Strategy Question: Offense vs Defense in 14.1
I played a match the other day in my straight pool league. My opponent is a little better than I am and he spotted me 26 balls in a game to 100. I started out slow and he got way ahead and I caught fire, and he slowed down and we were at 98 me – 95 him with me at the table.
 |
| I Have a Question |
It’s a nearly fresh rack with only 3 or 4 balls loose. I’m behind the rack with good safety options and one shot on a close moderated cut to the corner. Not a shot I’m sure of by any means, but a shot I can make ~ 40-50% of the time. Getting shape on the out ball is easy, so if I make the shot I’ll win.
I shoot it and miss, leaving my intended out ball for my worthy opponent. He makes it, and another ball then misses and it’s still 98 me – 97 him. I have another long cut down table with about the same chance as before, as well as good safe opportunities. Again, shape on the out ball is all but guaranteed. I take the shot and miss again (man I suck) and my opponent gets out.
We’re friends who often share thoughts about all aspects of pool and our games. He asked about why I took the shots rather than play the easy safeties. My response was that he’s a better safety player than I am, and I saw myself winning a safety battle with him about 1 in 3 or 4 times. We’d had a number of these safety battles in the game and I lost more than I won by about that percentage (do I smell an area for practice, or what?).
So I went with the percentages. What do you all think of this approach? How would you go about making decisions like this? Do you favor offense or defense in a general way or do you make the decisions one shot at a time? I look forward to reading and discussing your comments.
Related Posts
My First ‘AHA’ Moment in Pool
Thinking Your Way to More Pool Victories
Play Pool without Fear
Achieving Dead Focus instead of Dead Stroke
10 Common Mistakes in Pool
Loading ...
4 Responses to “Strategy Question: Offense vs Defense in 14.1”
Jarno Virtanen
- May 7th, 2010
I don’t think there’s anything wrong with your line of thinking. Especially in straight-pool where you usually can’t make too aggressive safeties and its relatively easy to assess the out-come of a safety battle.
One thing I tend to use in addition is to line-up with the shot without actually intending to shoot but to just see how my mind and body respond to the potential shot. Sometimes even relatively tough shots feel easy (beforehand) and vice-versa. Sometimes it might give a false sense of confidence, but I feel like I have to get that positive feeling about making the shot to increase the chance of doing so. If I line-up for the shot and it feels, for some reason, awkward I’m more inclined to consider other options.
This is not very exact or analytical approach, but I feel like it has a big impact on the execution. (And sometimes one does have to go for the shot even if it feels awkward, because it’s still the best option.)
StlJohnny
- May 7th, 2010
I think in those situations, with both of you being so close to the finish and the chance of leaving your opponent with a shot (and should’ve been a sure win), you have to go for it. Take extra time, if necessary, to line up the shot mentally, then stop thinking, get down on the shot and execute.
On the other hand, if it was early in the match – what would you have done? Probably go for it because the chances of your opponent running 100 balls isn’t as great as him running 5. So, it looks like I’ve talked myself into a 180. heh
Lastly, what I hear the commentators mention most often (albeit in 9-ball) is that if the safety is as difficult as the offensive shot, take the offensive shot.
John Biddle
- May 8th, 2010
I felt good about my decisions at the time, but thinking back on them I wonder if I was violating my own advice about playing pool without fear. If the right shot is to play safe, because the offensive shot was much tougher than the safe, then I should shoot the right shot, and work to get better at safety battles.
Anyway, I appreciate the feedback and don’t really think one could go too far wrong in these situations.
james
- May 13th, 2010
Well, you definitely played with fear in that one. I am reminded constantly to always play the table and never play the player. When you play the table, and ignore the player, that is when you will reach the ultimate synergy of killer stroke and shot, assassin mentality, vision, and the temperance to know when a safety is the best shot – then excuting the safety to perfection.
Leave a Reply