local 8 ball rule?

[Cornerman]

In the BCA the table is still open after pocketing a ball on the break. You are not restricted to the group of the balls pocketed and you can hit any ball first in the combo on the open table but not the 8. .

Something I really can't stand anymore is the continued changing of the rules such that, IMO, much of the flavor of the game is changed.

I have BCA rulebooks from the every decade starting at the 70's. The 8-ball rules are different significantly in each decade.

70's: not a call shot game. lost on a lot of 8-ball snafus. ball in hand in the kitchen

80's: call shot optional. 8-ball on the break not a win. a few less losses on 8-ball snafus. full-table ball-in-hand option

90's: call shot game all the time. full-table ball-in-hand for all fouls other than the break. 8-ball is still a neutral ball on an open table (for safety play only).

00's: 8-ball not neutral on an open table and is a foul if you contact it first on an open table.


What drives me bananas more than anything else is when some yahoo dressed in black and white stripes (or anything else for that matter) tries to tell me that such and such rule has "always been like that." I've got the books, baby. They haven't always been like that.

And then there are the bar rules...

Fred

 

[Chris]

I may as well chime in also, after the break only if the breaker does not sink a ball, the incoming shooter as the option to shoot any ball they like (except the 8 of course) in any combination. Solid to stripe, stripe to solid and even x ball to 8 ball to x ball. Which ever ball drops is the set the shooter then has. The BCA standardized rules state this, every other league sanction bases their rules off the BCA so there's no difference there either.

IIRC, BCA rules (WPA world standardized rules) state the table is open after the break, regardless of whether any balls were made on the break.

If I'm breaking and drop the 13, 14 and 15 balls, I still have the option of shooting at the low group.

 

[Billy_Bob]

Many bar tournaments and bar players playing by BCA "World Standardized Rules".

And with the new IPT 8-ball tournaments with millions of dollars in prize money, I would suggest learning the *real* rules now. BCA rules have been around since something like 1947, so they are nothing new.

I would suggest buying a couple of rule books at the link below and then leave one in your local bar. I did this and everyone can now see what the rule is for this or that.

Get your rule books here...
https://www.bcastore.com/product_info.php?products_id=118&osCsid=cf0f03a41be377ae57c57e7f5b74385f