I love 9-ball but...

skor

skor

missing shots since 1995
Silver Member
I really do love 9-ball; it's been my favourite game to play for many years, but I think it's time that it won't be played anymore at the pro level.

It's too easy, and even with the 9 on the spot and breaking from the box, it took the pros a minute and a half to adjust their break and run out.

9-ball was picked up for pro events because it was fast and exciting and looked great on TV, while 14.1 was boring to the average TV viewer who changed the channel, but today nobody watches pool on TV; we stream it, and the die hard fans will watch any game. So let them play 10-ball, 8-ball, 14.1, rotation, or whatever; just stop pro 9-ball.

Just my 2 cents.
 
skor said:
I really do love 9-ball; it's been my favourite game to play for many years, but I think it's time that it won't be played anymore at the pro level.

It's too easy, and even with the 9 on the spot and breaking from the box, it took the pros a minute and a half to adjust their break and run out.

9-ball was picked up for pro events because it was fast and exciting and looked great on TV, while 14.1 was boring to the average TV viewer who changed the channel, but today nobody watches pool on TV; we stream it, and the die hard fans will watch any game. So let them play 10-ball, 8-ball, 14.1, rotation, or whatever; just stop pro 9-ball.

Just my 2 cents.
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Agreed. Shit's like a drag race that caps at 50mph.

Make them use all 15 balls and BIH to incoming player after any miss by opponent...!
 
Kinda disagree, this is from european open. It's hardly a break and run fest with exception of a couple phenomenal matches
 

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Watching pros play 8b(especially Chin.8b) or 14.1 is a sure cure for insomnia. Don't even mention 1p cause only DIE-hard pool fans will ever watch it. Even then getting viewers would be a tough sell. 10b is the only game other than 9b that generates viewers in any #'s.
 
People watch snooker by the millions in the UK, and it's not fast, at all. Watching 9-ball is a snoozer for me. If people want fast action, they'll watch MMA and the hell with pool to begin with. Hell, golf gets high ratings and it's slow as molasses.
 
Moe Szyslak said:
People watch snooker by the millions in the UK, and it's not fast, at all. Watching 9-ball is a snoozer for me. If people want fast action, they'll watch MMA and the hell with pool to begin with. Hell, golf gets high ratings and it's slow as molasses.
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Going forward the only pool games that are going to get any coverage in any sign. numbers are 9b/10b/Chinese8b-Heyball. 14.1/1p don't exist in comparison. Snooker, and cricket, are as much cultural icons as they are sports events to the Brits. TBH i don't think any form of televised/streamed pool will ever be big in the US, its always going to a niche sport watched by small audiences. I mention pool i've watched to people at the 'hall i go to and few if any have a clue. They just don't watch it.
 
In my youth 8 ball was all I knew, and was the only game anyone played that I knew. It wasn't until my 20's when I was introduced to 9 ball in league play, loved it. In my 30's became a true fan and was more interested in the history of the sport, watching old televised matches, and learning more about all of the games including snooker. Now in my 40's learning to play straight, one pocket, and participate in 10 ball I love it all and can't get enough of it. I can't think of many other sports with so many different formats, rules, area's of intrigue. Golf being an exception with team play, stoke, match, etc.

The pros are pros and do pro stuff. They are freaking amazing what they do making it look effortless at times, but do you watch nascar for the racing? NO, you watch for the crashes! Same goes for golf, 99 or of 100 are perfect then someone shanks one and they have to scramble.

Whatever gets organized and pays the pros is what they will play. I feel super fortunate to live at a time where we get so many options and all we have to do is open a browser.
 
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BadBeef67 said:
In my youth 8 ball was all I knew, and was the only game anyone played that I knew. It wasn't until my 20's when I was introduced to 9 ball in league play, loved it. In my 30's became a true fan and was more interested in the history of the sport, watching old televised matches, and learning more about all of the games including snooker. Now in my 40's learning to play straight, one pocket, and participate in 10 ball I love it all and can't get enough of it. I can't think of many other sports with so many different formats, rules, area's of intrigue. Golf being an exception with team play, stoke, match, etc.

The pros and pros and do pro stuff. They are freaking amazing what they do making it look effortless at times, but do you watch nascar for the racing? NO, you watch for the crashes! Same goes for golf, 99 or of 100 are perfect then someone shanks one and they have to scramble.

