Did I make a bad call as Tournament Director?

I intentionally left this out so as to not flavor the responses in this thread. Everyone should have figured out it was Vic. After I bent over backwards to give him the benefit of the doubt and replay the game. Of course it had to be the 4 ball. Nothing else makes sense. Bob was so pissed at being called a cheater, he ran 2 and out, and sent Vic home.
Nice.... then it worked out the way it should have. ...and my general take on whiny pool players has been validated once again...lol

At the very absolute least. Vic should not have gained an advantage for his mistake.
 
If it's a bar table the 8 ball can't be spotted. Also if the 8 was made it would be the last ball to come back up on the new rack as it would be last in line in the ball return. That sounds a little fishy to me, so I would tend to believe Bob more than Vic, but agree with the others that say you made the right call.
8 foot valleys with open sides for ball retrieval.
 
I intentionally left this out so as to not flavor the responses in this thread. Everyone should have figured out it was Vic. After I bent over backwards to give him the benefit of the doubt and replay the game. Of course it had to be the 4 ball. Nothing else makes sense. Bob was so pissed at being called a cheater, he ran 2 and out, and sent Vic home.
Is his nickname ' Vic-the-dick'?? ;) This is one of the reasons i quit league pool. I've seen pretty bad fights and friendships ended over nitty shit like this.
 
If it's a bar table the 8 ball can't be spotted. Also if the 8 was made it would be the last ball to come back up on the new rack as it would be last in line in the ball return. That sounds a little fishy to me, so I would tend to believe Bob more than Vic, but agree with the others that say you made the right call.
Oh we play on diamonds up here in Canada.
 
When I get to the scene, some balls have been brought up from the return in the confusion, and the 8 is currently on the table.

If Vic clams the 8B was pocketed yet it was on the table when you arrived, is that not enough evidence to surmise Vice wasn't paying attention and "swiped" the table in error, thus forfeiting the game?
 
Either way I thought scratching on the 8 was ball in hand not a loss...so in this case wouldn't it have been spotted? If not then pull the video as it is imperative we get the call right for this crucial league game.
According to vic, the 8 was potted on the attempt, and the cueball scratched on that shot. That's a loss.

Edit: This was tournament, not league. VNEA is the ruleset we use.
 
Here's a situation that came up tonight. One of the players is trashing me on social media as being biased, and I don't think it's deserved.

Situation: Vic and Bob are in a vnea 8-ball race to 2. Vic is up 1-0, and the second game has a mishap at the end. There is some arguing and confusion before I get called over.

Bob's version: He has run the table to the ball before the 8, a dark purple 4 ball. He cuts in the 4, but manages to scratch. He sits down as Vic approaches the table and, instead of taking ball in hand, Vic swipes the balls as if to rack a new rack.

Vic's version: Bob runs the table to the 8. While making the 8, Bob scratches. Vic swipes the table to rack the balls for the next players.

Both players have integrity, and I'd expect neither to lie or cheat. When I get to the scene, some balls have been brought up from the return in the confusion, and the 8 is currently on the table.

I rule that the only fair decision would be to replay the game, as the situation stems from an honest mistake by one of the players, and it is impossible to determine which player is mistaken.

Do you see any other possible ruling here?
You stated in your initial post that the 4 ball was a dark purple ball, darker than a normal 4 ball? I’m not sure what you are saying? A purple 4 ball is clearly distinguishable from a black 8 ball, unless the lighting is extremely poor on this table. I assume you are insinuating that Vic mistook the 4 ball for the 8 ball but would not admit to it, and if other balls were brought back up after this happened, it was impossible to determine whether the 8 ball was still on the table after this shot in question occurred?
 
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Bottom line to the OP. One player's actions/lies have ''poor loser'' written all over their character.
 
Here's a situation that came up tonight. One of the players is trashing me on social media as being biased, and I don't think it's deserved.

Situation: Vic and Bob are in a vnea 8-ball race to 2. Vic is up 1-0, and the second game has a mishap at the end. There is some arguing and confusion before I get called over.

