Breakshot wwyd?
- Thread starter alphadog
- Start date
Low left, medium speed?
I love this shot. How you shoot it depends on how the cue ball hits whichever ball it hits. If it looks like a scratch with center ball, adjust accordingly. If it looks like it'll hit the foot rail, center right. If it looks like it'll hit the side rail, center left. I rarely ever get stuck on this shot, as long as I take a moment before the shot to analyze. 
This happens to be something I practiced (again) a week or two ago, as it comes up rarely (meaning, I tend to avoid it, but then, there are many possible break shots I know and practice, yet will avoid given the choice). There is no definite answer as so much depends on which part of a ball or gap the cue ball is going to hit and at what speed. Something players tend to overlook especially on new cloth is that in some cases one can shoot this so hard that the cue ball glances to the foot rail before the draw or follow takes, and that on old cloth, one can semi-jump this on top of the rack at medium speed (fun, and occasionally useful).
Greetings from Switzerland, David.
_________________
„J'ai gâché vingt ans de mes plus belles années au billard. Si c'était à refaire, je recommencerais.“ – Roger Conti
Greetings from Switzerland, David.
_________________
„J'ai gâché vingt ans de mes plus belles années au billard. Si c'était à refaire, je recommencerais.“ – Roger Conti
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My rule is on that shot depends on where the cue ball will strike the rack. On the pictured shot I use inside or high inside and go 3 rails under the stack to the middle of the table because the cue ball will strike the rack before the middle ball. If the cue ball is going to strike the rack after the middle ball I use high outside or just outside. The only problem is hitting the corner ball before you get to the middle of the table.
I like high-left and a good medium speed. If the OB was down another ball or 1.5 balls, I'd go high-right. Straightpool_99 says low-left, but I've never really tried low in that position. Not quite sure the action you'd get off the bottom of the stack. I know high guarantees the escape.
To put it more instructively, what meant before and the other Straight Pool aficionados are alluding to here, when I teach the game, I want students to check the tangent line from the object ball to the rack and figure out what the cue ball would do if they did nothing to it (a paradox or impossibility, but the purpose is simply for them to see where exactly the cue ball hits the stack, realizing that the stack isn't literally a pile of something, but consists 14 individual balls, one or two of which the cue balls is going to hit coming off that break ball. The second question I'll ask is whether it would make sense to let the cue ball do that - which they've figured out it would do naturally (= will the cue ball go where the balls that open up are going, or will it stick/get stuck, or scratch, or be left with nothing to shoot at etc.). All depends on how accurately one reads the contact point, simply because the object ball is so close to the rack that it will slide/glance and hit a specific point regardless of what spin etc. the player applies (assuming of course one is not going to slow-roll or soft-draw this). What I mean earlier saying there is no definite (or standard) answer was that the extent to which one can read the contact point, that is, how precisely one can predict what's going to happen, goes beyond what I could tell from a photograph, however well taken. While it does look here as if the cue ball will glance off the 15 and forward, so that following three rails to the center of the table would be best, from the perspective of the picture, I'm unable to tell with absolute certainty the cue ball will avoid the 11 completely regardless of how hard one hits it - and that "detail" is going to make all the difference here! If the cue ball so much as grazes the 11 before contacting the 15, there's a possible scratch here. In short, I'd prefer to inspect any such break shot (positioned on the "wrong" side or the bottom row of balls), so to speak) in person, from up close.
Greetings from Switzerland, David.
_________________
„J'ai gâché vingt ans de mes plus belles années au billard. Si c'était à refaire, je recommencerais.“ – Roger Conti
Greetings from Switzerland, David.
_________________
„J'ai gâché vingt ans de mes plus belles années au billard. Si c'était à refaire, je recommencerais.“ – Roger Conti
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For me the object is to try to get the cue ball above the rack. I also like high left to go 3 rails. If I was going to use low I'd use low right so the cue ball would come back to the rail and then spin off the rail above the rack but I believe you would be a better spread with follow.
High right medium speed. Cue ball hits the side rail and spins off the rail to mid table.
Medium speed so as not to scratch in the side pocket opposite the rail or go up table.
Medium speed so as not to scratch in the side pocket opposite the rail or go up table.
"If I was going to use low I'd use low right so the cue ball would come back to the rail and then spin off the rail above the rack ..."
think about what you said.
think about what you said.
You are correct.
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not that *i've* ever done it backwards... <rolls eyes>
I set this shot up today and hit it with high right medium speed and the cue ball did just what i thought it would. Hit the rail and spun to the right and almost made it to the middle of the table. I had several nice shots to pick from to continue.
Result is really about all I hoped for remember I said just get a couple of balls out! I dont like under the rack breakshots but that is what the last rack gave up.
I read somewhere that Mosconi commeted on a less then ideal breakshot " that is fine,just shoot easy,graze the corner ball. A couple of balls will come out and you can continue." I try to do just that when I have marginal breakshots.
I read somewhere that Mosconi commeted on a less then ideal breakshot " that is fine,just shoot easy,graze the corner ball. A couple of balls will come out and you can continue." I try to do just that when I have marginal breakshots.
Drawing this, the fact that the cue ball hits (judging from the camera perspective) the 15 and then 11, the fact alone that it glances downwards (towards the foot rail) defeats what side spin one might put on - in order to go to the centre of the table, the glance angle (the tangent line off the object ball the cue ball contacts last) would need to be perpendicular, or at least close (and without the correct glance angle, it's only going to get worse the harder one hits this shot). Honestly, the result you got is as good as it gets drawing it with inside or no English, being straight in onto the 9 into the middle pocket, plus the 11 uptable. I'd be happy with this, considering… Have you tried following the same type of shot, three rails to the centre of the table? Be sure to check the exact contact point on the 15 (or the gap) each time - huge difference!
Greetings from Switzerland, David.
_________________
„J'ai gâché vingt ans de mes plus belles années au billard. Si c'était à refaire, je recommencerais.“ – Roger Conti
Greetings from Switzerland, David.
_________________
„J'ai gâché vingt ans de mes plus belles années au billard. Si c'était à refaire, je recommencerais.“ – Roger Conti
The 9 doesnt go in the side.
I shot the 8 came back to center of table. Drilled one of the balls right side of rack. Pocketed ball in the corner,smashed the rack.
Problem is I hit it hard enough that the balls all went into the rails and back to the center of the table:angry: made a nice little "fort" around the cueball. My run was over.
I shot the 8 came back to center of table. Drilled one of the balls right side of rack. Pocketed ball in the corner,smashed the rack.
Problem is I hit it hard enough that the balls all went into the rails and back to the center of the table:angry: made a nice little "fort" around the cueball. My run was over.