Ring games or group games

Bob Jewett

Bob Jewett

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I'm writing an article on games that can be played by more than two people and especially those games that are better with more than two. For three players, there is cut throat of course, which has a reasonable set of written rules.

For ring games such as nine ball, the rules aren't so clear and vary from room to room. What rules do you use for ring nine ball? If you play ring 10 ball, are the rules any different?

Are there other multi-player games that you like to play?
 
The key rules I see in just the Greensboro NC area vary!

9 or 10 ball, they don't vary, but it's the spotting of balls that does. Some play spot every ball, some play spot only the ball before the money ball (including the 4, because it's common to play $ on the 5 - the value of which is half as much as on the 9 or 10). Some play spot every ball only if there's at least 4 players and only the ball before the money ball if there's 3 (how dumb!).

No pushout after the break. You can give the table back on any foul.

Pull pills for order of player play. You can "shake" the order after a minimum of 3 racks, and some play 5 racks.

And my favorite, if it looks remotely like a hit is suspect, you get outvoted. :mad:

I'm surely missing something, but that's what first came to mind.
 
9 Ball Ring Game

What we have always considered a ring 9ball game here Bob is 3 or more players with the 3,6, & 9 being money balls. Any money balls pocketed out of turn either spot on the end rail or the spot, all other balls stay down. That is determined before start. Legally pocketed money balls pay out of turn then spot to get paid again. It is also honest effort, no safety with the option to leave the cue ball where it lays or take BIH behind the head string on fouls. I have also played this format with the 5 & 9 being the money balls but not so much as 3,6,9. This format doesn't seem as popular as it use to be & a lot of the ring games I have seen played on stream or TV are totally different now. I like this style myself as the odds on the money are good & 4 players to myself is preferred but 5 is tolerable.
 
Golf

Golf on a tight 5x10 snooker table. 3-6 players. or 2 two man teams.

It can be fun, contentious, brutal, skillful, un/lucky, jovial, heated, and loud depending on the price of the game and fouls and bad hits.

Great game (I'm learning) with many moves and nuances that I don't get. Requires sequential probability decision making, shotmaking, and patience.

An interesting game where every man for himself morphs into everyone trying together to stall or take out the leader-if played 'properly'??

I'm just learning-but I think it's a cool multi-player game. The only assured winner may be the house-games take several hours to play(2-4) typically.
 
Bob Jewett said:
I'm writing an article on games that can be played by more than two people and especially those games that are better with more than two. For three players, there is cut throat of course, which has a reasonable set of written rules.

For ring games such as nine ball, the rules aren't so clear and vary from room to room. What rules do you use for ring nine ball? If you play ring 10 ball, are the rules any different?

Are there other multi-player games that you like to play?
Click to expand...

This may be stretching the limits of what you're after, but I love playing scotch doubles 9-ball and scotch doubles one-pocket.
 
I'd like to hear lore and analysis of "golf" (as played on a snooker table). I've been to places where the biggest consistent action was on that game--and it was played nearly 24/7.

Who invented it, I wonder? And why has it become such a popular (if, perhaps, old-timers) action game?
 
There was also a golf game we played on a pool table. There were 9 different "holes" where a varying number of balls (from 2-4, I think) were racked in different patterns, and each player played the hole to completion and tallied their total strokes. Each hole had a par score, depending on the # of balls and difficulty of the pattern.

3-ball is another multi-player game that has been played a lot in my area.

I will still see kelly pool played occasionally, but not too often these days.

9 and 10-ball ring games would be by far the most common. We play RYO, honest effort, behind the line, spot everything, pass on foul, 9 or 10 in bottom corner doesn't count, $ balls spot until they fall in order, and change order every 10 racks.

Oh, I almost forgot about captains 1p.

Aaron
 
Our 9-ball ring game is pretty much like everyone else's.

Regular 9-ball rules, including BIH. Order selected by pills.

3 - 6 -9 are money balls, 1 point for the 3 and 6, 2 points for the 9. Play till someone gets 10 points.

Early money balls count and get re-spotted, except for the 9, which counts and re-rack, that player breaks.

I have seen groups of three players play a game where the balls are broken up 1-5, 6-10 and 11-15, first to drop all their balls wins. Don't know the specific rules of that one, I haven't played it myself.
 
justadub said:
I have seen groups of three players play a game where the groups are broken up 1-5, 6-10 and 11-15, first to drop all their balls wins. Don't know the specific rules of that one, I haven't played it myself.
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Sounds like cutthroat, except they are probably actually trying to preserve their balls and make the balls belonging to the other two players.
 
