Short Rack Bank Pool or 9-Ball Banks

A recent comment from Michael Hughes of Indianapolis reminded me of the great game of bank pool and Michael’s powerful banking game. I spent some time with him in 2008 during the Derby City Classic and found him to be down to earth and inspiring. He has a lifelong love of pool and has a particular interest in banks. It isn’t a game that many great pool players can dominate. Many of the best banks players are “Specialists” and although great at most games, are a clear cut above the rest in bank pool. Some have mean games of one-pocket, others do well in rotation games, but it seems like the bank players mostly play banks. Walk into Red Shoe’s Billiards in Chicago and there will be a raft of killer bank pool cast-a-ways to play.

If bank pool sounds easy to you, I suggest you give it a whirl. You may find it surprisingly tricky. Here’s a snippet from the full article on the 2008 Derby City Classic that highlights Mr. Hughes and the bank pool event.

Short rack bank pool requires only nine balls per game−as opposed to the old style fifteen ball version.  Each ball is in play and the winner is the first to successfully bank in five balls.  Bank shots can be challenging under the best of circumstances, but the task is made even more difficult by the 4-1/2 inch pockets on the Diamond nine-foot pool tables at Derby. Early in the tournament, players struggled with seemingly simple banks trying to find the center of the small pockets.

Fans savored the flashy banks of the top players in this discipline while they could.  Cueists of high caliber can finish a bank pool match in the blink of an eye.  Jason Kirkwood finished a player off in seven minutes flat. That calculates to better than two successful bank shots a minute.

A crucial skill needed to succeed in bank pool is knowledge of rail rebound angle in relation to ball speed.  Bankers full of adrenaline in their first match frequently missed banks short.  Too much velocity causes the rail rubber to snap the object ball back at too steep of an angle.

At Derby another puzzle is coping with the unpredictability of cloth: the tables are freshly covered with slippery the brand new Simonis tournament blue. Players were not given much time to adapt with a race to three: the better banker didn’t necessarily prevail.  Victory was snatched from the shooter who could not adjust to the table conditions quickly.

Miller, two-time bank pool winner and 2006 all-around champion, dropped a match early to Jason Evans and used his re-buy to make it to round five where he met Michael Hughes of Indianapolis.  Miller said, “I had chances in both matches I lost. I just missed some of those banks that were falling for me in other years.”

Hughes is a player who loves bank pool. He developed his passion for the game at a young age, dropping out of high school to clean ash trays and brush tables in Indiana.  Years went by working and playing pool.  Nothing but pool mattered and his fascination with the beauty of banks mesmerized him. Eventually, reaching the ripe age of 21, he became disenchanted with the pool hall lifestyle. He made a life changing decision to go back to school and treat pool as only a hobby. Now pool comes after his wife and his electrician business.  Hughes new approach to his old pool passion, tournament vacation play, has actually provided him a new level of intensity. He warmed up for matches with vigor inducing sweat.  “I’m like a boxer warming up for a fight,” said Hughes.  He makes an effort to eat right and sleep enough hoping to perform well in the bank division.

The early elimination Hughes delivered to Miller was not the only surprise during the middle stretch of bank play. Atlanta’s past banks champion Moore ran into red-hot 22-year-old Sylver Ochoa in the fifth round.  “I only missed one bank,” said Moore of his match with Ochoa. Ochoa’s superb play still prevailed over the defending champs one miss and Moore was forced to use his re-buy. In round six Moore drew Jeremy “Double J” Jones, and dropped the first two games of the match.  Moore gathered himself and ran two banks, then three in the next inning to stay alive. He still trailed two games to one.  Game four took on a defensive flavor with Jones outlasting Moore’s tenacity for a repeat championship.