Drop Pockets vs Ball Return Tables in Tournaments

[Jaden]

I've heard it's to avoid ball return noise. The non-streamed tables may be ball return.

I can confirm that the non tv tables at the AZ open were ball return.

 

[shag_fu]

Ok so drop pockets are not good for straight pool. Not sure what the chances are of this happening in,8., 9 or 10 ball.

You just need to get in the habit of clearing the pocket before you shoot. In 1 pocket, players will move balls to their respective side pocket to prevent this from happening. In straight pool, most balls are made in the bottom corners. It’s good practice to clear them out during a rack.


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[straightline]

Ok. I asked the smelly guy at the top of the mountain and he said three words.

unpocketing fouls precious

 

[SSP]

I played a set of straight pool on Monday on a drop pocket SAM table. When my run ended my opponent proceeded to take out the last half-dozen balls. However, neither of us had moved any of the balls that were in the one, now full, corner pocket. When he powered a ball in to the said pocket, in order to break a cluster, the object ball clipped the very top of one of the pocketed balls and bounced back on to the table. No other balls were moved by the offending phenolic resin sphere, so I let him have it.
I'm not sure how this would be dealt with in tournament play, but this wouldn't have happened on a ball-return.

Remove some of the balls in the full pocket to a pocket that is empty or less full BEFORE the shot, ball return tables are harder on pool balls, they are running on bare wood in a return table.

 

[Jaden]

Remove some of the balls in the full pocket to a pocket that is empty or less full BEFORE the shot, ball return tables are harder on pool balls, they are running on bare wood in a return table.

Not on my goldcrown. There are rubberized steel rails screwed to the frame.

 

[fastone371]

Remove some of the balls in the full pocket to a pocket that is empty or less full BEFORE the shot, ball return tables are harder on pool balls, they are running on bare wood in a return table.

Not on GC's. not on Valley's, and not on Diamonds, I don't know about the others but I think that covers the majority of tables you are likely to find in the USA.

 

[SSP]

Not on GC's. not on Valley's, and not on Diamonds, I don't know about the others but I think that covers the majority of tables you are likely to find in the USA.

I have a valley table and it is hard on pool balls, the coin op is gone and there is alot of bare wood

 

[philly]

I have a valley table and it is hard on pool balls, the coin op is gone and there is alot of bare wood

Drop pockets are great.
Get your exercise.
Walk.

 

[fastone371]

I have a valley table and it is hard on pool balls, the coin op is gone and there is alot of bare wood

Your Valley didnt have the plastic plenum in the ball return??

 

[SSP]

Your Valley didnt have the plastic plenum in the ball return??

I guess that's why it was cheap, could be worse, could have no table

 

[straightline]

Remove some of the balls in the full pocket to a pocket that is empty or less full BEFORE the shot, ball return tables are harder on pool balls, they are running on bare wood in a return table.

Yeah but the Tour concern might be the empitical decorum of emptying the pockets while the balls are in motion.

 

[sudocrushms]

This actually made me think of something else: Since officials don't like players emptying pockets before the cb stops, would they have an issue with players moving balls to different pockets? I saw Robbie do it this weekend before a 9b, but not sure. Fine, unless they drop one on the playing surface?

 

[iusedtoberich]

This actually made me think of something else: Since officials don't like players emptying pockets before the cb stops, would they have an issue with players moving balls to different pockets? I saw Robbie do it this weekend before a 9b, but not sure. Fine, unless they drop one on the playing surface?

Archer used to do that all the time on the TV table. I think someone asked him, and the light reflection off the pocketed balls bothered him when his face was over a pocket that had balls.

But point taken. With today's WPA ref "Nit" rules of not sticking your hands where they don't belong until the very last ball stopped motion like Absolute Zero, who knows what a European ref would do.

 

[sudocrushms]

Archer used to do that all the time on the TV table. I think someone asked him, and the light reflection off the pocketed balls bothered him when his face was over a pocket that had balls.

But point taken. With today's WPA ref "Nit" rules of not sticking your hands where they don't belong until the very last ball stopped motion like Absolute Zero, who knows what a European ref would do.

Sure, but at the same time is it that tough to stare at your cueball for a couple seconds before emptying pockets?
I got so used to it in college with how small the buckets were. If i remember right they only held like 4 balls before you could see them over the slate. We *had* to rearrange all the time. Just checked my Diamond Pro: holds 8 easy.