Alrocco.snooker secrets

[alrocco]

Do try it before making comment on it, take your cue as normal, let it rest on your thigh, hip , not in front of your body and step in as normal with cue pointing through cb tip pointing roughly 1 inch to the left of ob, as you get down to your shot you will find you are perfectly in line as your left foot goes out, not only are you in line but your BODY is perfectly balanced, so when you address cb the only thing that will be moving is your forearm. Please let me know after you have tried it . Thanks. Roy of Snooker Secrets.

[Derek P]

You are an exceptional player being able to pot 8 out of10 blues, being the blue is on its spot and cb in the D. Well done you. Roy of Snooker Secrets.

I don't really think that is exceptional Roy, cue ball isn't in the D it's on the baulk line with a straight blue.
Jim Donnelly taught me my timing with that technique and how to get perfect straight cueing as the corner stone of the game, a million and 1 other players practice this shot daily to straighten up the cueing Anthony McGill being one of them who I have personally seen do it and was also taught by Jim the values of centre ball striking so I think his comments on youtube are being misinterpreted here. I agree no one will hit true centre every single time but the fact that a lowly top 50 scottish amatuer player i.e. me can bang in 8 blues out of 10 within 20 minutes of trying tells me that it aint that hard to get the sweet spot on the white and yes a trace of side is on some of those shots but the ball still goes in the hole or on the jaws from 10ft away which means at close range 3ft pots I don't miss much.

[Terry Davidson]

Do try it before making comment on it, take your cue as normal, let it rest on your thigh, hip , not in front of your body and step in as normal with cue pointing through cb tip pointing roughly 1 inch to the left of ob, as you get down to your shot you will find you are perfectly in line as your left foot goes out, not only are you in line but your BODY is perfectly balanced, so when you address cb the only thing that will be moving is your forearm. Please let me know after you have tried it . Thanks. Roy of Snooker Secrets.

I cannot do it unless I also swing the hips to the left to bring the head onto the line of aim,

[GeordieDS]

Do try it before making comment on it, take your cue as normal, let it rest on your thigh, hip , not in front of your body and step in as normal with cue pointing through cb tip pointing roughly 1 inch to the left of ob, as you get down to your shot you will find you are perfectly in line as your left foot goes out, not only are you in line but your BODY is perfectly balanced, so when you address cb the only thing that will be moving is your forearm. Please let me know after you have tried it . Thanks. Roy of Snooker Secrets.

Do you have a link to one of your videos showing this?

[the_unrepentant]

Every one of my students have improved after just 1 visit to me.

I'm sorry Roy but I didn't. I had to un-learn everything you taught me on my lesson as my game went horribly downhill and I couldn't get a break of 10 or above afterwards for ages. The obsession with applying side totally messed my game up. I went back to centre ball striking (with only applying side when absolutely necessary) and within a month or so, I hit my very first 50+ break. Also, the numbered aiming isn't accurate at all. There is no benefit in applying this aiming method over physically looking at the potting angle and seeing where to strike the object ball. I do find you a charming man with no doubt loads of experience but for me, it didn't work I'm afraid.

[Derek P]

I'm sorry Roy but I didn't. I had to un-learn everything you taught me on my lesson as my game went horribly downhill and I couldn't get a break of 10 or above afterwards for ages. The obsession with applying side totally messed my game up. I went back to centre ball striking (with only applying side when absolutely necessary) and within a month or so, I hit my very first 50+ break. Also, the numbered aiming isn't accurate at all. There is no benefit in applying this aiming method over physically looking at the potting angle and seeing where to strike the object ball. I do find you a charming man with no doubt loads of experience but for me, it didn't work I'm afraid.

