Pool: at Home vs. at the Bar vs. at the Professinal Level

The Game Room
1

Rather than providing a link to the professional pocket billiard’s associations rules, which I am undoubtedly going to find arcane and confusing, can someone please give me a basic rundown of how pool is played at bars (and/or at home) vs at the professional level?

The reason I ask is that I’ve played pool (just for fun) with one of my dad’s brothers, and he plays by rules that I consider a little Draconian. Essentially, each shot is expected to go like this: the cue ball goes directly from your stick to the ball you’re trying to sink, and the ball you’re trying to sink goes directly into the pocket. Any variation on this (for example, hitting another ball in combination, utilizing the bumper, etc.) must be called in advance or it’s a foul, and any variation of what you call is a foul.

For example: If I aim for the 2-ball, and it hits the 3-ball, and the 3-ball lands in the corner pocket, if I didn’t first say “2-ball into the 3-ball into the corner pocket,” it’s a foul. Or if I say “2-ball into the 3-ball into the corner pocket” and something else happens (even I sink one of my own balls), it’s a foul.

Also, he plays by a rule that if the cue ball bounces off other balls some number of times (I think it’s 3) during the course of a shot, it’s a foul.

Do players at the professional level play at this level of complexity? Do bars generally hold to professional rules, or to “house” rules?

2

Doesn’t sound draconian to me, standard rules really. Hitting the ball as hard as you can and praying something drops or getting one in by accident doesn’t require the skill that most pool players beyond a very basic level are looking for. The strategy and finesse of calling your shots and adhering to the rules is what makes pool such a fun game in my opinion.

I liken it to people who “play” foosball by simply spinning the players as fast and as hard as they can while hoping for a freak ricochet to score. I can usually kick their butts by aimed shots and careful dribbling.

3

In the American Poolplayers Association rules (PDF) for 8- and 9-ball, there is no provision for calling any shot other than the 8-ball in a game of 8-ball. Combinations are explicitly legal, as long as you hit one of your object balls first (e.g. if you’re solids, you can’t hit a stripe first even if you eventually sink a solid). Using the rail is not prohibited in the rules. It’s not even close to “standard rules, really” to disallow bank shots.

My perception is this: Even though the rules don’t say you have to call your shots and you could step up to the table and smack your object ball as hard as you can and pray something of your set goes in, most good or halfway decent players can do a lot better by using control and strategy, and so they do. If they’re good enough, they can do that and more often than not beat a player whose only strategy is to hit his ball as hard as possible. It sounds like this guy is trying to play using control and strategy, but isn’t good enough to beat someone who doesn’t, and he got frustrated from playing “correctly” and so changed the rules to force others to play the same way he does.

4

I’d have to double check, but that sounds like the rule that my SO’s pool league uses. Shots must be called or they don’t count.

5

You see this is the reason that you got Trouble with a capital “T”

6

When I played in college, (with friends, not any kid of league), we played similarly. We had to call kisses and caroms, i.e. if I was trying to sink the two in the corner, I had to say if it was going to slightly touch another ball near that pocket, or slightly touch a rail. I have a table now, and our house rules are mostly the BCA call-shot rules*, with some mods since we’re not that good. Except for the kids, who get more slack until they’re older. The bit about designating the shot only applies if the shot isn’t obvious, or on the 8-ball.

I’ve never heard of any limit on the number of balls the cue ball can touch, and I wouldn’t even play someone who was going to insist on that.

7

Calling kisses and caroms is a stupid idea. For one thing, it makes the game very hard to referee. If a ball goes in off the point of the pocket, is that touching a rail first? What if it’s an inch from the pocket? Two inches?

‘Bar Rules’ suck. They only work when there is a threat of intimidation to keep everyone honest, and they dumb down the game to the point where it’s just potting balls with a stick. No strategy allowed!

Here’s a short summation of proper rules for 8-ball:

  1. A foul results in a ball in hand for the opposing player. A foul can come from hitting the opposing player’s ball first, missing entirely, or by not having at least one ball touch a rail after legal contact is made with the ball (if you sink the ball, that counts).

  2. You must call a pocket (sometimes on the 8-ball only), but it doesn’t matter how the ball gets into that pocket, so long as everything started with a legal hit. Calling kisses and caroms is stupid.

  3. If you sink a ball in a pocket other than what you called, it gets spotted and your turn is over. If you’re playing on a bar table and can’t spot a ball, the opponent gets to put one of his own balls of his choosing down.

  4. If you make the 8-ball in a pocket other than the one you called it’s loss of game. If you just foul on the 8-ball, it’s loss of turn and ball in hand for the other player. If you sink the 8-ball in the correct pocket but foul anyway (sinking the cueball, jumping it off the table, etc) it’s loss of game.

Those are the basics. The ball in hand and “a ball must touch a rail after contact” is critical to prevent people from intentionally fouling or tapping the cueball half an inch to hook you. Kisses and caroms and rails should not be called, because it’s almost impossible to referee such a game (especially when shooting into a cluster - are you going to call every possible kiss that could happen?)

I played a money tournament once where the promoter insisted that it be played by ‘bar rules’. It was a disaster. There were fights and arguments over calls, people would play ‘safe’ by just touching the cueball lightly (Then the opponent would do the same, resulting in a stalemate). The minute you make the game serious (and without threats of violence), bar rules completely collapse.

