CueTable Tournament - Who's in?

Wait! Here it is!!!! I drew this dang thing 20 times and lost it 19 times! I guess I fouled-out for taking too long!

http://CueTable.com/P/?01;xP02j{*03IOJ04MKt05L(*06Y)w07YIQ08)OX09i*j10M&%11&ft12agk13s|s14WmK15pDZ16sE}19!)O20[~%21;xP{(k22j{*Ed{23IOJDOj24MKtEdx25L(*FQt26Y)w^N%27YIQhEb28)OX{wh29i*jinE36sE}Jk!K}]Oe(NDKSD~NRTQ(TXKTWXaXnqq;!lMWjao*O;|Nov^i&i;

I ran this out with a nice, easy pattern, using some soft follow shots, some short draw shots and two one-rail position shots. Plus, I did bump into the 9 after shooting the two... It could have been played by missing the 9 with the cue going to the long rail at the top... same result. Notice how each leave has an alternate shot (or two) if position is a bit off...
 
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Adding a bit of info to mine:

I really believe shooting the 7 first is a good starting point. As someone mentioned, should I not get perfect on the 3 (which doesnt need to be), I would have any of those 3 solids in that area to shoot straight in shots with very little cue ball movement.

Andrews and my way to get rid of the 2 is basically the same. I would do it without hitting the 9, but bumping the 9 is also a very good way if its a full ball bump keeping you straight in on the 2.

Some have stated that the 1 ball is a hard ball to get on. My shot prior to the 1 which is the key ball is simply rolling the ball forward to the rail. Margin of error on this shot is fairly high since the angle coming off the rail will be helping you. And cutting the 1 in the corner is simple, and if you happen to run past the eight, you still have the bottom right corner.

My runout was based on very little cue ball movement, nothing fancy stroke wise, and allowing for position mistakes if needed.

I enjoyed this. Ironically I showed the layout to a friend (A player) and he immediately states he would shoot stripes and he went through the rack that way. To each their own.
 
The red button on the bottom right did not work correctly for me... I had to use the page-with-the-red-dot button to get it to cut the whole string to the clipboard... that's why I had such trouble.
 
Match 3 thoughts:

I personally would take MN's route for a couple reasons.

1. the shots on the 10 ball and the 12 ball are super common and easy to land the speed.

2. After potting the 9ball and rolling forward, its damn near a no brainer.

JSP's is also a good run, and the 3 rail isnt tuff, but anytime you move the cueball crazy things can happen. Only downside I see is the up and down the table shooting that is going on.

Just a couple of my thoughts (not a judge), so good luck.
 
Match 4 thoughts (glad I didnt get this rack):

CaptainJR's run: I like the run, although your very first shot I think may run farther than your diagram looks. If you hit it soft, the 4ball will remain in front of the 8ball. Assuming you hit position on the 9ball and the 8 is still clear, you are out.

Theoffen's run: I like the first shot, 4ball should clear, and you have a stopping ball. The main problem that I see is that after you hit the 6, you might be at an odd angle to pop out to where you diagramed. Still will manage the cut on the 12, but might hit some of the solids.

Overall, I like Theoffens by a hair. I think that the vertical angles of Jr's 1st shots are going to be hard to keep the cueball in position.
 
So when does this judging happen? The tension is killing me. Okay, I'm kidding about the tension, but I'm a very impatient person.

-Andrew
 
For Match 3, the route I would have taken is actually a combination of mnShooter and jsp's routes. The only thing that rubs me a bit wrong is the three-rail shot. I would like it better if it was for position on the eight, since the 8 has such a large area as its position zone. Also, it doesn't matter where the cue goes after pocketing the 8. Position on the 12 to get to the 8 is a little more delicate.

Tough match guys and well thought out on both ends!
 
