Who Has Run 100?
- Thread starter drivermaker
- Start date
drivermaker said:
I've run a 6 pack twice in 9 ball...and lots of 2-4 packs..but only in the low 40's or so at straight pool. It's just an entire different animal. I seem to make a lot of stupid mistakes that prevent me from continueing the run. You have to put in a lot of straight pool practice to get those high runs. I have beaten people in straight pool who have higher runs than me just from playing smart...but it is a tough game. I'll take 9 ball or One pocket any day.
Steve Lipsky said:
Steve, over 100 opposite handed is the greatest feat I've ever heard. I don't know as I ever tried opposite handed but getting through one rack is possible. LOL I've run out 8 & 9 ball racks left handed and one handed on occasion though.
Obviously equipment makes a difference as mentioned. However it is my belief 14-1 wasn't meant to be played on super tight equipment. Just running over 50 in sticky conditions on regular pockets can be a big challenge.
In 92 when I took up this game again (after a 17 year lay off). I bought into a pool room with a long time friend. My partner built me up as dam good player. At that time I'd of felt embarrased not being able to run 3 friggin balls. Before I made my move back to Phoenix a friend just put in an older Brunswick but he had the pockets tripple shimmed! Wow, if you even touched a rail the ball ain't going. Not to mention the "funny" bounce off the rail near the pocket should you hit the shimmed part. Running two racks was a feat at first. I might be most proud of my 66 ball run on that table, that along with some 50's.
I think running balls in 14-1 gets to be somewhat second nature, at least it was for me. Just like running out nine ball racks there are patterns. With experience you know what works and what doesn't work and you keep yourself out of trouble.
My warm up used to be set up a break ball and run 50 (almost every day). I'd give myself 3 tries. I "never" failed to run 50. Most of them came right out of the box. I remember one day though (like it was yesterday) it took over 3 tries. I was mechanical all right, like an old rusted out Massy Ferguson hay bailer in need of some oil. What a struggle, I must have aged 5 years getting through that run.
Well enough babble, I think in the end you need to play all games to be a rounded player. If you just play nine ball, well that's what you play but your limiting yourself and abilities. My favorite games are/was Golf on a 12 footer, 9 ball, 14-1, with some one hole thrown in the mix.
Rod
Steve Lipsky said:
And thhat's one difference between you and me Steve. If I run 20 and play safe, I walk to my chair feeling smart, satisfied, and even a little smug. Whereas, when I run 80 and miss, I feel ... I feel... hmm... How would I feel?
mike page
fargo
mikepage said:
Hmm. I think it depends if the guy who is playing safe knows the secrets of safety play in 14.1. There are many players who don't have any idea how to win a safety battle. I don't feel uncomfortable playing tight safeties because I think I know a lot of moves and most of the time can outplay my opponents here in Finland in safety battles. But I'd still feel discomfort playing safe after 20 balls, I'd much rather play safe after 80 balls
Edit: My high is only 85, but I'm quite proud of it, because it was done in almost perfect manner, I think I didn't have any difficult shots and I didn't let the cueball loose in any shot. I ended up getting stuck in the rack at 85 after a miscalculated angle
And I tried a long 2-rail kick in-out from the kitchen at a ball about 1' away from the pocket (wanted to get a chance to run the 100). The object ball missed the pocket by 4" 
I think I try to play more straight pool from now on. It's a great practice for the concentration as well...
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drivermaker
Banned
mikepage said:
Like a guy that just ran 8 times more than he ever ran in his life???
mikepage said:
What it means is a little bit of risk for Steve L. can have big returns. The average player won't really capitalize and they would rather not take the risk of giving up the table. It is one of the things players like Steve Mizerak brought to the game. I saw him beat Crane and Crane reprimanded him loudly after the game for not playing safe when he should have, at least in Mr. Cranes opinion. He had shot a ball from the end rail after crane played a safe. You don't win 4 US opens in a row against the best players playing being a conservative.
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macguy said:
I will always duck if a shot leads no where, can not get a predictable shot afterwards or it is a low percentage. However in 9 ball I play somewhat different. I probably limit my runs but one of my games I play for money is 50 to 20 and doesn't make sense to reach. The guy runs 14 on me, he only needs 6 after that. The reason for the short game to 50 is it gives him an advantage of winning, just part of the spot.
I used to think that running 100 was a lot tougher than running a number of racks playing 9-ball (I'll use the number 5 since Drivermaker mentioned running 5 racks). I do think that it might take more skill to run 100 playing straight pool, but there is so much luck involved in running 5 (or more) racks that I find it difficult to say that running 100 is "tougher". The greatest 9-ball players out there don't run that many racks with as much frequency as the greatest straight pool players run 100 balls. It isn't because the 9-ball players can't run that many racks. It's just that they don't have a legitimate opportunity as often. You have to hit the balls well on the break and then get lucky on top of it. So, while I do think that it probably takes more skill to run 100 or more playing straight pool, I think it's easier for the great straight pool player to run that many balls than it is for the great 9-ball player to run a lot of racks because the great 9-ball player, in most cases, won't have the opportunities after the break to keep the run going.
When I gamble with Niels at straight pool we play to 100. He plays 100 no count, so if he doesn't run 100 he goes back to 0. I've beat him probably 3 or 4 times out of about 15.
drivermaker
Banned
Jimmy M. said:
I think the luck factor is exactly the reason why you can run 5 or more racks of 9 ball, AND it'll occur more frequently with players who aren't even pro caliber.
