A Few Cue Tips

• A good practice stroke for accuracy of striking is to place the cue ball midway between two of the spots on the baulk line and aim over the centre spot at varying strengths. The ball should enter the baulk corner pocket.
• Another good stroke for accuracy, and one in which even professionals break down, is to place the cue ball on a baulk end spot and the red ball midway between that spot and the middle pocket on the same side and in a line with the upper shoulder. The idea is to pot the red and leave the cue ball a little above the pocket for the loser into a top pocket off the red when placed on the spot.
• The course that the object ball, when on the billiard, pyramid, or centre spot, should take, in playing the cross losing hazard or the pyramid losing hazard and long losing hazard from baulk, may be mapped out as under-noted, the red ball bring left for middle pocket play in each case.
• Place the red ball midway between the spot and a point on the top cushion the same distance from the centre of the corner pocket as the baulk corner spot is from the side cushion. Now place the cue transversely over this point and send the red ball with slow strength across the billiard spot on to the top side cushion.
• In the case of the two other shots, the red ball is placed in a line with the pyramid or centre spot and the end of the baulk line, and the ball is struck with the cue held transversely across the cushion at the end of the baulk line and sent over the pyramid or centre spot with normal and free strength respectively.
• To find the "Gray" spot, lay a cue pointing to the middle pocket, with the butt end three ball diameters above the end of the baulk line. The cue should touch the red ball when placed in the exact longitudinal centre of the table.
• This is the "Gray" spot, from which half-ball losers may be made into either middle pocket from an end spot of baulk and the red ball kept to the longitudinal centre of the table.
• From the "Gray" spot to within fifteen inches of the centre pocket, moving the red step by step, the half-ball loser is equally on and the red ball still runs parallel with the nearest side cushion.
• When the cue ball is similarly advanced in a line from the upper shoulder of a side pocket towards the billiard spot instead of along the baulk line, the half-ball shot is on into a top corner pocket and the red ball is brought in each case down the exact centre of the table. The reason for this is that the angle for the "Gray" centre-table stroke and for the billiard spot centre-table stroke are exactly parallel with each other, as may be seen by placing two pairs of cues along the course that the cue ball takes and comparing them.
• Another interesting measurement is to lay a cue from the side pocket to the billiard pocket and place the red ball against it at the same distance from the side cushion as the end baulk spot is. This is a half-ball shot from such end baulk spot into the nearest top pocket, which is in turn the same distance from the red ball as the "Gray" spot is from the side pockets. This position of the red also marks the limit at which the object ball can be safely played upon with a strength which would otherwise send it into baulk.