Pocket Sizes Pros 4.25

Island Drive

Island Drive

Otto/Dads College Roommate/Cleveland Browns
Silver Member
After extensively watching the MR 9 Ball event, all pockets should be 4.25 Not 4''.
When a top pro has a shot that's not perfectly straight in, they should be able to work the cue ball from side to side 3-4' or so for shape.
Taking away this aspect of 9 ball play Completely changes this game TOO Much, similar to making a narrow tree line off of every tee box in pro golf.
With new cloth and new equipment, the slipperiness of the play surface removes this shot from the game.
 
Last edited:
Most of these pros are playing with precision. With these smaller pockets they have just a little bit above 3/4" on each side of the ball.

I'm playing with 4.25" pockets at home, so when i go to the poolhall i'm playing in buckets.
 
Agreed.

I will say though that 4 inches on the Rasson’s seemed INFINITELY more manageable for the pro’s than the 4 inch/3.9 inch on the Diamonds. It being that tight on the Diamonds really changed the game too much like you describe.
 
SEB said:
Agreed.

I will say though that 4 inches on the Rasson’s seemed INFINITELY more manageable for the pro’s than the 4 inch/3.9 inch on the Diamonds. It being that tight on the Diamonds really changed the game too much like you describe.
Click to expand...
So that would mean the problem is the slate on Diamonds, not pocket size. I can say that I've never had a problem getting a ball within the points of any Diamond I've come across... getting it deep enough to fall is a different story.

Of course the majority on this forum believe Diamond is the standard to which all (including geometry) should bend a knee. So I guess MR needs to tune pocket size to cater to Diamond and all other manufacturers need to ask Diamond permission to match their slate cut.

Quite frankly.... The version of 9b we witnessed over the last week is what I want to continue to watch. Players worked the CB just fine. Still think I'd reserve the 4"ers for majors.
 
  • Like
Reactions: fjk
I will say that of the matches I watched, I saw pool being played at the highest level. Pros were rifling in shots, playing shape, cheating pockets, and running racks. They weren’t putting big packages together but that was by design of the break rules to ensure the game wasn’t reduced to a trivialty. There was a tension at the table at all times including the possibility of a pro rattling a pocket. Some with weaker fundamentals realized that possibility while the best of them didn’t struggle with that at all. As a fan watching the highest level of the game being played, it felt like a good commercial production and I was highly entertained. I can imagine taking it too far and breaking the game. That’s not what I witnessed.
 
MattPoland said:
I will say that of the matches I watched, I saw pool being played at the highest level. Pros were rifling in shots, playing shape, cheating pockets, and running racks. They weren’t putting big packages together but that was by design of the break rules to ensure the game wasn’t reduced to a trivialty. There was a tension at the table at all times including the possibility of a pro rattling a pocket. Some with weaker fundamentals realized that possibility while the best of them didn’t struggle with that at all. As a fan watching the highest level of the game being played, it felt like a good commercial production and I was highly entertained. I can imagine taking it too far and breaking the game. That’s not what I witnessed.
Click to expand...
100% agree...

Naysayers at this point need to put the torch down. I really believe we witnessed what this game is meant to be.
 
The_JV said:
So that would mean the problem is the slate on Diamonds, not pocket size. I can say that I've never had a problem getting a ball within the points of any Diamond I've come across... getting it deep enough to fall is a different story.

Of course the majority on this forum believe Diamond is the standard to which all (including geometry) should bend a knee. So I guess MR needs to tune pocket size to cater to Diamond and all other manufacturers need to ask Diamond permission to match their slate cut.

Quite frankly.... The version of 9b we witnessed over the last week is what I want to continue to watch. Players worked the CB just fine. Still think I'd reserve the 4"ers for majors.
Click to expand...

not necessarily the slate/shelf, as they also reduced the opening for the UK open. i measured in illustrator and got it to 3.8" iirc. niels is a very knowledgeable player too, and he said go back to 4". the US open last year saw lots of excellent play, and the single best performance so far on the tour (lil ko), on diamond tables with 4" pockets.

i think MR is learning, they are calibrating the product and it's getting better imo. the break rules alone has made it much more exciting.
 
ONLY problem i see, and it does NOT apply to pros, is that Joe Public watches these matches and thinks he has to play on super tight stuff too. Absolute disaster if a poolroom has more than 2-3 super snug tables. My local spot has 10 really nice GC4's and ALL are too tight for recreational play. Two would be more than enough. IMO 4.25"corners/4.75sides is ideal set-up for pro pool.
 
garczar said:
ONLY problem i see, and it does NOT apply to pros, is that Joe Public watches these matches and thinks he has to play on super tight stuff too. Absolute disaster if a poolroom has more than 2-3 super snug tables. My local spot has 10 really nice GC4's and ALL are too tight for recreational play. Two would be more than enough. IMO 4.25"corners/4.75sides is ideal set-up for pro pool.
Click to expand...
I don't see that problem. I don't think I'm supposed to play from the black tees when I grab the clubs and go chasing some golf balls around.

