Gene and I were talking about that. The 6 usually matches the table color and has caused each of us some problems at one time or another. I have problems with the 7 ball for some reason. I think that the stripes are easier as they have more lines on them, but that could be a crutch.
I, and almost every player I know, have run a rack of solids in 8-ball only to realize that, after I pot the 8, the 1 ball is sitting on the far end rail, laughing at me.
The show's conclusion, after all the broo ha ha, was that we each see things differently except for those things we have in common that resemble nature. Not sure if I agree after watching all that.
Some interesting tidbits of the shows are the effects on what color we or our opponents wear, the lighting colors, and even the sounds and other senses. Clothing color even affects the referees' calls. There's value there for pool players, imho.
I'm sure the series will be rerun. Aren't they all?
Jeff Livingston
Jeff:
I'm jealous -- I wish I were able to watch during the day, but alas, a chilly data center is my abode.
As to the subject matter, I agree. There are times when the 6-ball or the 14-ball give me trouble on green cloth, and likewise for the 2-ball and 10-ball on Simonis tournament blue (yes, I know those balls are darker than the bright blue cloth, but not by much).
It's also why, in one pocket, it's a no-no (you'll actually get very stern looks, perhaps a few choice words from your opponent) if you rack two very-closely-colored, e.g. the 6-ball and the 8-ball together at the head/apex of the rack. I make sure when I rack for my opponent, that I put the two brightest balls in the rack -- the 1-ball and the 5-ball -- in the second row, with an extremely dark ball as the head/apex ball (e.g. the 7-ball or the 8-ball). This gives maximum contrast for my opponent, to effect a proper classic one pocket break.
Also, in the classic days of 14.1, it was considered proper form -- and was actually in the official rules at one point -- to rack the two brightest balls in the rack, the 1-ball and 5-ball, at the corners of the rack during the opening break:
(For those familiar with 14.1, the reason should be clear -- those corner balls are your aiming target for the classic opening break, which is a safety break, and it's also easier to tell if these two object balls touch a cushion in the opening break precisely because they are the brightest balls in the palette of colors in the rack.)
I obviously digressed for a moment there, but it kinda falls in line as to why, for example, you didn't "see" the 1-ball when you cleared the rest of the solids off of the table and pocketed the 8-ball. Mentally, perhaps "yellow" registers in the mind as "that's the 9-ball, which is a stripe" or something like that.
-Sean
