For an advanced player both sets should be clearable in a few different ways so the problem is somewhat irrelevant in that case. If you aren't a good enough player to be clearing regularly from here then it really depends on the rule set used, but assuming it's an English table and English pub rules or world rules (2 visits for a foul) I think yellows are a mistake because you miss a shot and you either lose or you're in deep trouble.

As Wamy said in the OP, "weak players in such a situation will often pot every easy red and then seem confused when they miss their hard/blocked balls and go on to lose, questioning why they keep losing such frames when they appeared so close winning"

I think yellows are exactly like that. There are a lot of yellows available to pot, but all it takes is one wrong positional shot and you're in a bit of trouble. With reds there are a lot of safety shots available at all points, and missing a pot will generally leave the pocket blocked for a yellow.

Using baptz' diagram:


A typical amateur visit for yellow would be to roll the yellow in the middle, pot the yellow in the bottom right and have the frame go downhill from there getting further and further out of position. Or, if they go for reds, it would usually be to pot something like 3, 1, 5, 4, then be totally out of position on everything else.

IMO the correct way to approach this if you aren't a confident player is to roll the 5 in, then cover the bottom left pocket with the 6 (rolling the white through a little to block yellow's pots). If it blocks the pocket then yellow won't clear and will have a pretty tough safety, and if it sinks then there's an out with the 3 or 4, followed by possibly rolling the 1 over the pocket. I can't see a weakish player clearing from this starting position regardless, so covering a pocket and tying the game up a little is a good way to go.

The other thing to point out is that most amateurs struggle with position, especially using spin on the white. The first shot on yellow is either the pot to bottom left, stunning the white between the 5 and 6, or the yellow to middle with deep screw (or right spin to take it round the two yellows). Both of those shots can EASILY go wrong. With reds, most shots can be hit plain ball and basically rolled in dead weight. The only tricky shot is trying to get onto the 7 into the right corner, but there are a few balls available to get across to there from.

If I were to take red, and I'm not say that I would, I'd put the 5 in first with enough pace and touch to knock the 6 over the bottom left; put the 6 in with a slight cut angle and roll into the 7 using a little screw whilst leaving a gazillion options to put either the 1,2 or 3 in (or the 7, immediately, if I did well and a good run for the white is available).

If the 7 rolls out badly, I'll tap it into the jaws of the upper left with the white dead on the left-side of the cushion, which leaves yellow no direct line for a pot; at an amatuer level, virtually zero chance of a clearance. Yellow has no clearance chances and no snookering chances, whilst I have easy direct pots from virtually any angle. When I return to the table I clear up easily with all my balls over or near to a pocket with a clear and direct line available (I'm thinking 1 and 2 into the top right). The only foreseeable complication is if yellow moves to cover the top right, but that leave me with ample snookering opportunities along the right-hand cushion so I'm not too concerned.

With regards to clearing the black, as long as I can finish on the 1 or 2, or the 3 if I come from the bottom end of the table, I can easily leave a pot black into the left middle. If I have to clear the 7 last I can probably work an angle for the right middle or a trickier long shot to the bottom right (assuming yellow hasn't cleared the route to the upper corners by this time).

The big mistake in thinking red is a vastly inferior choice is assuming that you can't develop the two trouble balls early on, before you take on the easy shots. Two shots in and you've sunk one of the problem balls and developed the second with options in case of poor white placement.




I would expect a 9-ball player to take yellow every time and usually be left scratching his head after the third or fourth pot because of poor planning or some undesired contact leaving him with no good angles or safety options.

Good debate guys - good to see lots of conflicts about best paths/layouts etc. Couple of points that spring to mind from these two posts.

First to Simo's - the route you have planned is not as easy as you make out and also has some key flaws. The 7 to 8 is not the only hard shot on a tight bar table - the 6 to 7 is arguably a much harder shot for an amateur who will typically prefer staying on straight balls and is bad at position/potting on cuts (which is the only way to make this positional shot easy). If you miss either the 6, 7, or 8 you lose pretty much every time. As I outlined in the original solution, 3 hard shots later is a much worse bet than 1 hard one early - particularly in a game where your life becomes harder for every open ball you pot.

For JD, your reds response is better for an amateur (as I said before and as a general rule weak players should always look to play hard balls as early as possible to preserve options and blockers). However, I strongly disagree with your last paragraph. The hard part for yellow is the opening shot. After that life is pretty easy and full of options basically the whole way. There are four balls close enough to corner pockets to leave us a shot pretty much from anywhere reasonable on the table (as well as some middle options), and although obviously possible, it is hard to see that many ways to seriously run out of position here. Note this is also not the case for red, where there are two balls (and one in particular) that require very specific positional shots.

Sorry, I should have been more clear. I was just using someone else's image+numbers to help illustrate my post. I don't think 6 to 7 is sensible even for a top notch player. It's needlessly tough given the other opportunities available. If you reread my post I was advocating starting with the 5, then covering the lower left pocket with the 6. I think an amateur playing against another amateur shouldn't be looking to clear on their first visit in most racks, even this one which at first glance seems pretty open.

One good thing about the play of 6 to 7 (hoping to take it off the cushion and develop something useful) is that if you miss but don't over-pace the white then you are basically guaranteed an easy pot to the centre on 3 or 4.