Racking and Breaking Variations in 9-Ball

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AtLarge

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I was asked today "how many different ways to rack 9-ball are currently out there."

I'll expand the response a bit to including both racking and breaking requirements. The variations are numerous.

• who racks -- breaker, non-breaker, non-breaker unless both players agree to rack-your-own, or third party (with or without inspection allowed)
• type of rack -- triangle (wood, plastic, metal), template (multiple types, such as the Magic Rack and Accu-Rack), Sardo Rack, and tapping the table (pre-set dimples in the cloth)
• location of the rack -- foot-string spot under the 1-ball, under the 9-ball, or in between them
• location of balls in the rack -- random or pattern racking, with or without the 2-ball in back

And then the breaking variations include:
• who breaks -- winner, loser, alternating
• breaking location -- anywhere behind the head string or anywhere within a break box (various sizes)
• what constitutes a legal break -- making a ball or driving 4 balls to a rail vs. also having a "Three-Point Rule" (where at least 3 balls must either be pocketed or reach a certain point on the table, such as the side pockets or the head string)
• whether making the 9-ball on the break counts as a win -- yes (in any pocket vs. just in certain pockets) or no

So if you count the number of alternatives in each line above, and multiply them together, the number of possible variations is in the thousands ..... It's a mad, mad world!

Racking the 9-ball on the spot is being done more and more. Events now doing it include the Eurotour events, the Mosconi Cup, the World Cup, the U.S. Open 9-Ball Championship, the China Open, and (starting this year) the WPA World 9-Ball Championship. The hold-outs for the 1-ball on the spot include the Derby City Classic 9-Ball event and the Joss Tour events.

Here's a list of the racking/breaking rules used in 9 events I watched in 2015 and 2016 (shown in reverse chronological order). [It would be easier to compare the events if I had used a spreadsheet format, but it was easier for me to do quickly as shown here.] Note that no two of these events were the same for all 8 of these requirements.

Turning Stone XXVI
Who racks -- loser
Type of rack -- wooden triangle
Location of rack -- 1-ball on spot
2-ball must be in back? -- no
Who breaks -- winner
Breaking location -- box 2 diamonds wide
3-point rule? -- no
9-ball on break is a win? -- yes

2016 China Open
Who racks -- referee
Type of rack -- template
Location of rack -- 9-ball on spot
2-ball must be in back? -- no
Who breaks -- alternating
Breaking location -- anywhere behind head string
3-point rule? -- yes, using head string
9-ball on break is a win? -- yes

2016 WPA World 9-Ball Championship
Who racks -- breaker in some, referee in some
Type of rack -- Magic Rack template
Location of rack -- 9-ball on foot spot
2-ball must be in back? -- yes
Who breaks -- alternating
Breaking location -- anywhere behind head string
3-point rule? -- yes, using head string
9-ball on break is a win? -- yes

2016 Don Coates Memorial 9-Ball
Who racks -- breaker
Type of rack -- wooden and metal triangles
Location of rack -- 9-ball on spot
2-ball must be in back? -- no
Who breaks -- alternating
Breaking location -- anywhere behind head string
3-point rule? -- yes, using side pockets
9-ball on break is a win? -- no

2016 Derby City Classic
Who racks -- breaker
Type of rack -- wooden triangle
Location of rack -- 1-ball on spot
2-ball must be in back? -- no
Who breaks -- winner
Breaking location -- anywhere behind head string
3-point rule? -- no
9-ball on break is a win? -- yes

2015 Mosconi Cup
Who racks -- referee
Type of rack -- triangle
Location of rack -- 9-ball on spot
2-ball must be in back? -- no
Who breaks -- alternating
Breaking location -- anywhere behind head string
3-point rule? -- no
9-ball on break is a win? -- yes

2015 U.S. Open Championship
Who racks -- breaker
Type of rack -- Accu-Rack template
Location of rack -- 9-ball on spot
2-ball must be in back? -- yes
Who breaks -- winner
Breaking location -- narrow box (about 9" each way)
3-point rule? -- yes, using side pockets (to be changed to head string for 2016)
9-ball on break is a win? -- yes, at least in top 4 pockets (not sure of bottom 2)

