TSB - Miss rule canvasing by The WPBSA

[Odrl]

But it is broken ........and needs fixing
Edit: and if you don't think so then you obviously havn't been watching snooker lately

The miss rule as it is isn't easy to enforce properly and anyone having watched snooker recently will know it needs soome kind of amendment.

Hm, that's two people using basically the same phrase now. I do try to watch as much snooker as possible, but maybe I missed it. So, what exactly happened "recently" that requires the rule to be changed?

I can only think of the Higgins-O'Sullivan incident from last season's UK Championship, but that's already been addressed. Has there been another controversy?

[wildJONESEYE]

Hm, that's two people using basically the same phrase now. I do try to watch as much snooker as possible, but maybe I missed it. So, what exactly happened "recently" that requires the rule to be changed?

I can only think of the Higgins-O'Sullivan incident from last season's UK Championship, but that's already been addressed. Has there been another controversy?

the miss rule at the moment is a load of rubbish because the refs aren't using or cant use their brain.

there is nothing wrong with the rule as its written down but the way its being enforced takes a lot to be desired.

virtually telling a player hit that or you will be here all night.

Ball in Hand anywhere on the table after 3 misses is a NO NO thats just a Amateur way to enforce rules of a Sport its like football getting rid of the goalkeeper during a penalty.

if they going with 3 miss and ball in hand then from the D or Balk Line so what if its a tactical foul the game moves on instead of 14 misses because the ref hasn't the balls to make the right decision.

[superaussie]

i would take the current miss rule over the ball in hand anywhere over the table any day of the week

it ruins snooker if that silly rule ball in hand anywhere is brought in

[Gerry Armstrong]

i would take the current miss rule over the ball in hand anywhere over the table any day of the week

it ruins snooker if that silly rule ball in hand anywhere is brought in

Me too. I personally don't think there is any problem with the Miss Rule in the pro game, it's the amateur game playing the pro version of the rule that's the big problem!!

[wildJONESEYE]

Me too. I personally don't think there is any problem with the Miss Rule in the pro game, it's the amateur game playing the pro version of the rule that's the big problem!!

the way its enforced is though......if a player comes a cigarette paper width from the object ball common sense said hes not trying to miss on purpose.

[jhr145]

Me too. I personally don't think there is any problem with the Miss Rule in the pro game, it's the amateur game playing the pro version of the rule that's the big problem!!

Your right Gerry I dont think the Miss Rule as used in the Pro game was ever meant for the amateur game.

[Gerry Armstrong]

the way its enforced is though......if a player comes a cigarette paper width from the object ball common sense said hes not trying to miss on purpose.

I don't think the pros have any issue with the way it is enforced. One of the top Scottish professionals recently described the current Miss Rule as "perfect" and stated he has never had an issue with any miss ever called against him.

As I said above, applying the same rule to amateur players is where it all starts to go wrong.

[superaussie]

i like the idea after 3 misses that on the 4th one their opponent can put white in the d and play from there

[Odrl]

the way its enforced is though......if a player comes a cigarette paper width from the object ball common sense said hes not trying to miss on purpose.

Well, you are misrepresenting the rule here. It's not about "trying to miss on purpose", it's about trying your best to play a legal shot. Why should you get an advantage by playing a foul, when another shot would have given you a better chance of playing a legal shot? That's what it's basically all about, and I don't think there is anything particularly unfair about it.

[cueman]

Well, you are misrepresenting the rule here. It's not about "trying to miss on purpose", it's about trying your best to play a legal shot. Why should you get an advantage by playing a foul, when another shot would have given you a better chance of playing a legal shot? That's what it's basically all about, and I don't think there is anything particularly unfair about it.

This is my view as well. A lot of the time a player is trying to get out of a snooker with the sole intention of not leaving anything should he miss. Therefore that is the reason the miss rule was brought in, to stop players gaining a tactical advantage by aiming to hit a ball which doesn't leave the opponent with a pot.

These players are more than good enough to cope with the current rule, the only grey area seems to be when a player is snookered on the last red or an individual colour whereby that is the only ball to hit, which I think then should be down to a refs discretion as to whether the player has made a good enough attempt to hit the ball, again dependant on the difficulty of the snooker itself.

[pigeonslayer]

I think the problem that we amateurs have with the rule when applied to us is that for years the word 'deliberate' was often used prior to the word 'miss' - so rather than being an intrepretation of ability, by calling a miss [EDIT: in our mind] the referee is more questioning the intentions of the player.
I think this is extremely difficult rule to get right - why should the player who laid a great snooker not be able to extract the harshest penalty from his opponent - but on the other hand - should one snooker be allowed to turn a frame on its head? My opinion is 'Yes - why not' - no one complains when a player pulls off a really difficult pot and goes on to clear up - everyone applauds the skill. So why not apply the same weighting to making an escape as difficult as possible - after all it is called 'SNOOKER'.

[jb134]

Can any changes be done retrospectively and Dennis Taylors name be removed from the trophy?

[thinsy]

My views are that the rule should stand as it is but maybe a little discression from the referees... However, what you must remember is that the pro's are playing to get out of snookers using 2-3 or even 4 cushions when there is an easier escape of just one or two cushions! This in my opinion is why the rule should be enforced, its not about how close you get to the ball your trying to hit but how easy the escape COULD be!! If the player is not trying the easiest escape then the miss should be called until he hits the ball or takes the easier route... The discression needs to be used when the easiest escape from a snooker is very difficult!

[magicman]

The miss rule has always needed revising from the moment it was first created. How can you have amateur leagues choosing to totally ignore a rule of the game and then say the miss rule is fine as it is? As the miss rule stands you can miss-cue on a third attempt at a ball on, and lose a frame. How can it ever be said that that player didn't attempt a legal shot when by missing he would concede the entire frame? You lose a frame by missing and yet the miss rule is still applied? In this scenario how could it EVER be an advantage to miss?

Referee's discretion is a big no go area as well imo. At least the rule as it is currently, means each player knows he must hit the ball or it's replaced. Rules need to be definitive not an opinion.

Make your opponent play from where the ball lies, play yourself from there, or choose ball in hand from the 'D' only after 3 misses have been called seems the fairest way to me. This gives a minimum of 12 and a maximum of 21 points away and still leaves the player who is snookered the option of going for two attempts at a safer red. If by missing a third time he would be leaving an easy chance from the D then he must make sure he hits the object ball on his last attempt.

[FOXMULDER]

Following the success of the Ceasarcasino.com Snooker Shoot Out

They want to change the rules based on Snooker-For-Yobs in Blackpool.

Hearn is a southern philistine with no class or respect for the history and traditions of the game.

Snooker is going to the dogs and the sheep are celebrating the 'change', remaining oblivious to the long-term effects.