One for the centre ball crowd there lol

I think you have proved that if you can't make a 50 break only hitting centre ball then it means you shouldn't be adding side to shots anyway.
Again I'll say cos I get folk chiming in side is important in snooker it's useful in a series of situations that come up time and again on a snooker table but it is usually when you have landed in a position that you can't get there with stun/screw/stroke centre striking at various heights on the white can put the cue ball pretty much anywhere on a 3/4 ball angle. If you don't have that angle or something is in the way then this is where side is useful or it can be used to flick balls into the pocket when you need more pace to go round the angles or you need it kill the pace of the white to hold for the next ball side is great for all these things. But as a potting method because you can't hit centre ball then no I don't get that and I know some pro's say they do it but they arent just 100 break players these guys probably make a couple of 147s a day in practice so i would take their advice on side with a pinch of salt aswell cos they are a level above mere mortals learning the game and trying be a decent scorer start with centre, master it and move on.

[chrisg]

Personally think there are a lot of people in denial here...

Let's just say if you can't/don't deliver the cue in a straight line, then you won't hit center. As Nic Barrow has said in a recent email snooker is about delivering the cue straight on the line of aim and not about potting or positional play.

Which leads me back to Roy's Snooker Secrets. You may think you are hitting centre ball, but in reality you are not, and that, my friends, is because you are not delivering the cue straight where you intend to hit the CB!

This is something I'm going to work on this weekend! Forget breaks, potting etc, just practice straight cue delivery with some muscle memory training!

[Derek P]

Personally think there are a lot of people in denial here...

Let's just say if you can't/don't deliver the cue in a straight line, then you won't hit center. As Nic Barrow has said in a recent email snooker is about delivering the cue straight on the line of aim and not about potting or positional play.

Which leads me back to Roy's Snooker Secrets. You may think you are hitting centre ball, but in reality you are not, and that, my friends, is because you are not delivering the cue straight where you intend to hit the CB!

This is something I'm going to work on this weekend! Forget breaks, potting etc, just practice straight cue delivery with some muscle memory training!

Totally 100% agree with this and publicly so does Steve Davis among many other's who talk about the importance of straight cueing.

The only time i miss a ball is when i try to pot it, Jim Donelly is always giving me into bother when i miss something cos i cue across it cutting it twice while trying to pot it down on the shot. If i go down put the cue on the line of aim and deliver it smoothly in a straight line like he has explained to me from day 1 beginner lesson then balls go in pockets with relative ease now am not saying that's easy cos it's not but the fluent cueing and perfect delivery are as you say what snooker is about picking the height and power you want to hit on the white is easy, picking out the potting angle is easy putting the cue on the line you intended is the skill in snooker no question about that and that's why this arguement is flawed cos if you don't spend time trying to cultivate that you are not hitting where you intend so wether you aim with side or you don't you'll never actually be putting the tip where you think you are so the roy chilsom method is a crap shoot at best and will work one day for ten minutes and not the next for half an hour and who can be bothered with the added variables of working side on every shot maybe in billiards this is good but for potting balls this doesnt work

[alrocco]

Hi whoever you are, sorry to hear about your experience with my technique, but from what you have just wrote about, I would love for you to disclose yourself to me so as I could learn from you the technique of centre ball striking, which has enabled you to run up a 50 break in such a short time, I must say I am very impressed. All the best Roy of Snooker Secrets. P.S. please contact me, would very much like to meet you again.

[chrisg]

Totally 100% agree with this and publicly so does Steve Davis among many other's who talk about the importance of straight cueing.

