Clapping for Scratching on the 8ball

akaTrigger

akaTrigger

Hi!
Silver Member
I was at the BCA Texas State Tourney last weekend and I saw a guy scratch on the 8 ball. The opposing teammates then started clapping!

I realize it was a big match (for the hotseat) but I couldn't believe the guys would clap for that.

In the women's team event we kind of duck our heads and don't high-five with a win like that, and yet these guys were clapping and hollering. I guess I just don't get it.
 
It's appropriate to congratulate a team-mate for the victory when their opponent scratches, and even a high-five is border-line acceptable. But actually applauding a costly error is really poor sportsmanship.

-Andrew
 
I'd say it was more happiness for their teammate's win than happiness for the scratch. If Shane won an 8-ball tournament by his opponent scratching on the 8 the crowd would still cheer. It's probably nothing malicious :P
 
No class at all.Although i have done the same thing and had them clapping and hollering BUT it was my OWN teamates.LOL
 
akaTrigger said:
I was at the BCA Texas State Tourney last weekend and I saw a guy scratch on the 8 ball. The opposing teammates then started clapping!

I realize it was a big match (for the hotseat) but I couldn't believe the guys would clap for that.

In the women's team event we kind of duck our heads and don't high-five with a win like that, and yet these guys were clapping and hollering. I guess I just don't get it.
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You know the drill, Trig. Some people honestly don't know any better, and some are just that way. Those are the same folks that say shit like "make it hurt" when you scratch, lol.


Eric
 
Clapping and celebrating is fine, as long as you wait until after your teammate has gone up and shaken hands with the opponent. If you wait until after the handshake is done, you're celebrating the win, if you do it before the handshake, you're celebrating the other person losing...

Brian
 
I played in Woodstock NB lots a few years ago. The guys there would get up outta their seat and start yelling "Get In" in the CB was close to scratching or "Hook him" if I was close to hooking myself.

It pissed me off to no end. When I play now though, I find that I tell the CB to "get in" or "hook him" if I play a bad shot. I keep my mouth shut when the other guy plays!
 
btoneill said:
Clapping and celebrating is fine, as long as you wait until after your teammate has gone up and shaken hands with the opponent. If you wait until after the handshake is done, you're celebrating the win, if you do it before the handshake, you're celebrating the other person losing...

Brian
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It was soon as he scratched. :( I was playing in my own women's team event when I witnessed this. I've seen that before, but for some reason it still shocked me.
 
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Unsportsmanlike? Yes. Common in my local APA league? Yes.

Even the NEW APA player handbook encourages people not to do exactly this, it's become so common.

You can't take it personal, and it's not intended to be, usually.
 
We have teams in my league that do the same thing. They root for the ball to scratch, scream hollar and celebrate if you do. It really pisses me off to no end but hey, there are always going to be classless people out there. I for one could never bring myself to celebrate another's mistake. I don't even like to do anything but smile and shake my opponents hand after I win, or lose for that matter.
 
Gotta agree

btoneill said:
Clapping and celebrating is fine, as long as you wait until after your teammate has gone up and shaken hands with the opponent. If you wait until after the handshake is done, you're celebrating the win, if you do it before the handshake, you're celebrating the other person losing...

Brian
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A lot depends on the situation and the timing. Getting excited because your team-mate got a roll like that, at a big tourney is not poor Sportsmanship in my opinion. For most people it is just celebrating the win. While all people don't look at this stuff the same way, this is quite common in Vegas team events. I've seen it a lot. It would be different if they were yelling at the other guy, calling him stupid, or loser. Just try to give the people on the other team the benefit of the doubt.
 
akaTrigger said:
I was at the BCA Texas State Tourney last weekend and I saw a guy scratch on the 8 ball. The opposing teammates then started clapping!

I realize it was a big match (for the hotseat) but I couldn't believe the guys would clap for that.

In the women's team event we kind of duck our heads and don't high-five with a win like that, and yet these guys were clapping and hollering. I guess I just don't get it.
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I guess I just don't get it either. Any time I see my opponent scratch I usually shake my head....feeling their pain because I don't want to win like that. Any time I see em scratch on the 8 I'll do the same and tell em "tough break".....and I definitely don't wanna win that way so there would be no need to clap regardless of the importance of the match.
 
akaTrigger said:
I was at the BCA Texas State Tourney last weekend and I saw a guy scratch on the 8 ball. The opposing teammates then started clapping!

I realize it was a big match (for the hotseat) but I couldn't believe the guys would clap for that.

In the women's team event we kind of duck our heads and don't high-five with a win like that, and yet these guys were clapping and hollering. I guess I just don't get it.
Click to expand...

It's called class, or in this case the total lack of class. I have noticed that the women often tend to show a higher level of respect, class, and camaraderie in their events, and I kind of admire that in a lot of ways. They often seem to be having more fun too.
 
LOL.

I am totally against any league type of scenario, as i am just not a team player and never will be.

But in pool, your always gonna have the people that honestly don't know, or don't care, or the ones that think that there is nothing wrong with anything they do.

So i can see all view points.
I can see the "it's rude and tasteless" view, on how people shouldn't be that inconsiderate and should have some tact when dealing with the opponents on another team.
I can also see the "cheering for their teammate" view, as the game might have been crucial, and they might not have meant any offense.

All things aside, this is pool, and there unfortunately is NO standard whatsoever.
If the people who find it offensive, wanted to stop the behavior, they could simply try and change the rules to incorporate this as a sportsmanship issue, but your still going to have people that blur the lines between "was it when he scratched, or was it for their teammate"
And since this is involving pool players, that means that the issue will NEVER be resolved.

As for me, if they were a respectful team to play, and had behaved properly with no comments under their breath and ignoramus type statements, i might have said "tough break"

But you can be sure that if somewhere in the match that they pissed me off, when i saw that cue ball rolling towards the hole, i might have yelled out ONE TIME!!!!!!! and then done an endzone dance and bought the room a round of drinks cause i was SO happy that the idiot scratched.
 
It happens in league play all the time, or so I understand. I've also seen it in private 8 ball games with people with no understanding of pool and no class at all. Another reason I don't play in leagues or play 8 ball.
 
I played Nationals in Las Vegas this past year in APA. I had a player shooting and the white ball was going towards the pocket and the captain (a SL 7) was saying "get in there" the whole time. I told him that he was 'a bit of an asshole' and he was shocked that I thought he was being a bit unsportsmanlike. Played out of Mr Cues 2 in Atlanta GA.

You can think whatever you want in your head but I would never cheer for someone elses misfortune. Its like applauding a car accident!
 
D_Lewis said:
You can think whatever you want in your head but I would never cheer for someone elses misfortune. Its like applauding a car accident!
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Wrong.

Cheering for someone actually getting physically hurt and a cue ball that is going in because someone didn't have enough sense to try and steer it away from the hole, are 2 entirely different things.

Cue ball scratching isn't even in the same ballpark as someone having a car accident.
 
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