3 Cushion Billiard Systems: Billiard Secrets from a Professional Amateur [Spiral-bound]

Sid Banner (Author), Bob Henning (Editor), C.J. Jerome (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 9, 2009

Sid Banner, self-dubbed the Professional Amateur, also known as System Sid has been playing and studying three-cushion billiards for over 65 years. He began creating shot drawings in 1947 and continued until the first printing of this book in 2004. The end result was a fully comprehensive three-cushion billiard guide containing over 165 diagrams, historical pictures, an extensive billiard glossary and the rules.

Most good pool players have heard of the Sid System which is a great system for kicking into the short rail to precisely hit balls along the long rail. The 'Sid' in this system is none other than Sid Banner. This book is his complete life's work at discovering, developing and improving great systems for pool & billiard players.

If you've ever wondered how a good three-cushion player can send the cue-ball five rails around the table and hit one ball to carom into another, then this book will illuminate you! If you've ever been known to pick up a billiard cue and find your way to a heated Soren Sogard 5' x 10' billiard table, make sure you have it with you!

This 200-page, spiral bound book covers nearly every billiard system in existence, including: the Clock System, the Diamond System, the System Sid 3/C Ball Hit System (for long and short angles), the Carom or Bank System, the Corner Plus System, the Cross Table System, the End Rail System, and the First Object Ball Hit Direction System. Although each has its own unique formula for figuring out the hit, they all have certain things in common. The similarities are explained in the foreword, and it is recommended that this section be examined before diving into the rest of the book.

In addition to learning the basic mathematical formulas for each system, there are also precise instructions on what speed, bridge height, bridge length, cue angle and English should be used to make the shot. Once the primary factors have been established, specific adjustments are given to help you find the ball when it is off from the original location.

Although tailored to billiards, this book contains loads of information that all pool players could use. For instance, the way the eye sees the contact point on the object ball is clearly diagrammed; specific rail paths from thin or full hits are charted; distorted paths created when using English are also illustrated. After practicing these shots, you will probably find that cue-ball and object ball behavior off the rails becomes easier to predict, which means your position play should increase dramatically.

3 Cushion Billiard Systems took a lifetime to create. Now in its fourth printing, this book will undoubtedly continue its legacy of being the three cushion bible for many generations to come.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Sid Banner attended East New York Vocational High School in Brooklyn, New York until his 15th birthday. After leaving school, he held various jobs in Manhattan and played billiards at McGirrs Billiards on 44th St. and 8th Ave., learning three-cushion billiards from Joe Procita, Joe Brown, Gene Levy, Abe Rosen and the like. Although hustled many times, he also won a few games, and he learned many secrets about three-cushion billiards from many great players.

In May of 1945, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy, and after serving a short term on the USS Tarawa aircraft carrier, CV-40 Essex Class, was honorably discharged.

In 1946, he opened Rockaway Billiards in Far Rockaway, Queens County, a suburb of New York City. His fellow players nicknamed him System Sid, and until the book was released in 2005, he claimed to still be studying a variety of three-cushion systems.

In 1988, he opened Boca Billiards in Boca Raton, Florida, where the very first professional three-cushion billiard tournament took place. Banner was elected Eastern Representative of the U.S. Billiard Association and, in 2006, after many years of service, he retired from that position. Banner is the premiere promoter of three-cushion billiards in the State of Florida and competes in state and national tournaments.

Sid Banner has been married for over 56 years, has three children, eight grandchildren and several great-grandchildren. Other hobbies include playing tennis and working out at a local gym.

Product Details

• Spiral-bound: 200 pages
• Publisher: Bebob Publishing; Fourth edition (March 9, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 8879560506
• ISBN-13: 978-8879560504
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 8.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 1.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,544,193 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Sorry excuse for a book, April 13, 2010

By 

Zafer (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: 3 Cushion Billiard Systems: Billiard Secrets from a Professional Amateur (Spiral-bound)

This is a collection of inaccurately drawn and poorly labeled hand drawings with little to no accompanying coherent explanation. The only discussion is at the very beginning, on using stances and bridges, alas without a single depiction of either. The various diamond systems promised are given without text or context, only by name and diagrams with cryptic labels like "5.0 - 3.5 + area adjustment 8'' = 1.5" that go absolutely unexplained anywhere. Unless you have access to the author personally, I strongly advise against buying this volume, because rather than a book it is the author's personal doodle pad in print. I recommend "Byrne's Pool and Billiards" books instead.