The only time i miss a ball is when i try to pot it, Jim Donelly is always giving me into bother when i miss something cos i cue across it cutting it twice while trying to pot it down on the shot. If i go down put the cue on the line of aim and deliver it smoothly in a straight line like he has explained to me from day 1 beginner lesson then balls go in pockets with relative ease now am not saying that's easy cos it's not but the fluent cueing and perfect delivery are as you say what snooker is about picking the height and power you want to hit on the white is easy, picking out the potting angle is easy putting the cue on the line you intended is the skill in snooker no question about that and that's why this arguement is flawed cos if you don't spend time trying to cultivate that you are not hitting where you intend so wether you aim with side or you don't you'll never actually be putting the tip where you think you are so the roy chilsom method is a crap shoot at best and will work one day for ten minutes and not the next for half an hour and who can be bothered with the added variables of working side on every shot maybe in billiards this is good but for potting balls this doesnt work

I was actually making a case for both Nic's idea of snooker and Roy's idea of snooker which are both interlinked. What I was trying to say is if you intend on putting side on but don't deliver the cue straight, then chances are you may end up hitting it centre. Or, vice versa, if you intend on hitting centre and don't deliver cue straight then you'll put side on etc...

For me, I am going to practice knocking the white around the table and just practice delivering cue straight. I'm going to focus more on the CB now when down on shot and less on OB which I've been obsessing about finding the right contact on to pot it..

Personally, when you are up on the shot, if you commit to the right line and trust your instincts, then when you're down on the shot, you should just focus on delivering that cue straight on the line you're committed to!

[alrocco]

Derek P, I feel I have to defend myself from what you have just quoted. Sounds like you are a bit of a judge of what side and straight cueing is about. Let me tell you a story about one of the TOP players in the WORLD who was being interviewed as to wether he put side on the cue ball when striking a straight ball, his answer was NO definately not NEVER, you have to keep the cue in a straight line and strike the cue ball in the CENTRE. This is what you agree with ok. So interviewer placed pink on pink spot, cb on Brown spot and asked him to stun cb on pink. Straight pink stun cb, no side, straight cueing required. Player lined shot up struck cb, but as he struck interviewer picked pink up off the table, cb struck top rail, came back over GREEN spot. GREEN spot. Answer please. Do this yourself as this is what you believe and please let me know result. I think, no I know you will have different thoughts than what you have now. Oh and for all you other readers do try this yourself, and please please let me know how you go on. Cheers, Roy of Snooker Secrets.

[Derek P]

Derek P, I feel I have to defend myself from what you have just quoted. Sounds like you are a bit of a judge of what side and straight cueing is about. Let me tell you a story about one of the TOP players in the WORLD who was being interviewed as to wether he put side on the cue ball when striking a straight ball, his answer was NO definately not NEVER, you have to keep the cue in a straight line and strike the cue ball in the CENTRE. This is what you agree with ok. So interviewer placed pink on pink spot, cb on Brown spot and asked him to stun cb on pink. Straight pink stun cb, no side, straight cueing required. Player lined shot up struck cb, but as he struck interviewer picked pink up off the table, cb struck top rail, came back over GREEN spot. GREEN spot. Answer please. Do this yourself as this is what you believe and please let me know result. I think, no I know you will have different thoughts than what you have now. Oh and for all you other readers do try this yourself, and please please let me know how you go on. Cheers, Roy of Snooker Secrets.

No offence mate but that point kinda holds the same problem for your ‘method’

What your describing is a hard shot so if the best players in the world can’t do it on the first go that tells you it’s hard, cos when you stun the cue ball often the throw of any unintentional side will be exaggerated over 12ft if you asked the same pro to stroke the shot over 12ft with medium pace am pretty sure he would do it 9 times out of ten cos that’s a pretty basic routine they have all done since the nugget used to spend an hour every day just playing the spots up and down.

What your talking about in your method is subject to the unintentional side problem aswell over that distance so it would make no sense to try and aim further across the ball to try to guess what reaction your gonna get and that’s the bottom line your potting method is based on guessing.

