I was gambling, he unscrewed with 4 balls left, I raked 'em

Why wouldn't you ask what his intentions are? To concede with 4 balls left is ridiculous, even if you are playing Johnny Archer.

Wouldn't you want to give him the benefit of the doubt and make sure he isn't just having momentary frustration or changing a shaft? It's poor sportsmanship, to invoke the "rule" without checking the other player's intention in my opinion.
 
tournaments only?

Well, enough people have responded to the contrary, so I may be wrong about this. I thought the unscrewing of the cue rule only applied to tournaments or league or some other organized competition, and NOT to GAMBLING..............
 
alstl said:
Exactly, I do that all the time. Could also have been switching to his lucky shaft.
Click to expand...

He has 2 cues. One is his player, the other is his J/B.

Not our first rodeo and was not an issue between us. Plz read between the lines.


Happy holidays BTW! :) Be of good cheer. :)
 
If the man unscrews his shaft and heads for his case, I would give him a few seconds to see if he is breaking out a different cue. But that is being generous and he should have declared if that was his intention. Otherwise, nothing wrong with considering it a concession of loss.
 
I've been in this situation before, a couple of times, and I think from experience I would just stay in my seat and when my opponent made eye contact I'd say, "are we done?" "You took your cue apart..." I only say this because: yeah the rules are, and the rules say, but when you're gambling things better be laid out up front or it can turn ugly fast. Just because concession of the match is the generally accepted rule among the pool savvy doesn't mean 90% of people beyond us has heard of it. That's one of the reasons that I really don't look for bar action any more and stick to tournaments, many a gambling session has went south and usually over something like this.
 
Some people unscrew or put the money on the table or grab their wallets ect while you are playing to throw you off and hope you miss.

If it is very easy I do my best to take my time and finish the game.

I haven't done it yet, but if a guy is doing that to be an ass, I think I'll shake his and and say good game or match.
 
Better to make sure

Always better to make sure in an informal setting. Nothing more annoying than the nasty dent somebody's tooth can leave in your cue butt. One clown even left his tooth in a cue butt, fortunately it was a house cue!

Anybody that has played much at all should be aware that unscrewing is the same thing as shaking hands, game over, set over if it wasn't the last game. I've had people quit me cold in mid-set when they saw the handwriting on the wall so anything is possible.

Hu
 
short poor sport

When you break it i will take it. If you complain you will not gain. Your the sucker that unscrewed that tucker. See you later alligator. don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out cass you might hit the floor. LOL
 
Last edited:
KoolKat9Lives said:
Ok, I'll spill, lol.

It was 10 ball. He left me an easy last few and he was perhaps frustrated by this point. He missed, turned away, unscrewed, and walked towards his case. His body language was unmistakable.

I immediately raked the balls (gently) with my cue and when he turned back to look at this unmistakable noise, I was unscrewing. He may have given the obligatory "what did you just do?" look, but he knew. And he paid off without issue.

However... A couple on the rail were "WTF!!?? You can't assume that!"
Click to expand...

Well you are right that you can't assume that, but the burden is on the unscrewer to explain why he/she is unscrewing. With no explanation it is loss of game and anyone with an ounce of sense knows that.
 
... I thought the unscrewing of the cue rule only applied to tournaments or league or some other organized competition, and NOT to GAMBLING ...
Click to expand...

You're right, other rules apply when gambling. See for example the documentary film "The Hustler" and note especially how things are handled at nine ball for the fouls of excessively good play and cocky attitude. YMMV.
 
unscrewing a cue when u left an open table for a guy on the hill is a concession unless u explicitly state otherwise prior to unscrewing your cue.

i love those guys that do stuff like this and then try to pretend like it didnt happen if u end up missing a ball. i used to play with this tool when i was in university, whenever i get to the 9 ball, if it's easy he would start taking balls out of the pocket and drop them on the table. then i just get up from the shot and take a whack at the 9 without aiming cuz clearly he conceded. sometimes i would miss the 9 and he'd put the balls back in the pocket and take his shot on the 9. i'd be like wtf are u doing. in his defense, he is a moron and doesnt actually know the rules so i dont think he realized he conceded. but still it's annoying when people pull shit like. whether they did it on purpose or out of sheer ignorance.

sometimes i'd get him back tho. after i miss the 9 and he puts the balls back in the pocket i'd call a foul on him since he's manually removing the balls with his hands from the field of play. if he complains then i let it slide and in the next rack when he's shooting i start pulling balls out of the pocket and throwing them around the table. then i would leave lol. this one other time when he started pulling balls out i knew he would pull that move again if i missed. so i deliberately took 3 minutes lining up the 9 even tho it was maybe 6 inches from the hole and i was straight in 2 feet from it with the cueball. then i got up off the shot, took a drink, chalked up my shaft, got some powder etc. and waited till he conceded.

for future reference he's the only one i would pull this shit on.
 
I never assume anything, I just don't want the hassle. I've also never understood the cue unscrewing hullaballoo. Doesn't make sense to me. I've seen huge arguments over someone cracking their joint to check it, especially after missing a shot, which is when these things happen. What if somebody's playing with a friggin uni-lock?
If they're sharking or being poor sports so be it, but lots of rude play doesn't have this kind of rule attached. If someone mutters "I'm never shooting pool again" after missing, do I get to assume they conceded the match? What if they don't break down their cue, but just look defeated? Is there a rule against not having a sufficiently optimistic look on your face?
FYI I've never been an actor in one of these disputes, just a bystander/mediator...
 
wahcheck said:
Well, enough people have responded to the contrary, so I may be wrong about this. I thought the unscrewing of the cue rule only applied to tournaments or league or some other organized competition, and NOT to GAMBLING..............
Click to expand...

the rule is the rule unless u discuss it beforehand. the rulebook says that its a concession so why would it not be just cuz u're gambling. the act of unscrewing ur cue to pack it up means u are conceding. u cant just pick and choose certain rules from the rulebook and disregard them if u're gambling. if u r arguing that this rule is only for tournaments and not for gambling (even tho it's in the official rules of the game) then i can just as easily use that argument for another rule. i decree that in a gambling match, scratches only apply to u, if i do it, u do not get ball in hand.
 
I always confirm the concession without moving the balls. The thing I usually do is walk over and ask, "So, are we done?". If you rake the balls you have the potential to lose the cheese over an argument. Your opponent may be conceding or they may be attempting to move on you. Don't fall for that move and focus on getting the cheese through a non confrontational reply to the unscrew.

I do think its weak to unscrew without saying something like "thats good". Its sharking, and is only a little above those jokers who move and grab the rack when your down on the money ball.
 
Never, I mean NEVER concede a game with four balls left if you're playing me. I can screw up a four ball out with the best of 'em :o!!!

Maniac
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top