draw

• articles, advice, and drills
• effects of cloth and cue ball

for more information, see Section 4.02 in The Illustrated Principles of Pool and Billiards

articles, advice, and drills

How can I improve my draw stroke?

It seems to me that one of the most often discussed topics on the CCB is the draw shot. Because of this, I was inspired to write a series of seven articles on draw shot physics, aiming, applications, technique, and drills. The articles can be found here. My June '06 article presents a framework for a useful draw drill you can use for practice.

People who have posted questions about draw shots in the past might also find my May '06 article useful. In general, to get good draw action over large distances, you must hit the CB low and hard. Now, for better draw consistency (at all distances), it is generally better to hit a little higher and harder rather than lower and softer.

Probably the best advice is to keep your grip relaxed, and smoothly accelerate the cue into the ball (i.e., don't jerk or rush the transition from the final backstroke to forward stroke), creating a good follow-through. A longer bridge length can help create more power without jerkiness. A closed bridge might help you achieve a lower tip position without adding cue elevation (which can decrease accuracy). More stroke advice can be found here. Also, make sure you have a good tip that is well shaped and textured so it holds chalk. Also, be sure to chalk up before each shot.

from Rod (concerning causes for miscuing and "scooping" the ball):
The number one reason. Your grip hand tightens up, in turn so does your arm and shoulder. When that happens it elevates the butt of the cue. Guess what comes next? The tips drops and you hit too far below center. The cue ball goes flying.

If at the same time (which happens a lot) your stroke swerves to either side, then the cue ball squirts off to the side. Nothing worse that that nasty miscue sound.

Tight muscles are shorter and probably slower, relaxed muscles are longer. Stay relaxed, not only will you improve your draw stroke, it will improve every stroke.

Striking the c/b accurate is premium. You need to hit where you addressed the c/b to make the shot come off as planned. If your grip tightens up --- well you know the answer.

from RSB_FAQ:
You will probably receive all sorts of contradictory advice on this one. The only real requirement is that you hit the ball low. If the object ball is far away, you will also need to hit the ball hard to keep back spin (also known as draw or screw) on the cue ball, as the cloth rubs the spin off. Some things to keep in mind: You must chalk your tip well; most players don't. A shorter bridge (hand to cue ball spacing) will let you hit where you want more accurately. If your elbow is pumping up and down, hitting the intended spot on the cue ball is more of a challenge. Do you jump up at the end of the shot? Do you follow through so the tip ends at least a ball diameter or two beyond the original position of the cue ball, or do you jerk abruptly to a stop at the instant of contact?

Bob_Jewett wrote (concerning a slightly elevated cue, which causes cue ball hop):
The simple theory is that the cue ball loses a fixed number of RPMs per second on its way to the object ball. If the cue ball is hopping on its way to the object ball, it will lose draw only on the landings, but the simple theory says that the total loss of draw on the way to the object ball will be about the same.

The theory also says that if the cue ball is hopping with draw off an object ball, or maybe hopping from a masse shot, it will travel in straight lines between the landings as seen from above, but the path will take abrupt turns at the times of the landings.

One consequence to practical play of the first paragraph is that to get best draw for a particular stick speed off a distant ball it is sometimes better to cue higher on the cue ball. The closer to center you hit, the faster the cue ball will be going at the start. It is a balance between getting there quickly and not losing as many RPMs and starting with more RPMs and losing more due to the slower cue ball travel.

effects of cloth and cue ball

How does the condition of the table cloth and the cue ball affect draw action?

It is easier to get more draw action on a "slick" cloth (i.e., a cloth with low sliding friction), because the cue ball retains more of its bottom spin on the way to the object ball. A "fast" cloth (a cloth with low rolling resistance), will allow the cue ball to roll farther after the draw takes.

If you want to simulate the effects of a "slick" cloth, or if you just want to impress your friends with drammatic draw, try spraying and/or wiping the cue ball with Silicone Spray (spray lubricant available at any hardware store). You will be able to draw like you've never drawn before.

To visualize the "drag" action of the cloth, see:

• HSV 3.1 - Stop-shot showing loss of bottom spin over distance
• HSV B.10 - MOFUDAT stroke drill follow and draw effects
• NV B.10 - Drag spin loss and English persistence
  

from Bob_Jewett:
It is important to distinguish between rolling friction and sliding friction. The two affect the cue ball in different ways and they are sometimes misunderstood. Sliding friction relates to the force from the cue ball sliding on the cloth. It causes draw to wear off and it allows draw or follow to take effect after the cue ball hits the object ball. Sliding friction can be reduced by getting new (slippery) cloth and by waxing the cue ball. Waxing is an easy experiment to do, and I recommend it to anyone who hasn't tried it yet.

Rolling friction tells you how quickly the cue ball slows down after it is rolling smoothly on the cloth. With low rolling friction, it takes the cue ball a long time to slow down. If you have one available, check out how long the ball rolls on a heated carom table.

All combinations of high and low values of these two kinds of friction are possible. The most extreme case of low/low I've tried was on a waxed linoleum floor. You can do amazing masse shots under such conditions. New carom cloth is the closest on-table example of this combination.

Low rolling resistance and high surface friction occurs sometimes on thin old cloth that's dirty and compressed. An extreme example would be a very hard rubber surface -- the ball would roll for a long time but there is no way you could keep draw on it.

High rolling resistance and high surface friction is what you often get in bars. Dirty, thick cloth, and dirty, rough cue balls.

The most important friction when trying to draw the cue ball is the friction between the cue ball and the cloth on the way to the object ball. That friction can wear off some, most or all of the backspin. You will seem to get a lot more draw by waxing the cue ball so that it loses less draw on the way to the object ball.

Once the cue ball contacts the object ball, the friction will allow the draw to take. Less friction just means that it will take longer for the cue ball to come up to full speed, but the final speed of the cue ball drawing back will be nearly the same regardless of the actual value of the friction ball-to-cloth.

One thing that is most noticeable about a slippery cue ball is the remarkable arc you can get when drawing a cut shot. Because the slippery cloth delays the action, you get a much wider arc.

... something that's a huge factor in many pool halls: the size of the cue ball. The cue ball wears down in play, and if the cue ball is smaller, it is also lighter and much, much easier to draw.

In the case of old cloth, the problem is nearly always that the cloth is sticky, which is to say that there is more ball-cloth friction and the draw wears off faster. Waxing the cue ball in such a situation will often restore new-cloth action for a while until the wax wears off.