Bob Jewett said:
I'm writing an article on games that can be played by more than two people and especially those games that are better with more than two. For three players, there is cut throat of course, which has a reasonable set of written rules.

For ring games such as nine ball, the rules aren't so clear and vary from room to room. What rules do you use for ring nine ball? If you play ring 10 ball, are the rules any different?

Are there other multi-player games that you like to play?
Click to expand...


Pea/Kelly pool.
 
PhilosopherKing said:
This may be stretching the limits of what you're after, but I love playing scotch doubles 9-ball and scotch doubles one-pocket.
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The extreme of this was at the Mosconi Cup when they had the whole teams playing each other in a 10-player Scotch Cluster Frenzy. It was interesting but confusing.
 
Partner 15-ball rotation games. Chicago, pay ball, money ball, and others.

At my room we played money balls were 1 ball, 5 ball, 10 ball, 15 ball, and 61 or more total points as the 5 ways. We played it with 4 players. Player that made the 1-ball partnered with the player that made the next money ball. if one player got all 5 ways it was a roundhouse and he got paid double from the other 3 players. We played it $1 or $2 a way back in the mid 1970's. Johnnyt
 
ring dang doo

ring dang doo (old Grease Man song) is what we call our ring 10-ball game. Honest attempt on all shots.... option back on all fouls. Made balls spotted on break & fouls.... cb in kitchen on scratches. We use tokens to race around the table (18 points, or diamonds). 5 is worth 1 point, 10 is worth 2.

super doo is the 15 ball version.... it's the same but the 15 is worth 3 points.

3 players is usually a regular doo, 4 or 5 players is a super doo, and 6 players is a scotch doubles version of either one.

harder games than they should be for some reason.
 
Fun game we played back in the day, cheap gambling where you could have easily up to 7 players.....

It's called "5/10/15"

Rotation, use the entire rack, shoot until you miss, you must hit the lowest numbered ball first, slop counts, all shots must be offensive (no defense or perceived defense at all).....the 5, 10, and 15 are the money balls.....to keep it cheap and fun, each player pays $1 per ball....

Example:

6 players, each must have $3 to play each individual game....at the end of the game, player 1, 3 and 6 each made a ball.....with 6 players, there is a total of $6 per ball, since each player pays $1 per money ball.....ie, player 1, 3, and 6 all get $6.....

If you have deeper pockets, you can play $5, 10, or 20 a ball......for just $1 a ball, it's cheap gambling, players of all skill levels like to get in the action, and even if you play bad, $20 worth of 1 dollar bills is cheap for an hour or 2 of entertainment with friends....

Hope that is as clear as mud :D
 
Smooth said:
ring dang doo (old Grease Man song) is what we call our ring 10-ball game. Honest attempt on all shots.... option back on all fouls. Made balls spotted on break & fouls.... cb in kitchen on scratches. We use tokens to race around the table (18 points, or diamonds). 5 is worth 1 point, 10 is worth 2.

super doo is the 15 ball version.... it's the same but the 15 is worth 3 points.

3 players is usually a regular doo, 4 or 5 players is a super doo, and 6 players is a scotch doubles version of either one.

harder games than they should be for some reason.
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Funny. Ring game nicknames. There's a guy around here (who hates ring games) who calls them "circle j**ks". They always hit him up to play just to hear him say "I'm not gettin' in your circle j**k!"

Aaron
 
Johnnyt said:
Partner 15-ball rotation games. Chicago, pay ball, money ball, and others.

At my room we played money balls were 1 ball, 5 ball, 10 ball, 15 ball, and 61 or more total points as the 5 ways. We played it with 4 players. Player that made the 1-ball partnered with the player that made the next money ball. if one player got all 5 ways it was a roundhouse and he got paid double from the other 3 players. We played it $1 or $2 a way back in the mid 1970's. Johnnyt
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Good game. We play it 7 ways no deductions. 1,5,8,10,13, 15 and 61 pts.
Sometimes we play it with steady partners, a little different since you can push out at any time. Where as there are no pushouts with 4 non-steady partners until the partnership is formed.

Steady partnerships played when you have 2 weaker players.

Whew, a mouth full.
 
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