An Ounce of Cure

I finallly got around to
adding some weight to my playing cue.
Unfortunately, there was only room in the butt
to add a one-ounce weight bolt.
That brings the total weight to 20.4 ounces,
which is still an ounce short of what I wanted.

My old Willie Hoppe cue, which I retired three year ago,
(read the story, click here)
started out life marked as a 22 ounce stick,
but now, almost 50 years later,
it weighs 21.3 ounces,
and El Maestro figures that's what
my muscle memory would like me to use.

Later in the day,
El Maestro stopped by to shoot a few racks,
and check out how I play with the new weight.
I think we both figure it helps a lot,
as I had 3 break & runs in two sets to 5 in 8-ball.
(Two in a row!)
It was easy to get used to the new weight.

Many times I have heard "let the cue do the work".
A heavier cue should naturally do more work
with less stroke.
Additionally, a heavier cue should shoot straighter,
and follow through more naturally.
It's the law of physics, right?

In any case, it is also true that changes to the cue
tend to result in improvements simply because
we are paying more attention to what we are doing
and looking for positive results.
(Seek and you shall find.)

Maybe it's pyschological,
maybe it's physics,
maybe a bit of both.
Time will tell.
But it feels good!

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