Whatever gets organized and pays the pros is what they will play. I feel super fortunate to live at a time where we get so many options and all we have to do is open a browser.
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All this may be true but if trying to sell ONE pool game to broadcasters/streamers/sponsors what would it be? To me 9b/10b are the only choices. Chinese 8b is huge IN ASIA but so far that's about it. That game will never popular, playing or viewing, in the US. Snooker has some following but its mostly people who've immigrated from snooker-playing countries. VERY few American rooms have a snooker table unless its for golf.
 
garczar said:
Going forward the only pool games that are going to get any coverage in any sign. numbers are 9b/10b/Chinese8b-Heyball. 14.1/1p don't exist in comparison. Snooker, and cricket, are as much cultural icons as they are sports events to the Brits. TBH i don't think any form of televised/streamed pool will ever be big in the US, its always going to a niche sport watched by small audiences. I mention pool i've watched to people at the 'hall i go to and few if any have a clue. They just don't watch it.
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Years ago, during the 2003 World 9 ball championship, I talked to Alex Pagulayan and the discussion turned into "what needs to be done in order to get more pool on TV?" Alex reaction was - "I don't watch pool, it's boring, I rather watch porn..."
Only die hard fans watch pool.
But it's not about brodacsting or watching pool. Pool on TV was just the reason why the pros moved to 9ball. The game is just too easy for the pros and in so many times, the one who wins the lag, wins the match. If "pool on TV" is not an issue anymore then why keep playing 9ball?
 
garczar said:
Going forward the only pool games that are going to get any coverage in any sign. numbers are 9b/10b/Chinese8b-Heyball. 14.1/1p don't exist in comparison. Snooker, and cricket, are as much cultural icons as they are sports events to the Brits. TBH i don't think any form of televised/streamed pool will ever be big in the US, its always going to a niche sport watched by small audiences. I mention pool i've watched to people at the 'hall i go to and few if any have a clue. They just don't watch it.
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Even my friends that play say I'm the biggest pool nerd they know.
Niche sports are kinda my thing though: pool, downhill/enduro MTB, hockey (joking, kinda)....
 
sudocrushms said:
Even my friends that play say I'm the biggest pool nerd they know.
Niche sports are kinda my thing though: pool, downhill/enduro MTB, hockey (joking, kinda)....
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Same here. I shoot hi-dollar pcp air-rifles and that's about as niche as it gets. The fact that televised/streamed pool lags behind cornhole tells you all you need about its viability as a widely viewed game. Pickleball, a game barely five yrs old, SMOKES pool in viewership #'s.
 
Well, if it's only a few hardcore fans that are watching anyway, then we don't need to keep pushing 9-ball, right? Since it's only a small hardcore audience that can appreciate more complexity? I thought the fast exciting action of 9 ball was going to bring in the audience?
 
you're wrong if you think 8-ball, 10-ball, 14.1 are tough games for the likes of filler, fedor et al. hell, jayson just ran 800 balls in straight pool, and he's not even a straight pool player.

the WNT is as good chance pool has ever had, and as prize money grows so will the pressure. next us open has a record 100k first prize and that's sure to induce both tension and excitement
 
Moe Szyslak said:
People watch snooker by the millions in the UK, and it's not fast, at all. Watching 9-ball is a snoozer for me. If people want fast action, they'll watch MMA and the hell with pool to begin with. Hell, golf gets high ratings and it's slow as molasses.
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I'm not so sure about this. I always thought Snooker was super popular overseas. But anytime I see a livestream on youtube, it only has the numbers of about 1000 viewers. Way less than even the Joss Season Finale pool events.
 
Moe Szyslak said:
Well, if it's only a few hardcore fans that are watching anyway, then we don't need to keep pushing 9-ball, right? Since it's only a small hardcore audience that can appreciate more complexity? I thought the fast exciting action of 9 ball was going to bring in the audience?
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Got nothing to do with 'we', it takes someone organized/funded like MATCHROOM to make a go of it. No one else on the horizon even comes close to what they're doing. No one's gonna force 9b down your throat but its gonna be the game that drives the pro pool bus for some time to come. Anything but Chinese water-torture, errrrrrr, 8ball.
 
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