APA Captain Strategy
- Thread starter California Fats
- Start date
Ok, I'll go against the flow here. My personal opinion on this is, don't worry about it.
Just pick 5 players for your team in advance, (ideally give them plenty of warning, so they can do something else if they are not on the roster), and match up S/Ls as best as you can.
If you start to play games, then you get into the silly discussions where A who is a SL3 thought it was his turn to get a shot at the SL8 in the other team, because he wants to go for MVP, which will upset B who is a SL7 and also wanted to try MVP but now gets to play a SL2, etc, etc.
Just try to manage the order in which you put players to accommodate their schedule, and their tendency to get drunk over the evening. And just have fun! I find people play better anyway when they relax and do not worry too much about tactics or the result of the match/league.
Just pick 5 players for your team in advance, (ideally give them plenty of warning, so they can do something else if they are not on the roster), and match up S/Ls as best as you can.
If you start to play games, then you get into the silly discussions where A who is a SL3 thought it was his turn to get a shot at the SL8 in the other team, because he wants to go for MVP, which will upset B who is a SL7 and also wanted to try MVP but now gets to play a SL2, etc, etc.
Just try to manage the order in which you put players to accommodate their schedule, and their tendency to get drunk over the evening. And just have fun! I find people play better anyway when they relax and do not worry too much about tactics or the result of the match/league.
Probably what a captain does on non-league nights is as important as anything they do near a pool table.
Get a team with good attitudes, that show up super-reliably, and don't fight with others or cry when
asked to play or keep score... and your team will already be stronger than 80% of the others.
It's up to the captain to find those people.
Get a team with good attitudes, that show up super-reliably, and don't fight with others or cry when
asked to play or keep score... and your team will already be stronger than 80% of the others.
It's up to the captain to find those people.
Thank you all for the great responses. Some of these posts have me thinking about things I never even considered... I think this season will be a good learning experience. I am lucky to have built a team with 4 close friends, my girlfriend, and my father. Even if we lose, we'll have a good time.
Oh, and no sandbagging. I just told everyone to destroy their opponent, and NOT worry about their HC.... who the hell plays with the intent of losing ??
I never understood it... so you lose a few matches to keep your handicap down, but now you are "behind" and you HAVE to win most of your matches the rest of the season to make up for the games you "tanked".
Well, had you won those few games, you might not be chasing the first place team
dont play apa , problem solved
please tell me why you say don't play apa. and what league would you recommend?
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Thank you for the constructive reply...
I dont recommend any leagues. i was a joke, if you enjoy it play. if not dont
thanks for the reply. i'm cool with that .:thumbup:
Our team will 99% of the time put up first, to either draw out their best player or get them to throw off and give away the first match. I read somewhere once a few years ago that the team that wins the first match will win the night about 70% of the time. So if we get that first match we can usually force the match-ups the rest of the night. It seems to be working out well with the new scoring system
Banks
Banned
Another part of throwing strategies..
The basic idea is to put the throw on the other team as far as random match-ups go. When I know somebody else plans on playing me, I try to have my team throw me when it's their turn. That way, our throw is used on a match-up we know will happen, so they have to throw blind again after that. If done in combination with winning the flip, that would mean they're throwing blind 3 matches and you throw blind once, with the other match being known. Every so often they'll duck, but it usually costs them.
The basic idea is to put the throw on the other team as far as random match-ups go. When I know somebody else plans on playing me, I try to have my team throw me when it's their turn. That way, our throw is used on a match-up we know will happen, so they have to throw blind again after that. If done in combination with winning the flip, that would mean they're throwing blind 3 matches and you throw blind once, with the other match being known. Every so often they'll duck, but it usually costs them.
I like hearing these team strategies regarding throws. They are quite a bit different than how I run my team, but give good insight into how others think.
Our roster is built in such a way that it would be quite difficult to accurately predict our throw strategy prior to at least the fourth match if at all, therefore we seldom throw first. Especially in the new 3-point 8-ball format. (we play in the double jeopardy format)
2x SL3
2x SL4
2x SL5
1x SL6
1x SL7
Our roster is built in such a way that it would be quite difficult to accurately predict our throw strategy prior to at least the fourth match if at all, therefore we seldom throw first. Especially in the new 3-point 8-ball format. (we play in the double jeopardy format)
2x SL3
2x SL4
2x SL5
1x SL6
1x SL7
quite a few say they like to throw 1st and i can understand that strategy. but no one has said what level they would throw and why.
if i throw 1st i like to throw a low level ...preferably a 3.i think throwing a 3 is being conservative when throwing blind. it forces the other team to either throw conservative also or use a higher handicap early saving mine for later in the match.
that allows me to counter how i need to throw 2nd match based on 3 things.
