Pool

[stonemaybe]

Any pool-players out there?

I play for a team in our local league and I'd love to hear rules variations from around the world, because a couple of seasons ago, our rules changed quite drastically, and we now play "World Rules" - but I've never come across these rules anywhere else!

Rules seem to vary all over - different in Scotland and North and South England, and different again compared to and between North and South Ireland.

By the way, I'm not talking about '9-ball' with numbered balls, I'm talking '8-ball' - one of two different coloured groups of balls to pot then black.

[Trapper]

I absolutely love cue-sports. But I'd appreciate it if you gave me a head-start on what it is you're looking for.

eg. 15 yrs ago I played a lot of snooker. Was told I potted like an A-Grader, but I had serious performance anxiety issues. More 29' breaks than I could possibly remember, but choked horribly at 30. Highest break 32, although when I'd tell people that they'd scowl at me and accuse me of hustling them.

But some serious f***ing performance anxiety when I got near 30 was the real issue.

As far as Pool goes, I remember getting some pretty filthy looks when I snookered people in Pool comps. At the time I was like: well, I'm a snooker player not a pool numptie. It was only later that I realised that the bikies and such I was playing against saw that as a pretty underhanded style of play... I was lucky to not get beaten to a pulp for being a smarmy little so-and-so.

How would that go down in Ireland, Stone?

You get Pot Black on TV, yeah? I'd assume that if the guy you were playing for money at the pub on a Tuesday night watched Pot Black regularly then he'd understand it if you snookered him instead of barely refraining from dashing your brains out with his cue.

I saw it a couple of times in the late '70s (was born Oct'71) . Wish I'd seen it more.

Coulda been a contender, etc

[Phantasm]

My biggest gripe when playing pool is that you're never sure if two shots "carry" after a foul.

That definately depends on where you're playing.

[stonemaybe]

My biggest gripe when playing pool is that you're never sure if two shots "carry" after a foul.

That definately depends on where you're playing.

That's ALWAYS something to check if you're playing in a new place!

About snookering someone- in our league it's accepted, but you are looked down on a bit if you do it, there might be a few catcalls and take-the-piss boos or whistles. These new 'world rules' I was talking about make it much harder to snooker someone, because the biggie rule change is, that if you don't pot something, after contact between white and object ball, another ball HAS to hit a cushion. So you can't just 'roll up' behind one of your balls to snooker you opponent.

The old rules we used to play, when you did a foul, the opponent could pick up the cue ball and put behind the line, and/or any of your balls could be a 'free ball', now you can't do that unless after the foul, you cannot see both sides of any one of your own balls. (like the snooker 'free ball' rule)

Oh, and also, the rule change that has really really pis*ed off many people, 'professional fouls' are now legal - ie you can foul on purpose without forfeiting the game. A sure fire way of getting your head kicked in if you play in a pub that doesn't follow that rule!

[Trapper]

These new 'world rules' I was talking about make it much harder to snooker someone, because the biggie rule change is, that if you don't pot something, after contact between white and object ball, another ball HAS to hit a cushion. So you can't just 'roll up' behind one of your balls to snooker you opponent.

The old rules we used to play, when you did a foul, the opponent could pick up the cue ball and put behind the line, and/or any of your balls could be a 'free ball', now you can't do that unless after the foul, you cannot see both sides of any one of your own balls. (like the snooker 'free ball' rule)

Oh, and also, the rule change that has really really pis*ed off many people, 'professional fouls' are now legal - ie you can foul on purpose without forfeiting the game. A sure fire way of getting your head kicked in if you play in a pub that doesn't follow that rule!

Wow, those are some pretty radical changes. Particularly the last one. You can just fire the white straight into a pocket??!! If so, that is just ridiculous, IMHO. Free-ball aspect notwithstanding.

To my mind the "roll-up" type snooker is where the geometry/mathematics of the game comes into it's own. Sucks that they'd devalue that.

(Watched some 8-ball recently, I've never played it but it looked kinda cool, particularly the incentive to play cannon shots).

