Buddy Hall.....74 years of age today May 29

Michael Andros · May 29, 2019

sjm said:
Now I'm jealous! Jimmy was probably the standard bearer for great pattern play until Buddy came along and yes, watching Rempe was always a treat.

Rempe was always so clean. And elegant as a player.

One of the nicer compliments I ever got was, someone told me ( circa 79 or so ) I had a break like "Billy Johnson" ( yeah, pard... suuureeeee I do! ) I said thanks but told him it was Rempe that taught me how to break more than anyone else. I saw an article by him in one of the main pool rags from the 70s and 80s about the break somewhere @ 74 probably. And he said use the bridge arm like a piston, bend the elbow as you move forward, then back, then forward with all the energy. BOOM!. And then I watched him break live to perfect it but he didn't break exactly like the image in my mind I had of him from the article ( no images or vid before I saw him live which was years later ). So I just kept it the way I had worked it out for me. And it worked, pretty danged well I'll say. And Randy Brown was the one who drilled it into me to leave the CB within a circle the size of a basketball in the dead center between the two sides. Once I began coming close to perfecting that it was Katie bar the door. That's when I really started stringing racks.

But it was Rempe by and large...

sjm · May 30, 2019

Michael Andros said:
Rempe was always so clean. And elegant as a player.

One of the nicer compliments I ever got was, someone told me ( circa 79 or so ) I had a break like "Billy Johnson" ( yeah, pard... suuureeeee I do! ) I said thanks but told him it was Rempe that taught me how to break more than anyone else. I saw an article by him in one of the main pool rags from the 70s and 80s about the break somewhere @ 74 probably. And he said use the bridge arm like a piston, bend the elbow as you move forward, then back, then forward with all the energy. BOOM!. And then I watched him break live to perfect it but he didn't break exactly like the image in my mind I had of him from the article ( no images or vid before I saw him live which was years later ). So I just kept it the way I had worked it out for me. And it worked, pretty danged well I'll say. And Randy Brown was the one who drilled it into me to leave the CB within a circle the size of a basketball in the dead center between the two sides. Once I began coming close to perfecting that it was Katie bar the door. That's when I really started stringing racks.

But it was Rempe by and large...

Great story, thanks for sharing. Yup, if someone told you that you broke like Billy "Wade Crane" Johnson, they must have been seriously impressed. The nine ball break was still evolving back then, and how and with what stroke to hit it were subjects of great debate.

Michael Andros · May 30, 2019

sjm said:
Great story, thanks for sharing. Yup, if someone told you that you broke like Billy "Wade Crane" Johnson, they must have been seriously impressed. The nine ball break was still evolving back then, and how and with what stroke to hit it were subjects of great debate.

Yeah, Stu, absolutely agree. It was a pretty much wide-open time vis-a-vis the break. The object, as I was told ( and observed ), was to ( basically ) use ( jussssstttt below dead ) center with the goal of leaving the CB dead between the sides, dead center table. But, as Randy told me ( a zillion times... he was OCD :grin: ) within a circle the size of a basketball was "good". And as I said, I got pretty darned good at it. 2 on the snap most of the time, CB center table, balls ( most times ) well apart. I'm out.

Rack 'em.

:grin:

jay helfert · May 30, 2019

Michael Andros said:
Yeah, Stu, absolutely agree. It was a pretty much wide-open time vis-a-vis the break. The object, as I was told ( and observed ), was to ( basically ) use ( jussssstttt below dead ) center with the goal of leaving the CB dead between the sides, dead center table. But, as Randy told me ( a zillion times... he was OCD :grin: ) within a circle the size of a basketball was "good". And as I said, I got pretty darned good at it. 2 on the snap most of the time, CB center table, balls ( most times ) well apart. I'm out.

Rack 'em.

:grin:

Damn Mike, you play good! I learned the most from David Howard, another Floridian. He showed me that the break was like a Karate punch and how to execute it. I used to gamble with guys on who could make the most balls in five breaks. Five or more was a good score and seven or eight would get the money.

Michael Andros · May 30, 2019

jay helfert said:
Damn Mike, you play good! I learned the most from David Howard, another Floridian. He showed me that the break was like a Karate punch and how to execute it. I used to gamble with guys on who could make the most balls in five breaks. Five or more was a good score and seven or eight would get the money.

AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!

Spitting my coffee ( not really, I can't have coffee during treatment... but I can dream! ) all over my monitor!!!

Mr. Helfert, I play so badly these days I couldn't hit the end rail on 3 attempts using Buddy as my stand-in! :grin: :grin: :grin:

But back then? I could kick a little butt from time to time. :yeah: 'Specially with the snap working overtime!

David told me something similar to that as well, Jay. And I took it to heart. I don't recall him phrasing it as a "karate" application per se but the technique is definitely a karate striking one. David said "When you break, don't visualize making contact with the one ball. Visualize hitting the center diamond on the end rail." And damned if that didn't work REALLY well!

Buddy Hall.....74 years of age today May 29

Michael Andros

tiny balls, GIANT pockets

sjm

Older and Wiser

Michael Andros

tiny balls, GIANT pockets

jay helfert

Shoot Pool, not people

Michael Andros

tiny balls, GIANT pockets