Capelle on 9-Ball: Archer vs. Reyes Capelle on 9-Ball Reviews

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Pool & Billiard Magazine by Tom Shaw
Reprinted with the permission of Pool & Billiard. 

The commentators on Accu-Stats tournament tapes do a fantastic job. Reality limits them to on the fly comments, and 9-Ball action moves along so quickly that they rarely have time for lengthy analysis or slow motion instant replays.

That thought struck prolific billiard instructional author Phil Capelle as he was watching an outstanding Accu-Stats tape: Archer vs. Reyes, Sands Regency, 1996. He had the luxuries of time and a rewind button. The result is one of the most unique offerings among instructional materials: a great pro tournament tape and a detailed analysis, plus about a half an hour of key shots repeated at the end of the video, with Capelle’s commentary.

Pat Fleming, of Accu-Stats, added Game and Shot numbers on the screen for easy cross-reference with Capelle’s book. The book-tape combo is called “Capelle on 9-Ball”. Making it even more unique, it’s the first pool instructional that’s also available on DVD. Accu-Stats Archer-Reyes match, plus selected shots and Capelle’s commentary.

It’s amazing how much useful information can be gleaned from watching a pro match. It’s a matter of watching with a pro eye, and Capelle has that. The book high-lites multiple lessons from every inning of every rack, often with full table illustrations.

Capelle also compiled some fascinating stats from the Archer-Reyes hill-hill match, and he turns them into something you can use to improve your game (these notes use the heading “Your Game”). He measured each player’s stroke speed, length of pause (to 1/30^th of a second), number of warm up strokes on different kinds of shots, and so much more that we don’t have room to list them. He even noted the use of closed and open bridges, and when the pros use which.

This is a dream combo: Archer, Reyes, and Capelle, with one of the best 9-ball matches of the decade. If you’ve ever wondered exactly how the pros do it, and how to approach their level in your game, this is the combo for you. 

Chalk & Cue by Sheri Richardson

I am not a TV watcher but I know the benefits of watching good players so I appreciated the task of reviewing Phil Capelle's latest offering. Unlike his previous instructional tomes, this is an analysis of an actual match. While preparing his other books, he watched over 1,000 professional games. He has chosen one that features two great players - Johnny Archer and Efren Reyes - in the Sands Regency Open 23 in 1993. The book comes with an Accu-Stats Video (or DVD) of the match. Thanks to this company, many pro matches are well recorded. This particular one has Billy Incardona doing a top-notch job as commentator. The match went hill/hill and was a tense battle between the two highest ranked shooters of that time. 

Capelle has done all the homework for you. Everyone can benefit from his detailed shot-by-shot analysis. Good players seeking to improve their game will find a multitude of useful information. He looks at everything: shot selection, the particular type of hit, the number of warm up strokes, the time spent on a shot plus much more. How often do these players miss shots? When do they play safe and why? What was the danger?  You can refer back to the tape to see the shot and hear the commentary. Capelle notes which shots should be viewed in slow motion and gives you these at the end of the tape. The shots are numbered on the tape for easy reference. The detail is exhaustive. 

'The Pros only missed four 9-balls in my 500 Game Study in the 424 games where all nine balls were pocketed...Notice how they shoot the 9-ball firmly and use the rails to control the cue ball" 

Part I analyzes each shot. The shots are numbered and you get Capelle's opinions and lessons in with the statistics. Where he disagrees with the choice of shot he explains it and sometimes suggests other options, particularly for novices who cannot hit the ball as accurately. 

Part II is a study of how the professionals play. It provides charts, tables and statistics related to specific types of shots and methods of playing. Commencing with an overview of the match, it looks at runouts, fouls, the break, safety play and more.  Speed control, bridging and timing are all covered.  

Whatever you want to learn, it's covered here. For example: Kick shots are analyzed in a section of Part II: 

"The players hit and hooked their opponent on 4 of the 14 kick shots, a 29% average. That percentage warrants giving kick shots the extra effort these shots require (more on this in a later section). The kicker left his opponent a runout opportunity 47% of the time." 

You are then given the reference to the kick shots in the match and can put on the tape and watch the actual shots. 

Watch the match itself to see some great play and enjoy an exciting battle in contrasting styles. Read the book to understand the subtleties. Then if you have something you wish to improve in your own game - look it up. It's bound to be in there, and to show and tell you how to best approach it. An invaluable aid for those willing to study and to learn from the best. 

Inside Pool By Mark Whiteside
Reprinted with the permission of Inside Pool.

