Making your opponents shoot every shot or concede out of respect?

Make them shoot it out. Show respect to the tournament format rather than your opponent's ability to pocket a hanger.

I also agree that giving someone the last ball(s) can be a shark. That is less of a factor in the final rack, however, when you are conceding the match rather than conceding a game.
 
New players think there are shots which could never be missed. Experienced players know better.
 
You don't want to bet against a guy that has a gimme.

take Steve Martin's advice: "I like to punt on first down, the other team never sees it coming".
 
sammylane12 said:
I think the game would be elevated in terms of professionalism if players had to sink every ball. It is hard to explain to friends who play but are not die hard fans why someone doesn`t have to shoot in the last ball or the last two.
And what was up with Dechaine quitting with 8 or 9 balls left on the table?
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The game was over because Earl made a 2-10 combo to win the game and match.
 
I feel that a lot of times other players will concede shots to you so that you will feel obligated to in turn to concede shots back to them. And if you don't, you feel like a bad person.
 
Very interesting viewpoints! I might have something nobody has mentioned yet. Lots of players don't want to go through the mental strain of having the winning ball(s) pocketed on them so they just "give them the game". When I was a kid (early 20's) I was at Chris's in Chicago and I was watching these 2 "older guys" hahah (about 50) playing 9 ball for $ I was too far away to see for how much but they were doing something that looked odd to me. Sometimes when there were 1, 2, 3 or sometimes even 4 balls on the table one of them would just throw $ on the table LOL took me like 20min to figure out why.

Someone can concede to you because they love you, hate you, are trying to shark you, are being respectful to you, are trying to be disrespectful to the tournament (stickin it to "the man"). I agree with Bob there should be a 1 game penalty for conceding the game. That way people would stop doing it so often, when you are with your friends that is a different story, if you want to save time; get the next guy up in rotation or something like that it is just fine but it has no place in competitive play.
 
I think there are clearly times when concessions are acceptable and times when they aren't and it's important to understand that most of the time, they aren't.

It's acceptable to gift away the final game of a set especially if you're gambling or if you're playing in a tournament.

If it is not for the set, situations that would also be acceptable (IMO) would be:

Non organized competition (gambling or for fun)
BIH on the last ball
In the act of good sportsmanship (ie., you accidentally potentially sharked your opponent)

Many other scenarios could be viewed as a way of icing your opponent. Especially when I was more of a novice/intermediate player, pocketing 9-balls helped me relax. If my opponent conceded six 9-balls in a row, I would be anticipating a concession on the 7th and it would bother me if he didn't. It's the same as saying, "I don't think you can make this."

I think you need to be especially careful on the whole. A concession should be a situation that is clearly a gift and nothing more.
 
PGHteacher said:
..

Someone can concede to you because they love you, hate you, are trying to shark you, are being respectful to you, are trying to be disrespectful to the tournament (stickin it to "the man").....
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Being at the tournament and seeing many concessions on the 10 ball, every single one of them looked to me to be out of respect. Just my opinion as a non tournament player.
 
ronscuba said:
Being at the tournament and seeing many concessions on the 10 ball, every single one of them looked to me to be out of respect. Just my opinion as a non tournament player.
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I think that it is 1 out of 100 that are meant to be otherwise, this is not surprising.
 
ronscuba said:
Being at the tournament and seeing many concessions on the 10 ball, every single one of them looked to me to be out of respect. Just my opinion as a non tournament player.
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I agree with you. Knowing most of the field and seeing a handful of the concessions, I don't think this was ever sharking. This method of sharking, IMO, is more applicable to novice and intermediate players. Opens and Pros are not going to care if you gift the money ball.
 
Shermanscs said:
I posted this in the thread congratulating Earl for winning the Ginky 10-ball memorial. For those who didnt see it, it was a hill/hill match & with 4 simple balls to runout, Kiamco was playing great. He has to just sink the 9 in the side (which he is straight in on), then roll up for the 10 in the corner to send him into the finals. He sinks the 9, then in rolling up, follows the cue ball into the side pocket,scratching!

Interesting example of why you should make everyone shoot every shot. Before Kiamco scratched, I was thinking Earl should have conceded the game (even as early as when Kiamco had about 4 balls left and it looked like simple connect the dots). Even the pros can miss em'. Interesting question about showing respect to a skilled opponent vs. making every opponent shoot every shot.

Thoughts?

Steve
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Pool has to take it's cue from other sports. You will never see someone concede a putt no matter how easy. What a couple of guys do fooling around playing in the pool room is one thing, what pros do is another. They have to remain professional. If it is not already it should be in the rules.
 
Unless it is specifically against the rules of a particular tournament, I don't have any problem with anyone conceding any time they want, and don't consider conceding some games and making your opponent run out others a form of sharking. I also don't have any problem with my opponent making me shoot out every ball all the time. If I miss a duck, it's my fault.

What I do have a problem with is any movement, especially towards the table, that could be construed as a concession, but is not one. Even more so if I'm on the money ball. Either sit still or tell me you concede. I've managed to catch people halfway to the table a few times; I just stand back up and stare at them until they go grab the rack or sit back down. If the pressure of deciding whether you want to concede or not is too much, just let me shoot everything out.
 
One pool saying goes something like this: you're playing the table, not the other guy.

Concession works the same way, at least for me. If the game ball is even 2% missable, I let them shoot it. It has nothing to do with the other player, and I'm not trying to get in his head. If it's on the rail, or 8 feet away, or a bit thin, or he has to stretch, etc. etc... I let him shoot. Basically I ask "if I were shooting this, would I have even the tiniest doubt?"

If there's absolutely no problems, and I can't see any possibility of the miss, then I concede.

The decision honestly has nothing to do with respect. In fact, part of my mental game is to have a little contempt for whoever I'm shooting. I'm just in a hurry to get to the next rack and don't want to dwell on my loss.
 
If there's one thing I think people should understand, you should never feel pressured to concede a game ever. I've had opponents look at me and say, "You're gonna make me shoot this?" My response is usually, "Well, now that you've asked, hell yeah!" Then again, I don't usually concede games unless it's for the match.
 
I'm with JCIN here. Make them pocket EVERY ball. I believe most pro events define concessions as a foul. I know the US Open 9ball does.

Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com

JCIN said:
I HATE concessions and think they should be punished with public flogging. With a flaming whip.

You dont see a linebacker step aside for a running back because he is only an inch from the goal line. I understand some think its an act of respect but I have seen way too many miscues, chokes and other things happen.

Make the guy beat you. Dont give them anything.

Incase I wasnt clear in the beginning I do not care for concessions.
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In a money tournament, esp streamed... Shooter should finish out on their own, no matter what. If for fun or money game, depends on how well you know them. If they play them all the time then it's okay. If it's a stranger, then never assume, finish it out until they go up and say it's okay and start racking. I hate it when people ask if they have to shoot it. I've seen arguments when the guy broke down his stick and put it away and the opponent didn't run out. Pool etiquette should be applied through out the whole match on every shot.
 
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