The Break“Sooner or later the balls will break tough and then you’re out of shots.”-Irving CraneWHEN YOU COMPETE with top players, the break shot is serious business. The opening break can set the tone for the entire match. In games like eight ball and nine ball, if you fail to make a ball, you’l …

INCREASE THE ODDS“You aim at the right or left part of the hole, not giving the hole away.” -Mike Sigel There’s an aiming technique used by many top professionals that increases the chances of pocketing balls cut into the corner pocket. It’s an ideal system for medium angle cuts, especially when …

THE VERTICAL AXIS “I was losing because I was using too much english.” -Shawn Putnam It’s fun to spin the cue call but it does complicate things. Left or right english can cause an array of problems—a big one is deflection. Applying english requires you to hit the cue ball off center and that …