There is only one general league rule, and it involves player contracts. A player, upon entering the league, enters into a two-year agreement with the league as part of the UPCL players' union. Rare exceptions are permitted on a case-by-case basis. Should a crisis with a player occur during the season, a temporary reserve player (a likely rookie candidate for the next season) will be used as necessary.
Off-field rules apply to the pool tournament. In pool specifically, a player may be removed from the tournament if and only if they have not yet performed their seasonal qualifiers. All discipline will be handled by the league office.
The rules of the games depend on which style of pool is being played. Please see the following:
- General rules:
- Scratches result in either ball-in-hand or ball-in-kitchen.
- An illegally potted result ball results in an automatic loss except in 10-ball, 12-ball, 13-ball, and Rotation. Illegally potted balls in these events result in different situations
- 7-ball
- Seven-ball (7-ball) is played in rotation, or where the lowest number ball must be contacted first at all times. The game is won by sinking the 7 ball in a legal shot (no scratches, illegal contact, etc.). Ball-in-hand is assessed for all illegal contact, no contact, and scratching fouls.
- 8-ball
- Eight-ball (8-ball) is played in the form of solids versus stripes. Unique to the UPCL edition of the game, potting the 8-ball on the break is a victory. Sinking any ball on the break binds the player to the suit sunk. In a case of both suits being potted on the break, the player may choose their suit. To win, a player must sink all of their suit and then call their shot and successfully complete that called shot on the 8-ball. Automatic losses involve any sinking of the 8-ball before one's suit is fully cleared from the table, or in an uncalled pocket while attempting the 8-ball. Scratching results in one ball of the fouling player's suit to be replaced on the table. If a scratching player does not have a ball to return to the table, the non-scratching player receives ball-in-hand. Ball-in-hand is assessed for all non-scratching fouls.
- 9-ball
- Nine-ball (9-ball) is played in rotation, or where the lowest number ball must be contacted first at all times. The game is won by sinking the 9 ball in a legal shot (no scratches, illegal contact, etc.). Ball-in-hand is assessed for all illegal contact, no contact, and scratching fouls.
- 10-ball
- Ten-ball (10-ball) is played in rotation, or where the lowest number ball must be contacted first at all times. Sinking the 10-ball on the break does not result in a victory. All shots must be called shots (no slop allowed). An illegally potted ball results in the non-fouling player having the option to shoot from the spot (if contact was legal) or shooting with ball-in-hand (if the play resulted in a scratch or illegal contact), or allowing the fouling player to continue shooting. To win, the player must make a called shot and sink the 10-ball. Players may call for another ball to be potted (i.e., 2-ball in the corner) and as long as the called shot is made, any other balls going in also count as legally potted.
- 12-ball
- Twelve-ball (12-ball) is played in the form of solids versus stripes. In 12-ball, a player must sink one ball of their suit into each pocket. A player receives ball-in-hand if their opponents makes illegal or no contact. If a player scratches, one of their balls is returned to the table at the opponents' choice. The exception to this is if a player has received a wild-card ball because their opponent sank one of their balls. In this case, the wild-card ball is returned to the table, and player loses the flexibility the wild-card ball provides. To win, one ball of a player's suit must reside in each of the six pockets, unless they have a wild-card ball. No more than one ball of a suit may reside in a pocket legally. If a player sinks a ball into a pocket where they have already potted a ball, the second ball potted is replaced to the table. If an opponent sinks a player's ball in any pocket, the ball becomes a wild-card ball, to be placed in a vacant pocket at the end of the game to complete victory.
- 13-ball
- Thirteen-ball (13-ball) is played in the form of solids versus stripes. In 13-ball, a player must sink one ball of their suit into each pocket, and then successfully call a shot on the 8-ball to win the game. This is a hybrid of 8-ball and 12-ball. A player receives ball-in-hand if their opponents makes illegal or no contact. If a player scratches, one of their balls is returned to the table at the opponents' choice. To win, one ball of a player's suit must reside in each of the six pockets, and they must legally pot the 8-ball on a called shot. No more than one ball of a suit may reside in a pocket legally. If a player sinks a ball into a pocket where they have already potted a ball, the second ball potted is replaced to the table. If an opponent sinks a player's ball in any pocket, the ball remains in the pocket it was potted in if it is the first of the suit to fall there, or it can be relocated to a different pocket at the player's discretion if they have already filled the first pocket.
- Rotation
- Rotation is played in rotation, or where the lowest number ball must be contacted first at all times. In UPCL since 2015, rotation is played as a first player to eight legally potted balls game. To win, a player must legally sink eight balls before their opponent. Illegally potted balls are returned to the table, and the non-fouling player receives ball-in-hand regardless of the type of contact made on the fouling shot. All fouls result in ball-in-hand for the non-fouling player.
- 15-ball
- Fifteen-ball is played in rotation, or where the lowest number ball must be contacted first at all times. The game is won by sinking the 15 ball in a legal shot (no scratches, illegal contact, etc.). Ball-in-hand is assessed for all illegal contact, no contact, and scratching fouls.
- Survival/Accuracy
- Survival is played in the manner of straight pool, where any ball may be contacted at any time. The object of survival is to keep your "lives" (allowance for misses) longer than your opponent. Players begin with five lives (seven in the 2015 first round). A life is not lost for the breaking player if they fail to make a shot on the break. If the breaking player sinks any balls, the number of balls sunk is added on to their life total. For every shot after the break, if a player misses, a life is subtracted until they reach zero lives. If a player makes a ball on their turn, they do not lose a life. Players shoot only once per turn. If a player sinks the 8-ball or sinks more than one ball on a turn, they restore a life. In Survival, one rack does not equal one game. Games may last up to five racks, at which point the player with the most remaining lives will win by default. Players can also win by having at least one life when their opponent reaches zero, or accumulating five extra lives (a total of ten lives) before their opponent reaches zero, achieving "Immortality." When reracking, the 8-ball is always placed in the center spot. The game switched in style from 2015 to 2016, rebranded as Accuracy. This eliminates the almost always guaranteed occurrence of an additional rack each game. The rules involving lives are all gone, replaced by the main doctrine of lowest number of misses. The break rule remains, in that no ball need be potted on the break, as does the rule of shooting only once per turn. However, the newer rules only regard how many misses and fouls a player makes. Every missed shot (one where a ball is not potted) results in one point added to the score, as does every foul. At the end of the rack, the player with the fewest points is declared the winner. In the case of a tie, the rack is reset, and the game moves to sudden death after each player has shot once.
No comments:
Post a Comment