What is the best game to further the "sport" of pool?

[jalapus logan]

So, given all of the many opinions/theories out there about how to further the organized sport of pool, I am wondering if we can establish a consensus as to what game would be best to serve this end.

So, of the commonly played games in this poll (assume that WPBA rules apply unless explicitly stated), which is the most likely to singularly drive public interest, increase sponsorship and prize dollars, and get new people interested in playing the game?

In answering, please be aware that I am asking what can further the sport, not what game you find most enjoyable to play, or what game offers the best chance win money gambling, or any other consideration.


Now, to start off this discussion, I think that a strong case could be made for several of these games, but I do wonder if 8 ball might offer a great chance to elevate the pool's consciousness in the public sphere, as it is singly the most recognizable and commonly played game of pocket billiards in bars, home's etc.

Now, discuss away..

 

[Tom In Cincy]

I picked 10 Ball.

But, I think a new format and a new Game will have to be developed if pool is going to get to the next level.

IMO, the current format and games are way too boring to be considered for an increase in pool's popularity. Single elimination, Double eliminination, round robin and a mixture of these formats have been tried and tested, still no increase in the popularity.

Sponsors and the Media need 'SIZZLE' to sell a product, pool doesn't have any 'SIZZLE' except in the gambling arena. All the other aspects of pool are not exciting enough for even pool players to watch, why would a non-pool player watch?

 

[SLIM]

Pool is a great game!

but there is no single game that will move it from where it is now.
Why are people so concerned with this?

SLIM

 

[Aaron_S]

You forgot bonus ball.

Aaron

 

[justadub]

I'm voting for 8-ball, and I'll tell ya why.

Virtually everyone (in the US, at least) played or has played 8-ball when growing up. Or should I say "if they've ever played pool at all, they've played 8-ball."

Yet whenever (infrequently) pool is actually televised or reported upon, the game is 9-ball. Unless you've actively went beyond the casual player-level enough to learn 9-ball, the game is foreign to you. And the "you" I'm referring to is the general, non-pool-playing populace. If they see pool on TV and actually stop long enough to watch it, they're not gonna see anything they are familiar with. If they're not actively interested enough in pool to know what 9-ball is (or 10-ball, or any of the others) what's gonna peak their interest enough to stop and actually watch it?

This is a two-level solution. It is my belief that if more 8-ball was publicized (no easy feat, I recognize) pool will attract more attention. But I feel that the higher level professional tournaments should be played using 10-ball. Some combination of these two games should be the focus, so far as "furthering the sport of pool".

Just my .02

 

[jalapus logan]

You forgot bonus ball.

Aaron

Uhh, yeah....

 

[jalapus logan]

but there is no single game that will move it from where it is now.
Why are people so concerned with this?

SLIM

Because in order to play "pool" you must pick a pool game. If you are going to have a pool touney, what would the competitors play?

Indeed, there may not be a single game that will be the magic bullet, however, there should probably be a dominant game that comprises most of tourney play in order for the public to get a sense of continuity and learn what the game is all about.

 

[cigardave]

"Bottle Pool" should have been a choice.

 

[jalapus logan]

I'm voting for 8-ball, and I'll tell ya why.

Virtually everyone (in the US, at least) played or has played 8-ball when growing up. Or should I say "if they've ever played pool at all, they've played 8-ball."

Yet whenever (infrequently) pool is actually televised or reported upon, the game is 9-ball. Unless you've actively went beyond the casula player-level enough to learn 9-ball, the game is foreign to you. And the "you" I'm referring to is the general, non-pool-playing populace. If they see pool on TV and actually stop long enough to watch it, they're not gonna see anything they are familiar with. If they're not actively interested enough in pool to know what 9-ball is (or 10-ball, or any of the others) what's gonna peak their interest enough to stop and actually watch it?

This is a two-level solution. It is my belief that if more 8-ball was publicized (no easy feat, I recognize) pool will attract more attention. But I feel that the higher level professional tournaments should be played using 10-ball. Some combination of these two games should be the focus, so far as "furthering the sport of pool".

Just my .02

Strong case for eight ball, as you state, although I can't decide what to vote in my own poll. I would love to see more rotation personally, but I don't know if that would go over too well or win many fans.

 

[jalapus logan]

"Bottle Pool" should have been a choice.

I just tried to keep it simple. I could have included Honolulu, Irish pool, or a number of other variants. I just wanted to keep selections limited to "commonly" played games.

