Proposed Rule Changes for nine-ball, opinions please.

So i play a tough shot knowing that if I miss your likely to be hooked and you get to push out?

If you opponent played the way you described you probably got more turns at the table then you care to admit. You lost because you did not control the situation from there. We have all lost to crazy stuff and "cheese-chasers". Generally most wild ball movers don't get good results. It's tougher to make random balls than most of us think. Sometimes the Gods act strangely. It's not a reason to blow up the planet.
 
The only changes I would make is to go back to the old push out rules, and ball in hand in the kitchen.

I hate to see nineball played where you have to call the nineball because then we are just selecting when its ok to get lucky and when its not. Which do you see more often, someone slop in the nine or slop in some other ball on their way to the nine? For me its all or nothing, either call all balls or dont call any.

Lucking a safe after a miss stinks too, but it happens in all games. Yes, it happens more in nineball, but such is life. That may be why its my least favorite game :)
 
inside_english said:
So I'm playing a league match the other day, and my opponent, disgruntled for some reason, decided he was going to slam the balls around the table as hard as he could. In doing so, he managed to win four games by making highly improbable nine-ball combinations.

Naturally I was ticked.

I understand it is a part of the game, but in a race to seven this leaves a particularly bad taste in my mouth. So I thought...wouldn't it be nice to play an altered version of the game? Here is what I propose, and you tell me if you would be willing to play in a tourney with these rules:

1. The nine ball never counts on the break. It gets spotted.
2. The nine ball must be the last ball made to win the game. If you make a combination on the nine, it gets spotted and you keep shooting, provided you made a legal shot in the first place.
3. If you miss any shot and leave your opponent safe (hence a "lucky" safe), he/she has the option to pass the shot back to you, similar to a push, except your shot must have been a legal one. Push-outs are not required to be legal hits. If a player chooses to play a "two-way" shot where they would leave you safe in case they miss...well...that's just too bad. They should not be rewarded for missing their shot by getting a safety out of it.

In the same vein, you should not be rewarded with a lucky nine ball shot (including the break).

I think that while this may slow down the game slightly...it serves to:

1. Eliminate "lucky shots" on the nine ball.
2. Eliminate "lucky" safe shots.
3. Forces the shooter to shoot and try to play proper position.

No one should be rewarded for poor play, which includes the "gentleman" I played a couple of weeks ago. Walking up to the table and slamming the balls around because you're in a bad mood does not...and should not...earn you a victory.

Nor should either player be punished by losing a hill/hill match to a nine-on-the-snap in the deciding game.

I think this may serve to elevate the quality of play.
A lot of older players refuse to play this game because of the luck factor. Sure, you can get lucky in the other games, but in nine-ball it seems to have more of an impact on the game's outcome.

This may eliminate some of the bangers and those of us who love to "ride the nine" but I think it would attract better players.

So, what are your thoughts?
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Hmmmm..............so let me throw this scenario at you, using your suggested rules. Your opponent has a lower skill level and gets down on a shot that he knows is a low percentage shot to make. He calls safe, just in case he misses. However, the ball goes in and he has perfect shape for his next shot. What is the ruling?
1) He made the shot, so he keeps shooting.
2) He called safe, so the ball is spotted. This would mean you are playing call shot 9 ball though.
3) What if he would have missed, oh well he called safe anyway.
 
Whys everyone want to make everything so difficult whenever they lose a match. Ever notice no one wins big and then thinks the whole game needs a remake ? :)

Anywho . . .

Just play call shot and all problems are fixed. You can't write a rule for every bad roll you don't like when it happens to you.
 
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RRfireblade said:
Anywho . . .

Just play call shot and all problems are fixed.
Click to expand...


Na, that just brings up a new set of problems.

We would have to figure out how to negate lucky rolls after misses. Then we have to do something about hitting the perfect break shot but not having a shot on the one, Im thinking ball in hand after the break should take care of this.

In fact, maybe thats the answer. Total offense ball in hand nine ball. When you miss, the other player gets ball in hand no matter what :)
 
woody_968 said:
Na, that just brings up a new set of problems.

