Billiard Advanced - Jump Shots

Striking downward on the cue ball by raising the butt of the cue and bouncing the ball off the table into the air is called a jump shot. This shot is legal as long as the cue ball is bounced off the table. Jumping balls by using the cue stick to dig under and miscue is illegal. Jump shots are a lot like Masse’ shots in that the butt of the cue must be raised. The main difference is how much the cue ball gets pinched between the cue tip and the table. If there is significant pinch, the cue ball can’t jump because the cue tip is in the way and the ball will Masse’. If there is little pinch, the ball will jump. It is possible and quite common, to get a little jump in conjunction with a Masse’. The secret to jump shots is getting the correct butt angle. This, along with cue tip position and stroke speed, will produce differing launch angles and jump distances. Turn on tracking and play with jump shots before attempting them in a game.

The best angle for jump shots varies between 20 and 40 degrees with the cue tip position moving downward as the angle increases.