Cue sports

“Billiards” redirects here. This article covers the word asan umbrella term for cue sports in general. For specificgames known as “billiards” and all other uses of theterm, see Billiard.

Cue sports (sometimes written cuesports), also knownas billiard sports,[2][3] are a wide variety of games ofskill generally played with a cue stick which is used tostrike billiard balls, moving them around a cloth-coveredbilliards table bounded by rubber cushions.Historically, the umbrella term was billiards. While thatfamiliar name is still employed by some as a generic labelfor all such games, the word’s usage has splintered intomore exclusive competing meanings in various parts ofthe world. For example, in British and Australian En-glish, “billiards” usually refers exclusively to the game ofEnglish billiards, while in American and Canadian En-glish it is sometimes used to refer to a particular game orclass of games, or to all cue games in general, dependingupon dialect and context.There are three major subdivisions of games within cuesports:

• Carom billiards, referring to games played on tableswithout pockets, typically 10 feet in length, includ-ing balkline and straight rail, cushion caroms, three-cushion billiards, artistic billiards and four-ball;

• Pool, covering numerous pocket billiards gamesgenerally played on six-pocket tables of 7-, 8-, or9-foot length, including among others eight-ball (theworld’s most widely played cue sport), nine-ball (thedominant professional game), ten-ball, straight pool(the formerly dominant pro game), one-pocket, andbank pool; and

• Snooker and English billiards, games played on a bil-liards table with six pockets called a snooker table(which has dimensions just under 12 ft by 6 ft), thatare classified entirely separately from pool based ona separate historical development, as well as a sepa-rate culture and terminology that characterize theirplay.

There are other variants that make use of obstacles andtargets, and table-top games played with disks instead ofballs.Billiards has a long and rich history stretching from itsinception in the 15th century, to the wrapping of the

body of Mary, Queen of Scots, in her billiard tablecover in 1586, through its many mentions in the worksof Shakespeare, including the famous line “let’s to bil-liards” in Antony and Cleopatra (1606–07), and throughthe many famous enthusiasts of the sport such as: Mozart,Louis XIV of France, Marie Antoinette, ImmanuelKant, Napoleon, Abraham Lincoln, Mark Twain, GeorgeWashington, French president Jules Grévy, Charles Dick-ens, George Armstrong Custer, Theodore Roosevelt,Lewis Carroll, W.C. Fields, Babe Ruth, Bob Hope, andJackie Gleason.

1 History

Inset from School of Recreation, 1710. “We perceive from theengraving of the Billiards of the seventtenth century, that thegame was altogether different from what it is now.”[4]

All cue sports are generally regarded to have evolved intoindoor games from outdoor stick-and-ball lawn games(retroactively termed ground billiards),[5] and as such tobe related to trucco, croquet and golf, and more dis-tantly to the stickless bocce and balls. The word “bil-liard” may have evolved from the French word billart orbillette, meaning “stick”, in reference to the mace, an im-plement similar to a golf club, which was the forerun-ner to the modern cue; the term’s origin may have alsobeen from French bille, meaning “ball”.[6] The modernterm “cue sports” can be used to encompass the ances-tral mace games, and even the modern cueless variants,such as finger billiards, for historical reasons. “Cue” itselfcame from queue, the French word for a tail. This refersto the early practice of using the tail of the mace to strike

1

2 2 AS A SPORT

the ball when it lay against a rail cushion.[6]

A recognizable form of billiards was played outdoors inthe 1340s, and was reminiscent of croquet. King LouisXI of France (1461–1483) had the first known indoorbilliard table.[6] Louis XIV further refined and popular-ized the game, and it swiftly spread among the Frenchnobility.[6] While the game had long been played on theground, this version appears to have died out in the 17thcentury, in favor of croquet, golf and bowling games,while table billiards had grown in popularity as an indooractivity.[6] Mary, Queen of Scots, claimed that her “tablede billiard” had been taken away by those who eventuallybecame her executioners (and who covered her body withthe table’s cloth).[6] In 1588, the Duke of Norfolk, owneda “billyard bord coered with a greene cloth... three bill-yard sticks and 11 balls of yvery”.[6] Billiards grew to theextent that by 1727, it was being played in almost everyParis café.[6] In England, the game was developing into avery popular activity for members of the gentry.[6]

