One pocket on 8ft table

Ericb523

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Dec 25, 2018
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Hey guys new to this group and figured this would be the perfect place to ask. Is one pocket doable on an 8ft table? I always play on 9fts of course at the local pool hall but id like to get a table for the house and 9ft might not work so straight pool and one pocket being my favorite games I could see this being an issue. Hope to hear from ya. Cheers!
 

gulfportdoc

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Jun 25, 2004
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Gulfport, Mississippi
Hey guys new to this group and figured this would be the perfect place to ask. Is one pocket doable on an 8ft table? I always play on 9fts of course at the local pool hall but id like to get a table for the house and 9ft might not work so straight pool and one pocket being my favorite games I could see this being an issue. Hope to hear from ya. Cheers!
My preference on a smaller table is to use fewer pool balls. For example an 11 ball rack works very nicely by using the 10 ball triangle, and putting the 11th ball frozen to the middle balls in the back row.

As the table gets smaller it causes more clusters. So fewer pool balls allows for some space.

See what you think.

~Doc
 
Last edited:

Cary

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Nov 18, 2010
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Bertram, Texas
Hey guys new to this group and figured this would be the perfect place to ask. Is one pocket doable on an 8ft table? I always play on 9fts of course at the local pool hall but id like to get a table for the house and 9ft might not work so straight pool and one pocket being my favorite games I could see this being an issue. Hope to hear from ya. Cheers!

I think you"ll find it will break differently. Because the table is shorter and narrower the cue ball has less distance to travel coming off the rack and will tend to scratch more often. Breaking from a little further off the side rail seems to fix that. If you bank by feel, it will also change banks that you have to shorten/lengthen.
 

bstroud

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I grew up playing one pocket on an 8 foot table. A great game but much different.

I also have played Surfer Rod one pocket on a 3 ½ by 7 for $800 a game with the big cue ball. Really different but I won in the end.

Bill S.
 

mr3cushion

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Sep 17, 2008
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Cocoa Beach, FL
I grew up playing one pocket on an 8 foot table. A great game but much different.

I also have played Surfer Rod one pocket on a 3 ½ by 7 for $800 a game with the big cue ball. Really different but I won in the end.

Bill S.

Bill; Where did you play Rod 1P the first time? And did you win?
 

jrhendy

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May 24, 2004
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Placerville, CA
I grew up playing one pocket on an 8 foot table. A great game but much different.

I also have played Surfer Rod one pocket on a 3 ½ by 7 for $800 a game with the big cue ball. Really different but I won in the end.

Bill S.

He was a monster playing one pocket on the small table with the big ball from what I heard about him. You must have played well to beat him.

I got a phone call to come to a pool room in Monrovia in the 80’s, and while I had never met Rod, I knew it was him when he would not play on the 4 1/2 x 9. I might not have beat him there either, but he would not play.
 

NH Steve

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New Hampshire
I moved a big part of this thread to the member's cafe because it had diverged into basically a who beat who argument -- and my feeling is nobody wins those arguments :D

The opening poster had a good question:
Hey guys new to this group and figured this would be the perfect place to ask. Is one pocket doable on an 8ft table? I always play on 9fts of course at the local pool hall but id like to get a table for the house and 9ft might not work so straight pool and one pocket being my favorite games I could see this being an issue. Hope to hear from ya. Cheers!
 

chicagomike

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I moved a big part of this thread to the member's cafe because it had diverged into basically a who beat who argument -- and my feeling is nobody wins those arguments :D

The opening poster had a good question:

Smart move Steve
 

bstroud

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I moved a big part of this thread to the member's cafe because it had diverged into basically a who beat who argument -- and my feeling is nobody wins those arguments :D

The opening poster had a good question:

Steve,

You did the right thing.
Don't know what is wrong with guy.
I really don't care who beat who or when.

Bill S.
 

bstroud

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May 29, 2010
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1,426
One of the things I learned when I began playing one pocket on the 4x8 is that lineup Straight pool was a great teaching aid.

It is easy to practice and gives you a lot of experience running balls into one pocket.

Also as I always advise, practice Banks. Nothing is more important in one pocket except the ability to run balls.

One pocket is a shooters game.

Bill S.
 
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