Beginner’s Guide to Choosing a Snooker Cue
When you watch the likes of World Class and champion Snooker Players like John Higgins, Ronnie O Sullivan or Peter Ebdon etc. It’s hard to imagine yourself coming anywhere close to playing at their standard right? Well, like many great sports people their skill and effortless rhythm comes from talent, years of practice and experience.
If I were to tell you that simply buying a professional standard cue was your answer to playing like the pro’s, then I would be stretching the truth no?
Peradon Snooker Cue
My own personal experience from playing snooker spanning back to the 1980′s, started out in my local snooker club using the clubs own cues. I must have been playing 2 – 3 years of really enjoyable snooker with my pals after work on a Saturday night when one particular Saturday a good friend of a friend joined our group. This guy intrigued me straight away because in his hand he was carrying a long oblong case – very shiny and he was guarding it like the crown jewels! I’d seen a few other guys’ holding similar cases in the club but this particular one had a real classy finish to it.
You’ve probably guessed by now that he was carrying a snooker cue case. I was very impressionable back then and I couldn’t wait to see the cue that was inside.
Well, I wasn’t disappointed when he finally revealed the content. Out came the cue. He looked at me, smiled and said, “wanna game?”
1 PIECE MALAYSIA RENGASWOOD SNOOKER CUE With case#T11SC1
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£119.00 End Date: Sunday May-20-2012 10:46:19 £119.00 |
1 PIECE MALAYSIA RENGASWOOD SNOOKER CUE With case#T12SC2
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£119.00 End Date: Sunday May-20-2012 10:46:23 £119.00 |
1 PIECE MALAYSIA RENGASWOOD SNOOKER CUE With case#T21SC1
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£119.00 End Date: Sunday May-20-2012 10:46:31 £119.00 |
1 PIECE MALAYSIA RENGASWOOD SNOOKER CUE With case#T22SC1
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£119.00 End Date: Sunday May-20-2012 10:46:36 £119.00 |
MIKE WOOLDRIDGE HAND MADE ONE (1) PIECE ASH SNOOKER CUE
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£250.00 (12 Bids) End Date: Sunday May-20-2012 16:05:10 |
When we got underway with the game I very quickly realised this guy had played before. Although he was very generous with his comments on my standard of play, he absolutely slaughtered me in the first couple of games. Thing is I wasn’t that bothered because I was learning so much from him. The whole time I was watching him play I couldn’t help looking at the cue he was using. Apart from the refined and highly polished finish, I noticed there was a different action to my pitiful club cue I was using. It sounded different when it made contact with the ball. It made a real solid sound. When he hit the cue ball it looked effortless and it may sound pathetic but there was a certain grace about it.
After a while he must have noticed I was glancing at his cue all the time and I was delighted when he kindly said, “do you wanna have a go with my cue?” I jumped at the chance!
What came next was a total revelation! The moment that cue entered my hand and felt the weight of it I just knew it was in a different league. I spent a few moments looking at it. I must have had a ridiculous expression on my face because he said, “are you alright?” I said, “yeah, fine, It’s just that I’ve never used anything like this before. It looks and feels awesome” He laughed and said, “yeah, it’s not bad is it. I asked what it was. He told me it was made by Peradon. It didn’t mean anything to me, all I knew was that it felt awesome and when I got down to using it, within moments it changed the way I thought about my game forever! I kid you not; my potting success must have increased by 50% that very night!
I asked him what makes these Cue’s so good? He said Peradon have been making Snooker Cue’s for the industry since 1885 – they’re the oldest cue makers in the world and they are associated with Snooker legends like Joe Davies (well before my time). They hand splice the base he went on to say amongst other features.
My point here is that a good snooker cue may or may not make you a World Champion Snooker Player but it will go a long way to improving your existing game if your just starting out.
Source for the best [http://www.snookercuestore.co.uk/]Snooker Cues
Article Source: [http://EzineArticles.com/?Beginners-Guide-to-Choosing-a-Snooker-Cue&id=2429973] Beginner’s Guide to Choosing a Snooker Cue
Snooker Cues – Different Types and How to Choose
Below we have detailed the various attributes of a snooker cue, what the different options are, how they affect the cue and what you should take into consideration when buying a new cue. This is not an exhaustive list but it should cover most of the options.
