Cue sports techniques (usually more specific, e.g., billiards techniques, snooker techniques) are a vital important aspect of game play in the various cue sports such as carom billiards, pool, snooker and other games. Such techniques are used on each shot in an attempt to achieve an immediate aim such as scoring or playing a safety, while at the same time exercising control over the positioning of the and often the s for the next shot or .
In carom games, an advanced player's aim on most shots is to leave the cue ball and the object balls in position so that the next shot is of a less difficult variety to make the requisite , and so that the next shot is in position to be manipulated in turn for yet another shot, .
Similarly, in many pocket billiards games, an advanced player's aim is to manipulate the cue ball so that it is in position to () a chosen next object ball, and so that the next shot can also be manipulated for the next shot, and so on. Whereas in the carom games, manipulation of the object ball's position is crucial as well on every shot, in some pool games this is not as large a factor because on a successful shot the object ball is pocketed. However, many shots in one-pocket, for example, have this same added object ball control factor for most shots.
If a player is not attempting to score or pocket, depending on the game, then the goal is usually to exercise control over the cue ball to leave some type of to make it more difficult for the opponent to score or pocket.
In order to control the cue ball on a shot, a player must master a wide variety of techniques, and have a well-founded conceptual grasp of the mechanics involved. As stated by George Fels, "pool's poet laureate":Fels, George. Quoted in:
Stance
There is no single universally accepted stance, with a wide variation between players who compete at professional cuesports. However, there are a number of common characteristics: generally the back leg is braced while the front leg is slightly bent with the player leaning into the shot; the player's weight is evenly distributed, and the body remains still for the duration of the shot. Many of the modern players face the line of the shot, while a more traditional stance would see the player twist their body so their back foot is at a right-angle to the shot.
Sidespin () The term (usually not capitalized in this context, and often called "side" in the UK, and sometimes simply called "left" or "right") normally refers to sidespin put on a cue ball by hitting it to the left or right of center. English is used for position by altering the of the cue ball after it contacts a rail cushion. More specific terms are sometimes employed, including "reverse english" for side that closes the cue ball's angle after contacting a cushion, and "natural english" or "running english" for side that widens that angle. Both left and right change the direction an object ball takes upon impact with the cue ball (the "" effect). For advanced players it is important to understand how the use of can cause the cue ball to veer off its aiming line (an effect called deflection or "squirt").
An above-center hit on the cue ball is more precisely referred to as "" ("top" in the UK), while a below-center hit is "draw", "bottom", or "back-spin". Any time the cue ball is not struck directly in the center of the vertical axis, some sidespin will be imparted either left or right on the cue ball. This unintentional sidespin is a common source of missed shots. Cue-ball spin is not always the shooter's doing; some spin is naturally imparted to the cue ball from contact with the cloth surface on the bed of the table, and by the table's cushions.
Follow Follow, sometimes called top spin or simply "top," is spin in the direction of travel of the cue ball, so that it is spinning faster than it would from its natural roll. If the cue ball has top spin on it, it will resume rolling forward after making contact dead-on with the object ball and "follow" the object ball rather than stopping abruptly.
Top spin is imparted to a ball by hitting it above the midpoint of its vertical plane as it faces the shooter. Top spin is spin in the direction a ball naturally "wants" to take in reaction to friction from contact with the pool cloth. Because of this, a ball sliding on the cloth will rapidly pick up follow. Likewise, a ball struck so that it is spinning backwards (with draw — see below) immediately starts losing that spin, and if it travels far enough, will reach a sliding point (no spin), soon graduating to natural follow.
Follow applied to a non-dead-on shot will cause the angle of departure of the cue ball from the object ball to widen shortly after impact; the thicker the hit on the object ball, the more this effect will be noticeable (on very thin cut shots it practically does not exist). Similarly, top spin will cause a widening of the cue ball's rebound angle after impact with a rail cushion.
Follow also increases the rate of cue ball travel, both before and after object-ball impact, and actually imparts a small amount of draw to the object ball.
Force-follow Force-follow is an extreme variation of follow, produced by an imparting as much top-spin as possible, in a forceful shot that employs a long follow-through, as used on a draw shot but above rather than below centre. A straight-on force-follow shot causes the cue ball to hesitate for a split second (rebounding from impact), then charge forward again, due to the forward spin it still retains. It may also refuse a normal rebound from the rail by striking the same rail a second time, due to the forward spin's friction overcoming the rebound. This shot is useful both in trick shots and in positional play.
