Wamy and Dino are both a bit busy this week so I've been asked to post up this weeks problem.

Your playing a league match, it's the 25th game in the match and your opponent hasn't missed a ball yet in the match. You've run out to here but your breakout on the 8 ball didn't move it quite far enough and the 15 ball is blocking the corner pocket by just enough that cheating the pocket isn't an option.



What's your play and why?

Can't tell if the link is working right from behind this damn sonic wall at work, if it's not here is a link to the site.

http://CueTable.com/B/?@4HBIw1IMLX2J...GYp3eFjq3eGAq@

Over the table I think I just go for the table bank into the top right corner in the diagram. Bit of right hand side on the cue ball try and get it up table and tight to the top rail near the lower right corner of the diagram.

If the 15 ball is just a hair in the 8ball's way, I'll try a double jump: jump the cueball so its airborne when it hits the 8; this will make the 8ball jump too, clearing the 15, going into the top left corner , stunning the spectators

I'm unable to see the diagram. I don't think my computer supports pictures from poolbz. Can someone post an image file on here? Thanks

I'll edit the post when I get home and can access photobucket...it's blocked by my firewall at work.

On an english table i'm playing the double into the 13. You make the ball a decent percentage of the time, and put the 13 on the rail when you miss, blocking the double on the 14.

On a US table I play Wamys shot.

Don't really see anything bar Wamy's shot here. Although 9ball's double jump would be awesome :-)

Hmm, kick the cueball off the top rail to bank the 8 ball into the top left corner pocket? You'll have to hit the 8 ball pretty thin on the right side. There's nothing easy here.

I think I'm putting the 8 ball near the corner pocket, knocking the 15 to the top rail. with 2 balls locked to the rail and the pressure of the black over the pocket, villain fails at the run out enough times for us to sink an easy black.

Hmm, is there a kiss on the bank to the upper right hand pocket? It's close.

Well since I'm a bank pool player, how about a straight back bank to the side? Thin hit on the eight required for sure, but I think it passes the 12. Poolroom rounders on the south side of Chicago make a few of these every morning before breakfast, so it should be no problem for players of our caliber

Both banks are available, to the top right corner and the straight back in the side but when you factor in the difficulty of the straight back(unless you're a very strong banker) and the risk of the double kiss to the top right I'd be looking for an easier option.

I posted this shot up to get people thinking about non-typical options and 9 ball hit it right on the head. When you're blocked by only a sliver of a ball and have some room between the object ball and it's blocker, it's very easy to jump the object ball over it's traffic and play it straight in. You don't even really need to jump the cueball too high to have it pop the object ball off the table slightly, keep in mind that you're only jumping the edge of the blocker ball so the 8 does not need to leave the slate by much.

I play this shot with my cue about halfway between the elevation of a true jump shot and level cueing and with a firm stroke to "pop" the object ball. Take some time practicing this shot and you'll see that it's much easier than it seems in text and once you've got it down pat it's an option that most don't even know exists.

(PS- To take it to another level, don't leave out the option of potting a ball with a jacked up cue to jump the cueball(after contact) over balls that may block the path to your next shot.)