APA versus BCA Rules: Showdown

Which is better?

I have just wrapped up sessions in both APA and BCA. Which league has the better rules? While this is a subjective question, I’ll try to argue my positions. Feel free to argue right back. I will keep a running score. These are in no particular order.

Rule 1 - Open Table After the Break

In APA it’s ‘make it take it’, which means “If you make a ball on the break, that’s the suit you shoot.” In BCA, regardless of what you make, (8 ball excepted) the table is open.

Personally, I prefer the BCA rule here. After the break, I can choose to take either set of balls I prefer. If I made a solid, but the stripes are easier for my skill, I want to take them. It’s already handicapped enough that I’m spotting at least a ball. It’s a strategic decision and that a big part of the fun: I can get it wrong.

In APA, you can make a ball and just get unlucky and you’re already in big trouble. Why is this a thing? I don’t think it’s a pace of play issue. It’s just weird.

I once heard a high-skill APA player tell me: “If you let me choose after a break you’ll never win.” I’m not convinced frankly. Someone tell me why I’m wrong.

Score: APA: 0, BCA: 1

Rule 2 - Rack Your Own

The APA forces the losing player to rack. They’ve leaned so far into the ‘racking is for losers’ thing they actually give out a patch for a “Rackless Night”. It’s by far the easiest patch to get. It’s also juvenile and needs to be retired.

APA racking is a constant source of problems. You’re asking the player that just lost to have the sportsmanship to give a quality rack. There are players in my pool hall who simply can’t rack. Actual bad racks, perceived bad racks, arguments over ‘slug racks’ are warts on the APA brand.

In BCA you rack your own. Bad break? It’s always the shooter’s fault because they racked it AND broke it. There’s nothing to discuss.

BCA players bring magic racks to the match. APA players don’t. Why?

I have witnessed the same person racking for me in APA like they’re stacking bags of concrete on the table, suddenly hovering over the rack like it’s brain surgery in BCA.

Winner: BCA

Score: APA: 0, BCA: 2

Rule 3 - Called Pocket

There are half a dozen fake acronyms for APA regarding the lack of called pockets. “All pockets available” for example. “Any pocket A…”, oh never mind.

BCA is called pocket. (Not called shot.) While BCA isn’t “no slop” like some people describe it, luck plays less of a roll. It’s frustrating for higher skill players to watch a lower skill player miss a shot that travels to the other end of the table and goes in and then keep shooting.

Luck is a big part of pool, but shouldn’t determine the outcome when it’s easy to prevent. This is a case where it’s easy to prevent: just call your pocket. Luck still plays a roll. Here’s an excerpt from the BCAPL rules:

BCA - sometimes slop counts

That’s slop. Come on. But even still, this is an improvement over the APA rules. I’m giving this one to the BCA.

Score: APA: 0, BCA: 3

Rule 4 - Scratch While Missing the 8

In the APA scratching while working on the 8 ball is instant loss of game. In BCA if you scratch on the 8 but don’t make the 8, it’s ball in hand for the other player.

When you’re on the 8 ball you don’t have to worry about position on the next ball so you should be focused on 2 things: making the 8 ball and NOT SCRATCHING. It’s a mystery to me why the game doesn’t end when you scratch on the 8 in BCA.

This one is easy. The APA rule is better.

Score: APA: 1, BCA: 3

Rule 5 - Scoring System

In the APA 8 ball, you score points when and only when you WIN THE GAME. In the BCAPL, you score points for every ball you make.

In APA you’re always trying to win the game. You do what it takes: shot making, safeties, etc. Good strategy in APA 8 ball will often involve NOT making your balls so you have lots of opportunity to play a safety and get ball in hand. There’s no point in running down to one ball and then losing.

In BCA the strategy is completely different. A lower skill player can effectively win the match on points by simply pocketing balls. You hear it all the time in a BCA match after someone gets behind “Just make balls.” Window dressing is a thing.

BCA strategy often isn’t 8 ball strategy. Some people play as if it is, but it’s just not. This is the same complaint people (fairly) make about APA 9 ball. It isn’t pure 9 ball either.

I want an emphasis on winning the game, not winning on points. I will admit that I used this to my advantage in every match in BCA. I always knew how many balls I needed to effectively beat you. But that’s not nearly as fun as just beating you.

