Name any other sport or game...

blah blah

Shoebat
I was telling a non pool playing (but sports enthusiast) friend that I lost because the other person broke and ran out on me. He was astounded that there would be a sport/ game in which excellent play meant that the other player did not have an opportunity to play or to surpass the first player's performance.

He even invented some convoluted football scenario in which one team controlled the ball for an entire game- but admitted that the likelihood would be similar to winning a lottery, AND that even in his scenario, there were opportunities for the other team to take over the ball.

In pool, if one player breaks and runs out, there's absolutely nothing you can do (short of unsportsmanlike conduct).

So, here I'm just asking people who know other sports and games (I don't):

Is pool the only game/sport where you have the possibility of controlling the entire game/ set, and there's nothing the opponent can do?

Disclaimer: I am not arguing sport or game status of pool, not arguing for or against racking strategies, nor am I arguing for or against alternate breaks. (In fact, in the last instance I argued that in pool you could have amazing feats of record- breaking runs, and said friend argued that at least the opponent ought to then be given a chance to match or beat that amazing run.)
 

AtLarge

AzB Gold Member
Gold Member
Silver Member
... Is pool the only game/sport where you have the possibility of controlling the entire game/ set, and there's nothing the opponent can do?...

Maybe so. This possibility is why I think all matches should be started by lagging rather than flipping a coin. That way, if you lose the lag and your opponent breaks and runs out the match, at least you participated; and you can tell yourself that you should have lagged better!
 

ironman

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Maybe so. This possibility is why I think all matches should be started by lagging rather than flipping a coin. That way, if you lose the lag and your opponent breaks and runs out the match, at least you participated; and you can tell yourself that you should have lagged better!

That is the probem with the race to one format. It sucks, but sucks for everyone.
 

DogsPlayingPool

"What's in your wallet?"
Silver Member
I played tether-ball with Wilt Chamberlain once and never had the chance to participate.:embarrassed2:
 

lorider

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
my 1st night in masters league i lost the lag and did not get on the table till the 6th rack:frown:
 

Aten

m8
Silver Member
I wish I could count all the times I lost in a local tournament because I dogged the coinflip
 

blah blah

Shoebat
I played tether-ball with Wilt Chamberlain once and never had the chance to participate.:embarrassed2:

: ) favorite answer so far- but even then you had a theoretical opportunity, just not much hope.

I've had people run 4 or 5 racks on me. Worst match was probably something like seeing only a lag and two nearly impossible kicks in a race to 7.

It's really just a random, philosophical question in fun- I'm not trying to make any statement about pool...

Although now that I think of it, a computer guy once told me, "It's not a bug- it's a feature!" Applying that to pool, this could be a selling point:

"Pool: the only game where you CAN control everything."

or,

"Pay for travel, lodging, and entry fees and be stuck hundreds before you ever hit a ball. But then again, maybe you won't get to hit a ball."

or,

"Pool- the better you are, the more you just play with yourself."

okay maybe that needs work.

: )
 
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lorider

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I wish I could count all the times I lost in a local tournament because I dogged the coinflip

i will give you some advice on the flip. when you win the flip and then win the money you ship a lil cheese:D

call tails all the time. the head side is heavier and more often than not the coin will land with the heavy side down resulting in tails facing up.

an old gambler told me that years ago. hellifi know its true or not but i always let the other person flip and i always call tails.

i win more flips than i lose, honest injun:thumbup:

try it . you cant lose more flips than you do now. right ?
 

lorider

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
: ) favorite answer so far- but even then you had a theoretical opportunity, just not much hope.

I've had people run 4 or 5 racks on me. Worst match was probably something like seeing only a lag and two nearly impossible kicks in a race to 7.

It's really just a random, philosophical question in fun- I'm not trying to make any statement about pool...

Although now that I think of it, a computer guy once told me, "It's not a bug- it's a feature!" Applying that to pool, this could be a selling point:

"Pool: the only game where you CAN control everything."

or,

"Pay for travel, lodging, and entry fees and be stuck hundreds before you ever hit a ball. But then again, maybe you won't get to hit a ball."

or,

"Pool- the better you are, the more you just play with yourself."

okay maybe that needs work.

: )

mind if i borrow that last line. i think it would be great on a shirt :grin:
 

The Renfro

Outsville.com
Silver Member
Baseball.... At least from a pitchers stand point... If the pitcher is right he controls pretty much the whole game... You can dominate the entire opposing team for the entire game... Sure they at least get to take a shot at getting the bat on the ball. But if the pitcher is right their shot is slim to none.....

Pool is the only game I have ever found that gave me that feeling... If I am breaking and running out on someone it's exactly how I felt the nights when I stood on the mound and knew no one was getting anything out of the infield.... Granted an injury kept me from experiencing the dominance of the mound past high school level but I found pool shortly after my rotator was shot and it was love at first sight
 

Luxury

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
If I ran a local tourney and someone lost because of a break n run I would give the loser a chance to match that feat.
 

DecentShot

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I was thinking Tennis, but that has to do with more dominance than actually never giving your opponent a chance. Or more specifically the serve in tennis. In Bowling you can roll a 300 in match play essentially giving your opponent no chance. I do think the closest examples will be in individual sports. Team sports are just too different for comparison.
 

Jason Robichaud

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I played a guy a few years back and beat him 5-0. His friends laughed and asked what happen, he replied, I dogged the lag. I won the lag and ran the set. That event (winner break 8 ball) This was my 1st 3 matches. I finished a set by running the last 3 racks, won the lag and ran out the set, won the lag and missed the 8 in the 5th rack. It was fun for me, not so much for the guys I played.

Alt break solves this problem, however, I like to see 3+ packs.
 

John Brumback

New member
Silver Member
If I ran a local tourney and someone lost because of a break n run I would give the loser a chance to match that feat.

At the DCC,if someone's runs the set out from the first break,the opp gets the same chance.

This has to be the worst thing about pool.That's why I would never travel very far to a bar table tourny.Just another reason I like banks and onepocket the best.Better chance to at least get a turn.

I'm still wating on someone to come up with a sport where the opp might not even get a chance to play.The losing the lag theroy aint very good,imo.John B.
 

3kushn

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
At the DCC,if someone's runs the set out from the first break,the opp gets the same chance.

This has to be the worst thing about pool.That's why I would never travel very far to a bar table tourny.Just another reason I like banks and onepocket the best.Better chance to at least get a turn.

I'm still wating on someone to come up with a sport where the opp might not even get a chance to play.The losing the lag theroy aint very good,imo.John B.

Plat 50 point games in 3 Cushion. Only in theory and according to the rules can a player run out. Maybe its been done but only across multiple shorter games.
 

Matt

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Thinking about the initial question... It would have to be a turn-based sport/game where you can get unlimited "bonus turns" that doesn't have some sort of provision to prevent someone from "running out".

So far, all that comes to mind is two player Uno (skips, reverses, etc.) and croquet, which I don't really know all the rules to, but do remember that you get bonus turns for hitting other balls or passing through wickets. It seems like there must be some other card games or table games like that. Maybe some form of dominoes?
 
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