Foul..........Poor Form..........Genius Move?

Here’s a twist on it. In a league game a teammate had his ball tied up with the 8 ball which was next to the pocket. He was about to try some crazy shot which obviously looked like it would end bad. The captain jumped up calling a time out and started talking to the player, knowing full well he was out of time outs. The other team yelled foul and took ball in hand without realizing that they got tricked into shooting at the eight ball. They opened it up and we won.
 
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This scenario came up in a tournament I played when I was on the 8
, the 8 and 1 weren't exactly like that but couldn't touch the 1 basically
I kept shooting his balls in after he give me bih, he asks if there was 3 foul n place, which there wasn't, so he got pissy and gave up and started talking shit. When I actually saw a decent return safe he could have done or at least attempt,but he couldn't see it, and supposedly near 600 Fargo, he was just upset that I didn't roll over and give it away and was able to turn the table on him
I guess I can't really think of any way that the OP's strategy gets anything better than stalemate.
 
This depends on whatever the definition of "are any good" is. The overwhelming majority of all 8-ball racks are played at the low level amateur level, and there are only a handful of actual professionals. Even if you define "any good" as anyone who shoots 100 racks of pool per year or more, and is above average within that group of people, you're probably still looking at an APA-5ish break point between below and above average.

Out of curiosity, I pulled the data from Fargorate from every "John Smith" in the system, here is the ratings;

Total Players: 57

Average: 470
Median: 496
Min: 303
Max: 640

Distribution:
600+ (1)
500-600 (16)
400-500 (16)
300-400 (24)

There are ~250,000 people in the Fargo Rate system, and the largest pool league (APA) doesn't participate in Fargo. There are another 250,000 players in the APA that by definition have a maximum average skill rating of 4.6 (max 23 per team, divided by 5).

However, there is some overlap, but typically among only the better APA players.

So, let's say the top 50% of the APA players ALSO have a Fargo rating and are thus accounted in the 1st set of data. You're left with 125,000 players split between mostly SL-3 and SL-4. At this point you're looking at an average Fargo rating for this group of no more than about 375.

Rough math then would than have an overall average Fargo of 438 among 375,000 registered people who play pool at some frequency (and I'm probably overestimating that APA Fargo), which is in that APA 4/5 range.

Long story short: There are plenty of 3 ball setups that this 4/5 player can't be expected to run out from.

Ratings conversions from Dr. Dave's site.
I would agree with your assessment bolded above. But assuming their opponent is the same skill level, I would still say the BIH gives them the advantage. Maybe not a run out, but an advantage.
 
The carom is a good try. Now it comes down to make percentage. I guess it depends if we're playing on a valley, a 7 foot diamond, or a 9'. On a valley there is a good chance of putting the carom down, on a diamond it's a bit tougher.
I'm nearly an exclusive 9ft player, so that carom would be my counter with that level of difficulty in mind. On a valley the carom would be a lock...lol
If the 5 doesn't fall it's like a loss (solids can just tap the 5, leave it hanging, take away ball in hand from stripes, etc.). If the 12 banks out and sells out the 7 it's a possible loss. If the carom goes down solids has a one rail kick at the top of the 7 softly. If solids misses that kick it's a loss because stripes would then lock them behind the 12 and open the cluster. But if solids can bump the 7 the game continues, and if solids gets a hook then the 8 blocks an easy return.
It's hard to discuss the potential 'what ifs' when we have no clue the resulting position of the 12 after the carom. Regardless if the 5 drops or not.

I could just as easily say that after the 5 drops, the 12 will be away from the rail just enough to prevent a direct hit and cut off 75% of contact surface for the 1 long rail kick. With the balls in that position. Even the 1 long rail will not generate coverage for solids on the 12, and the up/down short rail kick will require a good amount of spin and will very likely provide a clean look at the 12 even with legal contact on the 7.

Still, going back to the linked position, what would you do with solids? Would you do something other than pocketing the 9 ball? I still like that play best. And do you agree that rolling on the 5 and letting stripes illegally pocket the 5 would be a loss?
The kick safe on the 5 is real easy, but doesn't advance the game at all. That said, depending on the spd of my opponent it may still be the best play. I like the odds of a clean look even after a legal shot by stripes. Many less IQ savy might shoot for the bigger 9 ball in that spot which definitely puts me in the driver's seat. Slow rolling a kick at the 7 with hopes of tying me up, are odds I like against anyone under 700.

Is the carom going to guarentee me the win...?..., hell no. Is it a gamble...?... hell yes. Just saying that's the best play to counter your intentional foul with potting the 9, imo.

So, is the intentional 9 ball foul the best move for solids...? Possibly. Definitely puts the opponent in a tough spot. I think this one boils down to assessing your opponent's ability before pulling the trigger
 
OK, one more try. I still like the illegal foul in both of my previous spots, yet it's still being debated. I stand by the intentional foul being best in those spots and LOVE my end of it, but not everyone is on the same page. Hopefully this example will bring unanimous agreement.

I'm solids in the diagram below. I'm shooting in their 15 ball 100% of the time. They can't make a legal hit on the 9 without a jump shot and my 5 ball is near hanging. I believe solids wins from here, so the illegal foul seems very good. Anything else would seem silly. Agreed?

1660679122929.png
 
Here's a similar spot to the one I debated with JV, but without the possibility of a reasonable carom. JV, I don't disagree that the carom is a good try, I just think the intentional foul is a good try for solids. But in this case I think shooting the 15 in is definitely best.

