The bridge: open, closed, rail and mechanical.

Plant it firmly

Set the bridge hand down firmly with the fingers spread, which gives a wide, stable base. The common faults are an unstable closed bridge, gaps between the cue and the fingers, and a bridge squeezed so tight it adds friction.

Open or closed?

An open bridge rests the shaft in a V formed by the thumb and the base of the index finger. Dr. Dave's site generally recommends it: it is easy to learn, you can see the shaft clearly, it has the least and most consistent friction, it works whatever your finger size, and it makes stroke flaws easier to spot. Its weakness is that the cue can lift out of it on firm follow shots or powerful side-spin shots.

A closed bridge wraps a finger over the shaft. The classic loop has the index finger over the shaft touching the thumb; a "Filipino" style presses the index finger onto the middle finger to form a V-channel. Closed bridges add variables and friction and can hide stroke flaws, but some players feel more secure with them, and a closed bridge can be the better choice when an obstacle ball is close.

How long should the bridge be?

Bridge length is the distance from your bridge hand to the cue ball. Dr. Dave's guideline is about 6 to 8 inches for most shots. Shorter, around 4 to 6 inches, favors accurate tip placement; longer, around 8 to 12 inches, favors smooth acceleration and power. A useful rule is to match bridge length to stroke length: long for power, short for finesse.

The trade-off is real. A long bridge magnifies small stroke errors into bigger tip-position and cue-angle errors, while a short bridge can feel jerky on fast shots. One thing bridge length does not change, per Dr. Dave's site, is squirt; neither does how tight the bridge is.

Bridging on the rail

When the cue ball sits near a cushion you cannot set a normal bridge, so the rail becomes your base.

• Near the rail but not touching it. PBIA Master Instructor Samm Diep uses a closed rail bridge: the thumb guides the cue while the index and middle fingers hold it. Dr. Dave also recommends guiding the cue with the thumb, index and middle fingers.
• About 6 inches off the rail. Mark Finkelstein lays the cue flat on the rail with the thumb beside the shaft and the index finger over it.
• About 3 inches off the rail. Finkelstein sets the palm on the side of the table and points the thumb up beside the index finger.
• Frozen or nearly frozen to the rail. Diep uses an open rail bridge, elevates only enough to reach the ball, concentrates on pocketing rather than spin, and firms the grip slightly to avoid miscuing over the ball.

On difficult rail shots, Finkelstein suggests looking at the cue ball last to keep the head still. One habit to avoid, per Diep: stacking your hand bridge on top of a rail bridge. It adds elevation you do not need and costs precision.

Bridging over a ball

When a ball blocks your normal bridge, Diep sets an elevated open bridge as close to the blocking ball as possible, raises it only enough to clear it, puts weight on the fingertips, and chokes up on the grip because the bridge is now shorter.

The mechanical bridge

The mechanical bridge (also called a rest, rake or "granny stick") is for shots you cannot reach. Place its head near the cue ball, keep the cue as level as you can, and move your bridge hand out of the way. Dr. Dave's grip for it: hold the cue deep in the V between thumb and index finger with the index and middle fingers loosely on top and your chin close to the butt. After the hit, those top fingers should point along the cue.