Billiard Coach – Mike Fieldhammer

Pool Gets No Respect

Posted on 03. Jan, 2016 by Fieldhammer.

I saw this beer bottle in a pal’s refrigerator. The slogan reads, “The perfect beer for striking up a game of blindfolded billiards.”  I suppose “Strip Straight Pool” wouldn’t have been approved by the ad execs.

Personally, Iwould like to see an ad campaign by a national brand that helps the Billiard Industry.

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First Lesson of the Year

Posted on 02. Jan, 2016 by Fieldhammer.

I was told the US/Canadian boarder is roughly the 49th parallel. I was pretty close today.

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Bonus Ball, where have you gone?

Posted on 17. Apr, 2015 by Mike Fieldhammer.

Seems like a lifetime ago, but I think Bonus Ball’s whimpering demise was just over a year ago. Any chance it will make a return? Does anyone know if the studio still sits vacant in Las Vegas?

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Brand New Pool Tournament Format

Posted on 08. Sep, 2014 by Mike Fieldhammer.

Saturday Action Challenge

Presented by

Billiard Coach and Jimmy’s Pro Billiards

(Flyer verbiage)

20 pool players matching up in the same pool room over eight hours. At minimum, 40 sets for at least $50/set. Spectators, have you ever seen action on ten tables and five different games? Get involved in the Saturday Action Challenge. Bring cash — In God We Trust, All Others: Post Up!

(End flyer verbiage)

Rules Draft 2

Twenty invited players will randomly match up in four $25 sets in five varieties of pool.

At 11:00 a.m. on Saturday October 11, 2014 at Jimmy’s Pro Billiards, twenty players will pay $100 entry plus the $10 daily special to participate in this groundbreaking action packed event. The first round of matches will be determined by a random draw. One player from each of the ten matches will pull a scrabble tile out of a bag to determine the game format of their match. Tiles distribution and resulting game format is as follows:

Winning players must report the match score and collect their $50 winnings immediately. Players will be placed on an overall standings board ranked by points earned, then secondly as fewest points given up as tie breakers.

Points awarded for games won/lost in 8-ball and 10-ball will be given to exactly reflect the final match score. For example, a match ends with Chuck beating Buck 7-4 in 8-ball. Chuck gets 7 points with 4 points as a tie break while Buck gets 4 points with 7 points as a tie break. Louie beats Dewey 9-7 in 10-ball. The standings board looks like this after these matches:

One-Pocket points will be awarded by games multiplied by 2 and bank pool scores multiplied by 1.5. Straight pool points in a game will be divided by 10. For example, Will edges out Bill in banks 4-3, Don crushes John 80-27 in straight pool, and Jack beats Mack 3-1 in one-pocket.

Adding these three matches to the overall standings results in this:

After all ten first round matches are completed, pairings for the next round will be by standings. 1 vs. 2, 3 vs. 4, etc. and player with the odd ranking will draw the tile to determine the game. Player with the even rating will be given the option for the first break in the match.

Side bets are encouraged between players, spectators, or anyone within shouting distance. Racking procedures (e.g. rack your own, magic rack, 10 on the break, etc.) are to be negotiated between players before their match begins. If negotiations fail, the tournament director (a.k.a. stake holder) will step in and dictate terms.

Each round should take a maximum of two hours. Rounds three and four will commence just as round two. In the unlikely event of an exact tie in win points and tie-break points, a coin toss will determine the player’s positions in the chart.

In the event of an emergency, a player may leave between rounds but before the game has been drawn given that he/she finds a replacement player and notifies the tournament director. Entry money will not be refunded, but the player may make a deal with their substitute.

This event is sure to fill and pre-registration/posting up is required. Please let me know if you’d like to reserve a spot and pay (post up) Jimmy or me to lock in your spot as soon as possible. I’ll list the confirmed players in the next message in this thread.

Thanks,
Mike Fieldhammer

Updated player list will be in the forums here: http://www.billiardcoach.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=2816

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