Which ball do you hit on the break playing 1 pocket?
- Thread starter m79a
- Start date
Using the standard break, you hit the head ball first, but pretty thin. How thin depends on the table and playing conditions.
If the bottom left pocket is mine, I try to thin the head ball on the right side of the rack, carom into the second ball, hopefully avoid the rest of the rack and rebound off the bottom rail stopping between the second and third diamonds frozen to the side rail. On the table I usually play on I would use a lot of left english and hit the cue ball at about 10 o'clock.
I really should spend some time learning to use the wei table.
If the bottom left pocket is mine, I try to thin the head ball on the right side of the rack, carom into the second ball, hopefully avoid the rest of the rack and rebound off the bottom rail stopping between the second and third diamonds frozen to the side rail. On the table I usually play on I would use a lot of left english and hit the cue ball at about 10 o'clock.
I really should spend some time learning to use the wei table.
Thanks for the explanation for a good 1 pocket break shot. I'm sure there are a lot of people who can benefit from this post.
James
Recently, I've had some luck with the 2nd ball break, like in 8 ball.....I come from the side, hit the 2nd ball as full as I can, with draw......I hit it just hard enough to hold a little bit of draw to just come back to the side rail, about a foot from my opponents pocket....more than a few times, I pocket balls off the break.....also, if I miss, cue is on the rail and no balls near enough for opponent to make....
If I hit it too hard and don't make a ball, it can be a short game
If I hit it too hard and don't make a ball, it can be a short game
I start with the cueball about a ball's width from the side rail, 2 diamonds down. I aim between the 1st and 2nd ball with inside english and a medium follow stroke. Whitey goes 2 rails behind the stack so your chipped out balls are protected. It isn't a flashy break but it does loosen up some balls near your pocket and leaves them tough.
This is a good option, safer than the one I described. Generally speaking, the further you go down the rack, the better chance you have of not scratching.
I am not sure that it puts enough pressure on the incoming shooter for my liking though. Then again, I hate it when I clip a ball off the bottom of the rack and scratch in the corner. It's something that happens to me more than I'd like using the break I described. But, when you hit it right, they almost always have to take a foul or shoot a risky long kick shot to get out of it.
In case you haven't followed this link yet, here's the break shot pictured there:
This is as good an explanation as you'll get for the standard one pocket break.
Precise aim is critical for success. Bad things happen if you hit too much or too little of the head ball. One good method is to imagine you're cutting the head ball at a specific target on the opposite side rail. Another way is to aim the CB (or your tip) at a specific spot in the rack or on the back rail. One helpful thing: you don't need to use follow; the break is slow enough that the CB will gain full forward roll without it.
pj
chgo
P.S. Follow the link.
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No need for the wei table here. You painted a fine picture here with your words. Rep to you.