2015 World Cup of Pool
Who racks -- referee
Type of rack -- wooden triangle
Location of rack -- 9-ball on spot
2-ball must be in back? -- no
Who breaks -- winner
Breaking location -- anywhere behind head string
3-point rule? -- no
9-ball on break is a win? -- yes

2015 Big Tyme Classic 9-Ball (7-foot tables)
Who racks -- breaker
Type of rack -- wooden triangle
Location of rack -- 1-ball on spot
2-ball must be in back? -- no
Who breaks -- alternating
Breaking location -- anywhere behind head string
3-point rule? -- no
9-ball on break is a win? -- yes, except in two foot-rail pockets
 
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The derby is rack ur own n the 9 counts even in the bottom 2? That sounds wrong but I could be mistaken
 
And ur obviously quite the statistician but are u equally a mathmatician? If so add up all those possible break situations. Lol too tough for me. At first I thought it was 8^8 then I thought it was 8x7x6x5...... But now I think I don't know how to figure it out at all lol
 
barrymuch90 said:
The derby is rack ur own n the 9 counts even in the bottom 2? That sounds wrong but I could be mistaken
Click to expand...

I checked my notes. For 2016, there were only 3 9's on the break in the matches I watched, and my notes do not show which pocket the 9 went in for those 3. But in 2015 I did make notes that several of the 9's on the break had gone into the foot-rail pocket to the breaker's right. So it was rack your own and all slop counted.
 
barrymuch90 said:
And ur obviously quite the statistician but are u equally a mathmatician? If so add up all those possible break situations. Lol too tough for me. At first I thought it was 8^8 then I thought it was 8x7x6x5...... But now I think I don't know how to figure it out at all lol
Click to expand...

As I said in post #1, it would be in the thousands. It just depends on how many alternatives you want to count for each of the bulleted categories I listed. Then multiply all those counts together.

E.g., if you had 6 pairs of pants, 8 shirts, and 5 pairs of shoes, you'd have 6x8x5 = 240 "outfits" (even though some of the choices might not go so well with some of the others).
 
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barrymuch90 said:
And ur obviously quite the statistician but are u equally a mathmatician? If so add up all those possible break situations. Lol too tough for me. At first I thought it was 8^8 then I thought it was 8x7x6x5...... But now I think I don't know how to figure it out at all lol
Click to expand...

I'll take a stab at it...

3x6x2x2x3x2x2 = 864 different ways to rack and break 9-ball.

Wow.
 
AtLarge said:
I was asked today "how many different ways to rack 9-ball are currently out there."

I'll expand the response a bit to including both racking and breaking requirements. The variations are numerous.

• who racks -- breaker, non-breaker, non-breaker unless both players agree to rack-your-own, or third party (with or without inspection allowed)
• type of rack -- triangle (wood, plastic, metal), template (multiple types, such as the Magic Rack and Accu-Rack), and tapping the table (pre-set dimples in the cloth)
• location of the rack -- 1-ball on the foot-string spot or 9-ball on the foot-string spot
• location of balls in the rack -- random or pattern racking, with or without the 2-ball in back

And then the breaking variations include:
• who breaks -- winner, loser, alternating
• breaking location -- anywhere behind the head string or anywhere within a break box (various sizes)
• what constitutes a legal break -- making a ball or driving 4 balls to a rail vs. also having a "Three-Point Rule" (where at least 3 balls must either be pocketed or reach a certain point on the table, such as the side pockets or the head string)
• whether making the 9-ball on the break counts as a win -- yes (in any pocket vs. just in certain pockets) or no

So if you count the number of alternatives in each line above, and multiply them together, the number of possible variations is in the thousands ..... It's a mad, mad world!

Racking the 9-ball on the spot is being done more and more. Events now doing it include the Eurotour events, the Mosconi Cup, the World Cup, the U.S. Open 9-Ball Championship, the China Open, and (starting this year) the WPA World 9-Ball Championship. The hold-outs for the 1-ball on the spot include the Derby City Classic 9-Ball event and the Joss Tour events.

Here's a list of the racking/breaking rules used in 9 events I watched in 2015 and 2016 (shown in reverse chronological order). [It would be easier to compare the events if I had used a spreadsheet format, but it was easier for me to do quickly as shown here.] Note that no two of these events were the same for all 8 of these requirements.