Really do think this is a made up problem that doesn't exist. It's human nature to be pessimistic and search for flaws. It's really no different than thinking NA barbox pool is going to die away because pros compete on 9fters.
 
garczar said:
ONLY problem i see, and it does NOT apply to pros, is that Joe Public watches these matches and thinks he has to play on super tight stuff too. Absolute disaster if a poolroom has more than 2-3 super snug tables. My local spot has 10 really nice GC4's and ALL are too tight for recreational play. Two would be more than enough. IMO 4.25"corners/4.75sides is ideal set-up for pro pool.
Click to expand...

i like pockets on the larger side personally but i'm not worried my local room owner would go any other route. bangers pay the bills, not water drinking aficionados.
 
skogstokig said:
not necessarily the slate/shelf, as they also reduced the opening for the UK open. i measured in illustrator and got it to 3.8" iirc. niels is a very knowledgeable player too, and he said go back to 4".
Click to expand...
Exactly my point... Given the same pocket size / cuts, Diamonds pockets play differently then the Rassons. This is a matter of shelf depth. They seemingly went too small at the UKopen. However even if they were 4", they'd be playing more difficult then they were at the World's. What I saw at the World's is what I'd like to see at major events. However that would translate to 4-1/16th (completely made up number) pockets at the USopen where they will be playing on Diamonds. ...which actually makes the shelf dimension deeper but you have a larger obstruction (facing) free zone to place the ball.

The problem is the manufacturer differences between tables. I hoping that eventually, MR earns enough clout that manufacturers must meet their specs to be represented on their tour. Not MR bending their specs to make a manfacturer's equipment play correctly. <-This is where we're currently at.

I hope I'm explaining that correctly.
skogstokig said:
the US open last year saw lots of excellent play, and the single best performance so far on the tour (lil ko), on diamond tables with 4" pockets.
Click to expand...
Yes, Ko played incredible. However it was to the extreme that some on the forum have been complaining about. Ko's style of play, although incredibly effective, was very muted. Ton's of stun and minor draw shots, rather than traditional multi-rail routes with various amounts of english. Clearly the end result is awesome, but a boring style to say the least. That wasn't the case at the worlds. Yes there wasn't a haphazard slashing at everything, expecting all to drop. ...but it also wasn't void of strong potting and the moving of the CB

skogstokig said:
i think MR is learning, they are calibrating the product and it's getting better imo. the break rules alone has made it much more exciting.
Click to expand...
Agree completely. However I think on some level there will always be complaints about equipment until MR can everyone to fall in line. I personally couldn't care less what tables the tour is decided on. As long as it's consistent.
 
If the tables are to be toted around from arena to arena and only used for pro play then whatever makes people happy. However, what we see on TV tables is usually the best of the best. Seeing what the eight or ten top pro's can do is no indication of what even the typical pro can do. Can the 32nd or 64th ranked player in the world play nine ball as it is normally played on the table? They may not win but if they have to completely change their game then the equipment is an issue. Perhaps they need to play on a table modeled after a Big G from long ago. Then they can have tiny pockets and still all look like gods!

I like to play snooker and one pocket, nine ball too. I like that all are different. I have no interest in playing or watching nine ball when the pockets are more like key holes.

Hu
 
The_JV said:
I don't see that problem. I don't think I'm supposed to play from the black tees when I grab the clubs and go chasing some golf balls around.

Really do think this is a made up problem that doesn't exist. It's human nature to be pessimistic and search for flaws. It's really no different than thinking NA barbox pool is going to die away because pros compete on 9fters.
Click to expand...
apples-n-oranges. if a rec. player grabs a set of balls he's stuck with whatever tables the joint has. there is no front tee/back tee equivalent in pool. i've watched bangers come in Magoos(local room) and literally not make a ball for 30min. they don't stay long. place survives on booze, not pool.
 
garczar said:
ONLY problem i see, and it does NOT apply to pros, is that Joe Public watches these matches and thinks he has to play on super tight stuff too. Absolute disaster if a poolroom has more than 2-3 super snug tables. My local spot has 10 really nice GC4's and ALL are too tight for recreational play. Two would be more than enough. IMO 4.25"corners/4.75sides is ideal set-up for pro pool.
Click to expand...
recreational players dont play on 9fters
they probably got those tables setup like that for the local demand
 
garczar said:
apples-n-oranges. if a rec. player grabs a set of balls he's stuck with whatever tables the joint has. there is no front tee/back tee equivalent in pool. i've watched bangers come in Magoos(local room) and literally not make a ball for 30min. they don't stay long. place survives on booze, not pool.
Click to expand...
beer and liquor is the main focus tho your right
pool tables are just to get you in there hanging out having fun and get whatever they can out of you
 
garczar said:
apples-n-oranges. if a rec. player grabs a set of balls he's stuck with whatever tables the joint has. there is no front tee/back tee equivalent in pool. i've watched bangers come in Magoos(local room) and literally not make a ball for 30min. they don't stay long. place survives on booze, not pool.
Click to expand...
ok cool, but as you said. This isn't a problem with the pro tour. Just business owners making bad decisions.
 
The_JV said:
ok cool, but as you said. This isn't a problem with the pro tour. Just business owners making bad decisions.
Click to expand...
in a way yes. they're giving the public what they 'think they want' but in actuality they have no clue, the owners and the public. Most(all?) poolroom owners follow the pro game very little. I'm sure some do but not many.
 
garczar said:
in a way yes. they're giving the public what they 'think they want' but in actuality they have no clue, the owners and the public. Most(all?) poolroom owners follow the pro game very little. I'm sure some do but not many.
Click to expand...
I think we've all been in pool rooms too much. In my time, I don't think I've ever heard someone come into a room and ask specifically for the table the room has set up for pro competition.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top