The rest is probably the most dreaded implement in the game.
Many a break has finished with me going
after missing a simple rest shot.
One only has to look at Matthew Stevens switching to his wrong hand to play (and miss) a shot to see how far even some pros go to avoid using it. Dennis Taylor worked hard at being able to play with both hands just to avoid the rest. I can use it OK but I wouldn't rank myself as one of the better rest players, most likely because I've rarely spent any time practicing them.
Tips for rest play.....I haven't seen much of anything written in instructional books on proper use. The few bits I have seen have discussed multiple methods but nothing concrete. The basic gist that I got was that it's pretty much whatever feels comfortable for you.
Could you send me a video of your current rest action, it might help me spot something. Try to do plain straight shots, it's easiest to see if you're mis-hitting the shot.
Input for now:
Many players discount using their "wrong hand" for playing rest shots and IMO that's a mistake. I'm a bit of an oddity in that snooker is the only thing I play left-handed, I'm righty for everythign else. Consequently I'm actually comfortable with the rest cue action with my "wrong hand". I've seen right handed players switch to left when using the rest. I've even come accross players who use their wrong hand for rest shots even though they never use that hand for anything else.
Just because you're right or left handed doesn't mean you have to use the rest with that hand. Determining which hand is most comfortable would be the best starting point. Have you ever tried switching hands or have you just worked on using your normal cueing arm?
In my experience I find the biggest issue I have is not looking at the object ball while shooting. I think it's a subconcious fear of striking the cueball wrong which has me focusing on the cue ball and not the object ball. In short, lack of practice has me second guess my stroke on any given day if my first rest shot goes wrong and from that point on I worry too much about cueball contact instead of object ball.
Now, on days when I'm able to ignore the cueball and just focus on the object ball my percentages go way up. Trusting my cue delivery is everything. If my rest action feels awkward I stop trusting my delivery and stop looking at what I should be looking at...the object ball.
My suggestion for now would be to spend some time practicing the typical rest shots that come up in a game and send me a video. Focus on the object ball when delivering the cue.
Some like their cueing arm elbow low which gives you a dart like action. Hendry plays this way and TBH it's the method I've found I'm most comfortable with, it allows me to "throw" the cue at the target. I throw much more accurately overhand than side-hand.
Some like their cueing arm virtually parallel to the table (sideways action). My issue with this is it takes your normal cue action and turns it sideways which tends to make one hit across the ball rather than through it if they can't release the entire arm properly. That's where I get into trouble because I try to limit my arm movement to the forearm. If one can get the whole arm invovled then you can play this way without hitting accross the cueball but it's not a very natural action..at least for me anyway.
The grip is very important. You absolutely do not want to be holding the cue too tight, it will prevent a straight through release of the cue. I don't know if you've played any golf but the basic premise of holding a golf club applies to holding a snooker cue, be it a normal shot or a rest shot. You should hold the cue like you're holding an egg. Not so lightly that you'll let go but lightly enough so that you wouldn't break it. Tension is a real killer with the rest. If it can make you snatch a normal shot it just gets magnified with the rest
You have a pretty long cue action....does that happen with the rest as well? A shorter backswing is usually very helpful I've found.
In the end it's all about which action you can comfortably make. You can drop your elbow low for the dart-style action, you can have it in the middle and I've even seen some who have it high. Play around with each hand and with your elbow in different spots. You'll find one that feels comfortable or at least less awkward than the rest and that's the one you should focus on practicing.
Regards,
Rob