The Curse Of One Pocket.

landon shuffet for me summed it up perfectly when he was commentating in the action report coverage of the dcc. he said that he really likes the game and he's eager to learn it, but he's glad he got his nine ball/10 ball game fully devoloped first because it's developed his stroke. with one pocket, it's just bunting the balls a little bit all the time. "bunting and bunting and bunting, then when you have to shoot a mid range shot you tighten up!"

i am definitely a one pocket convert though, i'd never seen much of it before the DCC and now it looks like an excellent game. i still haven't played it, but i can see how it can have negative effects on your shotmaking.
 
Also, one other serious downside is concentration. In 1H, you will seldom be called on to run 8 and out. So there is a lot of shoot 1 or 2 balls and punt. Then go sit down. Sip your drink. Smoke a cigarette. And then go back to the table and shoot another safe. Then go sit down. Etc, etc. This is a cycle of brief periods of concentration. Conversely, in 9-ball, you are frequently called on (i.e., virtually every game) to shoot many shots in a row. If you haven't been "maintaining" your concentration, your mind might end up wandering about 4 balls into a run, and you miss. Not because your shooting skills are rusty, but because your brain is ready to sit down.
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actually one of the things that made me want to try some one pocket was seeing the constant exchange of shots, almost like a battle of minds. 9 ball, usually you have to wait for your opponent to run a few balls. although granted that's not much, i'm just impatient. :D
 
You are right again JoeyA. Ever since I started playing more one pocket than 9-ball, my rotation games have slipped. It is definitely the different types of strokes used. I will say that my safety play has improved though. I need to play 9-ball for a few hours before I feel comfortable again.

I don't regret starting one pocket at all. I like it much more than any other games. Like someone else already stated, it is a battle of the minds! A battle of the minds with a little pool thrown on top:D I think I am going to stick with it for a while.......especially since I can now pick Grady's brain anytime I want.

ERIC
 
This belongs in the "Pool Excuses" thread.

JMO

I can lay claim to having bad eyes that to date are not correctable to a clear 20/20.

I can lay claim that being tired affects your game...

I can lay claim that having a job affects my play...(For others the type of job affects their play...If you work construction all day and your dead beat it has to affect your game right?)

I just don't see playing 1-pocket as anything more than an excuse for bad 9-ball play...

My opinion is....If you practice "pool" you will play ALL the games well...

Sure there will be moves and strategies that need to be learned for specific games, but for the most part...just practice pool and you will be fine...
 
Joey, I would be very interested to know what you perceive as being the weakest parts of your 9-ball game. I would expect someone who plays very good one-pocket, as you apparently do, to run 9-ball racks with ease when presented with an open shot, and to also have a slight edge over non-one-holers with regard to overall strategy. I'm not a terrific one-pocket or 9-ball player, but I do know that playing one-pocket has undoubtedly spurred improvement in these aspects of my 9-ball game.

On the other hand, I can also see where a very good one-pocket player would expect his/her prowess at that, much more difficult, game to automatically translate to a "rack-stringing" level of play at 9-ball. One potential difficulty, and I think the main one, with this expectation, however, is the unfortunate premium that 9-ball puts on the break shot, and even a great 1p player is not going to regularly string 9-ball racks if they are hindered by an ineffective break shot.

So, again, I would be interested to know what part(s) of your 9-ball game aren't working. It may be something you can fix without too much effort.

Good luck,

Aaron
 
JoeyA said:
One pocket has been recongnized by many as the best of the pool games for various reasons. It is a great gambling game and involves skills from different disciplines such as banking, kicking, safety play, creative shots and shot making as well. For me and many who have taken the time to learn the game it is by far the most interesting. As a gambling game it is easy to hide one's speed and barely beat your opponent if they lack all of the experience that is necessary to play the game.