 

[softshot]

10 ball with a twist

The game is scored by points not racks.

each player breaks exactly 5 racks.. score 1 point for each ball made on the break

play safe lose 1 point

a cut shot counts as 1 point

each additional contact is an additional point so

a kick shot ( any number of rails) counts as 2 points

a bank shot counts as 2 points with an additional point for each rail

2 ball caroms and combinations count as 2 points. more balls involved more points scored.

kick into a combination and score 3 points

kick into a combination bank shot and score 4 points

they guy who's behind has to start taking crazy shots just to get back into the game

when the best players in the world are forced to start taking flyers you will see some spectacular shots..

I think people would watch that..

 

[donuteric]

I'm voting for 8-ball, and I'll tell ya why.

Virtually everyone (in the US, at least) played or has played 8-ball when growing up. Or should I say "if they've ever played pool at all, they've played 8-ball."

Yet whenever (infrequently) pool is actually televised or reported upon, the game is 9-ball. Unless you've actively went beyond the casula player-level enough to learn 9-ball, the game is foreign to you. And the "you" I'm referring to is the general, non-pool-playing populace. If they see pool on TV and actually stop long enough to watch it, they're not gonna see anything they are familiar with. If they're not actively interested enough in pool to know what 9-ball is (or 10-ball, or any of the others) what's gonna peak their interest enough to stop and actually watch it?

This is a two-level solution. It is my belief that if more 8-ball was publicized (no easy feat, I recognize) pool will attract more attention. But I feel that the higher level professional tournaments should be played using 10-ball. Some combination of these two games should be the focus, so far as "furthering the sport of pool".

Just my .02

Good post! Gotta spread some first before I can rep you.

Why is snooker so popular in Europe? There isn't as much variation in snooker as it is in pool. Watching pool can be super boring, especially for those who don't have deep knowledge in the game. While 8-ball might not be the favorite game among us, but it's after all the most famous and most played games in pool halls and bars across the country. Perhaps like you suggested, streaming more 8-ball games on TV might perhaps motivate more people to stay in front of their TV and ultimately that motivation brings them into playing the game more often.

 

[3andstop]

Much as I love straight pool, and of course would be tempted to vote that way, 8 ball without a doubt is THE SINGLE game that when folks get together to play casually, they play.

In fact it is so much the only game novices know, that if you ask them if they know how to play straight pool, they say yes and then play 8 ball thinking that is straight pool.

 

[Rooolfl]

I'm voting for 8-ball, and I'll tell ya why.

Virtually everyone (in the US, at least) played or has played 8-ball when growing up. Or should I say "if they've ever played pool at all, they've played 8-ball."

Yet whenever (infrequently) pool is actually televised or reported upon, the game is 9-ball. Unless you've actively went beyond the casual player-level enough to learn 9-ball, the game is foreign to you. And the "you" I'm referring to is the general, non-pool-playing populace. If they see pool on TV and actually stop long enough to watch it, they're not gonna see anything they are familiar with. If they're not actively interested enough in pool to know what 9-ball is (or 10-ball, or any of the others) what's gonna peak their interest enough to stop and actually watch it?

This is a two-level solution. It is my belief that if more 8-ball was publicized (no easy feat, I recognize) pool will attract more attention. But I feel that the higher level professional tournaments should be played using 10-ball. Some combination of these two games should be the focus, so far as "furthering the sport of pool".

Just my .02

Great Post. I voted 10-Ball, but from a players perspective. Even my Mom understands 8-Ball enough to be able to watch and understand whats going

on. Non-players can't really follow the rotation games as they dont know the colors of the succeding balls. Some TV coverage highlights the

sequence, but it sure isn't the same viewing experience for non-players as 8-Ball. So If I could, I would switch my vote from 10-Ball to 8-Ball to

answer the poll more accurately.

That being said, I don't really enjoy watching 8-Ball myself. And I love to watch 10-Ball.

 

[westcoast]

I say either 8 ball or sudden death 7 ball

8 ball, as was said earlier, is a game familiar to all. It can be quite interesting to see a pro work their way through a run out. However, the only major drawback is that it could get boring watching pro after pro runout

I really liked the format of sudden death 7 ball that aired on ESPN about 5-10 years ago. Because you have shoot in order, it shows the viewer how these guys get position and has the added bonus of allowing only 1 safety per rack. It eliminates most of the boredom that arises from safety battles (which can be very interesting for knowledgeable fans, but bores most others)

 

[brophog]

Single elimination, Double eliminination, round robin and a mixture of these formats have been tried and tested, still no increase in the popularity.

That's because it isn't about the game, it is about the culture.

