The stance conclusionLesson 2 – The Stance … conclusion

To finish off the stance we’ll need to set your bridge hand. Sit your hand flat on the bed of the table with your fingers together. Now keep your fingers straight and raise the knuckles up to build a small tent, then spread your fingers out, but keep your thumb pressed against your index finger. This is for the cue to slide across. It needs to be tight so the cue doesn’t slide around and be allowed to go off line.
 
In all facets of the stance and grip of the cue, it is very important to practice these to nauseam so they become natural. Knowing where everything is to go will be of great assistance when things go awry. After you have been playing for a while you will one day have what we call an ‘off day’. You will find you are just missing your shots. If you do a quick checklist of your stance you will almost every time be able to solve your problem. This, plus an ingredient called ‘Concentration’, which will be discussed later on, will be the answer to most of your playing issues. Sounds easy? Well the games are easy, we, (the human) make them difficult. I’ll reiterate, to become good at the cue sports games requires a lot of hard work. Don’t be put off by this statement. No matter what you ever want to do in life will require a lot of hard work to achieve your goals. Be confident, practice hard and believe in yourself. A great word is DEDICATION.
Some points to remember when you address the cue ball:
•    Cue Tip – to be 13mm from the cue ball
•    Cue – as near as horizontally level as possible
•    Bridge Arm – as straight as possible always
•    Bridge Hand – firm grip of the cloth carrying your forward balance
•    Head – straight down chinning the cue for good sighting
•    Cue Hand – grip cue butt where hand drops straight from elbow
•    Legs – comfortable apart with left knee bent, allowing weight to be shared with the bridge hand and right leg. Right leg straight with right foot below cue line


Coming next time:    Gripping the Cue