Joints
Snooker cues can be one piece, 1/2 jointed (commonly known as 2 piece cues) or 3/4 jointed (commonly known as 3 piece cues). The 1/2 joint and 3/4 joint refer to how far down the cue has been cut and had a brass joint inserted to make the cue more practical to carry around. One piece cues are thought to be better than 3/4 jointed cues which are thought to be better than 1/2 jointed cues due to the cut being made in the denser hardwood butt (all to do with how the vibrations transmit through the cue). Again how much of a difference the average player will notice is another matter but obviously the 1/2 jointed cue is the more practical one. 1/2 jointed cues and 3/4 jointed cues do feel quite different from a playing point of view due to the different position of the denser brass joint. So when choosing a 1/2 or 3/4 jointed cue we would normally recommend going for the cue you are already used to playing with. No two cues will ever feel the same as they are made from natural materials and the feel is down to the pattern of density throughout the cue. We usually say it takes two or three weeks of constant playing to get your body used to a cue, so with this in mind you could possibly try a new cue configuration as your body will eventually get used to it.
Splicing
The butt can either be hand spliced to the shaft, machine spliced or straight cut and painted to look hand or machine spliced. Prices increase from painted to machine spliced to hand spliced due to the amount of work involved in making the cue and the cue is supposed to have a better feel as you go up this price range. Beginners are unlikely to notice the difference from a playing point of view for the different quality cues and some professional players have been quoted as saying that they did not notice any difference between machine spliced and hand spliced snooker cues from a playing point of view. Hand spliced cues with their slightly curved points (as apposed to the sharp points of machine splicing) are meant to have a higher surface area of contact between the hardwood butt and the Ash shaft which allows for a better transmission of the vibrations in the cue and thus gives a better feel. Hand spliced rel=nofollow [http://snookercues.royalsnooker.com]snooker cues are also more aesthetically pleasing and this will also be a consideration for which cue to buy. Most people will be happy with a painted cue (cues are painted black to look like Ebony which is a lot more expensive) but you will need to pick a cue based on your budget, how nice you want the cue to look and how well you want the cue to play.
Woods
Snooker cues are usually made from Ash for the shaft and a hardwood for the butt, although some cheaper club cues will be made from Ramin. Machine spliced and hand spliced butts are commonly made from Rosewood which needs to be weighted with lead (so the cue doesn’t have to be so thick that you can’t grip it comfortably, to give the same weight) and Ebony which doesn’t usually need weights as it is such a dense and heavy wood. The Ebony cues having less or no lead weights added gives then a more even density and a more natural feel to the cue that is desired by a lot of players. The Ebony wood with its very dark brown (under most lights looking black) is also aesthetically pleasing. Because of it’s rarity Ebony is a very expensive wood and thus normally only used on the finest cues. You can also have decorative wood splices on the cue but these add nothing from a playing point of view and will only add to the price. The coloured splices are usually coloured Sycamore. Other hardwoods can also be used for the butt like Thuya Burr wood or Walnut and other exotic woods (like the very expensive Snakewood) can be used for decorative splices or inlays. Painted cues have a cheaper low quality hardwood for the butt (which doesn’t matter as the wood is painted) and Ash for the shaft.
Tip Sizes
The recommended tip size for snooker cues is 10 mm and tips can go down to 8.5 mm but we wouldn’t recommend going below that for two reasons (1. The cue becomes too whippy 2. The cue shaft could break with a miscue). The smaller tip you have the harder it is to play but if you can control the cue you will have more control over the cue ball with spin. We normally recommend doming your tip to get more spin before moving to a cue with a smaller tip.
Cue Weight
With the weight of the cue 17 oz to 20 oz is the normal range of weights with 18 oz to 19 oz approximately being a medium weight, 16 oz to 17 oz being light and 20 oz upwards being heavy. The heavier the cue is the easier it is to play with (like a larger tip) and the lighter the cue is the more control you have over the power you put in to the shot (although it is easier to miscue). We normal say stick to a weight you are used to but with all changes your body will eventually get used to it.
Extras
Other options would then be cues with butt joints for screw-on extensions or cues that come with screw-on extensions that can attach to the centre joint.
The main consideration to make when choosing a new cue for use on snooker tables is budget, then balancing how you want the cue to look compared to how you want it to play. You basically get what you pay for with a snooker cue and you need to choose which features you want and which features you don’t need.