While I have never been a great player, I have had the honor to give some of the top players fits on occasion, especially in tournaments and small money matches with the right spot. A working man has trouble achieving the highest honors in pool but I won't make excuses for that. It is what I chose to do. Pool is a wonderful hobby that I take very seriously and I enjoy it immensely at least when I can see semi-positive results from my efforts.

All that being said, I have come to a personal conclusion and it may not be one that most agree with but I think that if you choose to play one pocket as your game of choice, you will never be a very good nine ball player and vice versa. I have seen many good nine ball players get beat in one pocket by players who couldn't run three racks of nine ball if their life depended on it. I have always tried to play different disciplines with a modest amount of skill. After years of attempts to play the best one pocket I am capable of I have become convinced that this attempt to play the best one pocket has come at a cost. The cost comes in the form of poor nine ball play. I have on occasion played fairly decent nine ball but for the most part have always failed to play up to what I THINK is my ability in nine ball. I believe that my ability to play one pocket, inhibits my ability to play nine ball so for a period of three months I plan to discontinue playing one pocket and will make attempts to play only nine ball and straight pool to see if I can achieve better results with my nine ball game. If my nine ball game was even close to my one pocket game, I wouldn't attempt to discontinue playing one pocket because I truly love the game. As an amateur player, while I may lack the consistency of the pros I still can be competitive at one pocket but I cannot say the same thing about nine ball and so I plan to do this experiment.

I have witnessed many pool players who's game is nine ball and when they switch to playing one pocket, their nine ball game suffers immensely. For one pocket players when they attempt to become nine ball players they revert back to being one pocket players. The stroke that it takes to play one pocket and the skills that it takes to play one pocket are different from each other. For amateurs, I think one pocket is a better game because if you learn the moves and safety play you can compete even if you are not constantly in stroke. With nine ball, you have to not only develop and maintain a different type of stroke, you must have a different mentality about the game.

You can name many players who have played one pocket well and most of them cannot play nine ball at the same level. It is the curse of one pocket. I hope that in three months I will be able to increase my level of play at nine ball to the point where I can be comfortable with that game and continue playing both games. At this point in time, I am disgusted with my speed at nine ball and am almost ready to quit the game altogether. It is really disgusting to play 50% worse at one game over another. Anyway, I'm going to give it a shot and see if I can discover any new Epiphanies.

Any advice will be appreciated. I'm open to all suggestions from the bangers to the best players on AZ.

Thanks,
JoeyA
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Very true. I've been a 9-ball player for years but began as a rotation player early on. I have been playing 1P for a little over a year and have picked up the game decently enough to play at par with the locally know 1P players in my area. One thing I noticed though is that I have tremendously improved my 9-ball safety play ever since picking up 1P.

In response to your post though, here's what I've been doing so as not to lose my 9B game while getting immersed in 1P. In my area, there is a good 1P player that was a mediocre 9B player. Since my 9B is stronger than my 1P game, I propositioned this 1P guy to play alternate 10B and 1P game for $20 a game. Alternating 1P & 10B games keep my brain and muscles sharp. Mind you though, it's rather exhausting mentally since you alter playing styles and toggle between defensive and offensive play. Sometimes to make things more exciting, we throw in rotation, 8-ball and bank pool last pocket.

Personally, I think this is one event that should be thrown in DCC. Anyone who wins this is truly the ALL-AROUND champ. Imagine, putting five games in sequence for a match and an event win? :rolleyes:
 
JoeyA said:
One pocket has been recongnized by many as the best of the pool games for various reasons. It is a great gambling game and involves skills from different disciplines such as banking, kicking, safety play, creative shots and shot making as well. For me and many who have taken the time to learn the game it is by far the most interesting. As a gambling game it is easy to hide one's speed and barely beat your opponent if they lack all of the experience that is necessary to play the game.

While I have never been a great player, I have had the honor to give some of the top players fits on occasion, especially in tournaments and small money matches with the right spot. A working man has trouble achieving the highest honors in pool but I won't make excuses for that. It is what I chose to do. Pool is a wonderful hobby that I take very seriously and I enjoy it immensely at least when I can see semi-positive results from my efforts.

