Harder 8' or 9' for 14.1 Straight Pool?

[stevekur1]

i've run over 100 eight times now with a HR of 136 and have played all other games. and still find that 14.1 is the hardest of all games. I think even harder on a 8' Table, more congestion. i did manage to run a 77 on a diamond bar table though...lol

 

[AtLarge]

... I am certain that while that pocketing a ball may be much easier on a 8' - the heavy traffic is a big problem. My assessment is a 8ft is more challenging than the 9 ft for straight pool.

Have you played much (any?) 14.1 on 8-footers?

 

[iusedtoberich]

Thanks for the response above Danny.

 

[Dan Harriman]

Nope

I'm sorry to sound like a broken record, but I have done the head to head comparisons, and I'm as mortal as one gets. Maybe I'm the weakest player in this thread.

I played 69 innings on a 9' GC4 with 5" pockets.
Then I played 69 innings on a Diamond 7' with league cut pockets (5").

I don't like Diamonds, play on them once a year if that, and think their rails should only be on a carom table. I've played on GC nearly every day of my life for years of stretches at time. So that takes the familiarity argument out of it (since I'm way more familiar with a 9' GC).

Total balls pocketed in 69 innings on each table:
442 on GC 9'
680 on Diamond 7'

That is a 54% increase in balls pocketed!!! 54%! That is no joke. If you made 54% more balls, you'd be a believer also.

There is NO congestion. This is a myth. Try it yourself. I played on an even smaller table than the 8' that is thrown around in this thread. Maybe the congestion would be a factor in one of those fisher price kid's tables, IDK. But it is 100000% not a factor on a 7' Diamond.

I'd bet dollars to doughnuts nearly every player on this thread if they played a week straight on a 7' diamond with league cut pockets, they'd probably best their lifetime high run on a factory pocket 9' GC.

Go set up 50 innings on a 7' diamond. Then come back and share your results.

You would be booking a loser, the bar box is more difficult. Thanks for sharing yer results but this is where I draw the line on table comparisons and amateur player vs top players. I would have to give much more credibility to say a result from Dallas West or maybe Ray Martin - as far as verbal 'here say' results. I have always considered myself to be more of a cue ball mechanic than that of a great potter.
A cue ball mechanic therefore enjoys the art of maneuvering through traffic, I would much rather look at the any long shot the 9' would present than mess with all the congestion that a 7' will present. One might think this is personal preference - it really is not, after u have accomplished a 50 ball run on 9' that would change. If u have never run 50 on the 9ft then I would say yer opinion has less value - this is not an egotistical statement either - just common sense. If u ask either of the two names I mentioned above - I would bet yer dough that only a nut would argue with their statements on the subject - also would bet they agree with me. I could be wrong - but I no think so.

 

[Dan Harriman]

yes it eus

8” is harder. Most of the time you are shooting one half of the table, so shooting down table for longer shots is not an issue to me. Ultimately it’s the number of breakouts, combinations, and pin point shape required on the smaller tables that will do you in on a smaller table.

I agree with the above - whole heartedly.

 

[Dan Harriman]

Nope

I made run of 97 on 8-footer before I really could even play. I needed more than 10 years to break that on 9-footer..
I don't really play y 14.1 too often because lack of opponents..

U need no opponent to practice 14.1 - that is an excuse - the table is yer opponent. I am not sure you are playing the game the right way - if u think the 8 ft is easier than the nine for 14.1 - also I noticed of no mention from u pertaining to pocket size variation of yer 8 vs 9'?. I did see u were a bit nervous in yer video - With both pockets size being EQUAL - there is no chance of personal preference overriding the spacial equation. I am very accomplished 14.1 player here in USA - poolmanis, you would do well to at least consider that and or maybe ask some other top players in yer area.

 

[Nine ... corner]

Really? I could see rotation being more difficult to run out on a smaller table but 9 ball isn’t even cluttered on a 7’. It’s like a joke almost, at least for the first 2 days, if you exclusively play on a 9’ and then go play nine bull on BB.

I think everything gets easier as the table gets smaller. Congestion is definitely a factor but you have so much less space to traverse for things to go wrong. Banks are easier, position lines are easier to judge, breakouts are easier to manage.

And for anecdotal evidence I can run more balls on my oversized 8’ in straight pool than on a 9’. And I’ve run even more one time on a diamond 7’.

Unless something strange happens at the highest skill levels of 14.1 where all these things turn inside out the 9’ is only bested by the 10’+ in difficulty

I think the heart of this is … if you're a shot maker the space to traverse is less of a problem than the congestion the smaller table imparts. As I said in my original post … just my $.02.

