All
top players have a bridge with which they take a firm
grip of the cloth and provide a channel through which
they send the cue on a straight line.
Without
a good bridge you are doomed. You are a no-hoper. An
unsteady bridge will ruin everything. If there is any
movement let's say with the thumb, any shot can and
will go wrong.
I
believe that more players should be concerned with getting
the bridge hand firmed up, before considering other
more advanced areas of the game.
As a starting point, place your hand flat on the table.
Then draw up all the fingers in a crab-like manner before
cocking the thumb in such a way that you are able to
form a 'V' between your thumb and the top knuckle of
your forefinger.
Emphasize the firmness of the bridge by pressing the
forefinger into the cloth.
Anyone who wants to realize just how important the bridge
is need only try this simple experiment.
Bridge
along the baulk line making sure that the cue covers
the baulk line itself so that it is no longer visible
from above. Now lower the thumb and notice what happens.
The cue goes off line.
If
that should happen while you are playing a shot, it
is one way of putting accidental side-spin on the cue
ball.
Take a look at the strength of the bridges displayed
to the right. All fingers are pressed into the cloth
and wood, with particular emphasis placed on the forefinger,
the one that is the real basis of the bridge.
Players used to be criticised in the old days for the
marks left on the cloth as a result of the pressure
placed by their fingers, but this didn't bother them
and it shouldn't bother you.
However don't drag your bridge hand back, particularly
against the nap of the cloth. There is no advantage
in this and it will create so many furrows that the
table will look like a ploughed field and could also
rough up the nap sufficiently to make slow shots more
hazardous.
When
your shot is completed, just lift your hand from the
table.
I believe that players pressing the first finger into
the cloth will find firmness along the left-hand side
of the body. The fact that the left side is so firm
seems to make the right hand even freer to get rhythm
into the cue action.
The
reverse is true for left-handed players.
For screw shots the great Joe Davis adapted his bridge
by turning the hand over on to its side just by lifting
the left of the palm. But this is not the only way and
today most players today simply lower the whole hand
and still maintain a good 'V' in the bridge. It is up
to you which method suits you better.
For a very deep screw shot Joe would use the loop bridge,
which very few players use today. The real reason he
used it even if he was not aware of the fact, was that
he was inclined to lift the cue when striking the cue
ball.
This came about because he had the flourish so many
billiards players have of lifting the cue when playing
a forcing shot - sometimes even striking the light shade
with the tip of the cue.
The loop bridge counteracted this by stopping the cue
coming up. Young players today appear reluctant to use
the loop bridge, but my advice is to try it out. It
is very useful when the cue ball is tight to the cushion
as shown top left.
A
solid firm bridge is essential if you wish to become
a decent snooker or pool
player.