Draw Draw, sometimes called back-spin or "bottom" in the U.K., is backward spin applied to the cue ball by hitting it below the midpoint of its vertical plane as it faces the shooter. If the cue ball is hit with draw, and if that spin remains on the cue ball at the moment of impact with an object ball, the cue ball will reverse direction on a dead-on or center-to-center hit, and "draw" backwards.
Draw applied to a non-dead-on shot will cause the angle of departure of the cue ball from the object ball to narrow shortly after impact. Similarly, it will cause a narrowing of the cue ball's rebound angle after impact with a rail cushion.
Draw can also be used to slow the rate of cue ball travel as a result of increased friction between the cloth and the cue ball, and reduce the risk of having the cueball roll off line if the table is not level. This is often called "drag shot" or "drag draw".
A cue ball with back spin can impart a small amount of follow to the object ball. This is often useful in close combination shots to make the first ball struck follow instead of stun after second ball contact.
Slide "" refers to a cue ball that is sliding across the cloth with no follow or draw spin. To illustrate this principle, if a ball was marked with a single red dot on it which faced the ceiling at the time the cue ball was struck, an observer would see the cue ball traveling with that red dot remaining fixed at the top of the ball, because the bottom of the ball is sliding over the cloth.
In order to initially achieve a sliding cue ball, a middle-ball hit is employed. The more speed with which the cue ball is hit in this manner, the longer the cue ball will slide before picking up natural forward roll from cloth friction. However, because of this tendency of the cue ball to acquire follow from friction, in order to deliver a sliding cue ball to an object ball at a distance, the cue ball must be precisely hit with the necessary degree of draw (back or under spin) so that by the time it reaches the object ball, the draw has dissipated and the cue ball is sliding at the moment of impact.
Stop and stun shots
When a sliding cue ball contacts an object ball dead-on (a center-to-center hit), the cue ball and object ball are of the same mass, and neither follow nor draw is on the cue ball at the moment of impact, the cue ball will transfer all of its momentum to the object ball and come to a complete stop; this is a . If the sliding cue ball in the preceding scenario has sidespin on it when it contacts an object ball dead on, it will come to a complete stop but spin in place at that position until the sidespin dissipates. If the cue ball and object ball contact is not dead-on but still very full, the result will often be a , where the cue ball departs the object ball in the expected direction but travels only a short distance. The stun effect can often be enhanced with a minimal amount of draw, to reduce cue ball speed before impact with the object ball.
If a cue ball is sliding, not rolling, at the time it contacts an object ball at an angle (i.e. on a , a center-to-center impact), the cue ball will travel in a line tangential to the point of impact between both balls – the . Because billiard balls are somewhat elastic, the resulting tangent line is slightly less than 90 degrees from perpendicular to a line formed by the contact point between the balls.
If the cue ball hits an object ball at an angle and has follow on it (is spinning forward), the cue ball will first travel on the tangent line and then parabolically arc forward from the tangent line in the direction of cue ball travel. By the same token, when such impact is made and the cue ball has draw (back-spin) on it, the cue ball will first travel on the tangent line and then parabolically arc backward from the tangent line in the opposite direction of cue ball travel. Whether follow or draw is on the cue ball, the faster the cue ball is traveling at the moment of impact, the farther it will travel on the tangent line before arcing forward or backward.
Throw "" refers to an object ball's motion away from the impact line due to relative sideways sliding motion between the cue ball and object ball caused by sidespin or a cut angle.
When a ball with (sidespin) on it hits an object ball with a degree of fullness, the object ball will be "thrown" in the opposite direction of the side of the cue ball the was applied. Thus, a cue ball with left hand on it will "throw" a hit object ball to the right.
This effect is sometimes overarchingly referred to as the "gear system", so-called because of the interaction of the clockwork gears of a each circular gear is interlocked with an abutting circular gear and each spins in the opposite direction of its neighbor in a series. on the cue ball can cause a very similar effect. If the cue ball with left hand in the preceding scenario contacts an object ball relatively full and that object ball is frozen to another, the first object ball is thrown to the right and the second to the left, exactly as the name implies.
Throw is also imparted to a ball by collision from a cue ball with no on it through friction. This is sometimes called "". The direction of the object ball's throw depends on the cue ball's path immediately before impact. Collision-induced throw "pushes" the object ball in the same direction as the cue ball was traveling before impact. Thus, a cue ball traveling from the left will cause an impacted object ball to be thrown slightly to the left of the OB's natural impact line.
Both varieties of throw are highly influenced by speed. Generally, the less momentum the cue ball possesses at the time of impact, the more that throw will affect the object ball's resultant path of travel.
Semi- ("curve" or "swerve") shot A cue ball can be made to curve in its path of travel with a shot. This is usually employed for the purpose of avoiding an interfering ball or balls.