Turning Stone XXVI
Who racks -- loser
Type of rack -- wooden triangle
Location of rack -- 1-ball on spot
2-ball must be in back? -- no
Who breaks -- winner
Breaking location -- box 2 diamonds wide
3-point rule? -- no
9-ball on break is a win? -- yes

2016 China Open
Who racks -- referee
Type of rack -- template
Location of rack -- 9-ball on spot
2-ball must be in back? -- no
Who breaks -- alternating
Breaking location -- anywhere behind head string
3-point rule? -- yes, using head string
9-ball on break is a win? -- I don't know

2016 WPA World 9-Ball Championship
Who racks -- breaker in some, referee in some
Type of rack -- Magic Rack template
Location of rack -- 9-ball on foot spot
2-ball must be in back? -- yes
Who breaks -- alternating
Breaking location -- anywhere behind head string
3-point rule? -- yes, using head string
9-ball on break is a win? -- yes

2016 Don Coates Memorial 9-Ball
Who racks -- breaker
Type of rack -- wooden and metal triangles
Location of rack -- 9-ball on spot
2-ball must be in back? -- no
Who breaks -- alternating
Breaking location -- anywhere behind head string
3-point rule? -- yes, using side pockets
9-ball on break is a win? -- no

2016 Derby City Classic
Who racks -- breaker
Type of rack -- wooden triangle
Location of rack -- 1-ball on spot
2-ball must be in back? -- no
Who breaks -- winner
Breaking location -- anywhere behind head string
3-point rule? -- no
9-ball on break is a win? -- yes

2015 Mosconi Cup
Who racks -- referee
Type of rack -- triangle
Location of rack -- 9-ball on spot
2-ball must be in back? -- no
Who breaks -- alternating
Breaking location -- anywhere behind head string
3-point rule? -- no
9-ball on break is a win? -- yes

2015 U.S. Open Championship
Who racks -- breaker
Type of rack -- Accu-Rack template
Location of rack -- 9-ball on spot
2-ball must be in back? -- yes
Who breaks -- winner
Breaking location -- narrow box (about 9" each way)
3-point rule? -- yes, using side pockets (to be changed to head string for 2016)
9-ball on break is a win? -- yes, at least in top 4 pockets (not sure of bottom 2)

2015 World Cup of Pool
Who racks -- referee
Type of rack -- wooden triangle
Location of rack -- 9-ball on spot
2-ball must be in back? -- no
Who breaks -- winner
Breaking location -- anywhere behind head string
3-point rule? -- no
9-ball on break is a win? -- yes

2015 Big Tyme Classic 9-Ball (7-foot tables)
Who racks -- breaker
Type of rack -- wooden triangle
Location of rack -- 1-ball on spot
2-ball must be in back? -- no
Who breaks -- alternating
Breaking location -- anywhere behind head string
3-point rule? -- no
9-ball on break is a win? -- yes, except in two foot-rail pockets
Click to expand...

Good stuff, Atlarge
For the China Open, golden break is a win :)
Wu made golden break to lead 2-1 in final v Kevin Cheng
Around 16th min
https://youtube.com/watch?v=QeHcSyLMxdE
 
spartan said:
Good stuff, Atlarge
For the China Open, golden break is a win :)
Wu made golden break to lead 2-1 in final v Kevin Cheng
Around 16th min
https://youtube.com/watch?v=QeHcSyLMxdE
Click to expand...

Thanks, spartan. I'll edit post #1 to so indicate. I haven't watched enough of those matches yet to see a 9 on the break. I kind of gave up watching them live because of the streaming difficulties.

The one by Wu in your link went in the side pocket. Do you know whether they also counted in the foot-rail pockets? I'd guess "yes" since a ref was racking.
 
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Cardigan Kid said:
I'll take a stab at it...

3x6x2x2x3x2x2 = 864 different ways to rack and break 9-ball.

Wow.
Click to expand...

But you could count more alternatives for several (most, perhaps) of those categories, and that will raise the result considerably.
 
AtLarge said:
Thanks, spartan. I'll edit post #1 to so indicate. I haven't watched enough of those matches yet to see a 9 on the break. I kind of gave up watching them live because of the streaming difficulties.

The one by Wu in your link went in the side pocket. Do you know whether they also counted in the foot-rail pockets? I'd guess "yes" since a ref was racking.
Click to expand...

