Billiard lessons on the double hit

I’m about to try to reveal the truth about the double whammy foul.

Pool Leagues, like so many other social organizations, love their controversy. There was a time, a season, when players in my league were hung up on the rules regarding a double hit. For the life of me, I couldn’t shed a bright enough light on the concept for everyone to understand a) the basic physics behind a double whammy, and b) why the rules were necessary to begin with. He was trying to talk about it with small groups whenever controversy arose, but was completely dumbfounded at the inability of so many players to understand the simple truths of what he was telling them.

So I finally decided to run a league-wide demo, hoping to put the matter down. I also thought that I would share the explanations here in the hope that maybe people elsewhere can benefit from this.

A cue ball double hit is basically when the shooter has managed to hit his shot in such a way that the tip of his cue hits the cue ball twice. This is a fault because the second hit causes him to do things that he otherwise could not or would not do. Many players will inadvertently double hit under almost all circumstances and believe that the results are natural. Some players purposely hit twice to get their way at something they might not otherwise be able to accomplish, and they hope their opponents won’t notice.

Now, there is a risk of a double hit as long as the cue is very close to the target ball that the shooter wants to hit, more especially when the player is generally trying to shoot directly through the cue ball. The first part of what physics is like: Physics tells us that every time the cue ball directly collides with an object ball, it will come to a complete stop. Because both balls weigh roughly the same weight, this is always true, even before any top spin or draw has a chance to enter and cause the cue to be chased forward or backward. The energy from the cue ball is transferred to the object ball, so the cue MUST stop.

The second half what makes a double hit is the cue swing. The mass of the cue and the body attached to it is greater than the cue ball. Hitting the cue ball does not transfer enough energy to completely stop the club. There is always a natural tracking, even if it is only an inch or two. It is also nearly impossible for a player to intentionally stop natural stick following entirely, although many do try.

This two-part combination results in the infamous double whammy. First, the player tries to shoot directly at the object ball, then the cue ball stops for a fraction of a second before and draws or follows the kick, then the momentum of the cue forces him to continue forward where he then hits the stopped cue ball. for the second time. This will happen as long as the cue ball and the object ball are close together (within an inch or two). If you do this and see the cue ball rocket away afterwards, you should realize that you simply hit it twice.

No, you didn’t give it a follow-up crazy spin. That is probably the biggest mistake. He could set up a shot with a greater distance between the cue and the object, and he could land a massive follow-up hit at that cue ball that would make his ears buzz, but the cue wouldn’t react in any way similar to one that it was. double hit. With the top-spin, the cue would still come to a stop, probably make a small jump instead, and then continue forward at a moderate speed. A double hit, on the other hand, reacts as if you were hitting the white ball against nothing. Whitey would travel MUCH faster and shoot until hitting other object balls on the table.

To help avoid this foul, whenever you need to shoot a target ball in close proximity, you must choose not to shoot directly. (Some people will try to raise their club, hoping to lower towards the cue ball and towards the table surface to avoid a double hit, but I recommend not doing this because it can damage the fabric, many fans do not know how to do it correctly. for starters, so they are likely fouling in some other way) Instead, choose to shoot the object ball at an angle. The greater the angle, the more energy the cue ball holds. So you could slow down the carom, but it won’t stop completely. So you will continue to move out of the way of the cue, the momentum of which will still carry you forward, but the cue ball will no longer be sitting there in your path.

Hope this helps clear things up a bit regarding the lack of double whammy. If you’re still a bit confused, feel free to ask questions.