3 9-Ball Break Requirements

1.  You begin the break with ball in hand behind the head string.  The cue ball must contact the 1-ball before any other ball or cushion.  You must use an open break.  You must either pocket a ball or drive at least four object balls to the cushions, or it is an illegal break.  If you pocket a ball you continue to shoot; if you do not pocket a ball or if you commit a foul, your inning ends.

2.  If your break is illegal, your inning ends and your opponent is awarded ball in hand.

3.  In all cases on the break, jumped object balls other than the 9-ball are not returned to the table.  If the 9-ball is jumped, it is spotted.

4.  If you pocket the 9-ball on a legal break you win the game.

4 Push-out After the Break

1.  On the first shot after a legal break, the player taking that shot has the option to shoot a push-out.  On a push-out:

a.      the cue ball does not have to contact the lowest numbered ball or any object ball at all;

b.      no ball has to contact a cushion

c.       all other rules still apply.

2.  Any object balls except the 9-ball that are pocketed on a push-out remain pocketed.  If the 9-ball is pocketed, it is spotted.

3.  If you play a push-out, you must notify your opponent before the shot and your opponent must acknowledge your intention.

4.  Following a push-out your inning always ends.  Your opponent may:

a.      accept the table in position and shoot, or;

b.      require you to shoot again with the table in position.

5.  You may not play a push-out if you have ball in hand on the shot after the break.

5 Continuing Play

1.  After the break (and push-out, if one occurs), play continues as follows:

a.      the lowest numbered ball on the table must be the first object ball contacted by the cue ball, or it is a foul;

b.      If you legally pocket any ball, your inning continues;

c.       if the 9-ball is pocketed on a shot in which a foul occurs or if it is jumped, it is spotted;

d.      other jumped balls and illegally pocketed balls are not returned to the table. 

2.  When it is your inning, you must continue to shoot as long as you legally pocket a ball on each shot.  If you do not legally pocket a ball or if you commit a foul, your inning ends.

3.  The game is won by the player who legally pockets the 9-ball.

6 Three Successive Fouls

If you commit three successive fouls in one game you lose the game.  After your second successive foul your opponent or a referee must warn you that you are on two fouls.  If the warning is not issued and you foul a third successive time:

       a.  it is not considered your third successive foul,

       b.  you do not lose the game,

       c.  your foul count remains at two.

7 Stalemate

If the table is in a position such that a referee has determined that any attempt to pocket or move a ball will result in loss of game, and each player has had three innings without significantly changing the position, the referee will declare a stalemate and the game will be replayed with the player who broke the game breaking again.

8 HANDICAPS

The 9-ball handicap system can look a bit confusing at first. The range is from -10 to +10 and is figured by taking your wins minus your losses and divide by the number of weeks you have played

If player A has 12 wins and 8 losses after 2 weeks of play his handicap is +2

12 wins minus 8 losses = 4 then 4 divided by 2 weeks played =+2

If player B has 45 wins and 5 losses after 5 weeks of play his handicap is +8

45 wins minus 5 losses =40 then 40 divided by 5weeks played = +8

If player C has 11 wins and 19 losses after 3 weeks of play his handicap is -3

11 wins minus 19 losses =-8 then -8 divided by 3 weeks played = -2.67 which rounds to -3

If Player D has 5 wins and 25 losses after 3 weeks his handicap is -7

5 wins minus 25 losses = -20 then 20 divided by 3 weeks played = -6.67 which rounds to -7

Any player who has previously played will begin a new session at their last ending handicap. All new players will begin at league average which is 0. At the beginning of each new session handicaps will not change until a player completes 20 games

9 DURATION

Due to the length of the matches it is recommended but not required that you play on 2 tables when available.

10 LINE UP

When making your line-up the home team will make theirs first, the visiting team will then make up theirs.

Players must be listed in order from lowest handicap to highest handicap for the 5 players that play the first round. If you are short players, and are forced to forfeit individual matches, the score sheet will be filled out as follows: The forfeiting team will list their highest handicapped player who is not there on the score sheet and will be placed on the score sheet in the proper slot as per line-up procedures and will take a loss each time that player is scheduled to play.

11 LEAGUE FEES

League fees are $30.00 a week per team and are due the night of league play.

Sanction fees are $10.00 annually and are due on the first night of play and to be renewed each year in June.

At the beginning of each session a bar sponsorship of $20.00 will be due on the team’s first night of play.

12 Eligibility

You may change your team roster up until the completion of your teams fourth week of play.

All players must have 20 games by your teams 6^th week of play or they will be dropped from your roster

All players who have played even one game must be sanctioned, even players dropped from your roster.

Any player who receives a score and is not sanctioned by your teams 4^th week of play will be dropped from your roster and will receive a loss.