All that being said, I have come to a personal conclusion and it may not be one that most agree with but I think that if you choose to play one pocket as your game of choice, you will never be a very good nine ball player and vice versa. I have seen many good nine ball players get beat in one pocket by players who couldn't run three racks of nine ball if their life depended on it. I have always tried to play different disciplines with a modest amount of skill. After years of attempts to play the best one pocket I am capable of I have become convinced that this attempt to play the best one pocket has come at a cost. The cost comes in the form of poor nine ball play. I have on occasion played fairly decent nine ball but for the most part have always failed to play up to what I THINK is my ability in nine ball. I believe that my ability to play one pocket, inhibits my ability to play nine ball so for a period of three months I plan to discontinue playing one pocket and will make attempts to play only nine ball and straight pool to see if I can achieve better results with my nine ball game. If my nine ball game was even close to my one pocket game, I wouldn't attempt to discontinue playing one pocket because I truly love the game. As an amateur player, while I may lack the consistency of the pros I still can be competitive at one pocket but I cannot say the same thing about nine ball and so I plan to do this experiment.

I have witnessed many pool players who's game is nine ball and when they switch to playing one pocket, their nine ball game suffers immensely. For one pocket players when they attempt to become nine ball players they revert back to being one pocket players. The stroke that it takes to play one pocket and the skills that it takes to play one pocket are different from each other. For amateurs, I think one pocket is a better game because if you learn the moves and safety play you can compete even if you are not constantly in stroke. With nine ball, you have to not only develop and maintain a different type of stroke, you must have a different mentality about the game.

You can name many players who have played one pocket well and most of them cannot play nine ball at the same level. It is the curse of one pocket. I hope that in three months I will be able to increase my level of play at nine ball to the point where I can be comfortable with that game and continue playing both games. At this point in time, I am disgusted with my speed at nine ball and am almost ready to quit the game altogether. It is really disgusting to play 50% worse at one game over another. Anyway, I'm going to give it a shot and see if I can discover any new Epiphanies.

Any advice will be appreciated. I'm open to all suggestions from the bangers to the best players on AZ.

Thanks,
JoeyA
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I am primarily a rotation ball player. I've even felt in the past that practicing straight pool was bad for my 9 ball game (although now I feel differently). I found I had to practice both games if I wanted to stay in stroke for both games.

My thinking is once you get in stroke for 9 ball again, you will find you can go back and play one pocket without hurting your nine ball game as long as you keep up 9 ball practice. In my mind, the issue is not that one pocket hurts your 9 ball game. What hurts your 9 ball game is not practicing 9 ball enough.

With 9 ball, you have to be in stroke to play well. What makes 9 ball so difficult is the leaves. A player misses and might leave a long, difficult shot with difficult shape - and you really have to pull these shots off, get in line and get out. You really have to be in stroke to play long shots and difficult shape, especially on today's tight tables.

I think in a few weeks you will be back in 9 ball stroke and all your games will improve. I want to learn more about one pocket myself - I watched the Shane/Justin Cone match and decided it looks like an interesting game.

Chris
 
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JoeyA said:
All that being said, I have come to a personal conclusion and it may not be one that most agree with but I think that if you choose to play one pocket as your game of choice, you will never be a very good nine ball player and vice versa.
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"A man has got to know his limitations." - (Dirty) Harry Callahan :D
 
Aaron_S said:
Joey, I would be very interested to know what you perceive as being the weakest parts of your 9-ball game. I would expect someone who plays very good one-pocket, as you apparently do, to run 9-ball racks with ease when presented with an open shot, and to also have a slight edge over non-one-holers with regard to overall strategy. I'm not a terrific one-pocket or 9-ball player, but I do know that playing one-pocket has undoubtedly spurred improvement in these aspects of my 9-ball game.

