Using the rest for power shots

[poolqjunkie]

Hi,
I would like to ask everyone's advice on making power shot with the rest consistently.
I practise the rest a lot, but I am very poor with my power potting using the rest. The cue would just go all over the place on my follow through.
I think i might be following through too much. But if I dont have enough follow through, am I supposed to use my wrist more to generate the power?
Do you hold your rest with one or two fingers on top of the cue?
Do you hold it differently with power shot?
Thanks in advance.

[trevs1]

It can help to pivot your arm not only at the elbow (as most do) but also at the shoulder, giving you a double hinged effect.

[poolqjunkie]

Hi Trevor,
Thank you so much. I always move only my forearm, with my elbow more or less parallel to the ground, 2 fingers on top of the cue. But this only works well with soft to medium speed shots. Actually, I never though about pivoting at the shoulder but it makes a lot of sense come to think of it. Thank you so much. I will definitely work on that.
Many times I came up too low on the yellow from the black, so I have to use the rest to make the yellow with follow, go off the baulk cushion, and come back up for the green into the green pocket. Same thing when I try to stun it off the baulk and the side for the green in the yellow pocket when I have more angle. I miss this shot a lot when playing on a slow table. Another shot I always have problem with is when my cue ball is between the blue and the pink and I try to pot a red with lots of follow with the rest, to bring it back up toward the baulk for the blue. Usually, I will make a big mess with this shot. It just does not feel right pulling the cue back over any distance for power when using the rest.
Once again, thank you for this advice. I will work on it.

[poolqjunkie]

Trevor,
I tried a bit with the pivot at the shoulder method, and I am amazed at how much more follow through I could get while still keeping the cue along my line of aim. I still need to get my timing down right. Nevertheless, I can tell the difference almost right away. Will keep working on it.
Just want to thank you.

[trevs1]

Hi Poolqjunkie,

It does take a little adjusting to get this movement right but it will benefit you I'm sure.

The shots you mentioned earlier are possibly ones which trip up many players.
When you are trying to use power with the rest, it's important not to overhit the ball, but, try to make more of a conscious effort to strike it smoothly and on the extremities of the white. If you are attempting a shot with lots of topspin, make sure you not only address the ball at the top of the white, but STRIKE it there. This can be slightly easier to achive by lowering the butt of the cue to allow it to travel flatter. This makes it far easier to strike the point of address on the cueball.

The other shot you refer to (yellow into its own pocket, coming off baulk and side cushion for green into its own pocket) also has the tendancy to make player hit across the white, ending up with overcutting the shot. For this type of shot you need to ensure you have adequate angle to play the shot without forcing it. If you have got that angle, then it's crucial to ensure you make a FULL enough contact with the object ball to pot it (avoiding this overcut), while keeping the cueing smooth, allowing the tip to go right through the point at which the cueball was standing.

Again, you do not have to hit the ball hard to achieve the desired effect. Let the cue do the work and allow the ball to run, it's just practice.

Good luck with it.

[platt]

Well said trev 1, When club players see the pros using the rest with power,they forget that it has it has taken them a life time to perfect. If they follow snooker closely they see that most pros have a routine that is the same no matter what rest shot thay are playing, this is the so called drill.This is the approach. A simple practise routine to get your drill right is to put some red across the table where the rest is needed and play simple screw backs, stun shots and so on, when playing these shots position is not important just white reaction. When your feathering is complete and your mind is made up to the shot you are playing this is were a Pause is so important as the speed a which you follow through is what make the white react. Everything in snooker is mastered by practise. To get happy using the rest, play the simple shot over and over and build routine were you are happy to approach rest shots without fear.

[poolqjunkie]

Trevor,

Thank you once again. I do noticed that I have raised my butt end too much on the power follow at times with the rest. I will try to put in some time on this again today. Sometimes, I can solve the problem when I am really focused during my proactise, sometimes, I cannot find a solution. It is too early to tell. It will take time for me to get it down right.

Another thing I notice that I sometimes do, is that my cue tends to sort of fly off my grip hand. May be I am hitting it with too much force rather than letting the cue do the work? Is there a "secret" as to how to hold the cue on power shots?

Thank you so much for all your valuable insight and information.