Over the last couple of years, I have listened to a friend here in Pittsburgh extolling the tremendous learning tool that he has found in studying Accu-Stats tapes of top professional players competing in 9-ball tournaments. In the beginning, I didn’t understand. When I watch pool, I have always done it for entertainment value. Although I’m sure some knowledge has soaked in, despite the lack of effort on my part, I had no idea how you could learn very much in this manner. Besides, who wants to pay $30 for a tape of a match that, when you watch it once, you know the ending?

After about two years of this friendly encouragement, I realized something. My friend was a seven handicap in our local 9-ball tournaments, with four being the lowest rating and nine being the highest rating that any local player has attained. Another rating system would make a seven an A- player and a nine would be an A+ player. Over the last two years, he has moved from a seven to an eight and then to a nine, yet he still wins a good percentage of the tournaments that he plays in. He credits his detailed studies of match tapes as having given him the knowledge to make tremendous progress, at a point where a lot of players hit a plateau. There are definitely two parts to this game. Yes, you must practice the physical motions, but the other part of the equation is mental, and therefore you must also seek knowledge.

In Capelle’s new book and companion videotape/DVD combination, you have a very detailed, in-depth analysis of a tremendous match between Efren “The Magician” Reyes and Johnny “The Scorpion” Archer from the 1996 Sands Regency Open. The commentary of the announcing team of Bill Incardona and Dale Maddux adds depth and a touch of humor to the intense competition. You receive the Accu-Stats videotape or DVD and Capelle on 9-Ball, a companion 200-page paperback book for either $43.95 (tape) or $49.95 (DVD).

Phil Capelle is a very detail-oriented person. Some of his past instructional books, like Play Your Best 9-Ball and Play Your Best Straight Pool are encyclopedic in scope. He likes to research, apparently, since for his 9-ball book he watched 1,000 pro games and made detailed analyses of 500. For this new project, he watched the match ten times to gather the data that he presents. Of course, he didn’t just watch it straight through ten times. He totally dissected it and laid out its various bits of information into data that you can use to gain valuable knowledge.

As with most instructional material, there are players at a specific level who would benefit most from this material. A beginning player would likely be overwhelmed by the magnitude of the information presented, and gain little from the encounter. An advanced player will find some of the information to be things that they already know, and have incorporated into their game. The range of skill-levels with the most to gain is what I would describe as B- players to A- players, who are accomplished players that can run a rack, or perhaps two. They play a fair amount, but progress in their game is slow, if at all. Most of them work on the physical part of the game by either individual practice or match play. Most of them pay lip service to the mental side of the game, but never work on their knowledge. Players who are either more or less highly skilled will each find new knowledge, but perhaps not as much as a B player would gain, and be able to put into action.

The book Capelle on 9-Ball consists of two major parts. The first is a companion guide to the video that is designed to allow you to match what you are seeing on the video with the analysis that details it. Some of the data that Capelle has charted includes: Speed of stroke on all shots, a difficulty rating for all position plays, a run-out difficulty rating for all layouts, and the time players took to prepare for and shoot key shots. There are sixty-five lessons in shaded boxes, as well as discussion on patterns, position, safeties, kick shots, and the mental game. The author includes diagrams of twenty-six shots that he felt were key shots in run-out attempts. The second part of the book contains Capelle’s detailed study on how these two great pros play the game. He studied some of the physical parts of their games, like number of warm-up strokes, choice of bridge, and stroke speed on a wide variety of shots, kicks, and safeties. Charts and tables abound, as well as over twenty lessons learned from this research.

The video portion also has two parts -- the match itself and a second section where Capelle gives video analysis of a package of twenty-five shots from the match. He uses slow motion, single frame advance, and a telestrator to make his points and teach his lessons.

If, indeed, studying videotape of matches can help you gain the knowledge to move your game to a higher level, then it would benefit each of us trying to get better to start watching tapes, whether from Accu-Stats or another source. If you’re going to undertake this study, then start with this combination and learn how and what to glean from a match tape. The understanding that you will gain from Capelle’s analysis will help you make tremendous progress in your learning curve. 

On the Wire by John Evans
Reprinted with the permission of On the Wire.

Efren Reyes and Johnny Archer, the number 1 and 2 world ranked nine-ball players respectively locked in a see-saw battle to see who survives at the Sands Regency Open in 1996. This is the match upon which Phil Capelle based his latest book, "Capelle on Nine Ball " - Archer vs. Reyes.  

The book is accompanied by the Accu-Stats video of this suspenseful and extremely entertaining match. Accu-Stats founder Pat Fleming has been recording matches since 1987. His videos are highly regarded for the production value as well as the expert commentary offered by the voice of Accu-Stats, Bill Incardona and his partner in the booth Dave Maddox.  