By 1670, the thin butt end of the mace began to be usednot only for shots under the cushion (which itself was orig-inally only there as a preventative method to stop ballsfrom rolling off), but players increasingly preferred it forother shots as well. The cue as it is known today was fi-nally developed by about 1800.[6]

Initially, the mace was used to push the balls, rather thanstrike them. The newly developed striking cue provideda new challenge. Cushions began to be stuffed with sub-stances to allow the balls to rebound, in order to enhancethe appeal of the game. After a transitional period whereonly the better players would use cues, the cue came tobe the first choice of equipment.[6]

The demand for tables and other equipment was initiallymet in Europe by John Thurston and other furniture mak-ers of the era. The early balls were made from wood andclay, but the rich preferred to use ivory.[6]

Early billiard games involved various pieces of additionalequipment, including the “arch” (related to the croquethoop), “port” (a different hoop) and “king” (a pin or skit-tle near the arch) in the 1770s, but other game variants,relying on the cushions (and eventually on pockets cut intothem), were being formed that would go on to play fun-damental roles in the development of modern billiards.[6]

The early croquet-like games eventually led to the devel-opment of the carom or carambole billiards category– what most non-Commonwealth and non-US speakersmean by the word “billiards”. These games, which oncecompletely dominated the cue sports world but have de-clined markedly in many areas over the last few gener-ations, are games played with three or sometimes fourballs, on a table without holes (and without obstructionsor targets in most cases), in which the goal is generallyto strike one object ball with a cue ball, then have the cueball rebound off of one or more of the cushions and strikea second object ball. Variations include three-cushion,straight rail and the balkline variants, cushion caroms,

Illustration of a three-ball pocket billiards game in early 19thcentury Tübingen, Germany, using a table much longer than themodern type.

five-pins, and four-ball, among others.Over time, a type of obstacle returned, originally as a haz-ard and later as a target, in the form of pockets, or holespartly cut into the table bed and partly into the cushions,leading to the rise of pocket billiards, including “pool”games such as eight-ball, nine-ball, straight pool and one-pocket; Russian pyramid; snooker; English billiards andothers.In the United States pool and billiards had died out for abit, but between 1878 and 1956 pool and billiards becamevery popular. Players in annual championships began toreceive their own cigarette cards. This was mainly dueto the fact that it was a popular pastime for troops to taketheir minds off from battle. However, by the end ofWorldWar II pool and billiards began to die down once again. Itwas not until 1961 when the film “The Hustler” came outthat sparked a new interest in the game. Now the game isgenerally a well-known game and has many players of alldifferent skill levels.[7]

There are few more cheerful sights, whenthe evenings are long, and the weather dull,than a handsome, well-lighted billiard room,with the smooth, green surface of the billiardtable; the ivory balls flying noiselessly here andthere, or clicking musically together.[8]—Charles Dickens Jr., (1889)

2 As a sport

The games with regulated international professional com-petition, if not others, have been referred to as “sports” or“sporting” events, not simply “games”, since 1893 at thelatest.[9] Quite a variety of particular games (i.e., sets ofrules and equipment) are the subject of present-day com-petition, includingmany of those alreadymentioned, withcompetition being especially broad in nine-ball, snooker,

3.2 Tables 3

three-cushion and eight-ball.Snooker, though technically a pocket billiards variant andclosely related in its equipment and origin to the game ofEnglish billiards, is a professional sport organized at theinternational level, and its rules bear little resemblance tothose of modern pool, pyramid and other such games.A “Billiards” category encompassing pool, snooker andcarom was featured in the 2005 World Games, held inDuisburg, Germany, and the 2006 Asian Games also sawthe introduction of a “Cue sports” category.

3 Equipment

Main category: Cue sports equipment

3.1 Billiard balls

Main article: Billiard ballBilliard balls vary from game to game, in size, design and

Cue balls from (left to right):

• Russian pool and kaisa—68 mm (2 11 ⁄16 in)

• Carom—61.5 mm (2 7 ⁄16 in)

• American-style pool—57 mm (2 1 ⁄4 in)

• British-style pool (largish) —56 mm (2 3 ⁄16 in)

• Snooker—52.5 mm (2 1 ⁄15 in)

• Scaled-down pool—51 mm (2 in) for children’s smaller ta-bles

Not shown: half-scale children’s miniature pool—approximately28.5 mm (1 1 ⁄8 in).

