9 ball break to make 1 ball

Willowbrook Wolfy

Willowbrook Wolfy

Going pro
Do you break for the 1 in the side on 9 ball? Why? and what percentage of making the 1 is good? Or do you break for the wing ball as I’m watching a you tube right now saying the wing ball is the one to pocket.


(I’m just a new member enjoying my time on AZ and hopefully helping out some younger players in the process)
 
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As a reference. Most of the good players I know break from the side and I don’t break from the side in 9 ball. I break towards the middle and can make the 1 in a few different chosen pockets on the break regularly. Always nice calling the 1 in the back corner on the break and making it when playing a cocky mofo. But Making the one might be bad is what I am seeing now.

I’m just trying to figure out if there is a real strategy behind breaking from the side or not. Most if not all of the better players seem to break from the side. I personally haven’t played anyone else good breaking from towards the middle of the table. If the wing ball is what they are aiming for, what is a good percentage on pocketing that ball?
 
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There are several questions that need to be answered first:

-Wood rack or template rack?
-1 on spot or 9 on spot?
-Break from box or break from anywhere?
-3 point rule or no?

I'd even say it changes on new cloth to worn cloth a bit, and bar table to big table. Each has a different answer, and even then it can change depending on how the balls are breaking.

I'm sure others will have more useful answers, mine would only be useful in the sense of approaching this with a respect for the nuance of the break and not thinking there is an easy answer that applies to all situations.
 
Tin Man said:
There are several questions that need to be answered first:

-Wood rack or template rack?
-1 on spot or 9 on spot?
-Break from box or break from anywhere?
-3 point rule or no?

I'd even say it changes on new cloth to worn cloth a bit, and bar table to big table. Each has a different answer, and even then it can change depending on how the balls are breaking.

I'm sure others will have more useful answers, mine would only be useful in the sense of approaching this with a respect for the nuance of the break and not thinking there is an easy answer that applies to all situations.
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To keep it simple let’s just keep it how you normally will see 9 ball played at a hall. So breaking from the box with the one on the spot. 3 point rule? I just learned something. But how many people are going to play you if you are one pocket breaking 9 ball racks? I didn’t realize the template vs a wood rack would actually change up the outcome of a break. That’s crazy!

And sorry 😞 I forgot to add 9 foot table
 
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Konrad5288 said:
To keep it simple let’s just keep it how you normally will see 9 ball played at a hall. So breaking from the box with the one on the spot. 3 point rule? I just learned something. But how many people are going to play you if you are one pocket breaking 9 ball racks? I didn’t realize the template vs a wood rack would actually change up the outcome of a break. That’s crazy!

And sorry 😞 I forgot to add 9 foot table
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It's a good post.

When breaking from the box the most common break is to cut break slightly from the corner of the box with low outside spin. The cue ball should go to the side rail and then back through the top of the rack area. This gives really good chances to make the wing ball. Sometimes the one might go as well.

If the wing ball is going with good consistency then you can try to get the one ball to miss the side low and bank one rail in front of the corner you are standing by when you break for good position.

If you are having trouble making the wing ball then you can try to play both that and the one ball to maximize your chances of a wet break.

Really, though, with the 1 on the spot and a template rack the wing ball is almost dead.
 
Konrad5288 said:
To keep it simple let’s just keep it how you normally will see 9 ball played at a hall. So breaking from the box with the one on the spot. 3 point rule? I just learned something. But how many people are going to play you if you are one pocket breaking 9 ball racks? I didn’t realize the template vs a wood rack would actually change up the outcome of a break. That’s crazy!

And sorry 😞 I forgot to add 9 foot table
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With a good rack like the templates give you, the corner ball is pretty much dead with a medium hit from the rail break. You can get the same thing with a more middle table break with a bit of a cut. The 1 ball in the side is also played with a fuller hit, and can also go in from the side pocket break. It all depends on the rack though. A great match to see for the 1 in the side is the race to 120 between Strickland and Efren, they make the 1 ball in very often.
 