Capelle has authored five instructional books including "Play Your Best Pool”,  "A Mind for Pool " and   "Play Your Best Nine Ball  “. He also is a Certified B.C.A Instructor and a columnist for Pool and Billiard Magazine. A graduate of U.C. Berkeley in 1970, Capelle has been a student and enthusiast of pool for 33 years. 

Capelle’s latest offering gives the student a unique perspective into our favorite sport by coupling analytic expert commentary in the Accu-Stats video with Phil’s scientific analysis as well as a pro's perspective of each shot. I found it most refreshing that the diagrams were to scale, a Capelle trademark!  That means when you get on your table and set up the balls as illustrated in the book, you can actually perform the shots just like Efren or Johnny does in the video!  If you don’t get the same result set it up again and make the necessary adjustments. Soon you will be making the run out just like the pros. I must admit I 'm still smiling after setting up and executing the run-out beginning with "Efren’s Massive Draw" in game 4.  

The Reyes/Archer match is a textbook unto itself offering nearly every conceivable shot and aspect in the realm of pool. Thus it gave Capelle a vehicle to showcase his knowledgeable perspective derived from his many years of statistical analysis. The book is well organized and each shot on the video is numbered so that one can easily reference the desired lesson from the accompanying guide.  

This is a 5 star instructional coupling. Isolating each discipline of every shot in the match allows you to focus on all aspects of your game. I am looking forward to spending many visits with "Capelle on Nine Ball ", and to greatly improving my game! How is your game? 

National Billiard News by John Cash

“There is not always one best shot for all players, but there is usually one best shot for your game.”

The above statement came from a lesson from Capelle on 9 Ball, Phil Capelle’s latest effort in the continuing study of cue sports.

This is one of the best and most thorough discussions involving an actual match.

Capelle has created a first in the industry with his book/video-tape/DVD presentation of a 1996 match between then the two best 9-ball players in the game, Johnny Archer.

The match occurred on the one-loss of the Sands Regency Open 23, June 1996 at the Sands Regency Hotel in Reno, NV.

It has become a classic confrontation and was perhaps the best one ever played from the standpoint nearly every element and every situation that possibly could be seen in 9-ball was present.

In the hill-hill battle, Archer rallied for an 11-10 victory.

Capelle has outdone himself in combining the video and accompanying book to give viewers a comprehensive study.

Part 1 of the book is a companion guide in the video of this match.

Capelle advised the viewer/reader/student to first watch the match for fun and to enjoy commentators Billy Incardona and David Maddux’s comments.

He mentions there are 65 lessons and 26 key shots of the match are diagrammed.

In the second part of the book following a complete showing of the match and suggestions, there is a detailed study of how the pros play the game from such items as bridge usage, warm up strokes, timing the stroke and speed of stroke.

Capelle, the Sultan of Stats, also has included myriad statistics based on research he has done by viewing more than 1,000 games of professional 9-ball and then compiling an incomparable number of exacting situations.

The book is 200 pages and the video or DVD is approximately 2 hours, 15 minutes.

Watch and enjoy the match as it unfolds from start to finish. There are many highlights shown on everything from the break to kick shots to safeties to run outs.

The viewer should pay close attention to the swings in the match and visualize this happening in a match in which he or she is participating.

Throughout the 21 games, the announcers discuss the patterns played by Archer and Reyes and whether either player misplayed a particular shot.

Incardona is a one-pocket champion and his views during the match are of major significance. Hid opinions are well respected within the professional playing community.

Sit back and study each and every game to see if you would have played the game differently than the pros and why.

Perhaps you are not able to execute the shots Archer and Reyes have exhibited and would have taken a route easier for you to have run out.

All of these topics are discussed in Part 2 by Capelle and also in the video following the presentation of the entire match.

He has taken 25 shots from Archer-Reyes match and dissected each of these for the benefit of the amateur player and has made suggestions for alternate patterns or different shot selection during these sometimes difficult circumstances.

What Capelle has done is provide one of the most comprehensive discussions of the game of 9-ball with an actual visible study provided by two world-class players. What a way to learn!

This writer reviewer had been playing pool for more than 50 years (albeit not of the caliber of these professionals) and during that time has heard on numerous occasions players have learned more by watching the pros play than from any other reading material of videotape.

Perhaps this view is very true for many individuals. If so, what better way to learn the game than by watching two of the most respected players as Archer and Reyes from the standpoint of their overall ability.

In this book/video you will see some incredible shotmaking, safety play and run out skills.

You can’t beat it for entertainment and knowledge.