I always thought that two shots for a foul was a bit silly. Pool has enough ways to draw back the leader already. What I mean by that is that if your opponent breaks and doesn't sink a ball, then you sink six of your seven, you're almost inevitably going to be snookered if they fail to sink a ball on their second shot. It's a bit like some racing video games where you're car goes faster if you're losing.

If you're sinking well you should be rewarded for it. Like you are in Snooker.

[stonemaybe]

Wow, those are some pretty radical changes. Particularly the last one. You can just fire the white straight into a pocket??!! If so, that is just ridiculous, IMHO. Free-ball aspect notwithstanding.

You could if you wanted, but it's more likely that you'd pot an opponent's ball leaving one of your own over the pocket, or, if you've been snookered and trying to get out of that snooker would put you at a disadvantage, you just put the white somewhere really awkward for your opponent.

To my mind the "roll-up" type snooker is where the geometry/mathematics of the game comes into it's own. Sucks that they'd devalue that.

I agree to an extent, but you would get some players who would continually do this instead of going for a pot, and a game could last 30 minutes or more and be extremely tedious for the rest of the team. The hitting the cushion after contact rule is one I can live with, because it does encourage the potter!

[Avatar]

Sorry, I don't come in here much. I much prefer snooker, but the "world 8" pool rules are nothing new at all. They've technically been in effect for years now. (Backward Brits. )

That said, it's still always a good idea to check the rule-set your opponent is playing by. Me, I don't care, I'll play any rules. Just tell them to me first.

--A

[stonemaybe]

I like this

www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3y_Pu_Pxig&mod ... %20blondee

[stonemaybe]

OMG my brain feels several sizes too big for my skull this morning (oops afternoon now).

We had the best ever pool night last night. Played the current leaders of the league (we're way down, third from bottom) but despite that they were being arses - this season we have even more rules, regarding who can play and when, but one of our players had to leave early, so we asked if he could play his 3 games at the start, instead of every fifth game as new rules say. Oh no, we couldn't do that (which meant we'd have to forfeit 2 games).

So, as expected, we go 2-0 down. then totally unexpected we win the next three to take the lead AND win the bonus point for winning the first 'leg' of 5. then one of our players shows up who hasn't been around for months, and he's a great player, so we don't have to forfeit in the second leg. again we win that one 3-2, the last game at 2-2 was me against their captain, who's the one who insisted on sticking to the rules - SWEET! I'm getting a bit annoyed at this stage for despite them being sticklers for the rules they are continually 'coaching' the player on the table - against the rules. Last leg they go 3-0 up, so we have to win our last 2 to win the match. We win the first then it's all down to me in the last game. At the start one of our players offers me a suggestion and they call a coaching foul - so I round on them and point out exactly who has been coaching who in their team all match, so they withdraw it (sweet again!). I'm getting beaten and am really really fed up with their attitudes so give some money to one of my team to put on some Dinosaur Jr on the jukebox (and tell the barman to TURN IT UP!), and meanwhile slow the game down big time - taking the whole regulation minute to make my mind up even on the easy shots. Anyway, guess what? I win and we win the match. They leave without even giving the customary 'three cheers for...' and we have a lock-in.

I have a suspicion that gf isn't talking to me today!

[Menolly]

We win the first then it's all down to me in the last game. At the start one of our players offers me a suggestion and they call a coaching foul - so I round on them and point out exactly who has been coaching who in their team all match, so they withdraw it (sweet again!). I'm getting beaten and am really really fed up with their attitudes so give some money to one of my team to put on some Dinosaur Jr on the jukebox (and tell the barman to TURN IT UP!), and meanwhile slow the game down big time - taking the whole regulation minute to make my mind up even on the easy shots. Anyway, guess what? I win and we win the match. They leave without even giving the customary 'three cheers for...' and we have a lock-in.

Hip-Hip...

I have a suspicion that gf isn't talking to me today!

*covers grin*

...uh-oh...

But seriously, well played, Stone!