New WPA Official Rules of Pool … Learn About All the Changes

I honestly like the all ball fouls rule and am glad it's official. The first league (in house) I ever played in was all ball fouls 8 ball. Imagine my surprise when I came back 12 years later and it was CB only. I mean, I've benefited from it but it's a crap rule. I recently joined an 8B Ultimate Pool League and I'm really happy it's all ball fouls. I've messed up and gave BIH probably 4X this session but I've got it more than that.

I don't see it being adopted widely at local events or leagues anytime soon but it's a good direction.
 
iusedtoberich said:
... people reading that article think 57.2mm is the specification. Which is very wrong.
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Well, 2.25 inches is 57.15mm exactly. 57.2mm is 2 thousandths of an inch large which is still within spec. But you're right, both units should be given with sufficient accuracy.

In related news, the spec for the diameter of snooker balls is now officially in mm and it comes out closer to 2 1/15th rather then 2 1/16th inch.
 
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I kinda wish the process had a small public comment period. The rules change so infrequently. I would’ve loved to propose a couple additional rules. Even if they didn’t make the cut, it would have been nice to see these in consideration.

1. After the game winning ball has been pocketed, players may assist the referee in clearing pockets provided they do not reach into a pocket a moving ball could potentially fall into, and provided they do not disturb any moving balls.

2. Players lagging for the break are permitted to adjust the position of their lag ball after being initially placed by a referee provided they do not do so in a manner that impinges on their opponent’s ability to comfortably execute their own lag stroke.

Something like that. I feel like these rare rule update opportunities need to take moments to entertain specific situations where the referees are creating penalties in situations that nearly all players would universally be opposed to. As an industry, we’ve seen these specific ones play out too many times in a manner that didn’t paint a positive light on the game amongst players and fans.
 
Fore Rail said:
I would agree that your example has a very low probability of happening.

I am thinking there will be many arguing that the solids were never legally chosen & therefore the 8 ball cannot be shot to win the game. In that situation just about everyone would say the incoming player has to shoot the stripes because of the above.
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There was a case in the appendix for the 2010± BCA rules that states (IIRC) "If an entire group has been eliminated from the table without the groups having been determined, then all players are allowed to shoot at the 8-ball."

So, for WPA this is conforming with an old BCA rule.
 
Bob Jewett said:
Well, 2.25 inches is 57.15mm exactly. 57.2mm is 2 thousandths of an inch large which is still with spec. But you're right, both units should be given with sufficient accuracy.

snip
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It's still wrong. If you re-made your EDM go/no-go gauge today based off the 57.20mm as the nominal, rather than 57.15mm exact, the gauge would be worthless.

btw, I found the Wikipedia article. It was worse than I remembered. The metric and inch units with tolerances result in two completely different ball sizes. Something like this can easily creep into a spec, if the person doing it is not very careful (or knowledgeable on the subject), as this wikipedia illustrates.

1750733184186.png

Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pool_(cue_sports)
 
MattPoland said:
I kinda wish the process had a small public comment period. The rules change so infrequently. I would’ve loved to propose a couple additional rules. Even if they didn’t make the cut, it would have been nice to see these in consideration.

1. After the game winning ball has been pocketed, players may assist the referee in clearing pockets provided they do not reach into a pocket a moving ball could potentially fall into, and provided they do not disturb any moving balls.

2. Players lagging for the break are permitted to adjust the position of their lag ball after being initially placed by a referee provided they do not do so in a manner that impinges on their opponent’s ability to comfortably execute their own lag stroke.

Something like that. I feel like these rare rule update opportunities need to take moments to entertain specific situations where the referees are creating penalties in situations that nearly all players would universally be opposed to. As an industry, we’ve seen these specific ones play out too many times in a manner that didn’t paint a positive light on the game amongst players and fans.
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I am also in favor of getting rid of what I call "petty fouls" like these, but the "purists" of the game do not generally agree with these sorts of changes.
 
Bob Jewett said:
I think the BCAPL -- which is not the BCA -- does have a points system for scoring 8-ball that is used in some leagues. Might be on the CSI website.
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BCAPL does not require any particular scoring system for any game, including 8-Ball. Each league may select whatever system they wish. A "standard" CSI format is available, but its use is not required. By rule, in CSI 8-ball, illegally pocketed balls are scored in favor of the player with that group. So the losing player in any weird situation would be scored per the particular system used.
 
boogieman said:
I honestly like the all ball fouls rule and am glad it's official. The first league (in house) I ever played in was all ball fouls 8 ball. Imagine my surprise when I came back 12 years later and it was CB only. I mean, I've benefited from it but it's a crap rule. I recently joined an 8B Ultimate Pool League and I'm really happy it's all ball fouls. I've messed up and gave BIH probably 4X this session but I've got it more than that.

I don't see it being adopted widely at local events or leagues anytime soon but it's a good direction.
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Yeah, I don't see leagues changing that one.

