MovieChat Forums > Poolhall Junkies (2003) Discussion > Which game is harder?

Which game is harder?

posted 19 years ago by bhmllr
33 replies | jump to latest

I was recently told by someone who claimed to be a serious pool player that 9 ball was harder than 8 ball. Does anyone else feel the same way? If so why?

I personally don't see how. Any short rack game pretty much HAS to be simpler. Plus when you're playing 8 ball (or straight pool) you have to actually create a line (an order for potting your balls) but in 9 ball it's made out for you. That's half your thinking gone already. You also don't have to call in 9 ball and you don't have to 'get to' the 9. In theory you can win a game in a single shot in 9 ball... you have to actually earn your win in 8 ball. I think perhaps the people who think 9 ball is harder think this because they see the pros on TV playing it all the time. Little do they realize this is because 9 ball is a much simpler game to follow and quicker to play and so makes for better TV. 8 ball is rich in safety shots so games can go on forever without a ball being sunk (I've been in a few of those myself). There's also the fact that as you sink your balls in 8 ball it actually gets harder and harder to get shape on your remaining balls. Sure you just sank 6 of your balls but now you have to sink that last ball and make sure you successfully circumvent your opponents' balls AND get position on the 8. In 9 it gets progressively easier. 8 ball also requires a lot more thought about what you're doing. In 9 where you can just sink anything and keep shooting (provided you hit the lowest ball first of course) and even WIN on some random fluke. In 8 if you bash the balls around you run the risk of sinking your opponents ball or losing the game entirely if you sink the 8 by accident.

Now... given all that, how the hell can people say 9 is harder than 8??

Thanks,
MOJO

[–] KrozFan 19 years ago

I think 9 ball is harder in a competition setting. If you are playing a race to 7 (or 5 or whatever else) if you make one mistake it is easier for your opponent to capitalize on it and quickly become a rack ahead. Make another mistake and they're two ahead. You can do all the work in a rack, but screw up on the nine ball and all the competition has to do coming to the table is make one ball and they win the rack, in 8 ball even if you mess up at the very end they still have to do as much work as you just did.

[–] deenil2002 19 years ago

I would say 8 ball was harder for an experienced player due to the mess of balls on the table but easier for a new player because they just hit the ball to hit the ball.

I would say 9 ball is much more fun and competitive though.

[–] IamMany 19 years ago

I consider myself a serious pool player. I have been playing in the APA (American poolplayers association ) for 8 years. In my opinion, 9 ball is much harder than 8 ball. The reasons are very similar to the ones you stated but from a different perspective.
In 9 ball you have to hit a certain ball which reguires your leaves to be precise. In 8 ball you always have options. A bad leave in 9 ball will most likely cause you to lose the match, but in 8 ball a bad leave is not a big deal because you have several shots to choose from.
In 9 ball safety shots are extremely difficult, they must be precise. If you play a bad safety in 9 ball you will most likely lose the game. In 8 ball safety shots are easy and if you don't pull off a good safety it is usually not that big a deal.
I could go on all day, but to me the differences are obvious. 9 ball requires a precise shot on every shot and the penalties for non-precise shots or bad safety shots are tremendous. If you make a mistake against a good player you will lose the match. In 8 ball you can make several mistakes and still win the match. In 8 ball you can bang your way around the table all game and still win.
In closing, 9 ball is a skill game and 8 ball is a bangers game.

[–] matramartin238 19 years ago

I take it you aren't a great fan of 8-ball. I partially agree with you, except for these few things:

1 - "If you make a mistake against a good player you will lose the match. In 8 ball you can make several mistakes and still win the match."
You yourself said that pocketting the balls in 8-ball is easier than in 9-ball. So... if you make a mistake against a good player playing 8-ball, you are ever so much more likely to get thrashed.

2 - "In 9 ball safety shots are extremely difficult, they must be precise. If you play a bad safety in 9 ball you will most likely lose the game. In 8 ball safety shots are easy and if you don't pull off a good safety it is usually not that big a deal."
I only partially agree with the fact that making a safety in 8-ball is easier, as there are loads more balls to hit, but the opponent also has many balls he can hit to escape... However, as you said before, pocketting is much easier in 8-ball... so if you don't pull off a good safety shot in 8-ball (against a good player, of course), then that really *is* a big deal, and you are a lot more likely to lose than in 9-ball... same thing as in point 1.