With a decent cue action over 12ft when your stroking a ball and able to get it in the relative sweet spot of centre ball then when you come to the short game which is what modern snooker is all about then your pretty accurate centre ball action over 12ft is gonna become a deadly accurate one over 4-6ft this is what Snooker is about mate if you don’t believe that then that’s fine I understand your old school and come from the billiards element of the game and some of what you teach in videos works on certain shots in certain situations but most the guys I know that are hitting serious breaks all say the technique & cue action is important your basically saying ‘awww screw that it’s too hard to hit the middle lets just play across the white and have a stab at guessing potting angles’

I don’t see the sense in that sorry and once again I’ll say side is useful I use it every decent player need to learn it but in way your describing it ain’t gonna help most players

[alrocco]

No offence taken, but as you know when you play the same shot over and over again it is quite easy to correct the the same shot, but the next day when you go to the table the same correction is required.Roy of Snooker Secrets.

[Derek P]

No offence taken, but as you know when you play the same shot over and over again it is quite easy to correct the the same shot, but the next day when you go to the table the same correction is required.Roy of Snooker Secrets.

That’s a big hint about your method of potting with side, different table or different conditions that day meaning the balls are throwing more or less.

Once you learn how to pot a 3/4 or half ball black with plain ball you don’t need to keep learning to readjust the angle every day mate that is the point your missing about not being able to hit centre.

For a coach I do find that bit worrying your teaching people to play a game but saying you need to readjust your aim every single day that’s just wrong once you know the angle and your cue is on line provided you get the cue thro straight the balls in the hole mate end of story really

[Terry Davidson]

I think it might be time for some contribution from me. First of all I agree with Roy in that not many of us consistently hit centre-ball HOWEVER not many of us can deliver the cue consistently straight (which I believe is the real 'secret' of playing good snooker).

I even include myself bundled into that group who cannot consistently cue straight and hit my intended target, which is mostly centre-ball. I have a little test using the black ball in which I line it up straight to a top pocket with cueball about 1ft behind black and hit it with deep screw and I will get a touch of left-hand side which means of course I am NOT hitting centre-ball and in fact am cueing right-to-left and that is happening before I hit the cueball.

I have known about this problem for a few years now and even using video analysis I couldn't come up with either the reason or a correction until just yesterday. I tried everything I could think of but ended up concentrating on my grip. How I did it was I normally use the video on long blues with which I have a decent success rate even when screwing back to the yellow pocket, but this time I decided to video myself while potting the black with power and attempting to hit centre-ball. EVERY FREAKIN' TIME I potted the black fine but the cueball had left-hand side on it when hitting the cushion.

Then I analysed the video and found to my disbelief and surprise I was lifting my head very, very slightly on the backswing and it was virtually ALL the time. I took a very close look at where I struck the cueball and sure enough it was just slightly off-centre to the left. OK, so now I had the root cause but how do I correct movement on the shot? The solution is relatively simple, all I had to do was to STOP MOVING or keep EFFING STILL.

Well, I had a few frames and concentrated on locking my upper body SUPER STILL and I found I have again started making a lot more pots than I have been doing these past 3 years or so. One problem I have is I have always had a short backswing and I think this head movement was a self-defeating way to get more power. I have now lengthened my backswing a bit and concentrate on staying still, however I have also found that I've been unconsciously compensating for this LH side because I've been doing it for so long.

In opposition to Roy's method I can now prove (using the black and side cushion) that I can hit centre-ball consistently as there is no side on the cueball when it comes back to the cushion. I disagree with using side all the time and it's my OPINION that side should only be used when necessary to get position where straight centre-ball stun, screw or top will not get it for you. One great example is the break-off shot where you have to use side to get around the blue ball and for those of you who desbelieve me please note how many times you've seen even the pros on TV go wrong the the break-off shot when at their level they shouldn't go wrong at all and the cueball should end up in the exact same spot all the time or damn close to it but it almost never does (I have seen Mark Selby manage that during one match but the next match he was missing and I suspect either different table or new cloth).

My question for everyone is, if even me who has been playing for years can screw up centre-ball striking like this and since I'm supposed to be a Master Coach and couldn't figure it out then what chance does the average player who is only getting 30 breaks have unless he concentrated in the first place, on DELIVERING THE CUE STRAIGHT. End of rant.