SVB wrong shot Choice ?

Island Drive

Otto/Dads College Roommate/Cleveland Browns
Silver Member


At the 10:26 mark, when SVB made his shot choice, it was the wrong shot, and not because of his results....I saw it right off before he got down on the shot...I then watched him pull the trigger.
His best shot was to cut the two ball to the left putting the 2 up table and back into the bottom of the up table balls.... and lay whitey down below the 5 on the foot rail which also had the 10 ball in line to block any jump shot attempt.
 
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ChrisinNC

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member


At the 10:26 mark, when SVB made his shot choice, it was the wrong shot, and not because of his results....I saw it right off before he got down on the shot...I then watched him pull the trigger.
His best shot was to cut the two ball to the left putting the 2 up table and back into the bottom of the up table balls.... and lay whitey down below the 5 on the foot rail which also had the 10 ball in line to block any jump shot attempt.
Obviously there were multiple good safety options, either running the 2 ball down the table as you suggest, or cutting it thin on the left and running the cue ball down the table.

He wouldn’t have decided to shoot the combo on the 9 unless he really thought it was a high percentage shot and that he was going to make it. He likely makes that shot over 80% of the time and it was obvious from his body language when he missed it that he didn’t expect to miss it.
 

ShootingArts

Smorg is giving St Peter the 7!
Gold Member
Silver Member
I never like to say somebody took the wrong shot. Only the person with the cue in their hand can say what is the best shot selection for them at the moment. For me the shot on the one would have been the mistake. Looked to me like he could have gotten better shape. The voice from the peanut gallery. As many a commentator has said, "I never missed a ball in the booth!"
 

slugbait

New member


At the 10:26 mark, when SVB made his shot choice, it was the wrong shot, and not because of his results....I saw it right off before he got down on the shot...I then watched him pull the trigger.
His best shot was to cut the two ball to the left putting the 2 up table and back into the bottom of the up table balls.... and lay whitey down below the 5 on the foot rail which also had the 10 ball in line to block any jump shot attempt.
Any time you let your opponent back to the table you're taking a chance. At the pro level it's probably a bad idea if it can be avoided. That he missed an easy shot is the problem here.
 

Swighey

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I never like to say somebody took the wrong shot. Only the person with the cue in their hand can say what is the best shot selection for them at the moment. For me the shot on the one would have been the mistake. Looked to me like he could have gotten better shape. The voice from the peanut gallery. As many a commentator has said, "I never missed a ball in the booth!"
Agree. The 2-9 combo looks like a reasonable percentage shot for me, higher percentage for a good player and much higher for a player of Shane's calibre. It's all too easy to criticise players when they miss a shot but care less about whether they have played a sub-optimal shot when they make it and get shape.

I would play it that way every time against the opponents I play against because I would still win some of the time if I miss. Against an elite player I might consider playing safe because I would lose every single time if I missed.
 

jay helfert

Shoot Pool, not people
Gold Member
Silver Member


At the 10:26 mark, when SVB made his shot choice, it was the wrong shot, and not because of his results....I saw it right off before he got down on the shot...I then watched him pull the trigger.
His best shot was to cut the two ball to the left putting the 2 up table and back into the bottom of the up table balls.... and lay whitey down below the 5 on the foot rail which also had the 10 ball in line to block any jump shot attempt.
Would it have been the wrong choice if he made the nine ball? He barely missed it, and I would bet he makes it well over half the time, and that's a winning percentage.
 

straightline

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Would it have been the wrong choice if he made the nine ball? He barely missed it, and I would bet he makes it well over half the time, and that's a winning percentage.
IMO that's a hundred percenter. He just shot it on the fly half dialed in, half cocked. It's possible he was still trying to shake Ko's double take rhythm which I'm guessing might tend to modulate the opposition.
 

Cue Alchemist

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
You criticize one shot choice. When he ran most of the match. And it didn't cost him the rack. He played the shot he felt was right. Maybe that made him, focus. He didn't miss after that.other than playing safe. He Played some cracking shots!!!
 

Island Drive

Otto/Dads College Roommate/Cleveland Browns
Silver Member
I know some of you think I'm wrong and I'm ok to admit that, I expect that.

But I make posts like this to help others learn, there's more than one way, and often a better way/shot choice to win.

I'm not afraid to be called out, I can learn from that. BUT

By shooting the combo he had to control 3 balls with shape of the 2 ball and the cue ball angle....to get back to the 3.

Cutting the two ball up table, and rolling the cue ball naturally to the bottom rail behind the 5 had a much higher percentage than controlling the combo shot.

Cutting the 2 up table and laying Whitey on the bottom rail behind the 5 is a ''cinch'' shot for a player of Shanes capability.

DD I knew a poster would say Exactly what you said and that's ok, but keep in mind, the worlds best player at my time Nick Varner was taught by an older man who did not have anywhere near Nicks skill level.

Many of the worlds greatest golfers, learn from others who have no where near their skill level, but they have knowledge and perspectives of shot situations that they don't.

