poll: What kind of a shooter are you

what would you choose?

  • HARD pot, easy runout. Risk it all, because if you miss, your opponent will clear

    Votes: 39 73.6%

  • easy shot to be sure you get the easy balls but your chances to clear from there are very small.

    Votes: 14 26.4%
  • Total voters
    53
Solartje

Solartje

the Brunswick BUG bit me
Silver Member
i've been thinking about this during my pre-match concentration routine.

situation : 8-ball.

Opponents breaks, and don't pots a ball. (just to be sure there are as much stripes as there are solids on the table).

Your turn to shoot, wich would YOU do?


the situation is:
The solids are harder to run then the stripes. there are some small clusters, some balls arent available in every pocket. The stripes are nicely spread, and seem to be a straight forward rack cleaning.

BUT: the first stripe is a very difficult to pot, but the positioning for the next ball is pritty straightforward.
Whereas the other first stripe is a VERY easy to pot, but a hard position

So , what would you do?

Do you go for the hard pot and easy positioning? if u miss it, your opponent will probably clean it after you, and if he doesnt, you will have the hard to run solids. if you pot it, all the rest are simple stopshots.

or do you go for the easy pot, but very hard positioning or hard to play a good safety. You will probably pot the ball, and get the right (the stripes) balls, but the chances that you will run the rack are small as the positioning is very hard, and you will probably have to do it in 2 innings, by playing a safety wich will be hard. At least your opponent will have the harder solids, but you wont be running it in 1 time.

so do you go for: 1 hard pot, and good chance to clear. if u miss, you opponent will clear it for you, or 1 easy pot to be sure you get the easy balls, but you wont be clearing in one visit, and you let your opponent onto the table, with the risk that he cleans the harder balls...



EDIT: to much blalala, in 1 sentence.

HARD POT + EASY RUNOUT vs EASY POT + HARD RUNOUT. :D
You chose
 
Last edited:
Too hard to answer without seeing the table. I might be inclined to dog a ball and give my opponent an easy leave on a solid that he can't refuse. Also, there may be breakout shots in the rack that could open up the solids to make them easier. Too tough to say what I'd do when I don't have the scenario to look at.
 
I haven't played 8 ball in years but I'd like to offer a generic type of suggestion if I may.

(just to be sure there are as much stripes as there are solids on the table).
Click to expand...

If your ability allows you to commonly make your way through a rack of balls, firstly, it doesn't matter if there are more stripes or solids on the table. You focus on the map that allows you to run out. In fact a common hustle that you may encounter by the sharks swimming the local rooms is to offer the lesser player the break, and the chosen removal of three of his balls. In other words you break, and immediately are allowed to hand pick 3 (or whatever number) of balls from the table before you continue your turn. You get to do this whether you make a ball on the break or not!

The hustle is, of course, the better player figures you are not going to run 4 balls with all his balls in the way because you can't make your way around the table with enough precision. So you make two or three, and leave the advanced player a "no brainer" run out with none of your balls blocking paths to pockets.

If your ability is somewhat lesser than a run out 8 ball player, it's my opinion that you shouldn't even be thinking about running out, rather you should be considering how top place balls near pockets and how to play safeties.

the first stripe is a very difficult to pot, but the positioning for the next ball is pritty straightforward.
Click to expand...

The next ball's positioning for pocketing shouldn't be the focus unless you have a next plan for safety or run out.

To sum it up, don't fight your skill level in 8 ball, it will only get you in more trouble by removing blockers. Think and play many more safeties.
 
Solartje said:
i've been thinking about this during my pre-match concentration routine.

situation : 8-ball.

Opponents breaks, and don't pots a ball. (just to be sure there are as much stripes as there are solids on the table).

Your turn to shoot, wich would YOU do?


the situation is:
The solids are harder to run then the stripes. there are some small clusters, some balls arent available in every pocket. The stripes are nicely spread, and seem to be a straight forward rack cleaning.

BUT: the first stripe is a very difficult to pot, but the positioning for the next ball is pritty straightforward.
Whereas the other first stripe is a VERY easy to pot, but a hard position

So , what would you do?

Do you go for the hard pot and easy positioning? if u miss it, your opponent will probably clean it after you, and if he doesnt, you will have the hard to run solids. if you pot it, all the rest are simple stopshots.

or do you go for the easy pot, but very hard positioning or hard to play a good safety. You will probably pot the ball, and get the right (the stripes) balls, but the chances that you will run the rack are small as the positioning is very hard, and you will probably have to do it in 2 innings, by playing a safety wich will be hard. At least your opponent will have the harder solids, but you wont be running it in 1 time.

so do you go for: 1 hard pot, and good chance to clear. if u miss, you opponent will clear it for you, or 1 easy pot to be sure you get the easy balls, but you wont be clearing in one visit, and you let your opponent onto the table, with the risk that he cleans the harder balls...



EDIT: to much blalala, in 1 sentence.

HARD POT + EASY RUNOUT vs EASY POT + HARD RUNOUT. :D
You chose
Click to expand...
Since you don't offer the choice of choosing solids, I'll assume you mean solids are a lot harder to run out and stripes is the only reasonable choice between the two groups. (If this isn't the case, then we have to get into how much easier/harder the two groups are, so let's not go there.)

Given the above assumption it seems the obvious answer is to take the sure shot and make sure you get the stripes, taking the smaller risk that you won't be able to get out or get safe afterwards. But there is another choice you have to make first: is the risk that you won't be able to get out or get safe after taking the gimme bigger or smaller than the risk that you won't be successful with solids?

What kind of player does this make me? I'm guessing anal(ytical).

pj
chgo
 
Solartje said:
EDIT: to much blalala, in 1 sentence.

HARD POT + EASY RUNOUT vs EASY POT + HARD RUNOUT. :D
You chose
Click to expand...

This is a part of my game that i've been working on. Naturally, I'm more of a gunslinger. I shoot until its a definite that I can't make the shot, i.e. having my ball tied up, or having some wicked kick shot. I think it stems from when I was just starting and to keep my confidence up I would thinkg to myself, "I can make every shot."

However, a couple mathces ago, I really took my time and made a perfect safe to win the game; playing a safe is something I normally don't do. But to answer your question, I'd go "Hard Pot + Easy Runout" cus to me "hard" is a relative term, and I'll always go for it if I have the slightest idea that it'll drop.
 
hard pot easy runout because if i take ANY chances it will be early in the game
 
mm this poll is confirming me what i was thinking. there is no general absolute truth. ok , there never is, but i thought that one of the options would be the 'smart' shot to play.

I usually take on the easyer shot, but its really making my 1 inning runouts low. It will make me win more matches, but i wont be stringing racks after rack with it.

so i was really wondering. should u play to win, or play to get better (aka running more racks, and go for the hard shot in the beginning).

normally i play to win, but after reading some notes from a respected poolcoach, there was written not to focus on the numbers and results, but focus on the misses, so u can learn from them. if this is the correct way, maybe i should change my shot sellection, and go for the hard shot and runout, instead of the easy shot and a safety that will give me a higher % chance to win. but if i focus on winning, im focusing on results and numbers, and not on progress...

does this make any sence? :confused:
 
Hard pot ALL the way.... lol

Here I was just reading some stuff on the forum, come across this poll, don't look, just open it... and I read that first line about 10 times before my brain started working and I got what 'pot' was.... lol. Yeah, I'd take the hard shot but I'd make damn sure that my leave for my next ball would be a leave my opp. wouldn't like. Kill two with one.
 
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