Match 2 Solutions

Match 2 Solutions
George v BillYards

Sorry for the delay but BillYards had some tech difficulties and I was out tonight watching a World Darts Champion who was in town showing off:D

George:
http://CueTable.com/P/?01;xP02j{*03IOJ04MKt05L(*06Y)w07YIQ08)IZ09i*j10M&%11&ft12agk13s|s14WmK15pDZ16sQ]19!)O20[~%36sQ]$)}o{vjCnW*jNdzNwCUKFWCQXBWZz;eyLlR]sV!urfpnK(hm)OY

BillYards:
http://CueTable.com/P/?01;xP02j{*03IOJ04MKt05L(*06Y)w07YIQ08)OX09i*j10M&%11&ft12agk13s|s14WmK15pDZ16sE}19!)O20[~%21;xP{(k22j{*Ed{23IOJDOj24MKtEdx25L(*FQt26Y)w^N% 27YIQhEb28)OX{wh29i*jinE36sE}Jk!K}]Oe(NDKSD~NRTQ(TXKTWXaXnqq;!lMWjao*O;|Nov^i&i;

I am a night owl, but it's 4am here, so I'll make my judgements tomorrow. So can start semi-finals after that.
 

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I love it! George chose stripes and I chose solids, which I think is quite cool!

Nice out George!

I was going to go with stripes, starting with the 2 - 9 combo... then 10, 14, 12, 13, 11, 15, 8 as you showed it. Then I saw the solid pattern that seemed easy...
 
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Well, here's my take on the last match-up:

I'd have to go with BillYards on this one for margin-of-error management alone. George's draw off the 11 to the 9, if it's a few inches too far, he can't hit the 9, and if it's a few inches too short, he can't get from the 9 to the 10 without some fancy manouvering. Also, his angle on the 12 has to be just right to play the follow for the 13, and if he can't follow for the 13 there, the out is very tough to finish, in my opinion.

All of BillYards' positions have decent margins for error, except getting just right on the 7 to follow for the 2 in the lower left corner, which is impossible if he's an inch out of position on the 7. Also, I don't see any points in his run where if he misses position a little, he's stuck. At all points he leaves himself a viable plan b, which is crucial in 8-ball, with so many balls on the table waiting to throw you a curve.

Just my 2 cents, once again I'm being intentionally hyper-critical, the outs in question are both good.

-Andrew
 
Hard to tell how readily the 11 passes the 1. Getting right on the 14 is also key in George's layout.

Bill's choice is simpler, though I might have picked off the 1 earlier to open up another pocket for the two. The 6 is the hardest but necessary. At that point the 7 is very open so the right angle is no longer critical. I do not like the chosen path from 7 to 2, but once you make the 6, most trained monkeys could get out in this rack anyway.

Nod goes to BillYards for choosing solids.
 
Match 2- I'm pretty sure this one goes to Bill. George's routes would require moving large distances and getting perfect shape on a couple of balls. Getting on the 9 and the 14 look pretty risky. The only thing I would change in Bills is to shoot the 1 before the 2 then stop for the 8.
 
This sounds really cheesy since we have only done this table analysis for a couple of days here... but I played in a 9-ball tourney last night and had much better success because of this exercise!

When I stepped to the table, I took my time and really made firm plans before I took a shot. So, I know this helped me. I tied for 3rd and 4th, up from 8th two weeks ago. Better! I can see the proper routes, I just need better execution (ball pocketing, mental toughness on position, rack finishing). I can see the top of the mountain again, finally!
 
BillYards said:
This sounds really cheesy since we have only done this table analysis for a couple of days here... but I played in a 9-ball tourney last night and had much better success because of this exercise!

When I stepped to the table, I took my time and really made firm plans before I took a shot. So, I know this helped me. I tied for 3rd and 4th, up from 8th two weeks ago. Better! I can see the proper routes, I just need better execution (ball pocketing, mental toughness on position, rack finishing). I can see the top of the mountain again, finally!
Click to expand...

I agree, you really don't have enough time at the start of your turn to plan a really well-thought-out run unless you've sepnt some time practicing the planning process. This is great practice, and I think the ability to generate random spreads of balls without actually being at a table and breaking is really helpful. Thanks, Wei!

So speaking of that, hey Colin, make some judgments! I'm ready for round 2, whether I'm still in it, or whether I'll have to just be a spectator/critic.