quantity.Russian pyramid and kaisa have a size of 68 mm (2 11⁄16in). In Russian pyramid there are sixteen balls, as in pool,but fifteen are white and numbered, and the cue ball isusually red.[10] In Kaisa, five balls are used: the yellowobject ball (called the kaisa in Finnish), two red objectballs, and the two white cue balls (usually differentiated

by one cue ball having a dot or other marking on it andeach of which serves as an object ball for the opponent).Carom billiards balls are larger than pool balls, having adiameter of 61.5 mm (2 7⁄16 in), and come as a set of twocue balls (one colored or marked) and an object ball (ortwo object balls in the case of the game four-ball).American-style pool balls are 57 mm (2 1⁄4 in), are usedin many pool games found throughout the world, comein sets of two suits of object balls, seven solids and sevenstripes, an 8 ball and a cue ball; the balls are racked dif-ferently for different games (some of which do not usethe entire ball set). Blackball (English-style eight-ball)sets are similar, but have unmarked groups of red (orblue) and yellow balls instead of solids and stripes, andat 56 mm (2 3⁄16 in) are smaller than the American-style;they are used principally in Britain, Ireland, and someCommonwealth countries, though not exclusively, sincethey are unsuited for playing nine-ball.Snooker balls are smaller than American-style pool ballswith a diameter of 52.5 mm (2 1⁄15 in), and come in setsof 22 (15 reds, 6 "colours", and a cue ball). English bil-liard balls are the same size as snooker balls and come insets of three balls (two cue balls and a red, an object ball).Other games, such as bumper pool, have custom ball sets.Billiard balls have been made from many different mate-rials since the start of the game, including clay, bakelite,celluloid, crystallite, ivory, plastic, steel and wood. Thedominant material from 1627 until the early 20th centurywas ivory. The search for a substitute for ivory use wasnot for environmental concerns but based on economicmotivation and fear of danger for elephant hunters. Itwas in part spurred on by a New York billiard table man-ufacturer who announced a prize of $10,000 for a sub-stitute material. The first viable substitute was celluloid,invented by John Wesley Hyatt in 1868, but the mate-rial was volatile, sometimes exploding during manufac-ture and was highly flammable.[11][12]

3.2 Tables

Main article: Billiard tableThere are many sizes and styles of pool and billiard ta-bles. Generally, tables are rectangles twice as long as theyare wide. Most pool tables are known as 7-, 8-, or 9-footers, referring to the length of the table’s long side.Full-size snooker and English billiard tables are 12 feet(3.7 m) long on the longest side. Pool halls tend to have9-foot (2.7 m) tables and cater to the serious pool player.Pubs will typically use 7-foot (2.1 m) tables which are of-ten coin-operated. Formerly, 10-foot (3 m) tables werecommon, but such tables are now considered antique col-lectors items; a few, usually from the late 19th century,can be found in pool halls from time to time. Ten-foottables remain the standard size for carom billiard games.The slates on modern carom tables are usually heated tostave off moisture and provide a consistent playing sur-

4 3 EQUIPMENT

Pool table with equipment.

face.The length of the pool table will typically be a function ofspace, with many homeowners purchasing an 8-foot (2.4m) table as a compromise. Full-size pool tables are 4.5by 9 ft (2.7 m) (interior dimensions). High-quality tableshave a bed made of thick slate, in three pieces to preventwarping and changes due to temperature and humidity.Smaller bar tables are most commonly made with a singlepiece of slate. Pocket billiards tables of all types normallyhave six pockets, three on each side (four corner pockets,and two side or middle pockets).

3.3 Cloth

Main article: BaizeAll types of tables are covered with billiard cloth (of-

Women playing on an elaborately decorated green-covered tablein an early 1880s advertising poster.

ten called “felt”, but actually a woven wool or wool/nylonblend called baize). Cloth has been used to cover bil-liards tables since the 15th century. In fact, the predeces-sor company of the most famous maker of billiard cloth,Iwan Simonis, was formed in 1453.Bar or tavern tables, which get a lot of play, use “slower”,more durable cloth. The cloth used in upscale pool (andsnooker) halls and home billiard rooms is “faster” (i.e.,provides less friction, allowing the balls to roll farther

across the table bed), and competition-quality pool clothis made from 100% worsted wool. Snooker cloth tradi-tionally has a nap (consistent fiber directionality) and ballsbehave differently when rolling against versus along withthe nap.The cloth of the billiard table has traditionally been green,reflecting its origin (originally the grass of ancestral lawngames), and has been so colored since the 16th century,but it is also produced in other colors such as red andblue.[13]

The cloth was earlier said to be the most important partof the game, most likely because of the reflection of thegame’s origin. The players were stubborn in the fact thatthe cloth should not be ripped. They even made womencontinue to use maces after cues were invented, for fearthat they would rip the cloth with the sharper cues.