Copyright Royal Snooker 2011
Royal Snooker offer a range of discounted snooker cues for delivery around the world and guaranteed next day delivery in the UK. Please visit our website with the link below, for more cue advice or to e-mail us your snooker cue questions. [http://royalsnooker.com]snooker cues
Article Source: [http://EzineArticles.com/?Snooker-Cues---Different-Types-and-How-to-Choose&id=5794508] Snooker Cues – Different Types and How to Choose
Play Better Snooker – The Screw Back Shot, Also Known As The Draw Shot
The first requirement for successful execution of the screw shot (also known as the draw shot) is to aim at the very bottom of the cueball not by lifting the butt end of the cue into the air but by lowering the whole of the cue parallel to the bed of the table. A good tip here is to flatten your bridge hand. Whereas in the standard position the cue rests around about 2″ above the cloth (at the point it crosses your thumb-forefinger rest), by flattening your bridge you should be able to lower this.
Here’s a quick visualisation technique to help you aim at the correct point on the cue ball. This applies not only to the screw back shot but to any shot you will ever play. Picture the cue ball being split into layers. The very bottom of the cue ball is number 1, the centre is number 5 and the very top is number 10. This is a technique applied by the very best of players as it helps to engage the brain into a positive thought process. By successfully implementing this into your own game, you will find that you have a clearer understanding about how to execute every shot you play because you can apply a number to the position on the cue ball (e.g. stun shot = 5; stun run-through = 6-7; deep screw = 1-2). Please consider that you must also consider the power in which the shot will be played and the timing of the strike as these two factors obviously affects the action of the cue ball after contact with the cue tip. The same rules apply to side spin or ‘english’.
Although in my opinion, the way you grip the cue is not so important, it still warrants discussion because the grip itself has vital importance during the follow through phase of the cue action. Your grip on the cue should be guided by your thumb and forefinger. The other three fingers do not need to play any part in the cue action. They simply ‘do as they please’ during backswing and follow through. Movement of these fingers should be unconscious. With the screw back shot, it is important that your grip is loose enough to allow you to pull the cue back as far as possible – if it is too tight, you’ll simply not be able to pull the cue back far enough.
Here’s the important part regarding follow through – to achieve maximum screw back you’ll need to learn to follow through that extra little bit further than you may already do and to achieve this you may find that you’ll need to let your elbow drop. Watch snooker player Ronnie O Sullivan – notice how his elbow drops when he plays any shot with high power. This is because his grip has followed through maximally, i.e. past the point where it usually stops at – when it hits your chest. If you have your elbow locked you’ll find it difficult to follow through effectively for the screw shot. Try pushing your cue through another 2-3 inches after you feel you have reached full follow through and you’ll find there’s a little bit more to go by letting your elbow drop as you drive the cue through – at this point make sure that you don’t ‘release’. What I mean here is that you must keep your thumb and forefinger locked because they guide the cue and any release can cause the cue to throw off-line. If you can implement these little ‘maneuvers’ into your game you’ll notice your timing will improve as well because it will stop you from jerking the cue at the end of your follow through.
Many players have a good cue action but seem to be afraid of cueing too low on the white in fear of the dreaded miscue. Well, most of you will know that you can literally rest the tip of the cue on the cloth directly behind the white ball (watch snooker player Jimmy White for example) because a good cue action follows a pendulum like plane and at the moment of tip-cueball impact the cue is actually on the up.
To summarise and to put things into perspective….the reason for a long backswing is simply because of the point I mentioned above regarding the cue action being pendulum like. Visualise a swinging pendulum and how would you describe it….simply that it swings a certain distance in one direction then the same distance in the other direction. Now think back to the cue action….it’s simply inefficient to expect to bring the cue back 6″ and to follow through 12″ – that’s not pendulum like is it!? Aim to bring the cue back by around 8-10″ to your thumb-forefinger rest (this should tell you where to place your bridge hand in relation to the cueball). When you are ready to follow through, you should attempt to push the cue through the cueball with a fluent motion by 8-10″ also. This is arguably the most difficult part of the shot. If you can achieve this or even get somewhere near then you should be well on your way to improving your execution of one of the most difficult shots in the game to execute well, the deep screw.
Neil Cummins, Managing Director of MaXimumbreak invites you to access a range of snooker coaching material at http://www.maXimumbreak.com
About MaXimumbreak.com: Founded in 2003, MaXimumbreak is an online snooker resource aimed at developing the game of snooker globally and improving snooker ability by accelerating the learning process. MaXimumbreak has developed a wealth of freely available snooker information viewable at http://www.maXimumbreak.com We have affiliations with many organisations including CD-WOW, Cuefactor, GravityCue.com and Rileys Ltd.
Article Source: [http://EzineArticles.com/?Play-Better-Snooker---The-Screw-Back-Shot,-Also-Known-As-The-Draw-Shot&id=862840] Play Better Snooker – The Screw Back Shot, Also Known As The Draw Shot
