Would you prefer to see 10-foot Tables in Championship matches?

I will tell you what I would like to see: A tour where there are a mix of tables and the contestants don't know whether they will be playing on 8, 9, or 10 footers before they arrive at the event. At any particular event, all tables are of the same size with the same pocket configuration.

So we have a variable playing field but any venue is completely level.
 
Actually, the game used to be played on 10 foot tables. That is how Irving got his and was happy that others where not able to practice on one when the game shifted to the 9 footers. While the rest would have to adjust their angles and be put off, he only enjoyed the advantages of accuracy it gave him. Of course Irving Crane was one in a million.
 
I think everyone here should also understand and appreciate that pool isn't just one skill. It's a set of skills. By changing the equipment, you're simply focusing on a portion of that set. Can the field adjust? Sure. Will they? Probably not since it'll be a bit of a novelty and not a general shift.

In all likelihood, 10-foot tables will increase the amount of exchange during a game. I'm not sure this will necessarily yield obvious results. If I play John Schmidt in a race to 9 and he averages 1 or 2 misses per set on a 9-foot table and I average 6 or 7 misses, he's probably going to beat me by a wide margin. If, on the other hand, we switch to 10-foot tables and that causes us both to miss an additional 5 shots, that margin might decrease. We might have closer sets.

Of course, being the pro that he is, John is going to adjust. He's going to make different decisions after a while and there's no telling what the end result will be. 10-foot tables would change all games. I'm not convinced it would necessarily favor better players but I could be wrong.
 
MitchAlsup said:
I will tell you what I would like to see: A tour where there are a mix of tables and the contestants don't know whether they will be playing on 8, 9, or 10 footers before they arrive at the event. At any particular event, all tables are of the same size with the same pocket configuration.

So we have a variable playing field but any venue is completely level.
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Indeed, we should increase the variability in equipment. Each tournament should have every table be a unique size and shape, pocket cut, etc. One table should be round, one eliptical, one zig zag table, one coffin shaped like in my signature, etc.

This, truely, would separate the wheat from the chaff! It would ensure that the most creative and adaptable player will emerge as the victor! It would also make matching up that much more interesting. I can hear them now: I'll give you the 8 on the oval. Nah, you have to play me on the zig zag table and I get the breaks!

That's what I'm talking about...
 
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jalapus logan said:
Indeed, we should increase the variability in equipment. Each tournament should have every table be a unique size and shape, pocket cut, etc. One table should be round, one eliptical, one zig zag table, one coffin shaped like in my signature, etc.
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NO, NO, NO..... That would not be Pool (or pocket Billiards) at all.

Every baseball stadium is different in the outfield (size) but the same in the infield (pockets).
Every race track is different, turns elevation, road surfaces, weather,... (cloth on the tables)
Every golf course is different, Trees, fairway bends, weather

But at any given point in time, each player is playing on exactly the same things.

This, truely, would separate the wheat from the chaff! It would ensure that the most creative and adaptable player will emerge as the victor!
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It would, but not the way you were talking about it.
 
jalapus logan said:
Indeed, we should increase the variability in equipment. Each tournament should have every table be a unique size and shape, pocket cut, etc. One table should be round, one eliptical, one zig zag table, one coffin shaped like in my signature, etc.

This, truely, would separate the wheat from the chaff! It would ensure that the most creative and adaptable player will emerge as the victor! It would also make matching up that much more interesting. I can hear them now: I'll give you the 8 on the oval. Nah, you have to play me on the zig zag table and I get the breaks!

That's what I'm talking about...
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This sounds like miniature pool. Will there be windmills, and folks cursing them all the same?

:p
-Sean
 
MitchAlsup said:
NO, NO, NO..... That would not be Pool (or pocket Billiards) at all.

Every baseball stadium is different in the outfield (size) but the same in the infield (pockets).
Every race track is different, turns elevation, road surfaces, weather,... (cloth on the tables)
Every golf course is different, Trees, fairway bends, weather

But at any given point in time, each player is playing on exactly the same things.



It would, but not the way you were talking about it.
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It would too be pocket billiards! Don't you think you could play a hell of a bank tourney on one of these bad boys:

images
 
I don't think championship pool needs 10 foot tables. As mentioned previously, it doesn't interest me as much to watch players compete on different equipment than I play on. And I really doubt it will change the results that much. Currently, the top players all seem to be there at the end so I don't buy the need to go to a bigger table in order to separate the men from the boys. Seems to me that happens now, even on 9 footers with relatively short races the top players still seem to be there at the end. Does anyone really think results in the long run will change that much just because of this? I don't.

About the only group this might help are the table manufacturers, and I'm not convinced it will help them. As it stands right now rooms across the country are in no position to convert to larger tables at the cost of new equipment and the lost revenue from having fewer tables. Same for the home market. First off, 10 footers will be more expensive and there will be no used market in the near term. Beside which many homeowners might not have room for a bigger table and if 10 foot becomes the pro standard won't buy a 9 footer either. If the shift to bigger equipment doesn't happen it will only end up costing the manufacturers.
 
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miscrewed1989...You have some serious misconceptions...