Not sure about the pockets
Genipool has semis and final up on YouTube .
Too bad does not have that Ko-Alex quarterfinal which was a thriller. Alex was on hill and at table 10-8 and the stream froze. Tot Alex win it but Ko somehow miraculously won that rack, broke Alex break in next rack and then won match on his break :D
https://youtube.com/user/genipool14
 
AtLarge,
On the break, is it the base of the cue ball or the entire cue ball behind the headstring?

J/k, you did great. Thanks for showing the many variables.

JoeyA
 
A small addition....

I think at one Mosconi Cup the rack was one row above the spot or half way between the one on the spot and the nine on the spot. Or I could be confused.
 
As a follow-up to already a wealth of information on this thread...

Of the major regional 9-ball tours in the USA and around the world, what type of rack and break rules to they follow?

We know the Joss Northeast, but what about the Euro tour, Falcon Tour (Canada), predator pro-am, southwest, etc??
 
AtLarge said:
As I said in post #1, it would be in the thousands. It just depends on how many alternatives you want to count for each of the bulleted categories I listed. Then multiply all those counts together.

E.g., if you had 6 pairs of pants, 8 shirts, and 5 pairs of shoes, you'd have 6x8x5 = 240 "outfits" (even though some of the choices might not go so well with some of the others).
Click to expand...

Are you one of those people who require left shoe matches right? How limiting!
 
mikepage said:
Are you one of those people who require left shoe matches right? How limiting!
Click to expand...

OK, OK. So if I have to put a left shoe on my left foot and a right shoe on my right foot, but they don't have to match, then I've got 6x8x5x5 = 1200 outfits.

And if I can stand the possibility of wearing a left shoe on my right foot or a right shoe on my left foot, then I've got 6x8x10x9 = 4320 outfits.

I'll have to speak with my spouse about this.
 
Cardigan Kid said:
As a follow-up to already a wealth of information on this thread...

Of the major regional 9-ball tours in the USA and around the world, what type of rack and break rules to they follow?

We know the Joss Northeast, but what about the Euro tour, Falcon Tour (Canada), predator pro-am, southwest, etc??
Click to expand...

By checking rules on websites and watching some videos of matches, I have gleaned most of the information for several additional tours. If anyone can help fill in the missing info (or finds errors) or can add info for other tours or significant events, please let me know and I'll add it to the list.

Mezz West State Tour
Who racks -- breaker
Type of rack -- template
Location of rack -- 1-ball on spot
2-ball must be in back? -- yes (otherwise, no pattern racking)
Who breaks -- alternating
Breaking location -- anywhere behind head string
3-point rule? -- foul unless make a ball or 4 balls pass side pockets
9-ball on break is a win? -- no

Predator Tour (amateur rules here for 9-Ball, as open/pro events are 10-Ball)
Who racks -- breaker
Type of rack -- triangle
Location of rack -- 1-ball on spot
2-ball must be in back? -- no
Who breaks -- winner
Breaking location -- anywhere behind head string
3-point rule? -- no, but "no soft breaks"
9-ball on break is a win? -- no (and 9-ball must be called after break)

Eurotour
Who racks -- loser
Type of rack -- tapped table
Location of rack -- 9-ball on spot
2-ball must be in back? -- no
Who breaks -- alternating
Breaking location -- anywhere behind head string
3-point rule? -- yes, using head string
9-ball on break is a win? -- ?

Falcon Cues Quebec Tour (9-Ball with 10-Ball call-shot rules)
Who racks -- breaker
Type of rack -- triangle
Location of rack -- 1-ball on spot
2-ball must be in back? -- yes
Who breaks -- alternating
Breaking location -- box 2 diamonds wide
3-point rule? -- ?
9-ball on break is a win? -- no
 
This information is excellent, and many thanks for the tour information as well, AtLarge
Maybe someday, there will be one way to rule them all.
 
I know the APA is just a pool league, but it is the biggest in the world supposedly. In APA 9 ball, if your break isn't legal, meaning 3 balls don't hit the rail or a ball is pocketed, same person breaks again, and can do that as many times as necessary, BUT if it's an illegal break and you scratch you lose the break to your opponent. Just another variation for you.
 
I think the number of different combinations is 8 to the power of how many tourneys you have listed.
 
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