Shots are typically hard, soft or medium. The problem here is that players cannot accurately quantify the degrees stated. A standard description where the shot lag is taken as soft with variations ranging from soft on one end to extremely soft on the other or from soft to average (medium),or from medium to hard separated by a single table length. It sounds interesting, but for practical purposes, the length of a table is too broad to be of any use as a measurement parameter.
Thanks to Cue U and Bob Radford, a master instruct, there now exists a reliable definition for stroke speed, from the level of soft to that of hard in 9, 2-diamond variations. Lag is equal to one and hard is assigned the value of nine. For most players a normal stroke measures four. This system has many benefits, but planning and communication take highest priority. Each variation of speed is give or take one diamond. Working with this system is simple. With cue ball positioned at the head string, use a comfortable, relaxed stroke, hitting the ball towards the table foot rail. The speed here is equivalent to three table lengths, which translates to a value of between four and six on the scale. If your stroke equals five, a slightly faster stroke will translates to a speed of six. The reference point should be the head string mentioned earlier. A slightly slower pace translates to speed four. With practice and perseverance, it b becomes easier to control speed, varying it accordingly.
Base speed may vary from one day to the next or one table to the next but a few practice strokes along the table allow you the chance to establish a baseline, from which accurate speed estimation in reference to any point on the table follows. This system is useful. Keen observers may have noticed the fact that this system has no definition for speeds below lag. Cue U and Radford came up with a complementary system for slower speeds. This is the finesse speed scale. It starts with lag and working downwards to two diamonds, with subsequent speeds measured in further 2 diamond increments. Practice really does make perfect.