Bob's version: He has run the table to the ball before the 8, a dark purple 4 ball. He cuts in the 4, but manages to scratch. He sits down as Vic approaches the table and, instead of taking ball in hand, Vic swipes the balls as if to rack a new rack.

Vic's version: Bob runs the table to the 8. While making the 8, Bob scratches. Vic swipes the table to rack the balls for the next players.

Both players have integrity, and I'd expect neither to lie or cheat. When I get to the scene, some balls have been brought up from the return in the confusion, and the 8 is currently on the table.

I rule that the only fair decision would be to replay the game, as the situation stems from an honest mistake by one of the players, and it is impossible to determine which player is mistaken.

Do you see any other possible ruling here?
I think that was fair. Without being called over to observe the shot in question beforehand, or having instant replay, there's not much else you could do. I'd just have them re-rack and start over keeping the same break order. It's not the TD's responsibility to figure out what's going on when stories conflict and you literally didn't see it happen.
 
Technically Vic is at fault by swiping the balls before there is a consensus on the winner. It should have been easy for the two players to figure it out because the 8 ball was still on the table unless Bob wasn't paying attention until balls were brought back up. I think your ruling was ok (This a weekly tournament). But Vic probably should lose the game.
 
Whoever swiped the table lost
What if by some miracle Vic's account was true? Bob 100% believed that he was shooting the 4, and playing position on the 8, but who here hasn't had a truly epic brain fart? It's not inconceivable that he was mistaken. If this did happen to be the case it would be most unjust to punish Vic for Bob's mistake.

Again, I have never known either of these players to lie or cheat, although I know Bob 100x better, and would trust his word on anything. If he told me that there was a goose outside pooping gold pellets, I'd find myself a bucket before going outside.
 
What if by some miracle Vic's account was true? Bob 100% believed that he was shooting the 4, and playing position on the 8, but who here hasn't had a truly epic brain fart? It's not inconceivable that he was mistaken. If this did happen to be the case it would be most unjust to punish Vic for Bob's mistake.

Again, I have never known either of these players to lie or cheat, although I know Bob 100x better, and would trust his word on anything. If he told me that there was a goose outside pooping gold pellets, I'd find myself a bucket before going outside.
Take the words lie or cheat out or the equation and simply ask what you think was plausible that fits both stories. It is far more plausible by about factor of 10million that Vic didnt realize that Bob shot at at the 4-ball and thought he was shooting on the 8-ball versus some other scenario that doesnt even begin to make sense.
 
The first thing that came to my mind is is one of the players colorblind? I am, and have mixed up balls many times over the years while playing (while watching on a stream, it's every single shot). When I do it, I always take the foul, there is no other choice that makes sense.

For a non-colorblind person, I'd be super surprised to make a mistake a like that. I think what you did to replay the game was ok. If forced to make a call, I think I'd put the loser of the game to the player that raked the balls. When the shooting player scratches, if he actually lost the game, he would have raked the balls. I've never seen a player lose, then go sit and wait for his opponent to shoot.
 
This a weekly tournament
Yes. Low stakes and very not worth getting worked up about. My main concern is my reputation which is, to me, priceless.
Take the words lie or cheat out or the equation and simply ask what you think was plausible that fits both stories. It is far more plausible by about factor of 10million that Vic didnt realize that Bob shot at at the 4-ball and thought he was shooting on the 8-ball versus some other scenario that doesnt even begin to make sense.
Absolutely, but I also knew that Bob would be 100% ok with preserving the integrity of the game. It's why I erred in favor of the side that was screwing him.
Is VNEA a called shot format...?
Yes. It even has the stupid "patch the 8" rule. We don't use it, but this might be the first time that rule might have been helpful in history.
 
Yes. It even has the stupid "patch the 8" rule. We don't use it, but this might be the first time that rule might have been helpful in history.
oh, so the 4 ball should have been called into whatever pocket it was made. If called at all it's probably just a couple of cue points. This ball in this pocket kind of thing.

I can't speak for anyone else's methods, but I'm pretty deliberate when calling the 8 ball. Even if it's positioned in such a fashion that it couldn't be made anywhere else.
 
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