gulfportdoc
Verified Member
I was a little surprised to see them institute a shot clock on the TV table. I assume it was the same for all games: 40 seconds. IMO, it's unnecessary in 9-ball for the vast majority of players, and shouldn't really be used in one-pocket (unless someone is consistently dead slow). The clock use was especially surprising since it wasn't used in the hundreds of other games in the tournament-- only exclusively on the TV table.
But it really was silly in short rack banks. I've come to understand how "short" short-rack banks really is. In a race to 3 match, the winner only needs to make 15 balls! So without figuring the averages, my guess is that a typical match consists of pocketing around 20-22 balls! The matches are way too short as it is. Maybe Pat is trying to get 3-4 matches on one video. The matches ought to be at least races to 4. And then to add a shot clock... it just really seems to be overkill.
Some of the guys were affected by it, especially in contrast to the regular matches on the other tournament tables. I think John B. would tell you that it really hurt his concentration. That's just a guess. I haven't spoken with him about it. But the one match he lost on the TV table, the clock seemed to be bugging him.
Doc
But it really was silly in short rack banks. I've come to understand how "short" short-rack banks really is. In a race to 3 match, the winner only needs to make 15 balls! So without figuring the averages, my guess is that a typical match consists of pocketing around 20-22 balls! The matches are way too short as it is. Maybe Pat is trying to get 3-4 matches on one video. The matches ought to be at least races to 4. And then to add a shot clock... it just really seems to be overkill.
Some of the guys were affected by it, especially in contrast to the regular matches on the other tournament tables. I think John B. would tell you that it really hurt his concentration. That's just a guess. I haven't spoken with him about it. But the one match he lost on the TV table, the clock seemed to be bugging him.
Doc