I've had 100+ ticks always removed them using wet cloth with a tiny bit of (solid) soap turning counter-clockwise. Somehow clockwise never worked for me, counter-clockwise it was out after the 2nd rotation. We had both lyme and tick-borne encephalitis in the family, not too bad if caught early.
You shouldnt yank it, more along the lines of the force you'd use to open a zipper.