BILLIARD ART.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 19968, 9 December 1926, Page 4

BILLIARD ART.

i;xteaoe;dinaey cannon. GETTING “THIN” SHOTS. Bjz J. R. Hooper. Another beautiful cannon is shown today. obtained by making the cue ball travel twice round the table. As will bo see®, the three balls are in a straight lino, and something has to be done as iho rial ball is lying close to the corner pocket for the opponent. A beautiful angle for the cannon is obtained by putting plenty of running side on the cue ball and making a quarter-ball contact with tho object white. Tho one ball, if struck hard, then foll ows the angle shown by tho dotted lines, and travels twice round the table before (Lo cannon is made.

All three balls in straight line , cover. But, plenty of left-hand side on cue bail. Strike object white quarter-ball, and hit very hard. Cue ball vill travel twice round table in tiho direction of dotted linos (jo make the cannon. Of course, il requires a fast fable for this stroke, but given a fast set of cushions, it should not be beyond the ordinary player, and is a wonderful answer to an extremely awkward position. With the red ball lying right over tho corner pocket and a straight lino cover facing the player he would he hard set to score in any other way—-or to a vend lotting his opponent in for a good brerak. LITTLE -KNOWN STROKE. I will now draw attention to a useful stroke which constantly occurs in tho game and which is invariably played wrongly by tho average player. 1 refer to the position when the player is in hand and one of the object balls is only about an eighth of an i iir.i outside the baulk line, and, says an inch inside tho left-hand corner of the D. Tho average player, if he elects to play at. this ball, usually spots at the other end of tho I), and makes a forcing hazard into tho left-hand loaulk pocket. By so doing ho makes a fairly difficult stroke for himself; but, mon-i important still, ho has no control whatever over the object ball,* and it is as likely 6.s not to go into one of the middle pockets. If it happens to bo the white, fin's woiild bo a serious loss. Tho correct, '.vay to play the stroke is to spot about hallf an inch from the object ball, leaving a nice, fine losing hazard on into the same baulk pocket. By playing this thin, with no side, ami fairly fast, the player can cottrol tho object ball perfectly to bring it out just in front of the centre pocket. Moreover, the hazard now becomes a simple shot if the player looks at tho inside edges only of both balls when playing the stroke. A little prantico will make it a certainty for even a. poor player, and he wdll find that he car. control iho pace of the object ball, to leave it in perfect position almost anywhere ho chooses. Just out in front of the middle pocket is generally best. SIGHTING FINE SHOTS. The. advice given above will prove invaluable to plaiycrs if they will adopt it in all very fine shots, when the balls are fairly close together. To concentrate on looking at th(j inside edge of both balls means that you arc looking at the edges that are goinj; to meet, consequently you will sight the shot much more correctly, and success i?s sure to follow. This idea cannot ho carried out when the balls are a long distance apart, but will hold good un to at least two feet, especially if tho player is in t<W habit of keeping his head low, with the chin close to the cue. GOOD POSITIONAL STROKE. An excellent stroke for obtaining position, yet cnc seldom seen except from tho cue of a find-class player, is available when tho rod lies touching tho side cushion jaw of either of the top pockets with the cue ball, say, an inch out from the top cushion and possibly two feet from the red. In this position tho averages player sometimes plays for tho losing hazard, which may easily bo spoilt by a kiss if tho rod js a little inside the shoulder of tho pocket. More frequently he plays to cut the red in and finds it difficult to place the cue ball in good position as «vell. The con%ot stroke is to play gently on to the full face of the red. when the kiss thus obtained will not only pot the red but will leave the cue ball exactly in the natural angle for the loser into the other corner pocket after the. red ball is spotted. This stroke is so simple that any beginner can play it, yet, I have never scon it used except by a first-class amateur or a professional.