Sweat my break. I mean critique my break please..

David, maybe you're upset at the wrong person.

Perhaps you should be upset with Mike for offering the world a place to devalue your life's work.
 
Did anyone else notice the one comment your video got on YouTube?

Apparently oysters are among us. :)
 
Here it is

I just tell it like it is, and I don't pull punches.

1) You have too much weight on your front leg starting out. This is counter productive for a breaking technique. You shold have 60% of your weight on your back leg, and 40% on your front leg. Then as you break your weight shift from the back leg to the front leg as you make contact with the cue ball. (and get your hips into the break). Your legs and hips is what can generate a lot of power into the break, not your arms.
I am 5'7", and my breaks were timed in Vegas at 26,28, and 31.

2) You start to stand up before you deliver the final swing, on the backswing actually. Stay down, and rise forward as you make contact with the cue ball. I noticed you grip the cue with a full fist, but loosen the back fingers on the backswing.

3) I am not a pu**y, you have about the right speed. Nothing I hate more than slowing down the break a little and 3 balls remain on the table just a couple of inches from a corner pocket. Making a ball on the break can mean the difference between winning and losing.

I hope this helps some, I wish I could just work with you in person some, because I think I could put you into a good technique and break within 20 minutes or so. The best article I have seen on breaking was an article in Billiards Digest about Django's break. You might email them, and see if you can get a copy of the article. It was a full fledged article, and was real good.
 
I found this thread by way of facebook, where there's a lil debate about it on blackjack's wall.

I think it's a shame that someone can ask for and get help, and anyone would see that as some kind of robbery, or like the poster suffers from some sense of entitlement where he's expecting someone for nothing. And I disagree that free stroke critiques hurt pool in the long haul. Yes, the info has value. That doesn't mean that giving it away violates some fundamental law of right and wrong, any more than volunteering at the YMCA does, or handing out free advice at a bar.

It might hurt people's chances to PROFIT from pool, but the unfortunate reality is that pool is not a great way to pile up enough money to live comfortably and retire. I think what we're seeing here is that sad reality causing an otherwise generous human being to take an unusually uncharitable stance. If blackjack is making 6 figures from pool, does he care if one guy is getting free advice somewhere? No way.

I love the game and I don't want to see people putting the business of pool at a higher priority than their personal love of the game. And it's love of the game and general decency that drives the free help found on this forum.

Remember, the browser you're write back is a labor of love from people who didn't expect to get paid for it. So's the forum you're using to make that response. The world is full of good free things. It would not be a better place if we had to pay for all the free tools we use or free advice we receive.

PS: Let's not muddy the waters with the talk about piracy hurting sales of [whatever]. It's apples and oranges. It's a whole different issue that will remain unsolved even if every single person in this thread suddenly woke up tomorrow and decided free stroke critiques were bad for pool.
 
Clint,
As other posters have said, there's more to the break shot than raw speed. Other factors to be considered include cue ball control, how many balls are pocketed, how well the balls spread out, having a decent shot at the next ball, frequency of scratching, etc. The next time you do a video, please use a real rack of balls so we can evaluate those other factors too.
 
I think we need to hear from CeeBee the maker of the break rak geat guy and authority on breaking. I like thge break rak and think it is a real plus
 
I think you should work on your follow through. You're following through, but you are following up. You want to follow down. After contact, follow your tip to the cloth. Your back arm can still swing through, but you want to keep your tip down.

There is a thread where Chris Bartram chimes in on the break with some useful knowledge. He also mentions Charlie Bryant has some great free videos on youtube about his break.
 

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Blackjack said:
Free advice? Ok. This is what you get from me for free....

You get nothing for nothing and damn little for two cents. ... you get what you pay for - & - you're game will only be worth what you're willing to invest in it. If you want a top notch game, there's a big price tag attached to it - not just monetarily - but emotionally & mentally. I'm not sure if that will help your break, but its the best free advice you'll ever get.
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I fully understand this is how you make your living, but we both know the critique from a handful of B players doesn't mean nearly as much as personal, one on one instructions and instant feedback from a knowledgeable, professional instructor.

You talk about getting a ton notch games comes with a big price tag. After a certain point, that almost works against you. Too many people have invested EVERYTHING being a pool player, and are GREAT players, but they arn't happy. They end up broke, with a ton of pool knowledge. Funny how it works. If only pool was like going to Harvard.
 
Clint,

Man you have a lot of great advise to work from here, I love this forum!

I know your probably sick of hearing it, but I don't understand why you want to focus on mph's is you knowingly are going to decrease them when it counts.

I would work on your hardest controlled break. Once you got 20-23mph down pat, bump it up, and so on. Best of luck though!
 
abie10 said:
i'm a new player...but ...

Definately stand higher up...also on the follow through I drive my cue straight through the ball actually driving the tip towards the rack with it ending up on the table snapping my wrist as i hit the cue ball
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good post i do the same

try to choke up
 
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