When Shane cued up on the one ball to get to the 2, I thought he should of ''spin cut'' the one ball and come two rails outta the corner to get shape on the 2 ball in the other corner, but since it was early in the match, and Shane was not ''settled in'' he rolled whitey up the long rail to the two, to make sure he would not get hooked, makes sense, it was the beginning of play.
 
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David in FL

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Not a terribly difficult shot, with an open table afterwards. Shape on the 2 was pretty much cinched if the 9 goes. The only reason the 2 even touched the 8 was because of the miss.

I don’t know that the shot was any more difficult than the safe and my own philosophy is that, all things being equal, I’m usually going to choose the option that is more likely to keep me at the table…
 

philly

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
A player of Shane's caliber makes that combination 4 times out of 5 attempts.
Score was tied 1 to 1 in a race to 13 and plenty of balls on the table.
Plenty of time left in the match.
These guys play excellent 14.1 and one pocket and you need to combinate balls in both of those
games to stay at the table, continue your run.
Shane has a different confidence level about making combinations than most average players.
It was the correct shot all day long and I bet if he had to do it over again he would go for the combo again.
I am sure Shane saw a number of safeties to play.
He was feeling the combo and decided to stay offensive.
We've all been there.
 
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jtompilot

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Its always a poor shot when you miss LOL. If Shane makes the combo its a simple runout from there.
 

straightline

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I know some of you think I'm wrong and I'm ok to admit that, I expect that.

But I make posts like this to help others learn, there's more than one way, and often a better way/shot choice to win.

I'm not afraid to be called out, I can learn from that. BUT

By shooting the combo he had to control 3 balls with shape of the 2 ball and the cue ball angle....to get back to the 3.

Cutting the two ball up table, and rolling the cue ball naturally to the bottom rail behind the 5 had a much higher percentage than controlling the combo shot.

Cutting the 2 up table and laying Whitey on the bottom rail behind the 5 is a ''cinch'' shot for a player of Shanes capability.

DD I knew a poster would say Exactly what you said and that's ok, but keep in mind, the worlds best player at my time Nick Varner was taught by an older man who did not have anywhere near Nicks skill level.

Many of the worlds greatest golfers, learn from others who have no where near their skill level, but they have knowledge and perspectives of shot situations that they don't.

When Shane cued up on the one ball to get to the 2, I thought he should of ''spin cut'' the one ball and come two rails outta the corner to get shape on the 2 ball in the other corner, but since it was early in the match, and Shane was not ''settled in'' he rolled whitey up the long rail to the two, to make sure he would not get hooked, makes sense, it was the beginning of play.
Sound logic but in perpective, it was a routine pre-tournament sparring session. Gotta get the clams out for one. Make sure the motor runs... I imagine you know the schtick.
 

Island Drive

Otto/Dads College Roommate/Cleveland Browns
Silver Member
Yep, and it was early on, and is was not 12-12 in the final of a worlds I was well aware of that.
I also noticed Shane early on looking at the outlying tables/structures that seemed toooooooooo close to the cue butt when he was ''swingin it''.
 

skogstokig

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I know some of you think I'm wrong and I'm ok to admit that, I expect that.

But I make posts like this to help others learn, there's more than one way, and often a better way/shot choice to win.

I'm not afraid to be called out, I can learn from that. BUT

By shooting the combo he had to control 3 balls with shape of the 2 ball and the cue ball angle....to get back to the 3.

Cutting the two ball up table, and rolling the cue ball naturally to the bottom rail behind the 5 had a much higher percentage than controlling the combo shot.

Cutting the 2 up table and laying Whitey on the bottom rail behind the 5 is a ''cinch'' shot for a player of Shanes capability.

DD I knew a poster would say Exactly what you said and that's ok, but keep in mind, the worlds best player at my time Nick Varner was taught by an older man who did not have anywhere near Nicks skill level.

Many of the worlds greatest golfers, learn from others who have no where near their skill level, but they have knowledge and perspectives of shot situations that they don't.

When Shane cued up on the one ball to get to the 2, I thought he should of ''spin cut'' the one ball and come two rails outta the corner to get shape on the 2 ball in the other corner, but since it was early in the match, and Shane was not ''settled in'' he rolled whitey up the long rail to the two, to make sure he would not get hooked, makes sense, it was the beginning of play.

nothing wrong in analyzing a game situation. no pool player is a finished product. shane definitely acknowledges this and practices more than most.
 

maha

from way back when
Silver Member
the score of the match should have absolutely no effect on the determination of what your shot is.
if you shoot a shot with a lower % chance of winning that game, you lower your chances of winning the set. every time.

only the score or your position of that game can determine what your % chances of winning that game may be and you always shoot the shot that gives you best% chance of winning that game.
 
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alstl

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Very makeable shot. Perhaps he should have shot it a little harder to hide the cue ball in case he missed the combo - two way shot. At that level playing safe isn't always safe.
 
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CharlesUFarley

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I agree with most of the replies. I think the shot was a very high percentage one for Shane. Also, playing a safety successfully, especially against one of the best players on the planet, does not automatically guarantee that you'll win the game. The only way to guarantee that is to keep your guy in his chair.
 
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