On the other hand, I can also see where a very good one-pocket player would expect his/her prowess at that, much more difficult, game to automatically translate to a "rack-stringing" level of play at 9-ball. One potential difficulty, and I think the main one, with this expectation, however, is the unfortunate premium that 9-ball puts on the break shot, and even a great 1p player is not going to regularly string 9-ball racks if they are hindered by an ineffective break shot.

So, again, I would be interested to know what part(s) of your 9-ball game aren't working. It may be something you can fix without too much effort.

Good luck,

Aaron
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WOW!
I didn't expect this many responses and they are all appreciated. Aaron, to answer your question with brevity, it is the bottom line: I do not win as many matches playing nine ball against my peers as I do against my peers playing one pocket. I miss too many runouts in nine ball. I fail to complete the runouts that are practical. For me like many people who take up one pocket, my safety play in nine ball is better than most. Even my banking is better than most. So I guess it is really my ability to consistently pocket balls consecutively that is my main weakness. In one pocket hanging an object ball in the hole can be a god-send where in nine ball it is a curse.

I've had some lessons about patterns in nine ball and feel fairly confident about patterns so I don't think I suffer greatly in that area. Primarily, it is the inconsistency of running multiple racks in 9 ball that I suffer from. I'm not sure but I believe that it is a multi-facted problem.

One of the problems is of course as others have mentioned, is that in nine ball hanging up the object ball gets you busted whereas in one pocket it simply frustrates the hell out of your opponent as he doesn't always know if the hanging up of the ball was intentional or lucky but if the hanging object ball cannot be seen by the cue ball it doesn't really make any difference.

Another problems is simply the speed of stroke that is necessary in 9 ball. You often have to move the cue ball longer distances than in one pocket and for the most part it is a difference in speed of stroke. As others mentioned, the object ball speed can often be quite different as you cannot afford to have an object ball fail to fall into the pocket. With the tight Diamond tables faster speed of object ball presents a problem in 9 ball.

My mind was wondering just now as I was writing this post and I was thinking about the DCC 9 ball tournament which just finished. In the tournament, does anyone know for sure what the most number of racks that were run consecutively?

I briefly spoke to Jeanette Lee's original trainer, a fomer Olympic gymnast if I am not mistaken and he offered that 9 ball while a simple game, it was a very athletic game and required ample athletic skills. I wish that I had more time to discuss the subject with him. Maybe next time.

In the meantime, I will continue to read your posts to form a more informed opinion about my own problems in nine ball.

Jaden, I will make an exception for you since I made the committment to play some one pocket with you previous to my latest decision to put one pocket on the shelf, temporarily. I look forward to meeting you and hitting some balls with you. Maybe you can help me with my nine ball game.

Thanks and please keep the suggestions coming.

JoeyA
 
Hello Joey,

Again, it was great meeting you in Louisville. I wanted to toss in a more serious thought than my previous post.

I heard someone once asked Albert Einstein what the secret was to his exceptional brilliance, and he said "Well, when I'm tying my shoes, the only thing I'm thinking about is tying my shoes."

In a way, I think this is the key to being successful at different disciplines. You have to believe that you can set your thoughts aside for a moment and that they will be there when you get back to them. Much easier said than done of course, but if you don't believe you can do it, there is no chance for it to happen. However, if you can believe in the unbelievable, so to speak, you have a chance.

Again, much easier said than done, but you have to believe it's possible first.
 
Here's a little twist to this thread.
An acquaintance of mine complained today
that playing cueball in hand in 9 ball has ruined
his ability to shoot spot shots which in turn hurts his one pocket game.
Thoughts?
 
I would classify myself as a banger with some knowledge...

One Pocket teaches me to think about all my options...before I shoot.
to think about speed more,
to know that a soft hit can be as effective as a hard one.
To play the odds based on your skill level.
To know that making a ball isnt always the best option.

One pocket teaches me patience. If I cannot win this game..to wait for my next chance.

