Nine-Ball Run Out | When Things Go Wrong Fast.

What Is A Nine-Ball Run-Out?

A 9-ball runout occurs when a player breaks the balls and continues to shoot until all of the balls have been pocketed.  Each of the 9 numbered balls need to be made in numerical order. The lowest numbered ball must be contacted 1st.  Any ball can be made in any pocket providing that contact is made with the lowest numbered ball first.

In other words, if you hit the 3 ball and the 7 ball goes into the pocket, that constitutes a good shot. If you hit the lowest numbered ball and the 9-ball is potted, you win the game.

This could be in a match or in practice. 9 ball run-outs are needed in order for you to beat the ghost.  Ball in hand after the break is often used when playing the ghost.

A short video of a 9-ball run out where many of the shots did not go as planned. You can see the snowball effect of each difficult shot making the next shot even harder.

Develop practice routines that make you take on difficult shots so you know what to do in a match situation.  “Playing the ghost” is a good way to practice nine-ball run-outs.

I still made all of the balls and got out but not as planned, nearly all of the positional plays were offline which makes the connection to the next shot more difficult. In isolation, some pool shots are more difficult than others and require added skills. So when you add all of these challenging shots together it interrupts the normal flow.

Plan Your Route to The Next Shot to Reduce Risk.

In addition to the physical aspects, complicated runs like this take up too way much mental energy which needs to be conserved throughout the long competition. It is exciting playing hard shots and overcoming the obstacles one by one but the big swings in mental excitement can be a drain on resources.

Good shot makers can still win like this but its not the best long term plan for consistent winning pool.

In order to play pool like a professional try to move the white ball as little as possible. Plan out the routes to the next shot to allow for mistakes and inaccuracies. Your nine-ball run-outs will improve if you give yourself enough time at the practice table to make a difference.