On August 10, 2023, we announced that the 2024 USA Pool League National Championships in Las Vegas will feature the CSI Group Play format for all team divisions. That announcement can be read here. Below are additional details of how the CSI Group Play format will work specifically for USA Pool League divisions.
TERMS
Before we get into the details, let's define a few terms:
Match - one team vs. one team
Set - one player vs. one player (a set number of racks or a race)
Rack - a single game of 8-ball, 9-ball or 10-ball
TERMS
Before we get into the details, let's define a few terms:
Match - one team vs. one team
Set - one player vs. one player (a set number of racks or a race)
Rack - a single game of 8-ball, 9-ball or 10-ball
STAGE 1 - GROUP STAGE
Each match in Stage 1 consists of 15 racks (5-player teams) or 9 racks (3-player teams) with each teammate playing a three-rack set against one player from the opposing team. The USA Pool League game scoring method will be used and the appropriate number of USA Pool League handicap points, which will be determined by a new Handicap Calculator, will be applied to each match. The team with the most points, after handicap points are applied, wins the match. See the example below of two 5-player teams, "The Racking Crew" vs "Breaking Bad", playing an 8-ball match.
As stated earlier, each teammate plays a three-rack set against one player from the opposing team. In this example, the first set is Bob Gardner vs Jack Jenkins and the two men play three racks. The second set is Sandy Evans vs David King and they also play three racks. The third set is Mark Andrews vs Tom Mann and they play three racks. The fourth set is John Kline vs Henry Jones and they also play three racks. Finally, the fifth set is Larry Ellers vs Barry Cruz and they also play three racks.
All racks are scored using the USA Pool League scoring system and the totals for each player are tallied in the "TOTAL" columns for each team. In this example, "The Racking Crew" scored 131 points and "Breaking Bad" scored 139 points. However, that's not the end of the story...we also have to determine if any handicap points should be applied. Because "Breaking Bad" has a higher team rating (2,374) than "The Racking Crew" (2,305), "Breaking Bad" is expected to score more points. When we enter the players' ratings and match-ups into the new USA Pool League handicap calculator (coming soon), it calculates that "The Racking Crew" should receive 10 handicap points. Therefore, the final score of the match is "The Racking Crew" (141) and "Breaking Bad" (139). Therefore, "The Racking Crew" wins the match.
Each match in Stage 1 consists of 15 racks (5-player teams) or 9 racks (3-player teams) with each teammate playing a three-rack set against one player from the opposing team. The USA Pool League game scoring method will be used and the appropriate number of USA Pool League handicap points, which will be determined by a new Handicap Calculator, will be applied to each match. The team with the most points, after handicap points are applied, wins the match. See the example below of two 5-player teams, "The Racking Crew" vs "Breaking Bad", playing an 8-ball match.
As stated earlier, each teammate plays a three-rack set against one player from the opposing team. In this example, the first set is Bob Gardner vs Jack Jenkins and the two men play three racks. The second set is Sandy Evans vs David King and they also play three racks. The third set is Mark Andrews vs Tom Mann and they play three racks. The fourth set is John Kline vs Henry Jones and they also play three racks. Finally, the fifth set is Larry Ellers vs Barry Cruz and they also play three racks.
All racks are scored using the USA Pool League scoring system and the totals for each player are tallied in the "TOTAL" columns for each team. In this example, "The Racking Crew" scored 131 points and "Breaking Bad" scored 139 points. However, that's not the end of the story...we also have to determine if any handicap points should be applied. Because "Breaking Bad" has a higher team rating (2,374) than "The Racking Crew" (2,305), "Breaking Bad" is expected to score more points. When we enter the players' ratings and match-ups into the new USA Pool League handicap calculator (coming soon), it calculates that "The Racking Crew" should receive 10 handicap points. Therefore, the final score of the match is "The Racking Crew" (141) and "Breaking Bad" (139). Therefore, "The Racking Crew" wins the match.
USA Pool League 8-Ball Teams Stage 1 Score Sheet
Below is the same example for a 9-ball or 10-ball match.
USA Pool League 9-Ball or 10-Ball Teams Stage 1 Score Sheet
Every match in Stage 1 is played and scored in this fashion. At the conclusion of Stage 1, the teams that performed the best, determined by the following criteria, in the following order, advance to Stage 2.
Stage 1 Ranking Criteria
For example, let's suppose we have the following stats and four of the below teams will advance to Stage 2. The circled teams would advance. Teams "Running Out", "The Racking Crew", and "She Chalks Too Much" have the highest match win percentage and will therefore advance to Stage 2. However, we need one more team. Teams "Pocketeers" and "The Pocket Pounders" have the same match win percentage so we go to our second ranking criteria...average points per match. Since "Pocketeers" has a higher average points per match (118), they advance to Stage 2.
Stage 1 Ranking Criteria
- Match win %
- Avg. points per match (after handicap points are applied)
- Strength of schedule (avg. rating of opposing teams)
- Shootout
For example, let's suppose we have the following stats and four of the below teams will advance to Stage 2. The circled teams would advance. Teams "Running Out", "The Racking Crew", and "She Chalks Too Much" have the highest match win percentage and will therefore advance to Stage 2. However, we need one more team. Teams "Pocketeers" and "The Pocket Pounders" have the same match win percentage so we go to our second ranking criteria...average points per match. Since "Pocketeers" has a higher average points per match (118), they advance to Stage 2.
STAGE 2 - FINAL BRACKET
Teams in the top 30-40%, plus several random wild card teams, advance to the Stage 2 single elimination bracket. Teams in Stage 2 are also seeded in the final bracket by their Stage 1 ranking.
Stage 2 matches will use the traditional USA Pool League format and scoring system with teammates playing full race-to sets using the USA Pool League Race-To Calculator (short races).
Below is an example score sheet for Stage 2 matches. The first page shows the scores of the individual sets and the second page shows the calculation of the overall team scores based on those sets.
Teams in the top 30-40%, plus several random wild card teams, advance to the Stage 2 single elimination bracket. Teams in Stage 2 are also seeded in the final bracket by their Stage 1 ranking.
Stage 2 matches will use the traditional USA Pool League format and scoring system with teammates playing full race-to sets using the USA Pool League Race-To Calculator (short races).
Below is an example score sheet for Stage 2 matches. The first page shows the scores of the individual sets and the second page shows the calculation of the overall team scores based on those sets.
USA Pool League 8-Ball Teams Stage 2 Score Sheet - Page 1
The second page of the score sheet calculates the overall team scores. If you are unfamiliar with the USA Pool League scoring system, please refer to the Player Handbook.
USA Pool League 8-Ball Teams Stage 2 Score Sheet - Page 2
We hope this helps explain how the CSI Group Play format will be used in the 2024 USA Pool League National Championships and we are thrilled to offer all teams more time at the table.
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