Coaching?
- Thread starter SJpilot
- Start date
I had a disappointing scenario the other night. An acquaintance (pretty good guy, normally) is a captain and bounces between a 4 and 5 in 8 ball, but has been playing for years. He is playing a gal on my team, 21 years old, just started playing this session. She has worked pretty hard and has gone from not knowing which end of the cue to hold, to getting in the proper stance with a solid bridge at least 50% of the time.
Anyway, the other guy scratches on the 8 ball first rack to put her on the hill, and he comes back and wins 3 in a row to make it hill-hill (4-2 race). In the last rack the layout was good and my SL 2 runs 4 balls (for the first time ever) and gets straight in on a 4 ft shot on the 8 in the corner. As she is lining up and doing her practice stroke, she nudges the cue ball...didn't move it, but it rocked a bit and settled back in the same place.
The other captain immediately yells loudly "that's ball in hand" grabs the cue ball and knocks in his last ball and the 8, all while giggling at his good fortune. Now, admittedly it was a foul and he was well within his right to call the foul. But c'mon. To jump out of his seat and yelling for the whole place to hear, all while laughing...just seemed a little crass. My SL 2 was of course devastated and packed up her cue and left before anyone could even talk to her.
Most of the guys on my team were furious with the other captain and were pretty brutal letting him know how he needed a foul from a SL 2 in order to win. I quieted them down and congratulated him on the match....nothing else to do.
Anyway, the other guy scratches on the 8 ball first rack to put her on the hill, and he comes back and wins 3 in a row to make it hill-hill (4-2 race). In the last rack the layout was good and my SL 2 runs 4 balls (for the first time ever) and gets straight in on a 4 ft shot on the 8 in the corner. As she is lining up and doing her practice stroke, she nudges the cue ball...didn't move it, but it rocked a bit and settled back in the same place.
The other captain immediately yells loudly "that's ball in hand" grabs the cue ball and knocks in his last ball and the 8, all while giggling at his good fortune. Now, admittedly it was a foul and he was well within his right to call the foul. But c'mon. To jump out of his seat and yelling for the whole place to hear, all while laughing...just seemed a little crass. My SL 2 was of course devastated and packed up her cue and left before anyone could even talk to her.
Most of the guys on my team were furious with the other captain and were pretty brutal letting him know how he needed a foul from a SL 2 in order to win. I quieted them down and congratulated him on the match....nothing else to do.
I agree. Devil's advocate: What if the low level player is leveling out to push through the cue ball and OB? Can you "explain the rule" before they shoot by saying the shot they want to shoot is a foul?
Well mr. Devil's Advocate... Stop pissing in my Cheerios!
You got me thinking. I dont know now. Maybe if the player wasnt down on the shot?
Your scenario would be a a coaching violation unless it was APA.... in which case the captain can call a timeout if the player has any left.
As a team captain of two different leagues, I generally don't have that situation come up. Because I make sure my players know the rules, and if it's something like using a short stick at a certain location, I make sure they know it.
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I do see it as coaching. You are playing the person at the table and not the person at the table plus the whole room. If they do not know or understand then that’s not my issue. I used to play league and would watch my opponent scurry over to their teammates between shots to get advice on their next move on a tough rack. Same difference.
And before you blast me, hey, I didn’t make the rules but I am held to the same standards as my opponent. Don’t hate the player, hate the game (or League in this case).
And before you blast me, hey, I didn’t make the rules but I am held to the same standards as my opponent. Don’t hate the player, hate the game (or League in this case).