League Matchup Strategies

[jjspelman]

Being new to APA, TAP and US APL I am curious as to what most players feel about league matchups.

By that I mean when you win the flip, do you put up first or do you allow your opponent to put up first?

My first instinct is to allow the opponent to put up first becuase I would have more control over who I match my players with. If I put up first I am putting all my players up blind.

But I have seen people who disagree with this thought. They also mention that if you put up first you have control over the last two matches.

Very curious to hear everyones reply.

Thank you!

 

[Clusterbuster]

I’m captain of my APA team. I always put up first if I have the opportunity. Obviously, it gives you the advantage of putting up who you want three times instead of two. I know the counter argument is that if you put up second, then you have the advantage of being able to match particular players on your team against the opposition but my experience is that in a typical league night, you have a pretty rough idea as to which opposition players will get thrown against your’s anyway. The cake is usually baked, especially by the fourth match and it’s clear who will be left to go up in the fifth match regardless. Another advantage to putting up first is that if you have a particular player who needs to leave early, you can usually help them out by putting them up in the first match. I’d also add that I don’t see a huge difference either way in terms of team won/loss percentage, though if someone has ever actually tried to analyze it, I’d like to hear.

Though not your question, the related issue is the order in which you put up your players. Traditionally, most teams start the evening by putting up weaker players (2’s and 3’s) and then build up so that the 6’s and 7’s are playing last. This is what I usually do (more out of habit than conviction) in a regular league night, The exception is tournament time in 8-ball where you may not play all five matches because the match is over when the first team scores eight team points. If your stronger players are thrown up first, you may have a better chance of building a big lead early that can’t be overcome.

No real right or wrong answer on either issue.