Eight Ball Handicapping

[cue4me]

The owner of a local room, who doesn't post here, is starting a handicapped eight ball singles league. We are exploring various methods of handicapping other than the usual race to a certain number of games and spotting of games on the wire. One suggestion was to have the stronger player spot one or more balls after his inning. Does anyone have any information about how this is accomplished, particularly if there is to be more than one ball spotted? Are there any other suggestions for handicapping that you have either used or seen used? Thanks in advance for any suggestions you have to offer.

Al

 

[ctyhntr]

The way I seen it used is the number of balls is equal to the difference in handicap. For example an 8 plays a 7, it would be 1 ball. 8 plays 2, it would be 6 balls. The 2 would shoot until he has 6 balls left of his color, then takes them off and goes for the 8.

 

[JoeW]

I used to hold tournaments at my home and we developed a system for round robin play that was lots of fun. It is a real handicapping system in which anyone can win. The basic handicap came from APA as many players were in the leagues. Here is how it works for 8-Ball.

John is a seven handicap.

Mary is a four handicap.

Mary’s advantage is 7-4 = 3 balls.

After the break and when it is Mary’s turn, she can remove up to three balls from the table before she takes her turn.


In this type of game Mary’s is encouraged to leave blocker balls on the table until it is to her advantage. However, she has to judge her ability and not remove balls until she thinks that she can run out.

John has to play his group of balls and he must move the blocker balls as needed. His game is more challenging.

In a round robin format I found that most anyone can win depending mainly on who was having the best day (in stroke and all that).

We were playing with 10 - 12 players total and often 8 or 9 in a tournament. Handicaps were adjusted up if you were in first or second lace and adjusted down if you were in last place. Over time they adjusted out pretty well with a $5.00 get in and all money paid out. A few times I had "Added"money.

Many good players do not like this handicapping system as it is a real equalizer. In my opinion if you want to create a game between players of unequal skill but with a reasonable chance to win this is the best system I have found. When the better player is losing about half the time it is working.

 

[Cuebuddy]

There is no end to the ways of giving weight.

Some types of handicaps I give are....

I must play last pocket.

I play last pocket and my opponent gets to choose my last pocket on my last shot before the eight.

If I am playing someone who needs a lot of weight I play Banks, Caroms and Combo's. (tough game)

Stronger player must bank eight.

Weaker player gets all the breaks.

Many times I will choose the balls that are laying worse.

Play one handed or talk on the cell phone while I am running out:grin-devilish:

 

[danquixote]

Not sure you can call it handicapping, but I play in a local tourny where you get 5 points for winning the game and 1 point for each ball your opponent has remaining on the table. usually this allows the better players to win, but it has also had it's fair share of lesser ability players to finish in the $......Dan

 

[cue4me]

Thanks for the replies. I appreciate the time you all took to answer. I'll pass these along to the room owner. Does anyone have any other suggestions? As with any handicapped league or tournament, it is tough to get and keep it as equitable as possible.

 

[Bob Jewett]

I think games on the wire is good until it ends up being 6-2 or worse. The problem is that the weak players don't get to shoot as many shots. How about if they start the match with some "get out of jail free" tickets and they can turn each ticket in after a miss to continue their inning. That way they get to shoot more shots instead of just sitting in their chair until it is time to kick at a ball out of a safety.

 

[Mr. Wiggles]

Weight

The owner of a local room, who doesn't post here, is starting a handicapped eight ball singles league. We are exploring various methods of handicapping other than the usual race to a certain number of games and spotting of games on the wire. One suggestion was to have the stronger player spot one or more balls after his inning. Does anyone have any information about how this is accomplished, particularly if there is to be more than one ball spotted? Are there any other suggestions for handicapping that you have either used or seen used? Thanks in advance for any suggestions you have to offer.

Al

Normal methods listed for handicapping eight ball as mentioned by others all work. Another method which can be used even with all the others is the old hand span. If cue doesn't end up quite right you move it the distance of your hand span. For some a hs every shot or maybe only one hs per game, adjust to level of your opp. Oh my gosh, he hooked me, I'll take one of my hs now. Obviously a hand span is a lot weight to give up, but not so bad if you only get one or two. Used in combination with other methods can be interesting.

 

[Lexicologist71]

The best handicapping system I've seen based your rating on how many balls you pocketed per game on average. Winning the game would give you a ten (8-ball is worth 3 points). The difference in players skill level will determine the size of the spot, per game. At the end of a 5 game match, you compare scores. If the better player doesn't cover the spot, they lose. eg An 8 plays a 5. The 5 has a 15 point advantage in a 5 game match (3 per game). The 8 needs to beat the 5 by at least 15 points to win the match.

 

[TAP]

In our 8-ball league, we have tried everything from a percentage handicap to a sliding handicap. We always come back to a 150% handicap. If a TEAM average is 40 ball (per game) and the other team's average is 32, then the handicap for the (under) team is 12 balls for the set. 40 - 32 = 8 x 1.50 = 12.

In our league, we have 5 players, who play 4 games each, and the 5th set is won by having the highest number of points for the first four sets.

With all the different methods used, the 150% has just worked out the best, and seems to be the most accurate for evening out the matches.

Good luck on your search.