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Variations on "Playing the Ghost"

Cleveland_Rocks
My understanding is that there are two main accepted ways to "Play the Ghost". One, the "pro" version is to break and play from the break. This would mean that one would need a full, true break and run more than 50% of the games to win. Two, the more common "amateur" version, where one breaks and then takes ball in hand after the break, regardless of what happens on the break.

For me, I see the "amateur" version is being something that encourages laziness or apathy on the break, or to just "get a good spread" to beat the ghost and not necessarily make a ball. So I came up with what I call the "modified pro version".

In the modified pro version, one gets 2 points for a break and run, and the ghost gets 2 points for a scratch on the break. With a break that does not make a ball, then one takes ball in hand and runs out from there. With a break that does not make a ball, if one runs out after taking ball in hand its 1 point. If one misses at any time, the ghost gets 1 point. So - make a ball on the break, its on for a break and run and potentially 2 points, no ball in hand. Scratch on the break, the ghost gets 2 points. Any other miss, whether one made a ball on the break or not, the ghost gets one point.

This encourages practicing the break in a way that break and runs are sought after, and laziness or apathy on the break are discouraged. As most serious 9 ball players are aware, a scratch on the break is asking for a loss of game and loss of momentum, so the scratch on the break is heavily penalized.

In my earlier pool playing time, not too far back, I beat the ghost in the "modified pro" version twice, and I did so on a 9 footer. The 9 footer I used to beat the ghost in the "modified pro" version was not my home table, and I used a triangle rack. I generally play on 9 footers as a default, only playing on bar tables for occasional tournaments.

Of course, my "modified pro" version uses all 9 balls.

2 questions:

1. Has anyone ever heard of the "modified pro" version that I came up with being used?
2. What other variations of "playing the ghost" are you aware of?
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Pool player vs Enjoying Playing

jlrowe
Frosty said:
They can be one and the same. I truly love playing, the beauty of the game is immeasurable, but I won’t play for free.
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That reminds me of Cornbread Red. I was at a bowling alley back in the day that was my usual place to play because it was the only place that had 9ft gold crowns at the time. Red comes in and comes over and we start shooting a few and talking. He was like is there anyone in here that plays for money. I was no not really. He was like i dont care if its 5 or 10 a game but im not going to play for free. After scoping out the room, he sees one of my friends on the other table. He was the best player in the room at the time. He said what about the big guy over there he shoots pretty good and he is shooting with an expensive cue. I said Chris, yeah he shoots pretty good but he wont play for money. Red hollers out "Wont play for money what the hell, why the hell is he even shootin pool. Don't play for money and has a cue like that is like buying a car but dont have a license to drive. Miss ol Red never be another one like him.
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Tournaments or Gambling...Which makes you a stronger player?

ShootingArts
You have the potential to improve every time you hit a ball. However, some things help you improve faster than others.

Gambling helped me improve a lot faster than playing the tournaments of the day would have. Many of them were amateur tournaments, enter for five or ten dollars and win a trophy.

Others paid small cash. $25-$50 to win was a big local event. I made more working the same hours than I made playing a tournament. The incentive wasn't there. I could easily hustle the hustlers and make more. One place that was admittedly unusually sweet I pulled a thousand to fifteen hundred a week out of for about two years.

That is one reason the thread's question can't be answered. When you say tournament do you mean fifty to win or five hundred to a thousand or more? When you say gamble do you mean for a few dollars a game or five hundred to a thousand a set?

With the money high enough to mean something, a few hundred a night or more, I got more time on the table gambling and I made enough money at it to be a real incentive.

I played tournaments at a friend's place. Won six weeks in a row. I had to quit because the tournaments were to build his business and they were doing the opposite when people starting thinking they were just donating to me. I wasn't learning much because all I had to do was avoid catastrophic mistakes.

Two different places like this in different time periods. I almost always came up the winners side of double elimination tournaments so I knew I had another string in my bow. There was a little pressure if I went over to the losers side because it became a sudden death situation.

Depends on each person's situation so hard to make concrete statements what is best for somebody else.

I have practiced eight or ten hours with great intensity. Practice like that has great value. However, this happened maybe once in scores of times or even less often. Most of my practice was more pleasure than purpose. I wasn't learning or increasing skill to any particular degree.

Hu
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