Hook Shot - 'splain this to me Lucy!

[Billy_Bob]

On page 123 (Shot #69) of "The 99 Critical Shots in Pool" is "The Hook Shot".

For those without the book, this is a similar shot...

http://endeavor.med.nyu.edu/~wei/pool/

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I can shoot this shot with high follow, medium speed stroke, a closed bridge, plenty of chalk around edges of tip, and LOTS of follow through. Accelerate through the shot and your tip should be 3/4 way to the object ball when you are done with your stroke. Also I place my grip hand a little further forward than normal for extreme follow shots.

You need to position the object ball so that it is a slight cut to the right to make the pocket and so that the cue ball will deflect off the object ball to the left and hit the cushion. Hit the object ball slightly to the left of center. I have had more success setting up the balls so I am hitting the object ball more from the direction of "A" than shooting the cue ball from the direction of "B". So the further over you can move the cue ball in the direction of "A" and still have a cut to the right, the more roll you will get after hitting the object ball. The more towards "B", the more outward curving you will get and less roll up table.

Question: I don't understand this shot. (i.e. What is going on here. Magic?) It does not seem to make sense. The ball has a follow roll toward the long rail, yet after doing its curve bit, it heads up table toward the short rail! I would think it would head back toward the long rail????

[Rod]

If by long rail you mean this, then it will do that.

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Depends on the angle, how much stroke. Table conditions have an effect as well. It's a real old force follow shot and very useful. It's got me where others have only dreamed. LOL Use top right, BTW this shot is easily over cooked, at least for me, so whitey can get away from ya.

BTW you can still get down there even if the o/b is over 6" from the pocket. It's knowing what the angle will give you, related to a/your good solid stroke. I should mention it's not just whacking the hell out of the ball.

Rod

[B0B_PERKINS]

Billy_Bob... The top spin you apply clearly accounts for the forward roll but as the cueball glances off the 1 ball and into the rail a left side spin is also effectively transferred onto the cueball. This of course causes whitey to dig into the cloth as it spins clockwise holding it to the long rail as it travels up the table. I love woking with that kind of "magic". ...Bob

[Billy_Bob]

<blockquote><font class="small">Quote B0B_PERKINS:</font><hr> Billy_Bob... The top spin you apply clearly accounts for the forward roll but as the cueball glances off the 1 ball and into the rail a left side spin is also effectively transferred onto the cueball. This of course causes whitey to dig into the cloth as it spins clockwise holding it to the long rail as it travels up the table. I love woking with that kind of "magic". ...Bob <hr /></blockquote>

Duhhh! Ding Ding! I knew that for other shots. Don't know why I didn't think about that for this shot as well. That makes perfect sense. Thanks.

[smfsrca]

Think of it as a bank shot with a lot of reverse spin.
The first time it hits the long rail it starts to bank with slide, the extreme follow english on the ball cancels the slide and the ball goes down table toward the short rail. If you had enough follow on the ball it would go back into the long rail as your intuition tells you.