 

[Aaron_S]

I'm voting for 8-ball, and I'll tell ya why.

Virtually everyone (in the US, at least) played or has played 8-ball when growing up. Or should I say "if they've ever played pool at all, they've played 8-ball."

Yet whenever (infrequently) pool is actually televised or reported upon, the game is 9-ball. Unless you've actively went beyond the casual player-level enough to learn 9-ball, the game is foreign to you. And the "you" I'm referring to is the general, non-pool-playing populace. If they see pool on TV and actually stop long enough to watch it, they're not gonna see anything they are familiar with. If they're not actively interested enough in pool to know what 9-ball is (or 10-ball, or any of the others) what's gonna peak their interest enough to stop and actually watch it?

This is a two-level solution. It is my belief that if more 8-ball was publicized (no easy feat, I recognize) pool will attract more attention. But I feel that the higher level professional tournaments should be played using 10-ball. Some combination of these two games should be the focus, so far as "furthering the sport of pool".

Just my .02

I can't stand playing 8-ball, but I'm gonna have to agree with your assessment. I also agree that 10-ball is a more appropriate game for top level players. Your comment about some combination of the two made me think about a format for a reality tv show based on pool.

What is that golf reality show called, Big Break or something like that? I'm wondering how a similar show based on pool would go over. It would follow a group of promising players as they get instruction, face challenges, compete in qualifiers, etc., with the ultimate goal being to win endorsements to play competitive pool.

In the early stages they could be playing 8-ball, but would graduate to 10-ball at some stage during their prep for competitive play, and perhaps compete in the US 10-Ball Open as their first "pro" tournament. Assuming there was interesting story behind each competitor, I would imagine people would get into it much more than they would watching two elite players play near perfect pool for an hour.

Too bad the name "Big Break" is already taken; that would have been perfect.

Aaron

 

[donuteric]

I can't stand playing 8-ball, but I'm gonna have to agree with your assessment. I also agree that 10-ball is a more appropriate game for top level players. Your comment about some combination of the two made me think about a format for a reality tv show based on pool.

What is that golf reality show called, Big Break or something like that? I'm wondering how a similar show based on pool would go over. It would follow a group of promising players as they get instruction, face challenges, compete in qualifiers, etc., with the ultimate goal being to win endorsements to play competitive pool.

In the early stages they could be playing 8-ball, but would graduate to 10-ball at some stage during their prep for competitive play, and perhaps compete in the US 10-Ball Open as their first "pro" tournament. Assuming there was interesting story behind each competitor, I would imagine people would get into it much more than they would watching two elite players play near perfect pool for an hour.

Too bad the name "Big Break" is already taken; that would have been perfect.

Aaron

And Efren Reyes would be the next Gordon Ramsay!

 

[SLIM]

No game

because in order to play "pool" you must pick a pool game. If you are going to have a pool touney, what would the competitors play?

Indeed, there may not be a single game that will be the magic bullet, however, there should probably be a dominant game that comprises most of tourney play in order for the public to get a sense of continuity and learn what the game is all about.

your poll asks which game is going to further pool.

I realize it is not one of the choices but i still say that no game, however exciting to those of us who love pool, is going to further pool.
Not trying to set anyone off but pool is pool.
The best & largest tournaments in the world or the best gambling matches don’t attract more than a handful of dedicated pool people.

Sorry, but no game old or new is going to further pool.

SLIM

 

[jalapus logan]

your poll asks which game is going to further pool.

I realize it is not one of the choices but i still say that no game, however exciting to those of us who love pool, is going to further pool.
Not trying to set anyone off but pool is pool.
The best & largest tournaments in the world or the best gambling matches don’t attract more than a handful of dedicated pool people.

Sorry, but no game old or new is going to further pool.

SLIM

I do see your point, so no worries about setting anyone off - it's all talk about a game any way. However, I will further the dialogue regardless though, as I do believe that pool, however organized in whatever form involves the process of trying to pocket balls, which happens to be an extraordinarily fun activity that appeals to lots of folks, for a number of reasons. That is the ultimate reason that I think that pool can be elevated in popularity.

Now, having said all of that, I continue to believe that it would help to have a commonly known and played game in the tourney pool world that can be advertised and properly promoted. Take baseball for instance. When you say to someone that you are going to play or watch baseball, they understand that it is a singular activity that teams play without deviation. The term "Pool" is just a collection of games that is played on a pocket billiards table. Hell, if you say pool to someone, they may think that you're going swimming. It would be nice to be able to say to someone that I am going off to play onepocket and have them know what the hell I am talking about.