3.4 Rack

Main article: Rack (billiards)A rack is the name given to a frame (usually wood, plas-

Aluminium billiard rack that is used for 8-ball, 9-ball, andstraight pool.

tic or aluminium) used to organize billiard balls at thebeginning of a game. This is traditionally triangular inshape, but varies with the type of billiards played. Thereare two main types of racks; the more common triangu-lar shape which is used for eight-ball and straight pool andthe diamond-shaped rack used for nine-ball.There are several other types of less common rack typesthat are also used, based on a “template” to hold the bil-liard balls tightly together. Most commonly it is a thinplastic sheet with diamond-shaped cut-outs that hold theballs that is placed on the table with the balls set on topof the rack. The rack is used to set up the “break” andremoved after the “break shot” occurs.

3.5 Cues

Main article: Cue stick

Billiards games are mostly played with a stick known as

3.7 Chalk 5

a cue. A cue is usually either a one piece tapered stickor a two piece stick divided in the middle by a joint ofmetal or phenolic resin. High quality cues are generallytwo pieces and are made of a hardwood, generally maplefor billiards and ash for snooker.The butt end of the cue is of larger circumference and isintended to be gripped by a player’s hand. The shaft ofthe cue is of smaller circumference, usually tapering to an0.4 to 0.55 inches (10 to 14 mm) terminus called a ferrule(usually made of fiberglass or brass in better cues), wherea rounded leather tip is affixed, flush with the ferrule, tomake final contact with balls. The tip, in conjunction withchalk, can be used to impart spin to the cue ball when itis not hit in its center.Cheap cues are generally made of pine, low-grade maple(and formerly often of ramin, which is now endangered),or other low-quality wood, with inferior plastic ferrules.A quality cue can be expensive and may be made of ex-otic woods and other expensive materials which are art-fully inlaid in decorative patterns. Many modern cuesare also made, like golf clubs, with high-tech materialssuch as woven graphite. Skilled players may use morethan one cue during a game, including a separate gener-ally lighter cue for the opening break shot (because of cuespeed gained from a lighter stick) and another, shorter cuewith a special tip for jump shots.

3.6 Mechanical bridge

The mechanical bridge, sometimes called a “rake”,“bridge stick” or simply “bridge”, and in the UK a “rest”,is used to extend a player’s reach on a shot where the cueball is too far away for normal hand bridging. It con-sists of a stick with a grooved metal or plastic head whichthe cue slides on. Many amateurs refuse to use the me-chanical bridge based on the perception that to do so isunmanly. However, many aficionados and most profes-sionals employ the bridge whenever the intended shot sorequires.Some players, especially current or former snooker play-ers, use a screw-on cue butt extension instead of or inaddition to the mechanical bridge.Bridge head design is varied, and not all designs (es-pecially those with cue shaft-enclosing rings, or wheelson the bottom of the head), are broadly tournament-approved.In Italy a longer, thicker cue is typically available for thiskind of tricky shot.For snooker they are normally available in three forms,their use depending on how the player is hampered; thestandard rest is a simple cross, the 'spider' has a raisedarch around 12 cm with three grooves to rest the cue inand for the most awkward of shots, the 'giraffe' (or 'swan'in England) which has a raised arch much like the 'spider'but with a slender arm reaching out around 15 cm with

the groove.

3.7 Chalk

Billiard chalk is applied to the tip of the cue.

