| Interview With a Pool Shark -- Ewa Laurance |
From "Family Sports"
episode SPT-111 |
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Ewa Laurance, a world-champion pool player (also known as the "Striking Viking") demonstrates some keys to shooting great pool. Pointers from Laurance: - The pool cue should weigh from 18-1/2 and 21 ounces. "It (weight) doesn't have so much to do with how big ... or strong you are, it has more to do with what your preference is."
- The length of the pool cue is usually 57 to 58 inches. The longer, tapered sticks create more spin and control on the ball.
- For novice pool players, be sure to use the "beginner's bridge" (figure A). Simply place four fingers on the pool-table surface, then place the thumb against the thumb -- no circle. The guideline is the groove that is formed between the thumb and the hand.
- When holding the cue stick, the back hand should be at a 90-degree (figure B) angle when addressing the cue ball. This helps in maximizing the follow-through when the ball is stroked.
- Think ahead for the next shot, and where the cue ball needs to be for that follow-up shot will determine the speed of the stroke.
- Always look at the object ball, not the cue ball, when shooting. Laurance's analogy would be that a quarterback does not look at the football when he throws it, he looks at his receiver. The same holds true for shooting pool.
- Practice makes perfect. Laurance usually plays 10 hours a day, six days a week, when preparing for competition.
- For the break (scattering the billiard balls at the beginning of a game), Laurance suggests hitting the one ball from an angle -- not squarely in front.
Shooting tips from Laurance: - When you're first learning to play, Laurance suggests using a ghost ball, which is simply one of the billiard balls that's placed right behind the ball to be struck in line with the pocket (figure C). Once you're ready to shoot, remove the ghost ball and try to hit the empty spot with the cue ball, where the ghost ball resided. The ghost ball is the guide for the shot. This is how you can find the line of aim.
- The key to successful pool shooting is to play what Laurance calls "position ball." There are four basic ways to play for position:
- Stop-shot position (figure D) -- This is the most basic. It's when you hit the extreme middle of the cue ball to stop it right in its tracks.
- High-English position (figure E) -- The object here is to aim for the ball by using the top part of the cue ball. The cue ball will follow through using this position.
- Draw position (figure F) -- This is the trickiest position because a backward spin is created. The object is to align the cue stick at a level angle and hit the very bottom of the cue ball with a nice follow-through and stroke. The cue ball will come back toward you.
- Right- or left-hand English (figure G) -- This position creates right or left spin on the ball.
Guest: Ewa Laurance
Professional pool champion
Author, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Pool & Billiards
Paperback, 445 pages (December 1998)
MacMillan Distribution
ISBN: 0028626451
Ewa's Official Web site: www.strikingviking.com
RESOURCES :
Billiard Congress of America (BCA)
4345 Beverly St.
Suite D
Colorado Springs, CO 80918
Phone: 719-264-8300
Fax: 719-264-0900
Web site: www.bca-pool.com
American Pool Players Association, Inc.
1000 Lake Saint Louis Blvd.
Suite 325
Lake Saint Louis, MO 63367
Phone: 636-625-8611
Fax: 636-625-2975
Web site: www.poolplayers.com
Billiard World Magazine
E-mail: pat@billiardworld.com
Web site: www.billiardworld.com
Billiard's Digest Interactive
Luby Publishing Inc.
Attn: Billiard's Digest Magazine
122 S. Michigan Ave.
Suite 1506
Chicago, IL 60603
Phone: 312-341-1110
Fax: 312-341-1469
Web site: www.billiardsdigest.com
Billiard Information Online
Web site: www.billiardinfoline.com
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