 

[ChrisinNC]

i've run over 100 eight times now with a HR of 136 and have played all other games. and still find that 14.1 is the hardest of all games. I think even harder on a 8' Table, more congestion. i did manage to run a 77 on a diamond bar table though...lol

The one aspect of straight pool I find the hardest is the break shot and guaranteeing yourself a good shot after the break shot. More than anything else, that is the one aspect of the game (even more so than setting up that last ball for a break shot) that has limited my ability to string racks together.

 

[spktur]

The most difficult aspect of 14-1 is to maintain your intensity to play the pinpoint position you need while constantly shooting relatively simple shots. People have a tendency to let up. The same reason you will miss a simple shot every so often playing other games during a run.

 

[iusedtoberich]

You would be booking a loser, the bar box is more difficult. Thanks for sharing yer results but this is where I draw the line on table comparisons and amateur player vs top players. I would have to give much more credibility to say a result from Dallas West or maybe Ray Martin - as far as verbal 'here say' results. I have always considered myself to be more of a cue ball mechanic than that of a great potter.
A cue ball mechanic therefore enjoys the art of maneuvering through traffic, I would much rather look at the any long shot the 9' would present than mess with all the congestion that a 7' will present. One might think this is personal preference - it really is not, after u have accomplished a 50 ball run on 9' that would change. If u have never run 50 on the 9ft then I would say yer opinion has less value - this is not an egotistical statement either - just common sense. If u ask either of the two names I mentioned above - I would bet yer dough that only a nut would argue with their statements on the subject - also would bet they agree with me. I could be wrong - but I no think so.

Thanks for your response. For the sake of data from a real pro that loves 14.1, is there any way I/we could get you to play a few days on a 7' table, then a few days on a 9' table? And keep stats. Equal number of innings on both. Lets say 30-50 innings or whatever you have the time for? I'd be willing to pay your table time or other small expenses to do it. All you would need is a 7' Diamond, and a 9' Diamond, both with either league cut pockets or both with pro cut pockets. Then it would be an apples to apples comparison. What say you?

For the years of debate on this, if you did this experiment, it would go a LONG way to pointing us in the right direction for a PRO's performance. I already did it for a bangers' performance. And if anyone else in the thread would like to do the same, we would have a very good direction with all different skill levels.

Just equal innings on both table sizes for everyone. At the end, tally up the total number of balls you made. Just like in the Hustler, you keep score with the cash, not the yardage No do-overs, even if the break is missed. One rack of warmup, then you start. Each inning starts from a BIH break shot of your choice.

Does anyone want to do it?

Edit, a league cut 7' Diamond is also almost identical in pocket cut/mouth/angle to a Factory 9' GC with original shims. That is also a close enough comparison IMO.

 

[Dan Harriman]

I no miss the break shot 99.9%

Thanks for your response. For the sake of data from a real pro that loves 14.1, is there any way I/we could get you to play a few days on a 7' table, then a few days on a 9' table? And keep stats. Equal number of innings on both. Lets say 30-50 innings or whatever you have the time for? I'd be willing to pay your table time or other small expenses to do it. All you would need is a 7' Diamond, and a 9' Diamond, both with either league cut pockets or both with pro cut pockets. Then it would be an apples to apples comparison. What say you?

For the years of debate on this, if you did this experiment, it would go a LONG way to pointing us in the right direction for a PRO's performance. I already did it for a bangers' performance. And if anyone else in the thread would like to do the same, we would have a very good direction with all different skill levels.

Just equal innings on both table sizes for everyone. At the end, tally up the total number of balls you made. Just like in the Hustler, you keep score with the cash, not the yardage No do-overs, even if the break is missed. One rack of warmup, then you start. Each inning starts from a BIH break shot of your choice.

Does anyone want to do it?

Edit, a league cut 7' Diamond is also almost identical in pocket cut/mouth/angle to a Factory 9' GC with original shims. That is also a close enough comparison IMO.

Not to worry bout me missin the break shot I appreciate yer offer - I would have to get compensated for being lured to any bar box. Notice I do not compete in any u.s. open bar table tournaments either. Pro's should have never started competing on bar boxes - that is a travesty. I will tell u this, if u can make the break shot with consistency on either table - just take a gander at yer shot selection after break shot on both tables (equal sized pockets and same cloth) that should satisfy any doubts u have. As far as me practicing anythin other than bank pool on a bar table - there is a better chance of proverbial cloud crushing us both at the same time - than that happening. Also the rails and pocket facings would need to be the same consistency, diamond has faster cushions and facings than most standard goldcrown's u see in sports bars today - so that would not work. Ya'll should listen to me I ain't a table mechanic but know bout table variations and how they relate (to running racks) and or spacial relations 4 14.1.