Chalk is applied to the tip of the cue stick, ideally be-fore every shot, to increase the tip’s friction coefficientso that when it impacts the cue ball on a non-center hit,no miscue (unintentional slippage between the cue tipand the struck ball) occurs. Cue tip chalk is not actu-ally the substance typically referred to as "chalk" (gener-ally calcium carbonate, also known as calcite or carbon-ate of lime), but any of several proprietary compounds,with a silicate base. It was around the time of the Indus-trial Revolution that newer compounds formed that pro-vided better grip for the ball. This is when the Englishbegan to experiment with side spin or applying curl to theball. This was shortly introduced to the American playersand is how the term “putting English on the ball” came tobe. “Chalk” may also refer to a cone of fine, white handchalk; like talc (talcum powder) it can be used to reducefriction between the cue and bridge hand during shooting,for a smoother stroke. Some brands of hand chalk actu-ally are made of compressed talc. (Tip chalk is not usedfor this purpose because it is abrasive, hand-staining anddifficult to apply.) Many players prefer a slick pool gloveover hand chalk or talc because of the messiness of thesepowders; buildup of particles on the cloth will affect ballbehavior and necessitate more-frequent cloth cleaning.Cue tip chalk (invented in its modern form by straightrail billiard pro William A. Spinks and chemist WilliamHoskins in 1897)[14][15] is made by crushing silica and theabrasive substance corundum or aloxite[15] (aluminiumoxide),[16][17] into a powder.[15] It is combined with dye(originally and most commonly green or blue-green, liketraditional billiard cloth, but available today, like thecloth, in many colors) and a binder (glue).[15] Each man-ufacturer’s brand has different qualities, which can sig-nificantly affect play. High humidity can also impair theeffectiveness of chalk. Harder, drier compounds are gen-erally considered superior by most players.

6 4 MAJOR GAMES

4 Major games

There are two main varieties of billiard games: caromand pocket. The main carom billiards games are straightrail, balkline and especially three cushion billiards. Allare played on a pocketless table with three balls; two cueballs and one object ball. In all, players shoot a cue ballso that it makes contact with the opponent’s cue ball aswell as the object ball. Others of multinational interestare four-ball and five-pins.The most globally popular of the large variety of pocketgames are Pool and snooker. English billiards, with somefeatures of carom billiards, was one of the two most-competitive cue sports, along with balkline, at the turnof the previous century and is still enjoyed today espe-cially in Commonwealth countries. Russian pyramid andits variants like kaisa are popular in the former Easternbloc.

Man playing billiards with a cue and a woman with mace, froman illustration appearing in Michael Phelan's 1859 book, TheGame of Billiards.

4.1 Games played on a carom billiards ta-ble

Main article: Carom billiards

4.1.1 Straight rail or straight billiards

Main article: Balkline and straight rail

In straight rail, a player scores a point and may continueshooting each time his cue ball makes contact with bothother balls.Although a difficult and subtle game, some of the bestplayers of straight billiards developed the skill to gatherthe balls in a corner or along the same rail for the purposeof playing a series of nurse shots to score a seeminglylimitless number of points.The first straight rail professional tournament was heldin 1879 where Jacob Schaefer, Sr. scored 690 points in

a single turn[13] (that is, 690 separate strokes without amiss). With the balls repetitively hit and barely movingin endless “nursing”, there was little for the fans to watch.

4.1.2 Balkline

Main article: Balkline and straight rail

In light of these phenomenal skill developments instraight rail, the game of balkline soon developed to makeit impossible for a player to keep the balls gathered in onepart of the table for long, greatly limiting the effectivenessof nurse shots. A balkline (not to be confused with baulkline, which pertains to the game of English billiards) is aline parallel to one end of a billiards table. In the gamesof balkline – 18.1 and 18.2 (pronounced “eighteen-point-two”) balkline, among other more obscure variations –the players have to drive at least one object ball past abalkline set at 18 inches (460 mm) from each rail, afterone or two points have been scored, respectively.

4.1.3 Three-cushion billiards

Main article: Three-cushion billiards

A more elegant solution was three-cushion billiards,which requires a player to make contact with the othertwo balls on the table and contact three rail cushions inthe process. This is difficult enough that even the bestplayers can only manage to average one to two points perturn.

4.2 Games played on a pool table

Main article: Pool (cue sports)

There are many variations of games played on a standardpool table. Popular pool games include eight-ball, nine-ball, straight pool and one-pocket. Even within gamestypes (e.g. eight-ball), there may be variations, and peo-ple may play recreationally using relaxed or local rules.A few of the more popular examples of pool games aregiven below.In eight-ball and nine-ball, the object is to sink objectballs until one can legally pocket the winning eponymous"money ball". Well-known but waning in popularity isstraight pool, in which players seek to continue sink-ing balls, rack after rack if they can, to reach a pre-determined winning score (typically 150). Related tonine-ball, another well-known game is rotation, where thelowest-numbered object ball on the table must be struckfirst, although any object ball may be pocketed (i.e., com-bination shot). Each pocketed ball is worth its number,and the player with the highest score at the end of the rackis the winner. Since there are only 120 points available

7

(1 + 2 + 3 ⋯ + 15 = 120), scoring 61 points leaves noopportunity for the opponent to catch up. In both one-pocket and bank pool, the players must sink a set numberof balls; respectively, all in a particular pocket, or all bybank shots. In snooker, players score points by alternatelypotting red balls and various special "colour balls".