Running a rack of 9-ball is not really running a rack of 9-balls as running 100 in straight is actually running 100. When I did it a couple of times, as I'm sure you have, I played 5-ball one game...6-ball in another...and 7-ball in at least one or more.
Forget about the great straight pool players and the great 9-ball players. Look at everyday Joe's and shortstops. The frequency of multiple 9-ball runs vs. 100 ball runs in 14.1 gets turned around completely ass backwards from pro players.
Have YOU gotten your 100 ball run yet, and if so, how many times have you done it? I'm betting that you got some good numbers of 9-ball racks strung together though.
Steve Lipsky said:
For me, it's all focus. If I have a 'practice' race to 7 game after a match, I'm hopeless. I did that after my team won the 1/4 finals in the 9-ball League and I could hardly make a ball.
drivermaker said:
I have run 100 a few times playing straight pool. However, I'm not a straight pool player, so a lot had to happen right for me to do it. I do feel like, though, if I really knew how to play the game that I could run 100 more often than I could run a lot of racks. The most racks I've ever ran was 7 (9 on a bar table). I've run a handful of 5's and I don't know how many 4's, 3's, etc..
For me, running 100 is probably about the same as running 5 racks because, while we all need luck in 9-ball to run that many racks, I need luck in straight pool as well to make up for the fact that I just don't know the game all that well. If I were as familiar with straight pool as I am 9-ball, though, I feel like I could run 100 a lot easier because I could control a lot more of what was going on and less would be left up to chance.
I do agree, though, that if you take the average Joe, running 5 racks becomes an easier feat. My idea on that is that it's the same reason that I am saying what I'm saying: Luck. Luck keeps the great 9-ball players from running an endless amount of racks (well, that and the "human factor"), but it also allows the average Joe to string a respectable number of 9-ball racks every now and then. There isn't much luck in straight pool so you don't hear of the average Joe running 100 all that often - if ever.
So what has more luck. Having a shot after the break in 9-ball, or a shot after the break shot in Straight Pool?
Jimmy M. said:
I think a great 14.1 player does not rely on luck so much. I have seen many players run racks by reaching (low percentage shots), shooting bank shots, .. but the true 14.1 play just completely controls the cue ball and as mentioned by someone else, most shots are very simple ones. Opinion.
hobokenapa said:
Assuming a strong player is playing. Having a shot in 9 ball is more luck. Almost every break in straight yeilds a shot afterwards. Though I would say that the stronger 9 ball player has a better chance of entering 14.1 and doing well faster than the other way around.
hobokenapa said:
Having a shot after the break in 9-ball. You don't have to slop a ball in on the break in straight-pool to continue your inning. Not to mention, there is only 1 ball you can have a shot on in 9-ball after the break (the one ball). You only need a shot on one of the balls after the break in straight pool. There is very little luck in straight pool and very little luck in the break shot. The break shot in straight pool really isn't a case of whack-and-hope. You do hope, to some degree, I guess, but not nearly as much as in 9-ball.
Jimmy M. said:Having a shot after the break in 9-ball. You don't have to slop a ball in on the break in straight-pool to continue your inning. Not to mention, there is only 1 ball you can have a shot on in 9-ball after the break (the one ball). You only need a shot on one of the balls after the break in straight pool. There is very little luck in straight pool and very little luck in the break shot. The break shot in straight pool really isn't a case of whack-and-hope. You do hope, to some degree, I guess, but not nearly as much as in 9-ball.
I agree completely with Jimmy. I'd go so far as to say in 9-ball, you have to get lucky to have a shot after the break; in straight pool, you have to get unlucky to not have one.
There are things you can do in 9-ball to maximize your chances, but that's about it. Watch the BCA 2005 Men's Open finals. Archer loses 7-0 I think, breaking at least three times, and I don't think he ever had a shot after his break. If Archer can't do it on command, I don't think anyone can.
- Steve
99 and counting
I practice running balls on occassion and never got over 60. I hardly ever gamble at 14.1, but one time I ran 99 and out. I played a guy to 100 because we could not match up a 9 ball or 1 hole game. After his break shot I made 1 ball and played safe. He proceeded to run 36. After his miss, I ran 99 to win the game, and that is my highest run ever, most likely not to be bested. I can relate to Jimmy that quite a few things had to go right for me to do that, most notably the shot into the stack that caroms a ball into the bottom corner pocket that they show in "The Hustler". If I was in the middle of a 10 ball run, I probably would not have tried the shot. But at the time I had surpassed my high run of 50 something and was going for the gusto.
I practice running balls on occassion and never got over 60. I hardly ever gamble at 14.1, but one time I ran 99 and out. I played a guy to 100 because we could not match up a 9 ball or 1 hole game. After his break shot I made 1 ball and played safe. He proceeded to run 36. After his miss, I ran 99 to win the game, and that is my highest run ever, most likely not to be bested. I can relate to Jimmy that quite a few things had to go right for me to do that, most notably the shot into the stack that caroms a ball into the bottom corner pocket that they show in "The Hustler". If I was in the middle of a 10 ball run, I probably would not have tried the shot. But at the time I had surpassed my high run of 50 something and was going for the gusto.