Break and scratch

fish2

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
How do I fix my break ? :grin:

I break from the right side and on occasions, the cue after hitting the 1, spins forwards and scratches on the left corner pocket.
 
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Donny Lutz

Ferrule Cat
Silver Member
low

How low on the cue ball ?

Depends on the force of your break.

For details on breaking, go to Youtube, buy a good instructional book, or seek an instructor.

By the way, if you're consistently scratching in the same pocket behind the rack, you're problem is probably in not striking the head ball accurately.
 

Patrick Johnson

Fish of the Day
Silver Member
How low on the cue ball ?
Center ball should do it for a break shot.

If you break pretty hard and hit the head ball square, you might have to hit slightly above center to keep the CB from rebounding back to the kitchen (unless that's where you want it to go).

pj
chgo

P.S. But the real problem may be your erratic stroke.
 

FranCrimi

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I don't recommend trying to hit dead center at high speed. You have to be deadly accurate and it's difficult. The common mistake is to hit the ball slightly higher than center, particularly if you move or lunge as you break, causing the cue ball to surge forward, which is what you're trying to avoid. Another problem is the player's perception of where dead center is. You don't see the bottom of the ball in your stance, so players will have a tendency to aim higher and think they are hitting dead center.

Aim about a tip below dead center. If you hit it exactly there, the cue ball should bounce slightly back away from the head ball and the exploding rack. If you make an error one tip in either direction, you will still be safe from driving the cue ball forward towards the pocket. However, keep in mind that the farther away from center you strike the cue ball, the less force you will have on the break shot.
 
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M.G.

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Try a softer break!
Rack 9ball and hit very soft and at a very precise spot on the 1.
Re-rack, hit again a bit harder (from the same spot). All in all 5-7 tries should give you a good feeling how hard is hard enough and where to aim.

I break from the right side, about 1 man-sized hand off the cushion and little bit below center as others wrote (you might try a bit left/right english for fun,too).
Can only remember 1-2 scratches.

Have fun!
 

Scott Lee

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Back off your speed by 50%, and work on hitting the 1-ball square. Center ball works fine, and is not that difficult to find...once you know exactly where it is (hint: most players don't, because of a visual misperception).

Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com

How do I fix my break ? :grin:

I break from the right side and on occasions, the cue after hitting the 1, spins forwards and scratches on the left corner pocket.
 

fish2

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Tried my break earlier, paid more attention to where my tip hits the CB and BOOM, the CB stops on a dime about inches from where the one ball was. Awesome. sadly it happened once, but at least the CB not does not go forward.

Thanks
 

Scott Lee

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
THIS! :thumbup: The BreakRak is the most efficient way to practice your break, simply because you don't have to rerack the balls every time. You can spend 15 minutes practicing your break, and hit 35-50 break shots...plenty to get lots of feedback on what you're doing, and how you're doing it. That way you learn to make small adjustments in your aim and timing to create the best "deadball" break. The only downside is that you don't learn how the rack comes apart, based on angle, speed, and spin. But it sure helps you to learn to "squat your rock"! LOL :grin:

Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com

 

skipbales

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Break basics

How do I fix my break ? :grin:

I break from the right side and on occasions, the cue after hitting the 1, spins forwards and scratches on the left corner pocket.

Breaking is the same as any other shot, in that the basics still apply. High goes forward, sliding stops, and draw comes back. For me a "slightly" above center hit is best. The cue ball slams into the object ball, and assuming you hit it square, bounces back from impact, moves slightly forward and stops. With too much high it continues on and could potentially scratch. The trouble is you can ALWAYS scratch somewhere. The best odds favor staying in the center of the table. Then you only have to worry that some combination of rolling balls colliding with your cue ball will knock it in some pocket.

Roll forward, scratch in the back, slight draw scratch in the side, more draw, scratch in the front corners. I opt for the slight top because I have the best success with it. If I am a little low it is stun and that is good too. If I am a little high it continues through the rack but not at high speed. For me perfection is not a consideration and I go for the overall averages.

Happy breaking!!:)
 

gregcantrall

Center Ball
Silver Member
Shane's 10 ball break.

Here is a clip of Shan's 10 ball break.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qoGfJOzPPRg
You can see the cue ball pops back but has just enough top spin to make it stop and go slightly forward.

The more balls in the rack the further back the cue ball will rebound off a square hit. If I hit a full rack a tip below center the cue ball will come all the way back to the head rail.

I agree with skipbales.:thumbup:
 

Patrick Johnson

Fish of the Day
Silver Member
Here is a clip of Shan's 10 ball break.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qoGfJOzPPRg
You can see the cue ball pops back but has just enough top spin to make it stop and go slightly forward.

The more balls in the rack the further back the cue ball will rebound off a square hit. If I hit a full rack a tip below center the cue ball will come all the way back to the head rail.
Yes, most players don't realize the CB actually rebounds from the rack (because it's so greatly "outweighed"), so they think they need to hit it below center to stop it.

pj
chgo
 

FranCrimi

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Yes, most players don't realize the CB actually rebounds from the rack (because it's so greatly "outweighed"), so they think they need to hit it below center to stop it.

pj
chgo

How much top spin do you think Shane had on that shot? 1 Tip? 1/2 Tip? 1/4 Tip? I tried stopping the video at impact but it was a blurr so I couldn't see where the tip was exactly.
 

Patrick Johnson

Fish of the Day
Silver Member
How much top spin do you think Shane had on that shot? 1 Tip? 1/2 Tip? 1/4 Tip? I tried stopping the video at impact but it was a blurr so I couldn't see where the tip was exactly.
Here's a screenshot just after impact - too late to tell exactly where he hit the CB, but I'm guessing less than 1/4 of maximum follow? It doesn't take much with a powerful break like that.

pj
chgo

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gregcantrall

Center Ball
Silver Member
How much top spin do you think Shane had on that shot? 1 Tip? 1/2 Tip? 1/4 Tip? I tried stopping the video at impact but it was a blurr so I couldn't see where the tip was exactly.
Here is a slow motion clip of his 10 ball break.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxZP-JS4g5s

I would guess less than a half tip maybe only 1/8.

Here is a montage of ten and eight ball breaks on a 7 foot Diamond. The times the cue ball does not get kicked it appears to have just a little or no top spin. I would guess he is aiming just a hair above center and if he misses hits dead center.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0SS_aBdFVJ8
 

FranCrimi

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Here is a slow motion clip of his 10 ball break.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxZP-JS4g5s

I would guess less than a half tip maybe only 1/8.

Here is a montage of ten and eight ball breaks on a 7 foot Diamond. The times the cue ball does not get kicked it appears to have just a little or no top spin. I would guess he is aiming just a hair above center and if he misses hits dead center.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0SS_aBdFVJ8

Thanks for the clips. Looks like just barely above center as you wrote. That's a hard place to aim. A little higher and the cb jumps way forward.

I wonder if he knows how early he stands up.
 

Patrick Johnson

Fish of the Day
Silver Member
I wonder if he knows how early he stands up.
His cue control is remarkable with so much movement. He stands up most of the way before starting his stroke, straightening his arm out and swinging from the shoulder for maximum power. The second break in the first clip (@ 0:30) is a thing of beauty.

pj
chgo
 

Pidge

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Here is Chinese 8 ball player Zheng Yubo absolutely hammering a rack. He has all the same tendencies as Shane with a very early rise and a lot of shoulder action. He uses an open bridge to break which I find even more amazing that he is able to generate so much power. The cue ball does a huge leap and he kind of loses control of it... But the power... He almost clears the bottom half of the table. Amazing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&persist_app=1&v=31bx8jO9HHo
 
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