Buddy Hall's break technique

berlowmj

berlowmj

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I watched several of his videos & he appears to break with less force & does not recruit other parts of his body eg. hips, legs etc. Yet he consistently gets a ball & position. Do I have vision problems or is there an alternative technique here? I have watched the breaks on some of the tournament videos as a point of comparison.
 
Buddy's Break

I will give you one of Buddy's methods for a good break. He places his lead foot farther forward ( 8-12 inches depending on one's height) towards the rack. It's forward to the point of being uncomfortable. He showed me this in early 90's and helped me a great deal. He also told me, he showed Reyes this method, and Reyes starting beating him. Buddy is a real gentleman.
Regards-
Hal
 
This is an exceptionally useful insight, since his lead foot is hidden by the table. Does he place the lead foot before he strokes or simultaneously? Does he use less force & stay lower or is this an illusion? I am attracted to him because, like me, he seems built more for power than speed & agility. I am a powerlifter. Also, what is the weight of his break cue?
 
berlowmj said:
I am attracted to him because, like me, he seems built more for power than speed & agility. I am a powerlifter.
Click to expand...

You must not have seen Buddy in his earlier years. Almost as thin as Sigel, but taller. What you see now is a LOT of weight gain. I'm afraid I can't answer the break questions, but what a stroke that man had and still has!!
 
I think Buddy Hall is breaking well, in the video, without the use of extra muscle force, because he is employing BALANCE for power. Plus his BALANCE affords him very good accuracy of hit..

In the video, Buddy Hall doesn't display a posture that would say, "my lead foot is out there 6 inches further than I like", but it does say "I am comfortable & I have my balance".

In every human movement, BALANCE is emphasized, over & over, for control of one's actions, for power & accuracy.

The "MAGIC" of the Break Shot, for a well racked 9-Ball Rack, racked close to perfect, can be discovered by methodically racking the balls & firing WHITEY into the RACK, from a pre-determined location (24-27 inches away). Always use a reference point (Golf Tee on the back Rail) for your shot Line.

If your original attempt doesn't work, move the TEE a 1/4 inch to the left or right, until things start to work for you. If you can't get the movement of the TEE location, to work, you have to allow the TEE to remain in a permanent location & move the Cue Ball location, a 1/4 inch to the right or left, for a successful Break Shot.

We have all witnessed many top players make a wing ball or the lead ball or the back ball, on the the Break Shot, time after time. That isn't magic, the knowledge is the MAGIC.
 
Buddy's Break

Buddy places his foot farther ahead before he even bends down. I will tell you that when he first showed me his method he actually placed my foot in the proper location. Until I got use to this method I could feel 'different' leg mussels streching. My first comment to him "It's a little uncomfortable". And he told me I would get comfortable and I did.

Push Out - you are right about his stroke. He has a slow, precise, constant and beautiful stroke. I still watch a video of him and I taken in Indianapolis in the early 90's and try hard to copy his stroke.

Berlow - If I recall the weight of his regular cue was very light. I recall hitting a few balls with it and know it was much lighter than my 20.2 oz cue.

Ceebee - Thanks for the golf Tee tip.

Good Luck and Best Regards,
Hal
 
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Thank you so much for the insights on Buddy Hall. I get the impression that mastery of the rail break is essential. Would you suggest practicing the break from the middle of the table first & advancing to the rail break or concentrating on the rail break from the outset? I am also doing drills in which I hit center ball to send the ball down to the rail & try to have it return to the tip of my cue. I discovered that I am often putting unintentional English on it. I hope this is a good drill?
 
i bought that breaking secrets thing off ebay awhile back that were were talking about on here, and ive modified it some but i break off the rail now from everywhere, sides and from the box, and my break has really improved......you might want to look into that on ebay ( i think the guy is sellin it for 9.99).
 
For Scotty Coyote, Joe Tucker's Racking Secret's DVD has a lot of great info. It sells for $24.99 on eBay. Used DVDs sell for less, but some folks don't like used stuff.

For BERLOWMJ
Unintentional Spin is generally imparted when the cue actually crosses the Shot Line.

The Break Shot really requires perfect practice, in order to build reliable muscle memory. All components, of the shot, need to be practiced very methodically, unless of course you are a natural.

Good Luck....
 
Thank you for that insight. To paraphrase one of our A-Z comrades, there had better be a pool hall in heaven because time on Earth is insufficient to master all of these components, much less put them together.
 
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