For me, APA 8 ball strategy is better and so is the scoring. Win baby, win.

Score: APA: 2, BCA: 3

Rule 6 - Handicap System

It’s hard to decouple the scoring system from the handicap system, but I’m going to try.

In APA, they use a proprietary system called the Equalizer®. It’s the subject of endless speculation and attempted gaming. You will not go ONE NIGHT in an APA league without hearing about who is sandbagging.

The BCA uses the proprietary Fargo Rating system. Every match you play effects your rating. Your rating is public and constantly changing based on who you’ve played and who they’ve played.

For players trying to improve, there is simply no comparison here. Your Fargo rating is constantly moving. You know where you stand. With the APA’s Equalizer®, your skill rating usually greatly lags your actual performance. It’s a black box on purpose. While the APA denies it, the skill levels don’t match across regions of the country. It’s often a surprise when you go up or down in the APA. People can get stuck on a level. I could go on, but there’s no point.

Fargo Ratings are betting than the Equalizer®.

Score: APA: 2, BCA: 4

Rule 7 - Eight on the Break

In the APA, making the 8 on the break without fouling is an instant win. In the BCA, the 8 would be spotted and the shooter continues.

The 8 on the break rule really doesn’t work in the BCA because in some formats you play a person only once. Winning on the break would mean the second player wouldn’t even shoot. While this does happen on a break and run, no one can argue that you got lucky on a break and run. Yes, there could have been a lucky roll or two, but largely a break and run is the result of skill. Not so for an 8 on the break.

Making the 8 on the break is mostly luck. you can do things to improve your chances, but it’s not a shot you’re going to be 50/50 or better on. For that reason I’m saying it’s a lot of luck.

I know I said I want to remove luck as much as possible, but I’m going to blatantly contradict myself here. The APA 8 on the break rule is exciting and fun. It’s so rare that it doesn’t play a big role in the outcome normally and it’s fun to see. Oddly, people get more excited about an 8 on the break than they do for an actual real, high skill shot.

I’m saying the APA rule is better here. I know it doesn’t work in the BCA, but I miss the excitement.

Score: APA: 3, BCA: 4

Rule 8 - Timeouts

In the APA players get a number of timeouts per rack depending on their skill level. In BCA there are no timeouts but players are free to converse with their time when they aren’t shooting¹.

(¹ - I don’t necessarily agree that this is correct. In my league it appears to have been modified by the league operator and disagree with the official BCA ruleset. See item 1-41 and specifically rule 5.)

This is a significant rule difference, but I have a hard time saying which is better.

Most of the time the APA player at the table calling timeout should have done so one or two shots earlier. A lot of time it’s “I’ve hooked myself on the 8 ball. Timeout!” Then we all wait for one minute (or more) of “shoot at this diamond with high inside at lag speed” from the coach and then a whiff from the player and the same ball in hand situation we could have had without the timeout and saved 2 minutes.

Coach called timeouts are usually better albeit sometimes just as slow.

BCA, on the other hand can be like a group therapy session for the non-shooting player with the entire time offering an opinion. I’ve heard ongoing strategy discussions from my opponent during my shot. I even had on person walk into the table area to coach my opponent while I’m shooting. It’s distracting. (Keep in mind this is just my league.)

While it’s probably not popular, I’d prefer NO timeouts and no discussing the match during the match. Period. Given that my BCA league appears to have modified the rules for the worse, I can’t award a point to BCA. (Why can the league operator modify such an important rule?) The APA rule causes just slows play down which is annoying. So no point there either. This one is a push.

Score: APA: 3, BCA: 4

Rule 9 - BCA Substitutions versus APA Put-Ups

This is a question of overall format. In the APA, each round you take turns putting a player up first and then other team then decides who will play that player.

In BCA, you basically play everyone, but it’s possible to substitute people in for any reason, like strategy.

My experience learning pool in the APA was that I played the same people over and over. Nothing against those people, but it was like an 80s video game: you had to ‘unlock’ other players. You almost never got to play high skill players. I found it frustrating.

There are two ways to play better players: improve your APA skill level and sign up for BCA.

Easy choice: BCA.

Score: APA: 3, BCA: 5

What did I miss? Comment and tell me how wrong I am.