Challenge Breakshots
- Thread starter stevekur1
- Start date
Well, speaking as a guy that sucks at this game, a variant of this is by far the most reliable and consistent practice break that I use, and I get by far the best spread with it. Rare is it that I don't pocket the BB and AT LEAST another ball or two on this break.
I use it for warming up my pattern work. When practicing, I have moved to more of a traditional break that comes up more often in games.
I use it for warming up my pattern work. When practicing, I have moved to more of a traditional break that comes up more often in games.
I prefer this one.
http://CueTable.com/P/?@2AavK4BCpA3...OBJl2PYiH2UavK2UdIA2kYiH2kXjT3kCXW3kayv3kFIL@
I saw it too used alot with great success.
Andy
http://CueTable.com/P/?@2AavK4BCpA3...OBJl2PYiH2UavK2UdIA2kYiH2kXjT3kCXW3kayv3kFIL@
I saw it too used alot with great success.
Andy
Last edited:
It is a risky breakshot. I feel much better breaking from the side of the rack. Sometimes the spread is not that great but I'd rather pick the rack apart than risk a scratch on the breakshot.
Personally, I don't like that choice at all. What could be better than what Danny H. chose (also Andy's choice in previous post) besides being allowed a free break behind the head string like in 8 ball?
http://vimeo.com/19853043
http://vimeo.com/19853043
Danny is about the only one at the DCC that still uses that break shot. Corey and numerous others stopped using it after numerous scratches off the rack. They all have switched over to the center of the table side pocket break that Schmidt and most others use.
Great thread! Here's my two cents worth on this break shot. I've practiced it quite a bit, varying the object ball position and cue ball position from within the kitchen. I've found that as the break ball approaches the string between the head and foot spots the chance of scratching in the corner pockets goes up quite a bit and that seems to be true even if the cue ball starting position is varied perpendicular to that string.
As an aside I enjoy practicing breaking from the kitchen with ball in hand, early on it helped me build confidence in my break shots.
Sometimes as a diversion during practice sessions I'll set up the 14 ball rack and place the cue ball about 12 inches from the rack. I then shoot into the rack very, very lightly. So lightly that the cue ball and object balls don't touch a rail. I focus on controlling the cue ball spin and rack contact point while observing the cue ball trajectory after the contact(s). Sometimes I observe the object ball trajectories coming out of the rack instead but I try to pick one control variable and one observable during a particular session. I fix all the other variables and vary only one so for instance the cue ball initial position and rack contact point may get fixed and the cue ball spin will get varied. Other times I might shoot center ball with a fixed speed and vary the rack contact point. If you maintain one such experimental setup over daily sessions for a couple of weeks the correlations between the control variable and the observable start to pop up in your mind by themselves. If you're like most of us and you're spending a lot of time on the table try it, it will be something fresh and new and you may or may not get something out of it. Will your run average go up? probably not but you might walk away with a better feel for how the break shots unfold. Cheers!
As an aside I enjoy practicing breaking from the kitchen with ball in hand, early on it helped me build confidence in my break shots.
Sometimes as a diversion during practice sessions I'll set up the 14 ball rack and place the cue ball about 12 inches from the rack. I then shoot into the rack very, very lightly. So lightly that the cue ball and object balls don't touch a rail. I focus on controlling the cue ball spin and rack contact point while observing the cue ball trajectory after the contact(s). Sometimes I observe the object ball trajectories coming out of the rack instead but I try to pick one control variable and one observable during a particular session. I fix all the other variables and vary only one so for instance the cue ball initial position and rack contact point may get fixed and the cue ball spin will get varied. Other times I might shoot center ball with a fixed speed and vary the rack contact point. If you maintain one such experimental setup over daily sessions for a couple of weeks the correlations between the control variable and the observable start to pop up in your mind by themselves. If you're like most of us and you're spending a lot of time on the table try it, it will be something fresh and new and you may or may not get something out of it. Will your run average go up? probably not but you might walk away with a better feel for how the break shots unfold. Cheers!
Last edited:
Bill, I understand that concern, but, if shot a hundred times vs conventional type breaks, I think its a good bet.
I think if you set it up in a way that you can get under the CB enough to put a good stroke on it with draw, you can just about hit any part of the side ( although aiming for the top of course) without much concern for a scratch.
You can take a lot more speed off this shot without sacrificing much in terms of opening the balls cause so much of the original energy is still available going into the rack.
LOL, but who am I to doubt guys like Cory.
I guess, for me, I like the idea of at least a shot of running 1. :thumbup:
4 years ago Allison Fisher entered the challenge. She warmed up by shooting a few racks then she practiced that break shot. She must of shot it 5 or 6 times for practice before she started he first attempt. 1st official attempt, scratch off the rack, puzzled look on her face. 2nd attempt, scratch off the rack, getting a little upset but still making fun of herself. 3rd attempt, scratch off the rack, decided to use a different break shot after that. She ended up running 56 on about her 10th try which earned her $1000 for the lady's highest run.
I like sending my cueball about two feet into the air on my opening breakshot, it gets the cueball out of the path of possible collisions and it sends a message to people that you're crazy, probably a banger who doesn't know how to play 14.1 and then after I spill a pile of hundreds onto the table by accident they are really inspired to teach me the correct way to play the game. The veteran straight pool masters can't help but laugh loudly whenever I break and shake their heads in amusement. After you hit them with a big run they are still shaking their heads. :thumbup:
If you would like to get some air on your break shots, jack your bridge hand up onto your fingertips and hit down. If the cueball comes close to the lights, back off on the elevation a little. First impressions are important, especially in straight pool.
