Pool Instruction: CueTips #13 De-Mystifying The Effects of Throw

Last week, one of our readers posed this question: “I just read the article on frozen balls on the rail but my problem is when I have a shot to the corner, the object ball ends up hitting the point as if I didn’t cut it enough or cut it to much please help. That shot cost me a match when our team was playing this past August at the Riviera.”

The problem here is, “Why do I miss a shot when my aim looks right and I hit the correct spot?” The answer to this question is THROW. If I could type in neon letters I would. To show you how much balls throw, set the following shot up.

Read on to view the Cuetable.com diagram…

The one ball and the two ball are frozen along the rail aiming directly for the corner pocket. If you hit the one ball full in the face, you might make the 2 ball once or twice in ten tries. So why do you miss the shot? Throw.

Let’s learn a little more about throw. First off, when is throw at a maximum? The next diagram is the demonstration I use to show students how much a high, center, and low cueball throws the object ball. Angle of approach to the object ball as well as speed of the cue ball all affect the amount of throw tranferred to the object ball. Next, English on the cue ball also effects throw, but for now, let’s just look at strokes on the vertical axis to eliminate variables.

The cue ball and the object ball are one chalk width apart. At a soft speed and aiming at the edge of the object ball, hit a follow shot, a stop shot, and a draw shot. Mark on the end rail where the object ball hits. Then do this for a hard shot. Over the years doing this I have found the the most throw comes from a stop shot, next is the rolling ball, and least is the draw shot. Softer gets more throw that harder as well. The half ball hit is where throw is also at a maximum.

So back to the reader’s question. Any long shot cut up the table usually misses by hitting the long rail first. Let me repeat that, any long shot cut up the table usually misses by hitting the long rail first. So to make these shots, we have to reduce or eliminate the throw. We can do that by hitting the cue ball low, stroking a bit firmer, putting some outside english on the cue ball or overcutting the shot a little. Finding what works best for you is what practice is for.

Now when the object ball is frozen to the rail, we have to be sure to take the throw out of the shot. I hit these shots firm with a low center cue ball and have pretty good success with them.

This is an important point that will improve your game. Here is a quick quiz for you, why do you undercut this shot when you stroke the ball hard?

The answer is that when you stroke the cue ball hard, it is sliding when it hits the object ball. The approach angle is a half ball hit so throw is at a maximum. You are also approaching the pocket at the most unforgiving angle. If the object ball throws down even a little (which it will), you will miss the shot and wonder why. Now you know why and how to overcome throw.

Practice these shots and I’ll see you on the road.

Mark