Which ONE GAME gives you the most versatility?

Jimmy Caras always told me to practice straight pool.

Barbara

ONE POCKET---assuming ball pocketing skills have been developed

Bumper pool
Just kidding. my vote is for straight pool as well, followed by one-pocket.

Well, lemme think out loud:

if you only played
9ball....You don't learn enough moves to then be able to play 1P...or how to break out clusters, and stay focused at the table to run balls at 14.1. I say this because it's the route I went and I regret it.

14.1....You would most likely have a weak 9ball brake, seen it many times, but not a bad choice to go with.

1pocket....might be a little too obscure to translate to 9ball and 14.1...I never knew anyone who learned that game first, but all the greats can play it well.

I don't know very much about rotation, but thats what I practice to get into 9ball stroke, since basically thats what the Filipinos do, and it works for me.

So, to sum up I'd have to go with 14.1 because it just teaches you so very much about how to do things correctly. I feel from a strong straight pool back ground you can transfer into any game.

Coming from the northeast I've seen MANY great players that came from a straight pool back ground and play any game they want.

Gerry

Don't forget about what the question was. It was 'versatility' not 'play best'.

I always liked Curling, the big rock sliding down the ice and the two guys with brooms...oops!! 14.1 without question!!!

jsp said:

I feel one pocket can be a highly specialized game.

Take Cliff Joyner, for example, who is arguably the best one pocket player in the world next to Efren. Many would not even consider Joyner as a world class 9ball player. Same can also be said of Scott Frost.

Also, look at all the one pocket threads that lists all the great one pocket players of old. The majority of them just specialized in one pocket, and their straight pool and 9ball games are unheard of. Well, maybe because they didn't want to waste their time in anything else other than one pocket.

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Can't argue about Frost and Joiner, but I think all the great 1Pocket players back in the day could play just about anything and take your money. I played pretty sporty 9Ball back in the 60's, and got barbequed by Ronnie Allen, me getting the wild 8. Most of the players played a lot of 1Pocket cuz that's where the real gambling money was back then. Eddie Taylor, Weenie Beanie, Cornbread Red, Jersey Red, Boston Shorty, Squirrel, Ronnie Allen, Rags Fitzpatrick, etc., could all play anything lights out if the money was right. Bugs might have been known as just a 1P and banks specialist, but I think he had a full bag of tricks when he needed them (Freddie and Grady could expound on that). For the thread question: start with snooker, go to 14.1, little banks, little 9Ball, then you're ready for 1P, IMHO.

I expect a lot of people will disagree very strongly with this, but I'm going to say 8-ball, if we're really talking about versatility, and here's my reasoning: variety of positional shots.

In one pocket, most of your shots during a run are tight and forced manouvering because you have to shoot the next ball in the same pocket you shot the last one in. Not during a run, you're playing very specialized safeties that are sometimes worthless in games where your opponent can shoot at any pocket.

In straight pool, most of your shots are very tight manouvering because that's the highest-percentage way to play the game; the smartest patterns involve very small movements, almost all the time.

In nine-ball, your shots usually have long cue-ball travel toward a long but narrow positional zone (long because the table's fairly open, but narrow because you want to have the right angle on your ball). You're forced to move the cue ball more than a foot or two on almost every shot.

I feel that eight ball is the only game where all of these types of shots come up regularly (except the one-pocket safeties). Like straight pool, it's best to plan your patterns and play short positional routes, but like 9-ball, it's not always possible, because of traffic. Like one-pocket, you often have a group off balls that all only go in one or two pockets, and you have to get between them without gettig out of line, so you can shoot them in the available pocket. Also like one-pocket, sometimes your best move is just to reposition the way things lie.

Obviously being a good 8-ball player doesn't automatically make you good at other games, but I feel it has more in common with more games than any of the others.

-Andrew

jsp said:

So when people wonder why the Filipino players are so successful, I don't think it's the water, the DNA, or the chicken adobo. I think it's the game they grew up playing...rotation. Any thoughts?

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I think the players you are talking about are so talented they could pick up any billiard game and be great at it. Not because of playing rotation (Im not saying it couldnt or didnt help, just dont think it was the reason they became great) but maybe more the conditions they played under. I remember a story from Mark Wilson about when he went over there and played. EVERYONE was lining up to get a piece of him LOL. We all no Mark can play, but when he got over there with the poor table conditions, humid weather, and variables that we are not used to playing with they had him for lunch I think they develop a stroke and get used to dealing with alot of spin do to the slow and poor conditions they play under, and if anything that is what gives them an edge.

As to the origianl question I think it would be straight pool, as long as the game is studied and learned so that proper patterns are picked up.

Woody

My vote goes for Snooker or 14.1.

Another vote for straight pool, surprised no one mentioned the increase in mental focus straight pool does for one's game.

Straight Pool !!!!

I grew up on straight in the 60's and still use it to practice with since its hard finding good straight pool players anymore

Andrew Manning said:

I feel that eight ball is the only game where all of these types of shots come up regularly (except the one-pocket safeties). Like straight pool, it's best to plan your patterns and play short positional routes, but like 9-ball, it's not always possible, because of traffic. Like one-pocket, you often have a group off balls that all only go in one or two pockets, and you have to get between them without gettig out of line, so you can shoot them in the available pocket. Also like one-pocket, sometimes your best move is just to reposition the way things lie.

Obviously being a good 8-ball player doesn't automatically make you good at other games, but I feel it has more in common with more games than any of the others.

-Andrew

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You make some good points Andrew But I'm going to stick with 14.1 and 1pocket for my choices. 8 ball is my favorite game however for the very reasons you listed.

Straight pool. Although one-pocket is as good in many ways, straight pool gets the nod because those long innnings force you to a higher level of concentration than any other game.

9 ball- ball pocketing

one pocket- moves/strategy

straight pool- pattern play

You can take a little bit of everything from every game. If I had my choice to learn one it would probably be one pocket. Seems like there is more $$$ bet in one pocket than in any other game.

woody_968 said:

I remember a story from Mark Wilson about when he went over there and played. EVERYONE was lining up to get a piece of him LOL. We all no Mark can play, but when he got over there with the poor table conditions, humid weather, and variables that we are not used to playing with they had him for lunch I think they develop a stroke and get used to dealing with alot of spin do to the slow and poor conditions they play under, and if anything that is what gives them an edge.

Woody

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Hey Woody,
I heard the same funny story from Mark. When I mentioned this to Efren, he agreed, but then said after 2 or 3 weeks, NOBODY wanted even action (well, except Efren) once Mark had figured out the tables (remember most were OUTSIDE, with leaves, dirt, twigs, humidity, etc. - real traps for the uninitiated).

P.S. - They weren't just lining up to play him, they were following him to his hotel also. As you know, he has a VERY high opinion of the level of play over there.

Personally i think 8ball and straight pool are the two games people could practice and be able to play almost any pool game well.

8ball because its a very offensive game, and theres strategy involved in planning your runout. And when you need to play safe it better be good, or you will be sitting for a while. And you need a good break to open up the table too.

Straight Pool, teaches pocketing skills, and CB control, along with mental toughness of being able to get to the table cold and start to pocket balls, and playing lockup safes too.

dave