If you would like to get some air on your break shots, jack your bridge hand up onto your fingertips and hit down. If the cueball comes close to the lights, back off on the elevation a little. First impressions are important, especially in straight pool.
Last edited:
LOL,LOL.
well didnt Ralf miss the break shot twice in a row while shooting a traditional breakshot, just goes to show ya that all humans are created equal !!!
-Steve
It might have been 2 missed breakballs in a row and a scratch, can't remember exactly. I think all 4 innings for the day were over in about 2 minutes.
Sounds like an average day for me !!!!
Looking forward to seeing you again Billy, you going to SBE ?
=Steve
Don't think so. To much money, airfare, hotel, rental car, etc...
Sorry to hear that Bill, was looking forward to hangin out with ya again !!!
Hi folks^^
Imo the situation on a *tougher* break-shot is never the same. Even if the break-shot appears again and again in the exact position it depends very much on the situation: Is it a competition, is it practice-is it hunting for a high-run- if it would be a game til 100 in straight-pool and it s 90-90 would someone play it? Depends how the balls have rolling before for the player- if he s on a big run, feeling totally satisfied, confident etc im sure he would go for the break-shot. Would it be a team-league game....then you think twice before trying a *risky break shot* (i hope so if it would be my team!).
Interesting post from steve- but here we could discuss sooooo long what would be good or what could be wrong-depends in my opinion really on the special situation and the psychical condition of the player etc.
lg
Ingo
Imo the situation on a *tougher* break-shot is never the same. Even if the break-shot appears again and again in the exact position it depends very much on the situation: Is it a competition, is it practice-is it hunting for a high-run- if it would be a game til 100 in straight-pool and it s 90-90 would someone play it? Depends how the balls have rolling before for the player- if he s on a big run, feeling totally satisfied, confident etc im sure he would go for the break-shot. Would it be a team-league game....then you think twice before trying a *risky break shot* (i hope so if it would be my team!).
Interesting post from steve- but here we could discuss sooooo long what would be good or what could be wrong-depends in my opinion really on the special situation and the psychical condition of the player etc.
lg
Ingo
I like the break shot I learned from schmidt...OB at intersection of side pocket and one of the two top balls. Setup a 40-50 degree cut and smash it. I don't practice this at home because it never comes up in play and is too effective.
Sent from my SPH-M910 using Tapatalk
Sent from my SPH-M910 using Tapatalk
I always use the traditional break shot when i practice or i use variants, under the rack or shooting the break shot in the side (where the cue ball is not going downtable into the rack, but instead is going from one of the siderails into the rack), just to change it up and familiarize myself with the spreads they produce.
But i have to say, if i had a side pocket break shot where i am shooting the ball from uptable, i don't prefer the OB in the jaws of the side, and i don't prefer it out in the middle of the table.
I prefer it a ball or a couple of ball widths away from the side, and i aim to hit the side of the rack with straight draw, or some inside draw.
You rarely if ever, scratch.
But i have to say, if i had a side pocket break shot where i am shooting the ball from uptable, i don't prefer the OB in the jaws of the side, and i don't prefer it out in the middle of the table.
I prefer it a ball or a couple of ball widths away from the side, and i aim to hit the side of the rack with straight draw, or some inside draw.
You rarely if ever, scratch.
Steve,
I am totally convinced that this is the best way to begin a challenge.
For several years I resisted, then during a DCC challenge of mine, John Schmidt (in the audience) insisted that I try it after I 3 times splattered the rack with traditional side-of-the-rack break shots, and ended up with no resulting shot. Of course, if a pro jumps up and offers a suggestion with a room full of people watching, you really have NO choice but to do it...or look like a total chump...
I have used it exclusively since for practice and high run challenges, and will report that results are great. There is almost no risk of missing the stack (center ball hit with the balls set properly results in a top-of-the-rack hit), little risk of missing the object ball (but you have to feel comfortable with the significant cut), and almost always results in a second shot (the spread is always excellent...Mark Wilson is cursed however and in his limited use of this shot had several innings with no second shot...very, very rare for me in 2 years of use).
Make sure to set the balls so that a center ball hit is directed into the 15 ball as diagrammed. I do not think any break shot is as good as this one for a challenge - it is the most reliable way to start.
Dead Ball Break Shot
I always use a conventional break shot to practice, but I have a question. In competition, such as the Challenge, to guarantee making the break ball, maximize ball spread, reduce the chance of scratching and increase the chance of having a shot after the break, wouldn't this be a viable option:
Place the CB on the head spot. Take the break ball and place it so that it's frozen to one of the corner balls and dead in the corner. Then slam the cue ball into the two balls at the front of the stack using your best 9-ball break. The break ball will fly into the corner and the CB will hop back a foot and squat in the center of the table ready for you to start your run. Is the legal?
Ron F
I always use a conventional break shot to practice, but I have a question. In competition, such as the Challenge, to guarantee making the break ball, maximize ball spread, reduce the chance of scratching and increase the chance of having a shot after the break, wouldn't this be a viable option:
Place the CB on the head spot. Take the break ball and place it so that it's frozen to one of the corner balls and dead in the corner. Then slam the cue ball into the two balls at the front of the stack using your best 9-ball break. The break ball will fly into the corner and the CB will hop back a foot and squat in the center of the table ready for you to start your run. Is the legal?
Ron F