At 60 it's not often I try to change much about my game anymore, but I haven't been real happy with my break. I've checked my follow-through, moved around the table, etc. - but still not getting the results I'd like. So .. I sat and studied a few of the pros and how they broke. I noticed that a few of them (SVB, Pagulayan, etc.) have a tendency to straighten up a bit on their back-stroke. I can understand it - getting a bit more speed and leverage in the delivery and all - but I find it difficult for me to reproduce the results. I have a natural tendency to pick up the butt hand, which drops the tip and I end up cueing lower than I want. I'm open to any input here.
Stand up and break
- Thread starter Ched
- Start date
The reason they stand isn't the added speed from their body, it is because the effective lever distance from the shoulder to the cue gets longer. The key to this break is that the entire arm is used in the break.
You have to consciously train yourself to extend the arm as you stand.
I believe Dr. Dave has written about it.
You have to consciously train yourself to extend the arm as you stand.
I believe Dr. Dave has written about it.
I used to use my legs,hips and arm in a monster breaking style.
Now at 70 I just use arm speed and a little shoulder follow thru.
At 60 if you try to break like the 20 somethings you will hurt yourself.
I know I've hurt myself trying to break like I was 30 years old.
I spent 4 weeks nursing a right thigh strain.
Now at 70 I just use arm speed and a little shoulder follow thru.
At 60 if you try to break like the 20 somethings you will hurt yourself.
I know I've hurt myself trying to break like I was 30 years old.
I spent 4 weeks nursing a right thigh strain.
I have lots of videos and articles dealing with pro break technique advice here:
break technique and equipment advice resource page
Enjoy,
Dave
If you straighten up before the stroke and keep the body more still, you can still get the leverage benefit without losing accuracy.
Regards,
Dave
And maybe you wont hurt yourself.
Not even close to reality.
Reality is you can get like SVB by practicing like SVB. Riding your damn bike aint gonna duit.
As much as I believe in practice and hard work overcoming anything, that isn't the entire story.
Practicing can't hurt but you have to know what you're trying to achieve. It's like that thread about 'how good could someone get on their own' that came up a few weeks ago.
A top player from my area breaks the balls as well as anyone I've seen shy of SVB. Minimal movement, just a slight rise from the waist up with no leg movement at all. Looks like a firm stop shot. Yet break after break the cue ball pops dead and he explodes the rack with stunning effectiveness. He has told me he isn't 'trying' to break well, in his words 'he just knows how to hit it'. He can do this on demand.
Others always say things like "You have to practice to learn to do that" and "You know how many hours he has practiced that break?" But I *DO* know how many hours he's practiced: About zero. He played seriously for a few years and probably experimented with his stance or technique a few times, I'm not saying he hasn't thought about it at all. But he doesn't own a breakrak, he never put in an hour a day for 3 months or anything like that. He just figured out what works and remembered how to do it.
Now he's a very gifted individual and for most of us the right answer is the breakrak and we can give ourselves an edge in terms of commitment and hard work. But sometimes I think we can make things more complicated than they need to be. If we feel like we need to struggle for years to learn to hit a rack of balls then we are handicapping ourselves by telling ourselves that we haven't put in enough practice yet and 'just a few more years' and we'll figure it out. Whereas there are 17 year olds across the world that simply watch a few videos of SVB and say "OK, I'll just do that" and put it together through the course of their next few weeks of play.
I need to work on my break so these words are from my heart. I'm prepared to practice, but I want to find a way that makes sense and gets the results I want to see in days and weeks, not in months and years with a bunch of limiting beliefs about what's possible.
Practicing can't hurt but you have to know what you're trying to achieve. It's like that thread about 'how good could someone get on their own' that came up a few weeks ago.
A top player from my area breaks the balls as well as anyone I've seen shy of SVB. Minimal movement, just a slight rise from the waist up with no leg movement at all. Looks like a firm stop shot. Yet break after break the cue ball pops dead and he explodes the rack with stunning effectiveness. He has told me he isn't 'trying' to break well, in his words 'he just knows how to hit it'. He can do this on demand.
Others always say things like "You have to practice to learn to do that" and "You know how many hours he has practiced that break?" But I *DO* know how many hours he's practiced: About zero. He played seriously for a few years and probably experimented with his stance or technique a few times, I'm not saying he hasn't thought about it at all. But he doesn't own a breakrak, he never put in an hour a day for 3 months or anything like that. He just figured out what works and remembered how to do it.
Now he's a very gifted individual and for most of us the right answer is the breakrak and we can give ourselves an edge in terms of commitment and hard work. But sometimes I think we can make things more complicated than they need to be. If we feel like we need to struggle for years to learn to hit a rack of balls then we are handicapping ourselves by telling ourselves that we haven't put in enough practice yet and 'just a few more years' and we'll figure it out. Whereas there are 17 year olds across the world that simply watch a few videos of SVB and say "OK, I'll just do that" and put it together through the course of their next few weeks of play.
I need to work on my break so these words are from my heart. I'm prepared to practice, but I want to find a way that makes sense and gets the results I want to see in days and weeks, not in months and years with a bunch of limiting beliefs about what's possible.
Methinks most of us have no need to break as well as SVB. Just break well enough to make a ball more often then not make a ball and all is good.
If you are playing against the calibre of player that SVB plays against as regularly as he is then it might become a factor. Most players don't and there are plenty of players who break well enough without doing anything magical. No need to put that much energy and time into developing a break stroke. Just hit the fking balls
If you are playing against the calibre of player that SVB plays against as regularly as he is then it might become a factor. Most players don't and there are plenty of players who break well enough without doing anything magical. No need to put that much energy and time into developing a break stroke. Just hit the fking balls
Slow the movements down....a lot. You don't need nearly as much speed because of said mentioned leverage effect.
Come into the first third of the delivery much slower. Should find good results
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Reality is you can get like SVB by practicing like SVB. Riding your damn bike aint gonna duit.
Doh!
But I don't think it is true.