All these things help me to play 9 ball or 8 ball or 10 ball and even 3-Cushion sometimes.

When I am shooting well, I am a c-level player:rolleyes: ....so WATCHING pool has been more of a learning device for me because I do not have the chance to PLAY pool very often. I can usually give my friends headaches or the occasional challenge because of my knowledge of the game and not my shooting ability. One pocket I think instills the most amount of strategy in your head which you can use in ANY game.

One C-level players opinion. For what it is worth. :)
 
TATE said:
I am primarily a rotation ball player. I've even felt in the past that practicing straight pool was bad for my 9 ball game (although now I feel differently). I found I had to practice both games if I wanted to stay in stroke for both games.

My thinking is once you get in stroke for 9 ball again, you will find you can go back and play one pocket without hurting your nine ball game as long as you keep up 9 ball practice. In my mind, the issue is not that one pocket hurts your 9 ball game. What hurts your 9 ball game is not practicing 9 ball enough.

With 9 ball, you have to be in stroke to play well. What makes 9 ball so difficult is the leaves. A player misses and might leave a long, difficult shot with difficult shape - and you really have to pull these shots off, get in line and get out. You really have to be in stroke to play long shots and difficult shape, especially on today's tight tables.

I think in a few weeks you will be back in 9 ball stroke and all your games will improve. I want to learn more about one pocket myself - I watched the Shane/Justin Cone match and decided it looks like an interesting game.

Chris
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The unfortunate truth, Chris, is that I never learned to play nine ball at a decent level so my journey may be a difficullt one. I played 8 ball as a banger in bars gambling and winning most of the time. A little 6 ball with other bangers early on but other than that there wasn't much 9 ball in my earlier days, nothing serious anyway. At a relatively young age, I learned that if I kept my mouth shut, the gamblers would look at my ignorant self and offer me great weight in one pocket and if I could match up an even game with anyone, in a week or a month I would be able to win easily at that spot and so it went for a very long time. It is amazing how a coat and tie can affect poolplayers who have stealing on their mind. :D A steady paycheck and the willingness to gamble at one pocket clouds the thinking of those with larceny on their mind. :)

Temporarily I am going to give up on one pocket. I feel I can always come back to it. It will always be my favorite game. It will be interesting to see ifwhat positive changes can be made in my 9 ball game. I appreciate the thoughts and perspectives everyone has shared and will keep those thoughts in mind as I travel down this path. I like what you and td had to say and will try to remember your thoughts as I travel down this path.

Thanks everyone.
JoeyA
 
Hey Joey........Believe it or not, I've got a worse problem than you !....My 2 favorite games are 1 pocket and 3 cushion billiards - Trying to play your best at these 2 games on a regular basis, is similar to, but even worse, than your 1 pocket/9 ball dilemna....

I'm playing 3 cushion sessions, shooting a hundred miles an hour, and putting 3 tips of exotic english on every shot...........Now I switch over to 1 pocket and have to readjust myself to rolling balls slowly at pocket speed......The all too common result: Understroking billiard shots and coming up short of scoring the point - And using too much english and not shooting soft enough when playing 1 pocket....

....But I love these 2 games too much to ever stop playing either one, so I'll just roll merrily along, playing at about 93% of my capability at both games.....:(
 
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throughout this whole thread my biggest surprise is how many folks think one pocket is about "bunting" balls!? I try to play the game like Scotty Townsend, or Tony Chohan....more wide open, and "bunting" is rarely in my thoughts.:D
 
JoeyA said:
Another problems is simply the speed of stroke that is necessary in 9 ball. You often have to move the cue ball longer distances than in one pocket and for the most part it is a difference in speed of stroke.
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The problem is, you gettin' OLD, Holmes!!:D That aside, guys that play 8-ball and 14.1 well are likely to have a good feel for one-pocket. 9-ball is a completely different game spatially. In the non-rotation games a guy learns to work up close, oftentimes using a shorter bridge and grip, because there are many more medium to short length shots. In 9/10-ball a guy has to be able to move the cueball up and down the table like a ping-pong match, and routinely shoot shots with 4 or 5 diamonds in between the CB and OB.