We would have to figure out how to negate lucky rolls after misses. Then we have to do something about hitting the perfect break shot but not having a shot on the one, Im thinking ball in hand after the break should take care of this.

In fact, maybe thats the answer. Total offense ball in hand nine ball. When you miss, the other player gets ball in hand no matter what :)
Click to expand...

I've been saying total offense 9 ball would be good for tv but not ball in hand after the break. Ball in hand after every miss would be a blast. Safeties rob us of all the amazing banks and cuts. No brainer to me but what do I know? Someone will figure it out one day soon I hope.
 
To me these rules sound similar with some differences to Grady's rules. I have a couple of accustats matches where Grady's rules were used and I have to say it did take almost all of the luck out of the game.
 
Want to make 9 ball better, then play 9 ball with a re-spot. Make the 9 on the break, counts as a win and spots back up...same shooter plays. Make the 9 out of rotation....counts as a win and spots back up...same shooter still playing. multiple wins in the same rack would be interesting to watch:grin:
 
inside english makes valid points, excluding the two-way shot. all I want to know before playing are "what's the rules". I'll play by any. everyone's acting like the rules are sacred. i'm all for tradition, but i'm more for the better player winning. And that normally occurs when the match, short or long, is decided by who played better. And those who say the rolls will even out, lets remember there's no such thing as bad rolls. Unless the tabled rolled off. It's a game of physics, the ball ends up where you hit it.
 
inside_english said:
So I'm playing a league match the other day, and my opponent, disgruntled for some reason, decided he was going to slam the balls around the table as hard as he could. In doing so, he managed to win four games by making highly improbable nine-ball combinations.

Naturally I was ticked.

I understand it is a part of the game, but in a race to seven this leaves a particularly bad taste in my mouth. So I thought...wouldn't it be nice to play an altered version of the game? Here is what I propose, and you tell me if you would be willing to play in a tourney with these rules:

1. The nine ball never counts on the break. It gets spotted.
2. The nine ball must be the last ball made to win the game. If you make a combination on the nine, it gets spotted and you keep shooting, provided you made a legal shot in the first place.
3. If you miss any shot and leave your opponent safe (hence a "lucky" safe), he/she has the option to pass the shot back to you, similar to a push, except your shot must have been a legal one. Push-outs are not required to be legal hits. If a player chooses to play a "two-way" shot where they would leave you safe in case they miss...well...that's just too bad. They should not be rewarded for missing their shot by getting a safety out of it.

In the same vein, you should not be rewarded with a lucky nine ball shot (including the break).

I think that while this may slow down the game slightly...it serves to:

1. Eliminate "lucky shots" on the nine ball.
2. Eliminate "lucky" safe shots.
3. Forces the shooter to shoot and try to play proper position.

No one should be rewarded for poor play, which includes the "gentleman" I played a couple of weeks ago. Walking up to the table and slamming the balls around because you're in a bad mood does not...and should not...earn you a victory.

Nor should either player be punished by losing a hill/hill match to a nine-on-the-snap in the deciding game.

I think this may serve to elevate the quality of play.
A lot of older players refuse to play this game because of the luck factor. Sure, you can get lucky in the other games, but in nine-ball it seems to have more of an impact on the game's outcome.

This may eliminate some of the bangers and those of us who love to "ride the nine" but I think it would attract better players.

So, what are your thoughts?
Click to expand...

1- why even spot it, just leave it down and have the 8 be the 9. i can go into the potential problems of spotting it if youd like, like what if the cueball is on the spot.
2-what if you make a 7-9 hanger combo, the 8 is on the spot, now the 8 and 9 are ties up, and it was impossible to even attempt a breakout, or tell which pocket the 8 may go in beforehand.
3-who says leaving a guy safe is necessarily luck?

to be curt, the game is fine, it is your attitude toward the game that you need to adjust.
 
Luxury said:
I've been saying total offense 9 ball would be good for tv but not ball in hand after the break.
Click to expand...

JoeW has posted somewhere {I can't seem to find it} about a game called Olympic 9 Ball that is all offense, IIRC.
 
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