First League Match

Well, the 1P league got off the ground today with 8 players. Last season there were a few more but the weakest players didn't play this season and the in-house operator tried to get more to play but 8 was it.

I'm pretty sure I'm the weakest 1P player in the league (this season) but play at a respectable level. They other guys are just better. Some of you may know one or more of them; Jose del Rio (owner of Stroker's, where we're playing), Dan Whitten (of case fame) and Rolando Aravena (one time house pro at Amsterdam Billiards). None of these guys was my opponent today.

In my first match my opponent had to give me 9-7, race to 3. Rack your own, alternating breaks, weaker player breaks first.

We traded 3 very close games, and in game 4 I had 2 unexpected early opportunities in the very early going and ran 6 & 2 (I owed one before my 1st run) and I won game four 7-0. We're now 2-2.

I make 2 error in game 5 and my opponent gets well out in front 8 - 1. I play very carefully and pick up a ball without leaving him anything. After trading safeties I'm left with something like this:

[CUETABLE]http://CueTable.com/P/?@3AAUr3BUOY3COrh3DMGa3EJMg4FVuM4GTBJ4HQgK4INeK4JKTK4KHJK4LEHK4MBFJ3NVeL3OScM3PJhD@3AAUr3BUOY3COrh3DMGa3EJMg4FVFL4GSTK4HPiK4IMoL4JJmL4KGkL4LDqK4MBFK3NUoL3ORuL3PJhD3VUOY3Vcxj3kJhD3kSCT3kRUg3kRdk3kbOd2kGjk8kMrczc@[/CUETABLE]

What would you do here? I have to say I'm not at all sure exactly where the balls were except the 2 and CB, but the cluster was very close to where I have it, though relative position of the balls may have been different. I don't have confidence at all where the 1 Ball was.

See page 2 for my best attempt at drawing what I did.

My opponent was shooting well and I thought my best chance was to be aggressive
so I played hard to make the two, break the cluster and go around the table to give me another shot. I figured my odds of both making the shot and breaking the cluster were very high, and I had a good chance to get in position to make more. If I didn't I hoped to be able to leave him safe.

When I made the shot I thought everything went well, but as I watched the cue ball roll towards my desired position, I saw one of the other balls, I'm still not sure which one, go into his pocket, giving my opponent the victory.

I played the best 1P I've ever played and was very surprised to do as well as I did. I'd done some practice on my home table the week before, practicing banks and pocket speed, and both helped me significantly.

I made a couple each of 3 different kinds of mistakes and have plenty to work on this week:

1. On 2 occasions, from near the head rail, I kicked into balls close to his pocket to drive them up table and missed hitting them squarely, leaving shots. I did this successfully several times too, but these 2 misses were costly.
   
2. Three times from near my pocket, I kicked into balls on or near the foot rail and left shots. On at least one of these occasions I shouldn't have attempted the shot, and on all 3 I executed poorly.
   
3. On 3 occasions I had a shot and an opportunity to run a few balls and missed the shape, ending my runs at 1. Each time I hit the ball too softly.

I think I'm really going to enjoy this league. I know I'm going to learn a lot.

Since you drove the winning ball into your opponent's pocket, obviously you made an error. Based on the diagram, it seems you could have cut the 2 ball in and gone up table and back, without hitting the cluster. When you decided to hit it, you knew all the balls would go the wrong way. If you could not avoid contacting the cluster, you should have shot much more gently. Page 2 indicates you hammered it pretty good. My opinion, anyway.

@Vapros: Yes, clearly I made an error. I did intentionally break the cluster and go around the table. I just thought if I played for one ball and then played a safety battle over the remaining 4 balls, when I needed them all and he needed one was a loser.

@III: Yes, you're right. I didn't see a dead ball to his hole in that cluster, but there must have been one. Guess I need to be more careful.

John, Good shot. Good idea. Tough roll !
Rod.

Also John, it sounds like you have already identified on your own a couple of different shots that you might want to work on a little at home to get more comfortable with (especially those kicks you mention). If you do that kind of thing after every time you play (make mental notes of what you might need to practice), you are going to be regularly adding new tools to your toolbox by the week.

Have fun and keep us posted!

John, suppose you had shot the 2 ball with pocket speed, and then banked the 1 ball into the cluster just hard enough to break it up, and sent the CB uptable. From there you might have been even money to win the game. All balls would have been near your pocket. Rod, just this once I have to disagree with you. Breaking up the cluster in this manner was automatically a bad idea, in my opinion. Maybe this is why people keep betting me to place.

i cant tell what goes from the wei but i would shoot the two then go up and down table pocket the one and then shoot the 4 3 combo and come across to finish out the table.

they may go or not but that is how to think when you need them all, as you must make lots of balls quickly. the last thing you want to do is start trading safeties.

beatle said:

i cant tell what goes from the wei but i would shoot the two then go up and down table pocket the one and then shoot the 4 3 combo and come across to finish out the table.

they may go or not but that is how to think when you need them all, as you must make lots of balls quickly. the last thing you want to do is start trading safeties.

Click to expand...

And you should always be real careful about breaking up balls towards your opponent's pocket -- generally a bad idea that is liable to leave you trapped -- even more dangerous when your opponent only needs one ball, as in your situation. As I have heard Buddy Hall say in commentary, "That would have been a great shot if the other guy did it."

Incidentally, Sylver Ochoa lost to Scott Frost in the DCC One pocket finals a few months ago by caroming Scott's game ball in for him -- a tough way to lose.