So this post and my last post are two examples where the illegal foul is a good shot. One was extreme (they couldn't even hit their ball), the other is more common. Thoughts?

1660679429955.png
 
OK, one more try. I still like the illegal foul in both of my previous spots, yet it's still being debated. I stand by the intentional foul being best in those spots and LOVE my end of it, but not everyone is on the same page. Hopefully this example will bring unanimous agreement.

I'm solids in the diagram below. I'm shooting in their 15 ball 100% of the time. They can't make a legal hit on the 9 without a jump shot and my 5 ball is near hanging. I believe solids wins from here, so the illegal foul seems very good. Anything else would seem silly. Agreed?

View attachment 656448
Agree on each of your examples
 
Hopefully this example will bring unanimous agreement.
Nope...
Anything else would seem silly. Agreed?
...and nope...lol

You could with a smidge more effort roll the into the 5 banking it over to the long rail. You're opponent is still snookered without BIH. What do they do to be aggressive from there..? Take a full stroke flier one rail and kick the 15 in...? They're not going to bust open that cluster from there, even if they manage to hit the long rail before clipping the 15. Assuming the BIH after their inning. You then play another legal shot by caroming in their 15 off your 2 ball. That now gives you another insurance ball once they either hit the nine or you break open the cluster after potting the 5 or 2.
But in this case I think shooting the 15 in is definitely best.
Thoughts?
Again, the kick safe is real easy with the 5. The best the opponent can hope for is a clean look at the 15, but they aren't going to open the 9 up with the CB in the top left corner. That said I really like the chances of snookering them on the 15. If they have a clean look at the edge of the 9, then that's good for me. Otherwise it's now on them not to foul. Am I coming out with the win going my suggested route...?..., who knows.

Look, I'm not saying that the intentional fouls you described aren't good moves. ...and in all cases are definitely the easiest and quickest plays to gain the advantage. However, when I look at them I definitely see other non-foul shots that still put the opponent in bad spots. Ability to execute will determine the outcomes. That said, your intentional foul approach is without question the easier method to gain the advantage.

Hopefully someday we can play some of these out in person. I think it would be entertaining.
 
Sounds perfectly legal to me.
Call safe and tie up or shoot your opponents balls in.
In and safe has always been legal in 8-ball.

If you play all the rules 8-ball is a great strategy game and in many ways its as entertaining as 9-ball
if you like to see the moves that can be made to prevent the other side from getting out.
 
Nope...

...and nope...lol

You could with a smidge more effort roll the into the 5 banking it over to the long rail. You're opponent is still snookered without BIH. What do they do to be aggressive from there..? Take a full stroke flier one rail and kick the 15 in...? They're not going to bust open that cluster from there, even if they manage to hit the long rail before clipping the 15. Assuming the BIH after their inning. You then play another legal shot by caroming in their 15 off your 2 ball. That now gives you another insurance ball once they either hit the nine or you break open the cluster after potting the 5 or 2.

Again, the kick safe is real easy with the 5. The best the opponent can hope for is a clean look at the 15, but they aren't going to open the 9 up with the CB in the top left corner. That said I really like the chances of snookering them on the 15. If they have a clean look at the edge of the 9, then that's good for me. Otherwise it's now on them not to foul. Am I coming out with the win going my suggested route...?..., who knows.

Look, I'm not saying that the intentional fouls you described aren't good moves. ...and in all cases are definitely the easiest and quickest plays to gain the advantage. However, when I look at them I definitely see other non-foul shots that still put the opponent in bad spots. Ability to execute will determine the outcomes. That said, your intentional foul approach is without question the easier method to gain the advantage.

Hopefully someday we can play some of these out in person. I think it would be entertaining.
You bring up some interesting points and options JV.

I agree it would be fun to play these out in person. One thing I'll say is that I am 100% on each intentional foul. When people start typing about easy caroms and kick safes it always surprises me. My definition of easy isn't whether I'm capable of doing something the majority of the time on my practice table, it's being able to do something a number of times in a row while tired and under pressure. For me neither of these shots are automatic or without a lot of risk.

There are a lot of shots some people have developed to a comfort level I don't have though, and a lot of ways to approach the game. In the end we each have to find our own style and make it work for us and that might not always look the same.
 
You bring up some interesting points and options JV.

I agree it would be fun to play these out in person. One thing I'll say is that I am 100% on each intentional foul. When people start typing about easy caroms and kick safes it always surprises me. My definition of easy isn't whether I'm capable of doing something the majority of the time on my practice table, it's being able to do something a number of times in a row while tired and under pressure. For me neither of these shots are automatic or without a lot of risk.

There are a lot of shots some people have developed to a comfort level I don't have though, and a lot of ways to approach the game. In the end we each have to find our own style and make it work for us and that might not always look the same.
That's one thing that always makes me squirm in my chair while watching my team mates or friends play a game of 8-ball. I hate when they try to do "too much".
 
That's one thing that always makes me squirm in my chair while watching my team mates or friends play a game of 8-ball. I hate when they try to do "too much".
Agree..., but it's relative to the individual.

The alternative approaches I suggested earlier are not what I would personally consider risky. Far from it actually. If we were to consider the intentional fouls shots being at a 100% success rate. I'd put my alternatives >90% to be safe, and lets say >80% to require a kick out of a snooker. That's with not providing my opponent BIH.

Words are cheap I know.
 
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