I've seen Fedor Gorst break remarkably well so I suggest watching a video of how he does it.


Jeff Livingston
 
The more I am thinking about this the more I want to break from the middle… if most good players are breaking similarly then the tables are more likely to have a similar spread. Breaking from the middle changes up the pattern….

but I’m also going to attempt this “side” break. Maybe it’s a once you go that way you never go back thing. Plus the added benefit of how often a ball is pocketed on the break. If a ball is going in even 5-10% more often it’s a win. Because correct me if I am wrong. Every shot counts against the best players. Even more so if you are alternating breaks.
 
At home, I pattern rack when I practice. Not to cheat but to see where the balls go from which position. I rack 1-9 in order:
1
2 3
4 9 5
6 7
8

I place the cue ball in the same spot, measured four fingers out from the second diamond on the right hand side of the table. I draw the cue ball off the 1 ball straight to the back rail. I put the 4 in just about every time. Sometimes the 8 ball also drops in the same corner pocket as the 4 ball.

The 1 ball and 3 ball are almost always close to the side pocket with a softer break (or up table by the corners with a harder break) and the 2 ball either goes close to the 3 ball or stays home by the 9 ball.

I can make this break without much arm movement (wrist only). The 3-point rule will catch me sometimes, but usually the 4 ball drops, the cue ball passes the headstring from the draw and the 8 ball will come back up table as well. (Even with just wrist).

I ONLY use the pattern to see where each spot goes. In a tourney I have no problem randomizing. If they force you to put the 2 ball just behind the 9 ball, I always break from the side I placed the 2 ball, knowing where it will most likely go.

The only problem with this practice is that you play like you practice. I was playing a friend and I had to keep stopping my rack half way through as I was doing the pattern. He thought I was doing something "funny" but in reality, I was trying to not do something funny.
 
Konrad5288 said:
The more I am thinking about this the more I want to break from the middle… if most good players are breaking similarly then the tables are more likely to have a similar spread. Breaking from the middle changes up the pattern….

but I’m also going to attempt this “side” break. Maybe it’s a once you go that way you never go back thing. Plus the added benefit of how often a ball is pocketed on the break. If a ball is going in even 5-10% more often it’s a win. Because correct me if I am wrong. Every shot counts against the best players. Even more so if you are alternating breaks.
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Definitely practice breaking from all around.

The side rail break is most popular because you’ve got the wing ball dead with a good rack and you can bring the one ball up by the corner pocket fairly often, you’re hitting the one ball square and you can use plenty of power. That’s with the one on the spot, 9 on spot changes.

Some tournaments though you have to break from the Box. Basically up to a diamond left or right from center of the head string. I haven’t really practiced any breaking strategy from there but it’s a good idea to do so..just in case. It’s on my future to do list.
 
I break from the side to make the wing and leave the cue and 1 near each other if it doesn’t drop. Figures for a better shot on the first up after break as I see it. I’ll change it up depending on where the 2 is in the rack and try to go from there.
 
I’m off on my terminology as I’ve been out of the game for a good while. I gave up. I was an 8 ball monster on the full sized table and a bank “champ”, but everyone was playing 9. No one would play me 8 except one guy. You know the guy that no one played. At least not if there was money down. We always had a blast. Essentially break and run after break and run and may the best man win. I like this new attitude of modern players. Back then you never even used to see 10 ball. The game is definitely changing. One pocket. Straight pool. You almost never saw those games played, let alone being tournied. Now banks too! Am I in Heaven?

anyway onto terminology. I always thought the box was the kitchen, but now by what JazzyJeff is saying. I am wrong.

on the 9 ball break stuff. Thank you for the input. Your responses are definitely helpful. I like to hear about it from others perspective especially if it helps my game even a little.
 