4.2.1 Two-player or -team games

• Eight-ball: The goal is to pocket (pot) all of one’sdesignated group of balls (either stripes vs. solids,or reds vs. yellows, depending upon the equipment),and then pocket the 8 ball in a called pocket.

• Nine-ball: The goal is to pocket the 9 ball; the initialcontact of the cue ball each turn must be with thelowest-numbered object ball remaining on the table;there are numerous variants such as seven-ball, six-ball, and the older forms of three-ball and ten-ball,that simply use a different number of balls and havea different money ball.

• Straight pool (a.k.a. 14.1 continuous pool): Thegoal is to reach a predetermined number of points(e.g. 100); a point is earned by pocketing any calledball into a designated pocket; game play is by racksof 15 balls, and the last object ball of a rack is notpocketed, but left on the table with the opponent re-racking the remaining 14 before game play contin-ues.

• Bank pool: The goal is to reach a predeterminednumber of points; a point is earned by pocketing anycalled ball by banking it into a designated pocket us-ing one or more cushion.[18]

4.2.2 Speed pool

Speed pool is a standard billiards game where the ballsmust be pocketed in as little time as possible. Rulesvary greatly from tournament to tournament. TheInternational Speed Pool Challenge has been held annu-ally since 2006.

4.3 Games played on a snooker table

4.3.1 English billiards

Main article: English billiards

Dating to approximately 1800, English billiards, calledsimply billiards[19] in many former British colonies and inGreat Britain where it originated, was originally called thewinning and losing carambole game, folding in the namesof three predecessor games, the winning game, the losinggame and the carambole game (an early form of straightrail), that combined to form it.[20] The game features both

cannons (caroms) and the pocketing of balls as objects ofplay. English billiards requires two cue balls and a redobject ball. The object of the game is to score either afixed number of points, or score the most points within aset time frame, determined at the start of the game.Points are awarded for:

• Two-ball cannons: striking both the object ball andthe other (opponent’s) cue ball on the same shot (2points).

• Winning hazards: potting the red ball (3 points);potting the other cue ball (2 points).

• Losing hazards (or “in-offs”): potting one’s cue ballby cannoning off another ball (3 points if the redball was hit first; 2 points if the other cue ball washit first, or if the red and other cue ball were "split",i.e., hit simultaneously).

4.3.2 Snooker

Main article: Snooker

Snooker is a pocket billiards game originated by Britishofficers stationed in India during the 19th century, basedon earlier pool games such as black pool and life pool.The name of the game became generalized to also de-scribe one of its prime strategies: to "snooker" the op-posing player by causing that player to foul or leave anopening to be exploited.In the United Kingdom, snooker is by far the most popu-lar cue sport at the competitive level, and major nationalpastime along with association football and cricket. It isplayed in many Commonwealth countries as well, espe-cially in Asia. Snooker is uncommon in North America,where pool games such as eight-ball and nine-ball domi-nate, and Latin America and Continental Europe, wherecarom games dominate. The first World Snooker Cham-pionship was held in 1927, and it has been held annuallysince then with few exceptions. The World ProfessionalBilliards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) was estab-lished in 1968 to regulate the professional game, whilethe International Billiards and Snooker Federation (IBSF)regulates the amateur games.

5 List of cue sports and games

5.1 Carom games

Main article: Carom billiardsMain category: Carom billiards

• Artistic billiards (a major world cue sport)

8 5 LIST OF CUE SPORTS AND GAMES

• Balkline games (18.1, 18.2, etc.)

• Four-ball (yotsudama, sagu)

• Straight-rail

• Three-cushion billiards (a major world cue sport)

• See also “Hybrid games”, below.