Even more "competitive" leagues want to attract a certain number of newer, less skilled players.

While I disagree, I think the leagues will be afraid of scaring away those newer players...
 
dr_dave said:
I am also in favor of getting rid of what I call "petty fouls" like these, but the "purists" of the game do not generally agree with these sorts of changes.
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I’m thinking of what a rules committee for a governing body of an international sport should be. Basic tenets of transparency like acknowledging rules changes are being considered. Publishing who is on the committee. Ensuring there is adequate professional player representation on the committee (active and retired). Public comment periods on proposed changes.

I would ask this. Are those “purists” making any effort to understand the preferences of the players or are they firm in a belief that they alone know what’s best for the sport? Because if it’s the latter, there’s a problem inside the bureaucracy.

I’m not trying to assert what I believe is the gospel either. But in that regard, I’d point back to my first paragraph in this post.

You know who would be perfect for something like that if willing, Jayson Shaw. He advocates for what truly is best for the spot, not just short sighted things that would specifically benefit just himself. And he has a good grasp on the wisdom between purity and practicality.
 
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dr_dave said:
FYI, I just posted a video that discusses and demonstrates all changes that have recently been made to the World Pool Association (WPA) official rules of pool. Check it out:


Contents:
0:00 – Intro
0:38 - Use of Equipment
2:46 - Balls Settling
4:13 - 8-Ball Open Table
5:08 - Foul Uncertainty
---- 5:18 - wrong-ball-first
---- 7:05 - no rail contact
8:17 - Unintentional Scoop
9:21 - All-Ball Fouls
11:06 - 9-Ball Break
13:14 - 10-Ball Safety
14:36 - New Game Rules
15:05 - More Info

As always, I look forward to your feedback, comments, questions, complaints, and requests.

Enjoy!
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Hey Doc thanks for all the great work you do in helping the Pool world, your content is always excellent! Under the rules is it a foul if a player bridging over a strip makes contact with the strip and the cue ball at the same time, does that constitute moving two balls?
 
dr_dave said:
We will definitely work hard to modernize, improve, and expand the equipment specifications document in the next round of updates. There are many problems there.
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Will the lady pros be allowed to show ankle skin if they wear shoes with no socks or short socks? I am reminded of when Chezka Centero from Philippines was penalized by WPA because her ankle skin was showing. To me, that is a really unusual rule and should be abolished.
 
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dr_dave said:
FYI, I just posted a video that discusses and demonstrates all changes that have recently been made to the World Pool Association (WPA) official rules of pool. Check it out:


Contents:
0:00 – Intro
0:38 - Use of Equipment
2:46 - Balls Settling
4:13 - 8-Ball Open Table
5:08 - Foul Uncertainty
---- 5:18 - wrong-ball-first
---- 7:05 - no rail contact
8:17 - Unintentional Scoop
9:21 - All-Ball Fouls
11:06 - 9-Ball Break
13:14 - 10-Ball Safety
14:36 - New Game Rules
15:05 - More Info

As always, I look forward to your feedback, comments, questions, complaints, and requests.

Enjoy!
Click to expand...
Good thread, good information, and good updates. Thank you and the others for MPGA (Make Pool Great Again). :)
 
JAM said:
Will the lady pros be allowed to show ankle skin if they wear shoes with no socks or short socks? I am reminded of when Chezka Centero from Philippines was penalized by WPA because her ankle skin was showing. To me, that is a really unusual rule and should be abolished.
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idiotic. but isn't it tournament specific rather than WPA?
 
iusedtoberich said:
one vocabulary term that always bothered me is "base of the ball". If it's still there, it should be changed to "center of the ball", imo. The reason is, I've seen some players argue with me that the approx 1/4" wide "patch" that is touching the cloth counts, rather than the exact center only.
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From "Billiards: The Official Rules and Records Book, 2021/2022 Edition" published by the Billiards Congress of America:

Section 8: Definitions Used in the Rules
8.13 Position of Balls
The position of a ball is determined by the projection of its center vertically downward onto the playing surface. A ball is said to be placed on a line or spot when its center is placed directly over that line or spot.
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I interpret that to mean: there is an infinitely thin line drawn from the ceiling down through the center of the ball and through the table to the floor, and wherever that line passes through the cloth is the position of the ball.

I do not see "base of the ball" mentioned anywhere in the rule book, rather I see things like, "taking the cue ball in hand behind the head string". From that I infer "the position of the cue ball must be behind the head string", and the position of a ball is determined as above. It would be nice if there was a direct connection to the "position" defined in 8.13 by rewording the rule to "taking the cue ball in hand so its position is behind the head string."
 
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JAM said:
Good thread, good information, and good updates. Thank you and the others for MPGA (Make Pool Great Again). :)
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I was told it was WPA rules. When it happened to her, it was a WPA referee who called her out on it at a Predator event.
 
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