Can one-pocket players play pool?

[rackmsuckr]

I agree that 1 pocket is the elite of all pocket billiard games. Playing offense while playing defense on every shot, using pocket speed, seeing balls that will go from the stack, banking, safeties, caroms, combos...it's got it all. I liken it to that cycling in a velodrome where everyone stands still on their bikes and then suddenly, boom - they're off! One pocket is like that because you are always positioning yourself and superb shots come up that are stunning. Then suddenly someone gets a break and they are running out.

It is so much like chess, thinking several moves ahead, what if I do this, they will counter with this and then I will have to do this, etc. Understanding tangent lines is extremely important and how it is affected with spin, draw, etc.

My husband once told me that there are always 3 shots on the table, an A,B, and C shot. The beginner takes the C shots 80% of the time and the B shots 20% of the time and usually can't even see the opportunity of the A shot. The B player takes the B shot 80% of the time, the A shot 15% and the C shot 5%. The A player takes the A shot most of the time with an occasional B. That's why it is the most accurate game to match up at, there are 1/2 balls you can adjust to.

There are also some tiny dink strokes that never come up in 9-ball that you have to master in 1 pocket.

Sometimes it can be painful to watch, but boy, is it fun to play!

 

[lukeinva]

I've heard good nine-ball players say one pocket is for crotchey guys who can't hang. Is this true? I've had many guys approach me asking to play one-pocket, but won't play me in nine-ball. Could it be that one-pocket is the easiest game to play? Punt, Punt, Shoot, Punt, Punt, Punt. As long as you can bank balls and maneuver a little, you can beat most "one-pocket" players. Boring.

I will be in phoenix in feb you can punt, punt, shoot all you want and we can play for whatever you want. I use to think 1p was the most stupid game in the world until I started to actually learn how to play it.

 

[Gerry]

I never said "old". I said crotchety. Read the post. Ok folks, I'm not talking about the best players in the world. I'm talking about local hacks who play one-pocket because they don't have to be a good shot-maker. They think they have some "secret skill" that is far superior to a nine-ball player. Give me a fookin' break.

I just realized something, it sounds like a "local 1P hack" may have trapped this "super 9-ball talent" in a 1 hole game he could'nt get out of, and now he's venting cause he lost his lunch money!.....stings don't it?!

Gerry

 

[bruin70]

One pocket is a game of creativity, finesse, very precise speed control, and loads and loads of patience.

r.

i have all that,,,,,,,,,,,,just not for pool

 

[Matt_24]

I've heard good nine-ball players say one pocket is for crotchey guys who can't hang. Is this true? I've had many guys approach me asking to play one-pocket, but won't play me in nine-ball. Could it be that one-pocket is the easiest game to play? Punt, Punt, Shoot, Punt, Punt, Punt. As long as you can bank balls and maneuver a little, you can beat most "one-pocket" players. Boring.

Absolutely not. I have a friend who is close to 70 years old. ALL he loves playing is either one pocket or straight pool. He hates 9 ball. I talked him into playing some and he ran out every time he got to the table. Very cautious, focused...and just runs out. He was funny though. As he was running out his third rack he looks up at me and says, "I hate 9 ball...it's like wading through mud to run out a rack. It takes 9 concentration...the rack is laid out after the break shot." In some ways he is right...but, yes Virginia...a *good* one pocket player, usually has the ability to play everything...but one pocket encompasses every skill.

 

[LastTwo]

I never said "old". I said crotchety. Read the post. Ok folks, I'm not talking about the best players in the world. I'm talking about local hacks who play one-pocket because they don't have to be a good shot-maker. They think they have some "secret skill" that is far superior to a nine-ball player. Give me a fookin' break.

The secret skill is just moves, banking ability, and creativity. People like you who don't know the game often just try to survive the inning. People who know the game almost always do something productive with a shot, unless they are getting out of a stone cold trap. There are so many subtle shots and moves that end up giving a player a huge advantage later in the game, and those are shots that even the most intelligent 9-ball players wont see. You have to be experienced in the game to win, unless of course you only play 'hacks'.

 

[lfigueroa]

The answer to your question is: yes.

I know, because that’s how I learned the game. Getting beat by crotchety (read: old) men, who I could smoke at 9ball, or 8ball, or 14.1, but who would get me into a 1pocket game I had no chance at by saying, “I can only spot you 10-7 because you shoot so straight.”

The truth of the matter is that, at 1pocket, knowledge of the strategies and shots counts for *a lot* and many an old guy has found that they can beat an inexperienced player (read: younger straight shooter), even though their eyes and strokes may not be as sharp.

I recently beat a young sharp shooter pretty easily in a 1pocket tournament, who could probably give me at least the seven in 9ball. Afterwards, he moaned about 1pocket and how the guy with the better stroke never seems to win. In time, he will learn that that is not so.

It’s an appreciation of the game that only comes with time and experience. At the higher levels, even locally, 1pocket has nothing to do with “punt, shoot, punt...” And, when better players play 1pocket it requires a better eye and a better stroke than 9ball.

1pocket requires more creativity and strategy than any other pool game. When good players play 1pocket the game becomes a beautiful blend of defensive and offensive strategic play, employing single and multi-rail banks and cue ball positioning, subtle maneuvering, caroms, combinations, and thread-the-needle play.

And, as one crotchety fellow once told me, “If you don’t like all that in a pool game, you don’t like tapioca.”

Lou Figueroa

I've heard good nine-ball players say one pocket is for crotchey guys who can't hang. Is this true? I've had many guys approach me asking to play one-pocket, but won't play me in nine-ball. Could it be that one-pocket is the easiest game to play? Punt, Punt, Shoot, Punt, Punt, Punt. As long as you can bank balls and maneuver a little, you can beat most "one-pocket" players. Boring.

 

[r0ttie1]

I just realized something, it sounds like a "local 1P hack" may have trapped this "super 9-ball talent" in a 1 hole game he could'nt get out of, and now he's venting cause he lost his lunch money!.....stings don't it?!

Gerry

Hehehe... Sounds pretty accurate to me.