Whacked Rack

3RAILKICK

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
(My apologies if this has been previously thoroughly discussed)

re: breaking 9ball racks:

Are there reliable ways to deal successfully with a) a loose rack-especially front 3, b) a tilted rack/slight vs ridiculously tilted, c) head ball forward or back of spot (up to 1/2 a ball) or some combo of all three variances???

...Note..since I don't know how to overcome these factors, when they exist, I just break softer and hope for clusters to slow both players down.:eek:

...another note..looking for hints for successful break, rather than countless re-racks with same issues

thanks


ps: is it out of line to inform new players of pool etiquette about, after winning, the breaker should remove balls from both corners near him and one of the sides...vs standing there while the racker circles the table clearing ALL the pockets??? ....just saying..
 
(My apologies if this has been previously thoroughly discussed)

re: breaking 9ball racks:

Are there reliable ways to deal successfully with a) a loose rack-especially front 3, b) a tilted rack/slight vs ridiculously tilted, c) head ball forward or back of spot (up to 1/2 a ball) or some combo of all three variances???

...Note..since I don't know how to overcome these factors, when they exist, I just break softer and hope for clusters to slow both players down.:eek:

...another note..looking for hints for successful break, rather than countless re-racks with same issues

thanks


ps: is it out of line to inform new players of pool etiquette about, after winning, the breaker should remove balls from both corners near him and one of the sides...vs standing there while the racker circles the table clearing ALL the pockets??? ....just saying..

I would ask for a re-rack for either situation A or B, and just break on situation C. Sometimes you have to go forward or back to get the balls to freeze.
 
I fixed a lot of my break issues by buying a Break Rak. Once I started hitting the rack very consistently and controlling the cue ball I could then move to different areas to break from and get consistent results. A perfect example is I bruised a rib almost 4 weeks ago, I am still healing but I have not been able to practice with my Break Rak for 3 weeks, my breaks were really starting to suffer. I was able to practice breaks again Monday and Tuesday night, it made all the difference in the world at league last night. I broke 7 times, made 1 ball 4 times, 2 balls 2 times, and 3 balls once. No dry breaks all night.
 
(My apologies if this has been previously thoroughly discussed)

re: breaking 9ball racks:

Are there reliable ways to deal successfully with a) a loose rack-especially front 3, b) a tilted rack/slight vs ridiculously tilted, c) head ball forward or back of spot (up to 1/2 a ball) or some combo of all three variances???

...Note..since I don't know how to overcome these factors, when they exist, I just break softer and hope for clusters to slow both players down.:eek:

...another note..looking for hints for successful break, rather than countless re-racks with same issues

thanks


ps: is it out of line to inform new players of pool etiquette about, after winning, the breaker should remove balls from both corners near him and one of the sides...vs standing there while the racker circles the table clearing ALL the pockets??? ....just saying..

Well, first, why accept the racks as they are? Only time I do that is with players that are new to the game or just for fun. I can see where some places just rack like crap due to bad tables and balls, but in general many things can be fixed with a bit of teaching.

Second, watch Joe Tuckers Racking Secrets.

As far as helping to get the balls out, turn their heads towards the tables where people are helping so they can learn hehe.
 
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Me & Joe Tucker wrote a Book, titled, "The GREAT Break Shot", it was a rewrite of Joe's old book, titled, "Racking Secrets".... You can get it on Amazon
 
Joe Tuckers Racking Secrets DVD...wayyyy worth the money!

It shows you how to read an imperfect rack in order to always make the wing ball. Depending on where the gaps in the rack are, you have to line up the cue ball in different spots.

If you don't want to buy the DVD you can follow these simple steps to get a crash course but there is way more to it than this:

1
2 3
4 9 5
6 7
8

When looking at the rack look for the four ball track. Track one = 1-2-9-7. Track two = 1-3-9-6. In order for the wing ball to be made all of the balls in one of the tracks need to be frozen.

So if the 1-3-9-6 are all frozen to each other you will break from the right side of the table(same side as the 4) and hit the 1 completely square. The 4 ball will go in the corner every single time. If the opposite track was frozen, you would break from the opposite side and make the 5 in the corner.

There's more to it than that. If the 1-3-9-6 are frozen and you don't see any gaps anywhere else you should break from the side rail up near the head string. If the 1-3-9-6 are froze but there is a gap between the 1-2 you will break closer to the center but still on the right half of the table. The bigger the gap, the closer to the center you break.

If neither four ball track is froze ask for a rerack or just blast the balls from the center of the table for your best chance of getting lucky.
 
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