13 MAKE-UPS

Form time to time it is necessary for teams to reschedule league matches. Both team captains must agree to reschedule, the reschedule date must be submitted to the league office prior to rescheduling,  and the match must be made up within 2 weeks of scheduled play or both teams will receive a score of a 0 for that night of play. All rescheduled matches will be held at the location originally scheduled.

14 FORFEITS

On occasion, teams may not have 5 players for league play. You may start a match with 3 players. If 3 players are not available at 7:20 then the team must take a forfeit for the night of play.

Individual forfeits the forfeiting team will fill out the score sheet as if they had 5 players, putting the highest handicapped player not there in the proper space, adjusting for handicap and will receive a score of o for each match scheduled.

Team forfeits If a team has to forfeit both teams are still responsible for that weeks league fees. The forfeiting team will receive a score of 0 for that scheduled night of play.

The team who is forfeited to will be awarded your team’s average (including handicap if applicable) and a fee of $30.00 will be due. Any team forfeiting more than 2 times in a session or in the last 2 weeks of league play will be removed from the league for the remainder of that session and will forfeit all prize money due.

15 BYES

In a scheduled session if there is a bye week, the first time you are scheduled to play the bye it will be no points and no fees. The second time you are scheduled the bye it will be a forfeit. Your team will be awarded your teams average (including handicap if applicable) and a fee of $30.00 will be due.

16 DROP BARS

The drop bars will be Players Family Billiards, Omalleys, Sportsmens, Longshots, Q-stix, and Cornfed reds. It is up to the visiting team captain to drop envelopes at the drop bar no later than noon on the day following play.

17 EQUIPMENT

 It is up to the home team to determine the table to be played on for league play. When possible 3-½ x 7 tables will be used.

18 PROTESTS

Any team wishing to protest a match must do so in writing and must be submitted one week after the scheduled match. The protest must be submitted with $25.00. All protests will be heard within 2 weeks of submission. The team captain who protested must be present at the hearing or the protest will not be heard. If you win the protest you will be refunded your $25.00. If you signed the score sheet for that night of play then you cannot submit a protest. The home team score sheet (the white copy) will be the master score sheet

19 STATS

Weekly statistics will be available online at www.centralohiobca.com and will not be mailed. You will be provided envelopes for your weekly fees and score sheets.

20 Age Limit

All players in the Central Ohio BCA must be at least 18 years of age. However, it is the locations right to refuse entry or service to any one  under the age of 21. If the player is under the age of 21 they must declare to the bartender upon entry to the location. Any player under the age of 21 who attempts to order an alcoholic beverage from a location during league play will be barred from the Central Ohio BCA for life.

APPLIED RULINGS

 While great care has been taken to ensure that the BCAPL Rules are written as clearly and thoroughly as possible, situations will occasionally arise that do not perfectly fit within the framework of the rules.  The human factor will also always be present, resulting in different people reaching different conclusions while reading the same language.  The following material serves to describe the application of the rules to various situations.  It is designed to illustrate and demonstrate the usage of the rules, and in some cases give what could be referred to as "interpretations".  The Applied Rulings are specifically intended to cover situations that might be open to question or differing opinions.

 Some Applied Rulings are presented in a "situation-and-effect" style.  They are self-explanatory.  There are also some general discussions of various rules in order to clarify the intent or reasoning behind the development of those rules.  In some cases there is even advice to players to help you avoid disputes. 

The BCAPL recognizes that no set of rules will ever be perfect.  In accepting the fact that some issues might have been missed, or that some rules or rulings may change over time for various reasons, we will not impose any prohibition on future changes.  The Official Rules and Applied Rulings will be reviewed continually, and adjustments will be made as necessary.  New editions will be printed annually with any changes included.  If an issue should be considered serious enough to require immediate attention, changes will be made and issued via the BCAPL web site and by mail. 

Another specific reason for inclusion of this material is the BCAPL’s belief that no Administrative Authority, Tournament Director or referee should ever have access to or enforce any rule, regulation or procedure that any player does not have knowledge of, or at least access to that knowledge.  That has frequently not been the case in the past, and we are dedicated to putting an end to that practice.  The applied rulings go a long way toward that goal.

 Finally, you might read some of the Applied Rulings and think to yourself "Who dreamed this stuff up?  This would never happen!"  Rest assured that it can happen and does happen.  There is not a single issue addressed in the Applied Rulings or the rules themselves that does not relate to a situation that has either actually occurred in past BCA or BCAPL events, or that has been the subject of an inquiry by players, administrators or referees.  It is expected that the Applied Rulings will expand over the coming years as unforeseen situations continue to occur.

 The bold italicized print seen in previous sections that indicates new or changed material has not been used in this section.  The entire section is a new concept to billiards rules, and much of it involves new material.

 The Applied Rulings have been developed by the BCAPL National Office.  They are to be taken as definitive, have the same effect as the rules, and are binding on BCAPL players, referees and officials during BCAPL events.  Their application is specific to BCAPL play and is not intended to debate other existing or traditional practices outside of BCAPL play.