Good pool is a game of strategy. Safety play is not ‘chicken’ or ‘dirty pool’ any more than making a defensive move in chess is. Calling rails and caroms takes away a good player’s ability to play ‘big pocket’ shots (a big pocket is one where another ball close to the pocket means the ball will go in if it goes straight in, clips the rail, or clips the other ball). This is not a bad thing - it gives a good player the ability to cheat the pocket a bit and play cueball position better.

Good pool is a game of tactics, strategy, and skill. Bar pool is knocking balls into pockets with sticks. Both can be fun, but no one plays bar rules at the highest levels.

8

In barroom play, I have seen all but one of the rules Hey Homie’s dad’s friend insisted upon. The one about having the cue ball hit too many balls is a new one on me. In place of the called-shot rule, more often we play an honor system. Only the 8 is verbally called, but if a shot works in a way you didn’t plan, you honorably give up your right to the next shot. On a coin-op table, foully potted balls aren’t brought back to the felt. In non-tournament bar play, scratches usually didn’t bring a ball-in-hand shot, but just a shot from the “kitchen.”

As you know, there’s a thousand ways to play informal pool, and a thousand ways some people will find to argue about it. :rolleyes:

9

It sounds very slightly harsher than regular bar rules, the cue ball hitting too many other balls thing ive never heard about. You should really get used to playing this way, it will help you become more skilled if you actually try to think about your shots rather than just hoping something goes in by luck.

10

The rules for 9-ball that was (unanimous so far as I could tell) played in Japanese pool halls is that you can’t hit one of the opponent’s balls first (though if you can hit it purposely after ricocheting off one of your own, then all the power to you) and if you don’t hit the ball you were aiming for, then it’s a scratch. You never had to call any shots and lucky hits counted just fine.

11

[QUOTE=Sage Rat]
The rules for 9-ball that was (unanimous so far as I could tell) played in Japanese pool halls is that you can’t hit one of the opponent’s balls first (though if you can hit it purposely after ricocheting off one of your own, then all the power to you) and if you don’t hit the ball you were aiming for, then it’s a scratch. You never had to call any shots and lucky hits counted just fine.
[/QUOTE]
You mean 8-ball, yes?

I’m a big fan of Sam Stone’s rules, except for rule 3. I play a simple loss of turn when the ball goes in the wrong pocket instead of spotting or dropping.

To the OP, you might consider suggesting 9-ball. There is no calling of any kind in 9-ball, but because of the way it’s structured there isn’t really any way for a smasher to beat a strategist, so your uncle would probably prefer it anyway. And you’d like it because there are basically no rules on shooting; bank it, kiss it, combo off any ball, slop counts; basically anything goes. The only rule is the first ball you hit must be the lowest numbered ball on the table. Whomever sinks the 9 in any pocket – intentionally or not – wins.

If the 9-ball rack feels light, you might consider straight pool.

They are neither arcane nor confusing. Rule 3.4 of the section titled General Rules of Pocket Billiards is particularly relevant:

3.4 CALLING SHOTS
For games of call-shot a player may shoot any ball he chooses, but before he shoots, must designate the called ball and called pocket. He need not indicate any detail such as kisses, caroms, combinations, or cushions (all of which are legal). “Any additionally pocketed ball(s) on a legal stroke is counted in the shooter’s favor.”

Even more relevant for your question is rule 4.2 of the World Standardized Rules: 8-Ball:

4.2 CALL SHOT
In Call Shot, obvious balls and pockets do not have to be indicated. It is the opponent’s right to ask which ball and pocket if he is unsure of the shot. Bank shots and combination shots are not considered obvious, and care should be taken in calling both the object ball and the intended pocket. **When calling the shot, it is never necessary to indicate details such as the number of cushions, banks, kisses, caroms, etc. ** Any balls pocketed on a foul remain pocketed, regardless of whether they belong to the shooter or the opponent. The opening break is not a “called shot.” Any player performing a break shot in 8-Ball may continue to shoot so long as any object ball is legally pocketed on the break.

12

[QUOTE=Ellis Dee]
You mean 8-ball, yes?
[/QUOTE]

You’re right I was. Doh. :smack:

13

I always prefer that a bar posts its house rules. It helps settle the many arguments that arise between strangers, especially if money or drinks are being wagered.

Side note: I got a pool table last year and I looked up the 8-Ball rules online and was surprised to know that a scratched cue ball can be placed anywhere on the table by the opponent. I always played that it had to be behind the break line.

14

What everyone is saying here about calling shots confuses me, because I’ve seen professional pool matches on sports channels where they didn’t do that. Could there be a different rule set, or maybe everyone was expected to see what shot the player would take next? Of course, it’s possible they were doing it and I’m misremembering.

15

[QUOTE=Spatial Rift 47]
What everyone is saying here about calling shots confuses me, because I’ve seen professional pool matches on sports channels where they didn’t do that. Could there be a different rule set, or maybe everyone was expected to see what shot the player would take next? Of course, it’s possible they were doing it and I’m misremembering.
[/QUOTE]
Televised pool is 9-ball, not 8-ball.