But Joey, just get yourself some Geritol, and your 9-ball game will no doubt come up a little...

Doc
thinks 9-ball is over at 55
 
Joey, maybe some players suffer a temporary drop in their 9-Ball from focusing on One Pocket, but in general I totally disagree with you.

#1 If you have always been only a 9-Ball player, getting better acquainted with One Pocket HAS to round out your skills. Is that going to immediately translate into better 9-Ball? not necessarily, but in the long term if you work at whatever games you decide to focus on, you have to bring some of your One Pocket skills into the other games.

#2 You're totally overlooking all of us that NEVER were more than a decent 9-Ball player, yet we are able to develop into a much better than decent One Pocket player if we have the patience, the mind for the game, and the touch. Take me for example -- I never ran three racks of 9-Ball in my life; never got to be more than a strong 'B' player when I played 9-Ball all the time, and never even played One Pocket until I was close to forty years old. Yet, I was able to develop a real respectable One Pocket game -- way above my top 9-Ball level. The fact is, One Pocket is much better suited to my abilities than 9-Ball ever was, and I am not alone. Hell, I probably would have semi retired from pool, from depression over my declining skills, if it wasn't for One Pocket -- it gave me a second wind.

#3 Look at all the top One Pocket finishers at Derby City, for example -- now please point out to me those from that group that have ruined their other games playing One Pocket. I'm not seeing them; I'm seeing solid all around players, and a few One Pocket specialists who either never made much of a splash at 9-Ball, or whose best 9-Ball days are way behind them.

#4 Steve Cook is quoted in one of Eddie Robin's books:
"My advice to all one-pocket players, beginners and experts alike, is to work as hard on the easiest shots and moves as you would on the most difficult. This advice is not meant for games like straight pool, for example, where the better players continually pocket balls by the rack. Just playing that game will naturally keep them in stroke. In that game the player must relax wherever he can get away with it. Relaxing on the simple shots in one-pocket, on the other hand, is why so many get out of stroke.

Among the many reasons why I love one-pocket is that, even among professional level players, both sides get to play every game. More importantly, even after years of play you can still continue to learn more and more shots, moves, and strategies. It's the pool game for strategical and creative abilities."
Click to expand...

I know I couldn't say it better.

I can't believe you want to set aside a game you excel at to jump into a game designed for young eyes and a young stroke -- a game that is understandably dominated by young guns. No offense, but you've got no chance against that crew! Get a grip, man!!
 
1pocket said:
Joey, maybe some players suffer a temporary drop in their 9-Ball from focusing on One Pocket, but in general I totally disagree with you.

#1 If you have always been only a 9-Ball player, getting better acquainted with One Pocket HAS to round out your skills. Is that going to immediately translate into better 9-Ball? not necessarily, but in the long term if you work at whatever games you decide to focus on, you have to bring some of your One Pocket skills into the other games.

#2 You're totally overlooking all of us that NEVER were more than a decent 9-Ball player, yet we are able to develop into a much better than decent One Pocket player if we have the patience, the mind for the game, and the touch. Take me for example -- I never ran three racks of 9-Ball in my life; never got to be more than a strong 'B' player when I played 9-Ball all the time, and never even played One Pocket until I was close to forty years old. Yet, I was able to develop a real respectable One Pocket game -- way above my top 9-Ball level. The fact is, One Pocket is much better suited to my abilities than 9-Ball ever was, and I am not alone. Hell, I probably would have semi retired from pool, from depression over my declining skills, if it wasn't for One Pocket -- it gave me a second wind.

#3 Look at all the top One Pocket finishers at Derby City, for example -- now please point out to me those from that group that have ruined their other games playing One Pocket. I'm not seeing them; I'm seeing solid all around players, and a few One Pocket specialists who either never made much of a splash at 9-Ball, or whose best 9-Ball days are way behind them.