And there is another aspect of 8-ball: all shots are called, so there rarely are any flukes, as opposed to 9-ball. I think the two games aren't really that different in difficulty, although I also tend to think that 9-ball is *slightly* more difficult.

I just noticed, you said you play by APA rules, and, as I recall it, there's no calling the shots by the APA rules... So feel free to scratch that last aspect, if that's the case. But all the stuff I said sticks for the BCA rules.

[–] tummee 19 years ago

I'd be interested to hear what people think of snooker and billiards, the latter of which I have found to be harder than both 8 and 9 ball.

[–] matramartin238 19 years ago

Snooker is definitely the hardest of them all... The table is much larger, the balls are smaller, and it requires a lot more tactical play than any other game.

[–] alivingston24 11 years ago

Also the pockets are smaller. No "slop" shots inn snooker where the ball bounces around in the pocket and then falls. It has to be a precisely placed shot to go down.

[–] akaiken 19 years ago

9-Ball is a much harder game. Not only can you lose the game with one shot, but you have to leave yourself a pattern using only the next ball, rather than 7 of them. Good combination players can finish the game pretty quickly by pocketing the 9 with the next ball, but it rarely happens. So to summarize, 9-ball is harder just because you only have one ball to work with at a time, and you have to be able to leave yourself a shot not only on the next ball, but you have to leave it so that you can give yourself on the ball after that. There are fewer balls on the table, but you have much fewer options.

[–] shhaggy 19 years ago

Definitely debateable, but some of your assumptions are flawed. First of all, you assume that 9 ball is easier because there's a set pattern, but I contend that it's more difficult. You can take any sequence of shots in 8 ball, whereas in 9 ball you HAVE to take the given sequence. But the hardest aspect of 9 ball is that you rarely get more than one chance in 9 ball. Unless it's an ultra defensive struggle, usually the one that breaks either runs the table or loses.

[–] charliechustle 19 years ago

I agree with IamMany 100% 9 ball is def more difficult. Also I like his closing statement.

In closing, 9 ball is a skill game and 8 ball is a bangers game.

[–] SheykAbdullah 19 years ago

It's not as simple a question as you would have it. 9 ball is a harder game to play because you have to be good at combos and individual shots, but 8-ball is a MUCH harder game to perfect because you have to build the line yourself. In order to be GOOD at eight-ball you have to have much more control voer the objects balls and the cue ball than in nine.

[–] thepoolhalljunky 19 years ago

The answer to this question greatly depends on the player's level of game. For players who are not well above average, 9-ball is much harder to win consistantly. In 8-ball, unless you are careless and knock in the 8 early, your opponent must make eight shots to win. In 9-ball it only takes one mistake and your opponent can win by making simply one shot. On the other hand, as skills and cue-ball control improve 9-ball becomes the easier game to run the table on.

[–] TheDogfather 19 years ago

The part I don't agree with is "9 ball is a skill game and 8 ball is a bangers game." 8-ball is easier for bangers to play, but it's not as though they stand a chance against a skilled player any more than they would in a game of 9-ball.

I'd use the tagline "9-ball is a technical skill game and 8-ball is a tactical skill game."

Or perhaps "9-ball is a set game and 8-ball is a shot game." I find that once you get past the first few shots, it can be harder to set yourself in 8-ball due to all of your opponent's balls being on the table to get in the way. So in 9-ball the skill of the game is in setting the perfect shot, while in 8-ball the skill of the game is often in sinking less than perfect shots.

