Pool handicap chart
What race to give, for any gap in rating
Find the gap between the two ratings down the left, then read across to the race length you want to play. The pair of numbers is the fair race: the stronger player's target first.
| Gap | Per game | to 5 | to 7 | to 9 | to 11 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 52% | 5–5 | 7–7 | 9–8 | 11–10 |
| 25 | 54% | 5–4 | 7–6 | 9–8 | 11–9 |
| 50 | 59% | 5–4 | 7–5 | 9–6 | 11–8 |
| 75 | 63% | 5–3 | 7–4 | 9–5 | 11–7 |
| 100 | 67% | 5–3 | 7–4 | 9–5 | 11–6 |
| 150 | 74% | 5–2 | 7–3 | 9–3 | 11–4 |
| 200 | 80% | 5–2 | 7–2 | 9–3 | 11–3 |
| 250 | 85% | 5–1 | 7–2 | 9–2 | 11–2 |
| 300 | 89% | 5–1 | 7–1 | 9–1 | 11–2 |
"Per game" is the stronger player's chance of winning any single rack. The races beside it are the lengths that make the whole set closest to even.
Why the handicap is smaller than it looks
A 100 point gap is only 67% per rack, but over a race to nine it becomes about 92% of sets. Longer races punish the weaker player, because luck has less room to intervene. That is why the same gap needs a bigger spot in a long race than a short one.
It also means short races are close to a coin flip between players who are genuinely far apart, which is worth remembering before reading much into a race to three.
For two specific players, the calculator uses their real ratings instead of a round-numbered gap.