#4 Steve Cook is quoted in one of Eddie Robin's books:

I know I couldn't say it better.

I can't believe you want to set aside a game you excel at to jump into a game designed for young eyes and a young stroke -- a game that is understandably dominated by young guns. No offense, but you've got no chance against that crew! Get a grip, man!!
Click to expand...
----------------------

Stevie, me boy. I currently have 20/15 in one eye and 20/20 in the other. Most of the young ones don't have that good of vision. I don't want to talk about stamina and their nerve/devil may come attitude.

It's not the destination, it's the journey.

It is up to each man to work out his own salvation.


JoeyA
 
I'm sure you'll get it figured out, Joey. One thing that this thread confirms in my mind, though, is that 9-ball, while a simple game on the surface, does have it's little subtleties. The game is heavily criticized for it's shortcomings, and boy does it have some doozies in that department, but there still is something a little bit unique about the game, and I think that uniqueness will give the game longevity far beyond what some might expect.

A theory that states that an accomplished one-pocket player should have no problem converting to 9-ball is one that, at least on paper, would seem to hold water, but there obviously is a little something more required, whether it be the mental approach to the game, the different "strokes" that some players speak of, or what have you. It may simply come down to adjusting your percentages based on a slightly different strategy. Just the fact that there is such a thing as a "good miss" in one-pocket is enough to require slightly differing strategical approaches to the games, IMO.

Best of luck,

Aaron
 
JoeyA said:
One pocket has been recongnized by many as the best of the pool games for various reasons.

........I have become convinced that this attempt to play the best one pocket has come at a cost. The cost comes in the form of poor nine ball play.




Any advice will be appreciated. I'm open to all suggestions from the bangers to the best players on AZ.

Thanks,
JoeyA
Click to expand...

JA,
Though I am going to have to disagree with your estimate of one pocket as the "best game" (everyone knows that 14.1 IS the best game:) ); I will lend a banger's viewpoint (though I have discussed them extensively with some of the best players in the world, and some of the best coaches as well).

The skills necessary in one-pocket are in great part specific to the game. Lagging balls into a pocket, ducking tough shots, eliminating balls from near a pocket are all skills that will help you only very little when playing other games. The soft banking in one pocket is occasionally helpful in other games; but you will see the best bank pool players firmly striking most of their banks. Even the safety play in one pocket is specific to the game; though proficiency will carry over to some degree to other games

In addition, one pocket allows the player the luxury of NOT improving his pocketing skills, while still maintaining a semblance of competence at the game. It is a game that allows you to often duck tough shots and situations, a game that allows you to pretend you meant to "just get it close to the hole", and a game that puts a premium on specialized knowledge of common situations. This is NOT a combination of attributes that is designed to improve your performance in any other pool game. It is a fun game however.

As Bob Carmen pointed out to you, nine ball is definitely a game that requires more "athletic" shotmaking - situations arise in which you must shoot difficult shots (the safety is tougher than the shot); often many difficult shots in a row. This "shotmaker's mentality" is something that takes significant time to develop. If this the game in which you wish to excel, then one pocket is not the way to prepare.

My personal bias is that you should be working on specific drills to strengthen the area's weakened by playing one pocket; and on playing more rotation games and STRAIGHT POOL. The mental pressure involved in playing straight pool for money is not really obtainable in other games; and is an invaluable way to develop your pocketing ability (which is already quite excellent, but can ALWAYS improve). As you will see, that last half hour of any decent straight pool match becomes a pressure cooker in which every shot becomes difficult (there is really no equivalent in nine ball; where misses often turn out well, and the pressure situations are measured in minutes rather than hours). The best straight pool players are RELENTLESS ball pocketers who learn to pocket balls for long periods of time under significant pressure. This definitely helps them in all games (including one pocket).

Good luck with your program.
 
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