue ball that hard
When I go for a screw shot, I hardly play it hard at all - I used to and got nothing - now I get good movement with less
I am not a coach so I maybe cant explain it well, but I loosen my butt-hand even more than usual and let the cue drive through the cue ball (follow through).

[howardlax]

A few tips about 'not hitting ball too hard' (No particular order)

J6UK: "Feel the weight of cue"
Ted: Lengthen the backswing, concentrate on cueing smoothly
Nic(B): start slow, accelerate gradually, not jab the cue
Terry: Imagine to hit the object ball with cue. AND always strike until back of cue hand touches chest

List goes on...

[Carpy2009]

Thank you all for the advise/tips. Played last night and tried not to grip the cue to hard, stay still and use a full back swing, it made a difference, i was not hitting the ball as hard, and for the first time on a screw shot i got a definite pause on the cb before the screw took effect. Also tried the Taom chalk for the first time last night, and i like it, not because its better than other chalk, i am not good enough to tell the difference yet, but because i am a messy old git that gets chalk every where, when i pull the chalk out of my pocket i tend to stick my finger in it, that then gets on my cue and feels bad, so end up wiping my cue every five minutes, and by the end of the night my hands a bright blue with chalk, but not with this chalk, you cant really feel it on your hands.
cheers Carpy