I need breaking technique in 8-ball as I get older.

preacherman

preacherman

CPPA Founder
Silver Member
Hi all AZ billiards friends,
I'm in my 60's and not a big guy. My break has never been powerful, but even less so as I age.
Can you all give me suggestions on being successful on a break in 8-ball (as a senior).
I am back to playing in local 8-ball league, but I find that while my breaks spread the balls well, rarely does anything go in on the break, which has left a nice spread for my opponent to run balls. I need to start getting atleast 1 ball in on break! And advice is appreciated.

Jim (Preacherman)
 
I’m a big guy
But I know guys that weigh less than half my weight can bust an 8b rack with a house cue like a wrecking ball


Head ball break
Speed and accuracy are paramount
the fuller you can hit the head ball with the most speed you while maintaining accuracy must be practiced as much as any drill
If looking to improve 8b break
 
Texas Carom Club said:
Second ball break is good for making balls
But a fine touch to not go off table is needed
Again, lots and lots of practice on the accuracy of the hit
With much less speed needed
Click to expand...

I also love the second ball break, because if you don't make a ball in, there's a great chance your opponent will be coming to take a shot on a pretty crappy leave / table.

Second ball break consistently leaves problem balls, groups, and the cueball down in that mess. So if you're gonna hand it over after the break, might as well make sure it's a piss-poor situation for him.
 
RidgeRaider said:
I also love the second ball break, because if you don't make a ball in, there's a great chance your opponent will be coming to take a shot on a pretty crappy leave / table.

Second ball break consistently leaves problem balls, groups, and the cueball down in that mess. So if you're gonna hand it over after the break, might as well make sure it's a piss-poor situation for him.
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i agree for stronger players i play, thats what i do, with my playing cue
and often enough i can win a tactical battle vs a much better shooter

and it depends on how the table is breaking, is a dirty slow table ? second ball
if its a fast table where they open up, might as well get the first shot at the run out with a head on break
 
Second ball.
If you hit it really good you'll likely make a ball.
If you hit it ok to crappy, you'll likely not make anything and leave a mess.

I did a long term experiment a few years ago in my 8 ball league;
For a whole season (about 125 games of 8 ball with me breaking 50% of them)...

1 season I did all head ball breaks and the other all second ball breaks.

My EROs numbers were almost identical (in the 20% range off either my break or a dry opponents break).

BUT my runouts AGAINST (opponent ran out on me) where much higher, like 8 compared with 2, when doing a head ball break.

FWIW, I can hit the pretty hard if I want to.
 
If you get a good spread then it means that you hit the head ball dead straight and that’s good.
Break the same but try to move the cb along the line to find the spot that will work.

It changes from table to table and different balls and their condition and cloth and humidity. So you have to move and find whatever works at a given situation.

Accuracy is more important than power and sometimes just breaking softer will work.
Even try to break with your playing cue, you’ll automatically break softer with it.

I’m not a fan of the second ball break (should be banned in my opinion) but if nothing works then try that.
 
skor said:
If you get a good spread then it means that you hit the head ball dead straight and that’s good.
Break the same but try to move the cb along the line to find the spot that will work.

It changes from table to table and different balls and their condition and cloth and humidity. So you have to move and find whatever works at a given situation.

Accuracy is more important than power and sometimes just breaking softer will work.
Even try to break with your playing cue, you’ll automatically break softer with it.

I’m not a fan of the second ball break (should be banned in my opinion) but if nothing works then try that.
Click to expand...
thats a first,
care to explain?
 
skor said:
If you get a good spread then it means that you hit the head ball dead straight and that’s good.
Break the same but try to move the cb along the line to find the spot that will work.

It changes from table to table and different balls and their condition and cloth and humidity. So you have to move and find whatever works at a given situation.

Accuracy is more important than power and sometimes just breaking softer will work.
Even try to break with your playing cue, you’ll automatically break softer with it.

I’m not a fan of the second ball break (should be banned in my opinion) but if nothing works then try that.
Click to expand...
Why should 2nd-ball brk be banned? I love it when people try it. The only time its advisable, imo, is playing barbox 8b where 8-on-break wins. Other than that its a losing prop. in the long run.
 
garczar said:
Why should 2nd-ball brk be banned? I love it when people try it. The only time its advisable, imo, is playing barbox 8b where 8-on-break wins. Other than that its a losing prop. in the long run.
Click to expand...
I play on 9ft tables…
But when I did play on bar boxes, I’ve always hated it, hated the spread, balls where flying off the table and personally, it just feels like cheating to me.
 
skor said:
I play on 9ft tables…
But when I did play on bar boxes, I’ve always hated it, hated the spread, balls where flying off the table and personally, it just feels like cheating to me.
Click to expand...
Problem is the WPA/BCA rules do not specify that any particular ball must be struck on the break. Clearly you don't like it but its not cheating in any way.
 
I would say you need to do some experimentation and figure out what works best for you on the equipment you play.

I've never been a second ball breaker so I'm in the hit the head ball hard camp. For 8 ball I like to go just left of center for myself, anywhere from 1/4 to 2 balls, just depending on how things are going on the table I'm playing on. I definitely adjust my cue ball position if I'm not having success with a given spot on a given day.

If your main issue is making a ball then playing around with position and hit can make a big difference, sometimes the slightest bit off center on the head ball can get things to drop, just be careful as doing that with a pop break will likely result with the CB on the floor.

Now, if you have trouble generating enough CB speed, then I would suggest playing around with break cue weight a little. The same thing doesn't work for everyone. I fall into the slightly on the lighter side is better for a break cue camp but only if you can generate the speed. If you can't then a heavier break cue can really help. A guy on my league team has a BK Rush at like 22-23oz and he's breaking so much better because he just wasn't generating the speed with a lighter cue but the heavier cues momentum made a big difference for him. I on the other hand have no trouble generating speed or power (accuracy is another story and that is my issue) and I've been using 18.5oz lately after some playing around with weights in the 18-19.5oz range. Heavy break cue isn't the right choice for most I'd say, but for some it can really make a difference.
 
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