8-ball break

[Snapshot9]

No it isn't

Beware of hitting the 3rd ball. Some rules specify that as a foul

against the rules. You can even bank off the end rail, and hit the back of the rack in 8 ball.

Front breaks, I think, yield the best tables when the cloth is new, but after awhile the 2nd ball break will yield a better break than most front breaks.
Irregardless, you should have 3-4 different breaks, from each side of the table.

 

[jigmoore]

one of the most helpful things i've learned when the table is racking like shit, and can't get any movement on the break. is to break from just off the rail in the center of the short rail. head on, medium speed jacked up and jump into the rack.

when i just don't want to argue with the drunk in the crappy bar with the beerstained cloth on the table about how not even one ball is touching another....it's just a way to get some motion in the break. was a valuable lesson...can't remember from whom, or where i learned it.

but in general, i break 8ball just like 9ball. right or wrong....it's more just in the muscle memory. i've got pretty good control of whitey on the break off head ball hit from just off the siderail...and i value cue ball control quite a bit higher over ball motion and pocketing.

 

[lukemindish]

This is what i usually do. Place the ball on the headstring in the center. I usually hit about a half tip below center. When i follow through i jump up and forward into the rack. I usually get the cue ball to jump up a little like Shanes and squat in the center of the table. This happens with me usually making a ball on a consistent basis. I love the center brake. But i have deviated to the second ball break lately and have snapped a few eights. When i break from the middle of the table i set up my bridge and aim and then focus where im hitting the front ball in the rack. Never taking my eye off of the focus point.

 

[sammylane12]

I like a fairly head on break with cueing just below center. I like the way the balls break up. Hitting the second ball always seems to leave clusters to deal with, and I scratch more often.

 

[West Point 1987]

I play regularly on 9 foot Pro-Ams...I always break 2nd ball from about 6 inches from the rail with one tip draw-inside english. Almost never come up dry, and the cue ball comes off the rail and back into and through the rack, usually ends up center of the foot area, almost always have a shot. I usually drop 3 balls, dropped 5 balls on one break last night. Old cloth and a loose rack makes front ball breaks very unpredictable. 2nd ball break works for me on virtually anything. I hit it about 80-85% of what I'd do on a front ball break. Yes, you end up with a few more problem balls, but most of them are around the foot spot and any decent 8 ball player should be able to deal with those. If I'm playing in dry conditions on a freshly covered table, tight rack, I'll start off with the front ball break and see how it goes...first time I come up dry, it's all 2nd ball break from there on out!

 

[Andrew Manning]

Ball on the headstring, one diamond off the center line. Center-ball strike. Full hit on the head ball. Hard as I can while successfully achieving said center ball strike and full hit.

When I do it right, this gets me a lot of action and stops the CB near the center of the table (no rails, just "bouncing" back a couple feet off the rack and then squatting). It's my best possible chance to get a ball on the break and have auspicious runout opportunities.

-Andrew

 

[Donny Lutz]

I'll hit either the first, second, or even third ball into the rack depending upon the circumstances. In my opinion, hitting anything but the head ball is more useful as a defensive break against a stronger opponent. Both the second and third balls will tend to leave more clusters and send the cueball into the pack, but the third ball will also help to push more balls to one side of the table, setting up more safety opportunities (helpful if you're playing a run-out type player), and pretty much guarantees that you will see the table again if you don't make a ball.

Both of those balls can be hit and get similar results on any table, but breaking offensively is when table conditions really come into play, because you can leave a wide open table and cueball in perfect position for your opponent if you don't make a ball.

I break to run out when I'm either playing a weaker opponent, or know the table and how it's breaking. If I'm not confident in my break and I'm playing someone who has a good chance of running out an open table, I'm breaking defensively.

I agree completely. In a crucial game, I tend to play a conservative break. I have played on tables though, on which the only way to make a ball was the second or even third ball hit. When I'm practicing on a match table, I begin with a moderately soft break, and build up to speed. If I break more than two or three times with force and don't make a ball, I begin to slow up until a ball goes. I don't give up on the head-on break unless it never makes a ball...then I'll try breaking from other angles and other targets in the rack.
Donny L
BCA/ACS Instructor
Gainesville, Fl

 

[Autist]

With my limited experience, even when I can manage to park the cue ball in the middle, it gets kicked away very very often. Therefore I have decided to simply only keep the cue ball on the table, position wise, and try to hit them a little harder. First ball.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guVtFMXeW5I

 

[nancewayne]

The 2nd ball break (even though the 8 ball may not count as a win) is very effective in making the corner balls and keeping the cue ball behind the rack and not spreading the rack toward the opposite end of the table. 8-Ball is a control game (smaller, in tight shots) and keeping the cue ball near the object balls IS important!
I.M.O.

I don't think it makes much sense to break on the 2nd ball if the 8ball on the break doesn't count. I think breaking down the middle with a hair of draw is a good strategy. If you do it right you can park the cue in the middle of the table.