Kinematics

Technique-based snooker coaching, using long-established and widely recognised principles, with the rigour of the WPBSA White to Black coaching framework, forms the core of Cueology's teaching.

Cueology aims to deliver more though. Kinematics is the study of spatial position and motion, and is now widely used in modern-day sports coaching across a variety of sports.

In cricket, for example, top coaches regularly analyse a pace bowler's delivery action or a batter's technique whilst playing a drive. Golfers' swings and tennis players' volleys can be graphed, analysed and reviewed, with specific metrics identified to work on.

I show how methods like these can deliver benefits in cue sports too.

Case Study: Linear kinematics of my cue action

In cue sports, we are, of course, striking a stationary ball. However, just as in more dynamic sports, it's vitally important that the player drives through the ball cleanly and smoothly, by some considerable distance, after impact. This is necessary to get the spin we want on the cue ball. Timing in all ball sports is about getting maximum reaction on the ball from minimal effort.

The graph below shows the horizontal motion of my cue tip whilst potting a ball. The vertical axis shows distance in centimetres and the horizontal axis time in milliseconds. The trace on the graph starts at a relative position of 0cm, with my tip almost touching the cue ball. "Tip to the ball - that's your starting point!" was one of Frank Callen's mantras.

Following the trace of the graph, the first motion we see shows the cue tip coming backwards by around 5cm, then forwards again. This is repeated a second time. On the third 'waggle', there's a long pause in the backswing of around a second before the cue is propelled towards the cue ball and beyond. There's then another spell of over a second before the trace breaks down, indicating this is the point where I'm starting to stand up after the shot.

All this is exceptionally useful for the coach and player. Firstly, a good coach would (hopefully!) find lots to praise in this chart! The even and metronomic waggles, the long pause at the backswing, and a considerable follow-through are all indicators of a strong technique. I also stay down on the shot for some time after impact, again something all good coaches would recommend.

There are also some improvement areas here. Firstly, I'd recommend perhaps a couple more practice waggles to get a better feel for the shot. Then there's also a curious little dip at the end of the long pause before impact that really shouldn't be there! The footage this was taken from is several years old now, and at the time I was struggling a little with the 'yips', and this is one of the ways this can show up on a graph such as this.

Kinematic study comes as standard if you wish when you book a block of lessons with me. All I ask is that the data we generate is available for me to use for further research (anonymised, of course). This may include working with universities and other sports science experts.

Using specialist software, we can analyse and discuss metrics such as distance, speed, acceleration, momentum, displacement angles and energy:

At set-up, during address and feathering.
During the critical phase of the shot, i.e. during the final backswing, the striking of the cue ball and the follow-through.
Immediately after the shot (we can also look at what happens to the balls themselves; in doing so, we can learn how much energy is passed on to the cue ball on impact).

This list is not exhaustive, and I'm keen to work with clients to get the most out of these methods. Outputs can be reviewed on screen and discussed within the session. After the session, I will also produce a detailed report unique to you, highlighting your results and areas I believe we can work on. I strongly feel this is a two-way process and your inputs are definitely welcome!

If this is something you are interested in, then please send me a message or give me a call to discuss.

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