[–] Jaysonpoolpro 19 years ago

You are way off! You don't see your own contradiction? At the beginning of your post you say that a short rack game HAS to be easier, but you go on to say that a game of 8 ball gets harder as you sink more balls and have less remaining to play shape for. Well if it is harder to run out with just a few balls left wouldn't it be even more difficult to play those same balls in numerical order? Yes it is true that you do not have to call your pocket in 9 ball, but if you pay attention it rarely makes the difference in winning or losing against good players. If a bad player slops in the four ball he usually doesnt run the rest of the rack.You say that you have to earn your eight ball, not if your opponent accidently makes the eight early or scratches while making it, in which case you just won without even having to pocket a ball sloppy or otherwise.Also in eight ball you can make a shot and have the cue ball end up on the opposite end of the table that you intended and still have a choice of four or more shots to choose from, THAT is what I consider lucky! The bottom line is luck can and does happen in all games but a skilled player will overcome this by superior pattern play and safties/strategy. Truth is anyone can win one game of 8 or 9 ball, the better player should win in a race to seven or more. The beaty of nine ball is you are more free to use all of your skills as your only requirement is to hit the lowest ball first. To a skilled player this opens a world of possibilities of combos/ caroms etc. Also in 9 ball every ball you pocket brings you closer to winning, but you are also closer to losing should you miss. 9 ball penalizes you more for your mistakes. Lets face it many good players can pocket balls and play shape etc. the difference between winning and losing is how many and how costly your mistakes were. The winner is the one who made less mistakes, not the one who pocketed more balls.There are certain shots and patterns that are routine in nine ball that you never encounter in eight ball, you generally have to move the cue considerably further and with more control than in eight ball, and really be able to execute shots requiring more spin.Anyway it is clear to me that you have not yet put enough time to appreciate the nuances of real position play and strategy, and you would greatly benefit from some nine ball play as it will improve your overall play.Just make sure it is with someone who knows the game, not just a ball banger who give this game a bad rap.

[–] Jrocker2606 19 years ago

Personaly I think 8ball is harder do to the fact with all the possiblity of Safty, not making the 8 ball in (with nine you can fly and win)you have to be more straight with shots, in 8, you have to make sure your combos are more inline and stuff

[–] slach1 19 years ago

I've been playing for around 3-4 years, and I play in the APA, 8 ball league. However, I really don't think either game can really be classified as harder. I personally prefer 8ball because my cueball control is not really up to par to play a legit game of 9ball, but at high levels of the game, I don't think there really is a "harder" game, but that's just me

but man, I've seen this agruement become rather heated, careful folks...

[–] cthomas0 19 years ago

Just play darts.

[–] filippoaraujo 19 years ago

I'll try to rate the games with starts, the more stars the game has, the hardest:

8 ball -> *
9 ball -> *
Rotation (15 ball) -> **
Snooker -> ***
3 cushion -> *****

I used to play 8 and 9 ball, and they are pretty similar games in my opinion.. sure you can argue that one might be slightly harder than the other, but when you start to play snooker or 3 cushion (or any other 'no pocket' game for that matter) thats when you see what the word "Difficult" means

[–] 19 years ago

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[–] the_bitter_season 19 years ago

U think 9-ball is a breeze, youll fing a real challange in 7-ball.

[–] crazypooljunkie 19 years ago

I would have to say that they are about equal difficulty. They're just hard in different ways. They're really two different strategies. And really I'd say 9 requires more technical skill while 8 requires more strategy and planning.

[–] sevenbreaths78 19 years ago

Nine ball requires the player to play hard position shots much more than the game of 8 ball. It also requires the player to have good nerves and consistency as you can easily make 8 great shots and dog the only one that counts.

Nine ball is quicker (usually) and makes a much better money game than 8 ball.

It is easier to give weight in 9 ball so that a weaker player can gamble with a superior player and have even odds.

8 ball is a different game than 9 ball. The ability to move the ball around the table is less stressed and anyone who can pocket balls can win.

In 8 ball a player can break the wrong ball in and end up with a group of balls all clustered while their opponents balls are all free.

And please people,

Stop calling eight ball "straight pool"

Straight pool is a much more difficult game that involves races to a set number of balls pocketed. Straight pool is the game of the Willie Mosconi era.

[–] suziekew 19 years ago

9 ball is a game of skill...you need to be thinking ahead of the shot you're taking...Im sure all that has been said up above but im too tired to read it and i wanted to put in my 2cents...and to all the guys ive beaten out there...tough sh*t lol

[–] 19 years ago

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[–] penguinpete50-1 9 years ago

I don't know if anyone is still following this thread, but...Yeah, "straight pool" is also called "14.1" - I've never played it, but I hear it's tough. From personal experience, I can say that one-pocket is harder than either 8-ball or 9-ball. It doesn't get much attention because to those who don't know the game, watching a match is about as much fun as watching paint dry. If you DO know the game, it's almost as much fun to watch as it is to play.