1) Two disadvantages to playing on a 7' vs a 9' are: smaller playing area, so it's easier to get hooked; and same amount of pocket opening, so scratching is more prevalent. Expert players make these adjustments fairly easily.

2) If you want to "get rid of the luck factor" simply play games where there is less luck involved.

3) "moral stance of government"??? I'm assuming you're talking about local governments refusing to grant permits for poolrooms. It's basically the same today, as it was 50-60 years ago...some geographic area are easier to deal with than others. The real problem is high rent...the room owners can't afford it, or are driven out of business as a result of it.

4) Go visit rooms like Amsterdam in NYC, Fargo Billiards in ND, and California Billiards in CA. There are more, if you look for them.

Diamond is producing the few 10' tables they have made, as a novelty. You will never see them producing more 10' tables than 9' tables.

Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com

miscrewed1989 said:
I don't want to change the game. I just think the bar needs to be raised. If I'm going to play in a pro tournament, I would rather play on 7 foot tables. Why? Because I have a chance to win. Not because I play better than them on 7 footers, but because the game is easier on 7 footers. If I'm watching a pro tournament, I don't want to see some banger like me win a toss and run the set out on a 7 footer against Alex. Now, if that same banger went head to head with Alex on a 10ft table and managed to make a game of it, that would be interesting. To me, getting rid of as much of the "luck" factor as possible is a good thiing.
There are good points on both sides of this topic. The reality is, 10 foot tables are inconvenient for poolrooms, and individuals. The days of the big poolrooms with the big tables is becoming a thing of the past. The economy and the moral stance of government these days is forcing pool into a novelty status altogether. I would love to see poolrooms like we saw in "The Hustler" and even "The Color of Money" make a comeback, but I just don't see it happening. Diamond bringing back the ten foot table is an attempt to step in that direction. Just my humble, uneducated opinion, of course...
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There will be a pro tour on the 10ft tables in the not to distant future.

This will be played eventually as a ranking event with 32 players, some of them will be the top pro snooker players and the pro pool players. There will be a qualifying tour to get in these events, so if you are good enough you get in.

The tour will be mainly in Asia, and will separate the men form the boys and will create one true champion which the sport lacks like snooker does with Ronnie O' Sullivan thus creating bigger audiences and better sponsorship deals.

This is something we are working towards, so keep your eyes open for the future of the pro game.
 
Ten foot tables standard.......IMHO this is the reason pool will never catch on with the masses. Seems like all the pro players want to make the game even harder than it already is. Whats next pockets exactly the size of a object ball?? Making the game harder IMO does nothing but send beginning players the opposite direction of a pool table. Ive never heard a onlooker exclaim "That was so cool how the shooter hit the ball great and it hung in the pocket". To me all the changing around (Diamond Tables, Simonis Cloth, Triple shim pockets,,,ETC) Have turned the sport on its head. The ability for the average person to walk into a pool hall and make some balls, or have a chance to win a tourney is all but gone.

Probably the reason so many players or people for that matter flocked to poker. The average person does have the chance to win, even if its in the short run. Keep making a already difficult game even harder and see where pool is in another 5 or 10 years.
 
Which effectively eliminates most Americans from participating, due to extravagant travel expenses...so you still may not have a "true" champion. What is needed is a pro tour where EVERYONE has the opportunity and capacity to compete on a level playing field. Sadly, I don't see that happening any time in the near future.

Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com

lee brett said:
The tour will be mainly in Asia
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Yes but only because I want to see earl demanding that everyone should be playing on 15 foot tables a year later.
 
I think transitioning over to 10 footers is a brilliant idea for those of us who no longer feel challenged by 9 foot tables. :rolleyes:

best,
brian kc
 
I like seeing the pro's challenged a little more, now and again. And differently than by making the pockets tighter....

I'm sure the 10-footers will not become a standard anywhere again (at least here in the US) because of the size restraints. But to see the pro's play an occasional tourney on them, sure, I'd like to see it.

For all of you who state you only want to see them play on tables that you can play on, I ask you this: why does look have to be different than any other sport? Very few of us can play golf at Augusta National. Even the courses that you can play on toughen up the conditions for the pro's. This is the case in many sports, because the pro's are so much better than the rest of us.

I don't think having an occasional event on ten footers is a bad thing, actually the novelty might generate some more interest.
 
justadub said:
I like seeing the pro's challenged a little more, now and again. And differently than by making the pockets tighter....

I'm sure the 10-footers will not become a standard anywhere again (at least here in the US) because of the size restraints. But to see the pro's play an occasional tourney on them, sure, I'd like to see it.

For all of you who state you only want to see them play on tables that you can play on, I ask you this: why does look have to be different than any other sport? Very few of us can play golf at Augusta National. Even the courses that you can play on toughen up the conditions for the pro's. This is the case in many sports, because the pro's are so much better than the rest of us.

I don't think having an occasional event on ten footers is a bad thing, actually the novelty might generate some more interest.
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hi Bruce;

I actually don't mind the pros challenging themselves a little more by playing on a larger table.

But I would say that while the true enthusiasts, like you and I, might get a kick out of watching it, the added difficulty would make it less appealing to the general public, imo.

best,
brian kc
 
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