5.1.1 Target carom games

• Five-pin billiards (a major international cue sport)

• Goriziana (or nine-pin billiards)

5.2 Pocket games

Main article: Pocket billiards

5.2.1 Pool games

Main category: Pool (cue sports)

• American rotation

• Artistic pool (a major world cue sport)

• Bank pool

• Baseball pocket billiards

• Bowlliards

• Chicago

• Cribbage

• Cutthroat

• Eight-ball (a major world cue sport; informallya.k.a. stripes & solids, or highs & lows)

• Blackball (a.k.a. eightball pool, British-styleeight-ball)

• “Chinese” eight-ball

• Equal offense

• Fifteen-ball

• Honolulu

• Kelly pool

• Killer

• Nine-ball (a major world cue sport)

• One-pocket (a major world cue sport)

• Rotation (a.k.a. 61)

• Seven-ball

• Speed pool

• Straight pool (a major world cue sport; a.k.a. 14.1continuous)

• Ten-ball (a major world cue sport)

• Three-ball

5.2.2 Non-pool pocket games

• Golf billiards (and its variant, around-the-world)

• Russian pyramid (a major cue sport in Eastern Eu-rope and countries of the former USSR)

• See also “Snooker games” and “Hybrid games”, be-low.

5.3 Snooker games

Main category: Snooker

Technically a form of pocket billiards, snooker has itsown world-wide sporting community separate from thatof pool.

• Snooker (a major world cue sport)

• Six-red snooker

• American snooker

• Brazilian snooker

• Volunteer snooker

• Snooker plus

• See also golf billiards, above.

5.4 Hybrid carom and pocket games

These combine aspects of carom and pocket billiards, andare played on tables with pockets (often as hazards nottargets).

• Bottle pool

• Cowboy pool

• English billiards (a major world cue sport)

• Five-pin billiards, historically

• Poker pool

• Kaisa

9

5.5 Obstacle and target games

Main category: Obstacle billiards

• Bagatelle (obsolete)

• Bar billiards

• Bumper pool

• Danish pin billiards and other pin billiards games

• Devil’s pool and victory billiards

• Bottle pool, skittle pool (pin pool), and Italian five-pin billiards and goriziana are vestigially classifiablehere as well

5.6 Disk games

These are variations using small disks instead of balls, andlight-weight cue sticks.

• Carrom (some variants of this table-top game useminiature cues; mostly played with the hands)

• Crokinole (some variants of this combination of car-rom and shuffleboard use miniature cues)

• Novuss (uses full-length cues)

5.7 Ground games

Main category: Ground billiards

Outdoor games played on a lawn, field or court, playedwith varying equipment that may include hoops, pins,holes or other targets or obstacles, and clubs, curved-headsticks, or mallets. Most such games are obsolete, asidefrom croquet. Golf and field hockey, as well as stick-lessgames such as bocce, boules and bowls, are historicallyrelated.

• Croquet (popular lawn game and former Olympicsport)

• Jeu de mail (obsolete)

• Pall-mall (obsolete)

• Trucco (obsolete)

5.8 Cueless games

Main category: Finger billiards

These are developments from cue sports that dispensewith the cues, and are played with the hands directly.

• Finger billiards or hand billiards (on a carom table)

• Boccette (an adaptation of five-pin billiards tocueless play)

• Finger pool (on a pool table)

• Crud (the only billiards-based contact sport)

• Bocce billiards or bocce pool (an adaptation of thelawn game bocce to billiard or pool tables)

6 See also• Glossary of cue sports terms

• BCA Hall of Fame

• Hustling

• Cue sports techniques

7 Notes[1] interpoolme. “Discover the champion”.

[2] “Recognized Sports”. olympic.org – Official Websiteof the Olympic Movement. Lausanne, Switzerland:International Olympic Committee. 2009. pp. “Sports”section. Retrieved 2009-06-01.

[3] “WCBS”. Lausanne: World Confederation of BilliardSports. 2005. pp. Homepage and very name of orga-nization. Retrieved 2009-06-01.

[4] Charles Knight’s “Old England: A Pictorial Museum”(1844), in From Old Books. Retrieved December 27,2006.

[5] Stein and Rubino, Paul, Victor (1996). The Billiard En-cyclopedia: An Illustrated History of the Sport (2nd ed.).Blue Book Publications, June 1996. ISBN 1-886768-06-4.

