BILLIARDS

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 689, 14 June 1929, Page 7

BILLIARDS

POSITIONAL STROKES

By

Riso Levi

Author of: “Billiards: The Strokes of the Game” and “Billiards For the Million.’’ (Copyright) In my last article I gave a stroke for the very ordinary player, and another for the capable amateur, and today I do this again.

Diagram 3 shows the balls situated for a very simple cannon from the D. The ordinary player invariably plays j this cannon by a direct stroke from the red on to the white, because just i as a means of scoring this method is ! simplicity itself. But if you were to j ask him what the next stroke is going i to be he could not tell you. In all j probability the cue ball will be be- i tween the other two when the balls J come to rest, and if any easy shot | is on for the next stroke he will have : fluked a good leave. The correct way of playing the cannon is by a slow stroke, hitting the cushion just a little in front of the red. Played this way, the cannon is ’ not quite so simple as by the direct stroke, because it will not do to hit the 1 cushion anywhere. But in reality the cushion stroke is little more difficult than the direct stroke, because there 1 is a fair amount of latitude as to I

where the cushion may be struck without the cannon being missed. Try this cushion stroke a few time.-, and yon will find that it presents no difficulty at all to you, even though you may never have got much past a 20 break, j

If a slow stroke is used —this is best played with drag—the resultant position will always be very good. The kind of good position which may be set up by a good strength stroke is indicated on the diagram. Diagram 4 illustrates a position for a double-baulk stroke after the object white has been lost, and the method adopted by good players for this stroke. Many very fair amateurs it" faced with a position at all similar to this, with the red ball close to a side cushion, would play direct on to the ball. But even though it may be an easy enough matter to leave a double baulk by this direct stroke it is not too easy also to leave what will be an easy-scoring position should the opponent fail to disturb either ball. The better way of playing this double baulk shot is by a ruuning-side stroke taking the cushion just a little in front of the ball. In this way the red may be made to travel to the vicinity of the pocket, but not to the brink of it, and tie cue ball to the opposite side of the table, as indicated on the diagram. A double baulk of this nature offers no cannon to the opponent, whereas when the two balls are on the same side of the table, more especially if they are not far apart, a cannon often comes off even though it may be made in a totally unexpected manner. NEXT ARTICLE: PROFESSIONALS AND COMPOSITION BALLS