Konrad5288 said:
I’m off on my terminology as I’ve been out of the game for a good while. I gave up. I was an 8 ball monster on the full sized table and a bank “champ”, but everyone was playing 9. No one would play me 8 except one guy. You know the guy that no one played. At least not if there was money down. We always had a blast. Essentially break and run after break and run and may the best man win. I like this new attitude of modern players. Back then you never even used to see 10 ball. The game is definitely changing. One pocket. Straight pool. You almost never saw those games played, let alone being tournied. Now banks too! Am I in Heaven?

anyway onto terminology. I always thought the box was the kitchen, but now by what JazzyJeff is saying. I am wrong.

on the 9 ball break stuff. Thank you for the input. Your responses are definitely helpful. I like to hear about it from others perspective especially if it helps my game even a little.
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Most banks and one pocket is during Derby City and some pool halls known for those games, not much banks events outside of that, but there are a few one pocket events although rare compared to 9/10/8 ball.
 
Konrad5288 said:
Do you break for the 1 in the side on 9 ball? Why? and what percentage of making the 1 is good? Or do you break for the wing ball as I’m watching a you tube right now saying the wing ball is the one to pocket.


(I’m just a new member enjoying my time on AZ and hopefully helping out some younger players in the process)
Click to expand...
The 9-ball break has been studied in depth and completely figured out. There is no need for trial and error anymore as it's already all been done. In fact, the breaking rules are often changed in pro tournaments because 9-ball breaking has become too easy.

Let's start with old school, standard rules:
1. One ball racked on foot spot
2. Cue ball can be placed anywhere behind headstring

In this format, the wingball will go in most often. When using a template, the balls are racked perfectly tight, and the wing ball will go in the corner pocket almost every single time when breaking from the side rail. When not using a template, there will always be tiny gaps between some of the balls. These tiny paper thin gaps can completely change the outcome of the break. A knowledgable breaker can look at the rack and determine the following:
1. Whether the wingball will actually go in. If not, they request a rerack.
2. Which side of the table to break from to make the wing ball
3. How close to the side or center to place the cueball to make the wing ball.

In general, if the rack is super tight break from the rail. The looser the rack, the closer to the center you should break but never break from the exact dead center, you always want to be at least 6 inches away from the exact center of the table. The rack reading process is super complicated so I'm not going to go too much further into it here. If you want to learn more, check out Joe Tucker's Breaking Secrets. However, this is just one small piece of the puzzle. There is much more info available that is not widely known.

Now, in order to make the break harder, some of the pro tournaments have created breaking rules to make it more difficult. Below are a few I've seen:
1. Nine ball racked on foot spot: This makes the wingball much harder to make. In this format, most players try to use a cut break to make the one ball in the side pocket.
2. Three point rule. This is a way to eliminate players from soft breaking. This rule is a little complicated but I believe you get one "point" for each ball you pocket and each ball that rolls past the head string. A minimum of three "points" are needed to have a successful break.
3. Break Box: In this format you are required to break from the center strip of the table. The cue ball must be placed no further than one diamond away from the center of the table. So breaking from the rail is prohibited in this format which makes it less likely to make a wing ball.
4. No Checking the Rack: This doesn't allow players to read the rack before breaking. They have to just get up and break what they get.
5. Racking patterns: Sometimes they require you to rack the balls in a certain pattern to make the runouts harder. The two ball racked in the back is common since it will get pushed up table away from the other balls.

As you can see, the break is very complicated and there is a lot more to it than meets the eye. I can go on for hours on all of the little intricacies of the break but I'm sure you're bored already lol. If nothing else, just start breaking from the side rail and racking them tight. Good luck!
 
j13smiley said:
Dr Dave also has some videos about breaking
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I only bought one breaking video. Oddly enough, it taught me nothing about pool. But if I ever get lung cancer, I know a way to help pay for my treatments and set my family up with some money.
Maybe next time I'll order Breaking Good.
 
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