-Andrew
 
Match 4 CaptainJR vs thoffen

Well, I was really curious about that first shot so I set it up. thoffen, we were both wrong. When I tried the shot my way I didn't get the 4 out of the way of the 8 ball. When I tried it your way, the only way I could get the cue ball to come off the 4 at that angle to go behind the 15 was to use low left. Problem was the low left still had to be working by the time it got there. To make that happen from the distance the cue ball was away I had to hit it with a little stoke, just slightly firm. Cue ball hit the 6 all rolled 3/4 the way up the table. If it would have hit the 6 more square it would have sent the 6 for a real ride. Oh well.
 
CaptainJR said:
Match 4 CaptainJR vs thoffen

Well, I was really curious about that first shot so I set it up. thoffen, we were both wrong. When I tried the shot my way I didn't get the 4 out of the way of the 8 ball. When I tried it your way, the only way I could get the cue ball to come off the 4 at that angle to go behind the 15 was to use low left. Problem was the low left still had to be working by the time it got there. To make that happen from the distance the cue ball was away I had to hit it with a little stoke, just slightly firm. Cue ball hit the 6 all rolled 3/4 the way up the table. If it would have hit the 6 more square it would have sent the 6 for a real ride. Oh well.
Click to expand...

I was gonna try it but haven't had a chance yet. I tried to show it with a little extra angle and more stun, but I have no idea how that would work really. I guess there's no way to avoid going up table with the shot, which isn't too bad. I think the primary focus should be to get the 4 out of the way of the 8 and take what the table gives you from there :).
 
Match 1 Judgement

Let me first state that I am definitely falable, but I need to make a decision here to move to the semi-finals of this experimental tourney. It may well be that some of the shots chosen by the players are indeed high percentage shots for them, even though my perception of them is different. Don't be a judge hater if you don't agree with my decision or analysis. You're free to disagree and may actually be right:D

Match 1

Perk
OUT PLAN SUCCESS ESTIMATE (OPSE): 20 points
At first I didn't like the 7 to the 3 as first shot choice, but looking at it a bit more, I like playing the 7 first, but I wouldn't want to relying on being on that 3 ball into the long corner. But it's a good target position. Short and you could play the 3 or 4 in the other long corner or the 6 in the side. Go too far and the 3 is on in the top center. The 7 is a potential problem ball so it's good to get rid of it early.

Everything else looks pretty easy, though I don't like playing from the 1 so soft. I'd play harder to pot the 8 in the same pocket.
Very high percentage out for a decent player: 18 points
PATH ACCURACY: 10 points
Pretty good, but looks tricky slow from 1 to 8bal: 9 points
PATH SIMPLICITY: 10 points
9 points
PROBLEM BALL HANDLING : 10 points
Got rid of 7, 6, 2 and 4 early. 1 could be a problem but I can't see a way to deal with that earlier that wouldn't create other problems: 9 points

Total: 45 Points.

Andrew Manning
OUT PLAN SUCCESS ESTIMATE (OPSE): 20 points
Andrew starts with the 3 which sets up a nice pattern. I like his kissing the 9 ball to hold position. It's a natural stun angle and I think hard to mess up. But then he realizes the 7 makes the out a bit messy, especially if he leaves it till after the 4. So the next shot from the 7 to get on the 4 is risky, considering he already had perfect position on the 4 the shot before but couldn't use it.

If he did get good on the 4, the finish is quite smooth taking the 1 next shot and then a long 5 which a decent player should have no problems with. Still, this run could fall apart at the 4 ball. 16 points

PATH ACCURACY: 10 points
All paths are well drawn and look realistic except the 5 ball, unless Andrew likes to play this shot with stun and IE.: 9 points

PATH SIMPLICITY: 10 points
9 points

PROBLEM BALL HANDLING : 10 points
Pretty good, getting straight to the 6 and 2 balls, but 7,4,1 could have turned egg shaped without perfect position after the 7: 8 points

Total: 42 points
Result to Perk, but I think both outs showed a high level of understanding. Perk also explained his reasoning on the 3 ball position as not needing to be perfect, and I think this shot was the right choice to start as it made the finish almost a certainty for a good player.

Once I put up the other judgements, I'll put up tables for the semi-finals, which can be done over the weekend.
Colin
 

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Good match, Perk.

Well judged, Colin, except that of course from my biased point of view I'd have assessed the points differently. Is it too early to claim a spot in the next tournament?

-Andrew
 
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