1.. what was the outcome of the 1st match?
2. what level they threw the 2nd match.
3. what levels do they have available for the last 3 matches?
i take all 3 into consideration before i throw in the 2nd match if i threw 1st.
what do you do and why ?
if i throw 1st i like to throw a low level ...preferably a 3.i think throwing a 3 is being conservative when throwing blind. it forces the other team to either throw conservative also or use a higher handicap early saving mine for later in the match.
that allows me to counter how i need to throw 2nd match based on 3 things.
1.. what was the outcome of the 1st match?
2. what level they threw the 2nd match.
3. what levels do they have available for the last 3 matches?
i take all 3 into consideration before i throw in the 2nd match if i threw 1st.
what do you do and why ?
Great questions ^ I was wondering the same
Keep a player journal. List who they played, the outcome, the spread (how bad they won or lost) and the handicaps of their opponents, you could also make a copy of the score sheet and build your own opponent index, giving you not only historical performance but also likelihood to win against a given skill level. This is fairly easy in excel but google docs might work for a simplified version. Then match your players up against people they can beat.
I agree with many of the other members...the key to a successful strategy is to know your own teams strengths and weaknesses and preferrably the other teams as well. Choosing matchups and toss ups is something that will take time. I would recommend sticking with the same team as long as possible. Good luck buddy apa can be a lot of fun and a headache at the same time
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In a match that matters like in cities or the playoffs or Las Vegas we will usually throw our best 5 and put up first. We also like the other team to know he's our best 5. In lead off matches he has a win percentage of 93.4, in walk off matches his win rate is pretty good, but in the middle matches his win percentage is pretty average. We put him up in the first match because if the other team knows him we will either get their best or their weakest and if they don't know him and they try to match up he'll always manage to play some of his best pool and he's like the honey badger - he don't care. We've never seen him slow down or lay down in a match. Against some lower S/L players he may try some things he wouldn't normally do, but he always says there is absolutely no reason to give the opponent an opening. He's not a dick or anything like that, he's just one of those people that always gives his best effort whether it's pool or grocery shopping. He'd been trying for weeks to get with this girl on one of the other teams, she's an S/L 4 and she's finally talking to him. They're laughing and really enjoying each others company, he's totally in. So we put him up in the next match, they put her up and he just tortures her. Plays safes, has a B&R, beats her 4 - 0. It's been over a year and she hasn't spoke to him since. Asked once if he regretted that win, he said no, he'd rather win. I think his priorities might be a bit off, but it sure is nice to have someone that almost guarentees a win in that first match, and he's always just having fun. Gives us many options when it's important
Generally we match up close to skill level. But 2 or 3 of the 9s in the 2 leagues I am in are just monsters on the table compaired to the rest of the players. Often teams will stick up 1,2,3 against them. So they do not waste their best players on a forsure loss. Sometimes the lower levels get lucky. I had a 3 beat a 7 in 8b last week. But this does not happen often. Usually the lower levels get beat, but often get more team points than having your best crushed 19-1 or 18-2
i am gonna help you out with my secret formula for matching up.:wink:
but remember my advice in my 1st post.. use your 1st session as a learning curve ...don't expect too much and above all just have fun playing pool.
a couple were on the right track about using a spreadsheet keeping track of your teamates and opponents. as i stated earlier i do much the same thing but keep pertinent info in my head as i stated earlier.
how i do that is a rating system. i rate all players from 1-4 for their skill level.
1. a player who plays above their skill level.
2. a player who is good at their skill level
3. average.. just what it implies
4. a player who is low for their skill level. some one who may have just moved up to the next level.
as i stated earlier... the day of the match i look up all players win/ loss record on the website. that factors into my ratings.
now this is just for when you throw against who they throw. you have no control when you throw blind unless you got a good guess who they are throwing.
gotta make a disclaimer here : you have no control over whether your player has a good or a bad night... we all have them.
if my opponent throws a s/l 4 who i rate as a 4 i will throw my 3 who i rate as a 1 every time. maybe a 3 who i rate as a 2 if they have been on a roll.
if they throw a s/l 4 who i rate as a 1 i gotta throw at least a rated 2 s/l 5 if i need the win. i may throw a rated 2 s/l 4 if i just need a point.
well i hope you get the idea.