Mike Panozzo, publisher for Billiards Digest Magazine, had some good advice (IMO) that would help make the game more interesting at the pro level. He was specifically referring to The World Cup of Pool hosted/aired by
Matchroom. Mike suggests to quit reinventing rules in order to make it more difficult for a player to get a shot/runout (like racking 9ball with the 9 on the spot instead of the 1). He says "make the pockets tight and the slate shelf deep".
I agree with him. I find it very boring to watch a pro match and see balls hitting the rail several inches from the pocket and wobbling into the hole (like a cut to the corner where the OB is just a few inches off the rail). The same shot on my table would hang up every time.
Years ago it was believed that in order to make the game more interesting for television, it should be fast and exciting -- 9ball on loose tables fit that requirement just fine. But there are 2 types of viewers -- pool players and non-pool players. Pool players appreciate the display of pro skills, like a perfectly executed safety, a well-planned runout, etc... We like to see the best players battling it out. Watching this on loose tables, however, quickly becomes boring, because many of us could accomplish the same results. For the non-pool player it still holds a little excitement because they have no idea whether or not the pro players are really being challenged as far as pocketing balls. But even then, after watching for a half hour or more with no misses from either player, they change the channel. Like watching a Nascar race, many are content to just watch the cars struggle for position, while many others are looking for some sort of action, some bumping, wall scraping, fender benders, etc....to make it exciting.
I watch a lot of golf on TV. I'm not a great golfer, and I'm not terrible. I shoot in the 80's on easy courses and high 90's on pro level courses. If pro golf tournaments were played on short easy courses, where every player could shoot a score in the 60's with ease, I would find it boring to watch. Instead of reinventing golf rules to make the game more challenging, bunkers and trees, water hazards and narrow doglegged fairways are introduced. Pool should be done the same way, not by adding obstructions/obstacles, but by requiring more precision to be needed on the pocket end in order to be able to run out.
I think making the tables more challenging would also bring out a little color in the personalities of many players, more emotional responses from those that always seem so machine-like.