[6] Everton, Clive (1986). The History of Snooker and Bil-liards (rev. ver. of The Story of Billiards and Snooker,1979 ed.). Haywards Heath, UK: Partridge Pr. pp. 8–11.ISBN 1-85225-013-5.

[7] “Pool History”. The Pool Shop. Retrieved December2011.

[8] Charles Dickens Jr. (April 13, 1889). “Billiards”. All theYear Round (London: Charles Dickens and Evans, CrystalPalace Press) 64: 349. OCLC 1479125.

[9] “Meeting of the Champions; The Big Billiard Tournamentto Begin To-morrow – What Ives, Schaefer, and SlossonHave Been Doing in Practice – The Older Players NotAfraid of the Big Runs Made by Ives – Something Aboutthe Rise and Progress of the Young 'Napoleon' of the Bil-liard World”, no byline, The New York Times, 1893-12-10, p. 10; The New York Times Company, New York,NY, USA.

10 9 EXTERNAL LINKS

[10] editors (2007). “Russian Billiards”. BilliardsVillage.com.Retrieved 2008-08-14.

[11] Shamos, Michael Ian (1993). The Illustrated Encyclopediaof Billiards. New York, NY: Lyons & Burford. ISBN 1-55821-219-1.

[12] The New York Times Company (September 16, 1875).Explosive Teeth.. Retrieved January 2, 2007.

[13] Shamos, Michael Ian (1991). Pool. Hotho & Co., June1991. ISBN 99938-704-3-9.

[14] “The World’s Most Tragic Man Is the One Who NeverStarts”, Clark, Neil M.; originally published in The Amer-ican magazine, May 1927; republished in hotwire: TheNewsletter of the Toaster Museum Foundation, vol. 3, no.3, online edition. Retrieved February 24, 2007. The pieceis largely an interview of Hoskins.

[15] U.S. Patent 0,578,514, 9 March 1897

[16] “Aloxite”, ChemIndustry.com database. RetrievedFebruary 24, 2007.

[17] “Substance Summary: Aluminum Oxide”, PubChemDatabase, National Library of Medicine, US NationalInstitutes of Health. Retrieved February 24, 2007.Archived April 6, 2014, at the Wayback Machine.

[18] .

[19] Everton, Clive (1986). The History of Snooker and Bil-liards (rev. ver. of The Story of Billiards and Snooker,1979 ed.). Haywards Heath, UK: Partridge Pr. ISBN 1-85225-013-5.

[20] Shamos, Mike (1999). The New Illustrated Encyclopediaof Billiards. New York City, NY, US: Lyons Press. pp.46, 61–62, 89, 244. ISBN 1-55821-797-5.

8 References

• Alciatore, DavidG. (“Doctor Dave”) (August 2004).The Illustrated Principles of Pool and Billiards. NewYork, NY: Sterling Publishing. ISBN 1-4027-1428-9.

• Byrne, Robert (1998). Byrne’s New Standard Bookof Pool and Billiards. New York: Harcourt Brace &Co. ISBN 0-15-100325-4.

• interpoolme.com. Rent a Table.

9 External links

• Pool Playing Tips - Tutorials on Billiards or Cueball.

• Billard Passion - Teaching aid and technical basis forcarom.

• Ask Pro Instructors - Online Q&A’s from US certi-fied billiard instructors.

• Pool Lesson & Tutorial Videos - Online video tuto-rials on how to play pool.

• Uncle sam pooling tips - Interpoolme.com

• Choose your table color - Interpoolme.com

11

10 Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses

10.1 Text• Cue sports Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cue_sports?oldid=708033208 Contributors: Bryan Derksen, Ap, Rjstott, Imran, Freck-

lefoot, JakeVortex, Dominus, Dcljr, GTBacchus, Bagpuss, Rethunk, Snoyes, CatherineMunro, Den fjättrade ankan~enwiki, Stefan-S, Cser-nica, Jengod, Charles Matthews, Trontonian, Fuzheado, Jeeves, AnonMoos, David.Monniaux, JorgeGG, Robbot, Sander123, PBS, Alten-mann, M1tk4, Academic Challenger, PxT, Diderot, Hig Hertenfleurst, Alan Liefting, Gwalla, Smjg, MichaelJHuman, Abigail-II, Lupin,Dissident, Bfinn, Everyking, Gus Polly, Mark T, David Johnson, Malokata, Niteowlneils, 20040302, Slyguy, Naufana, Lakefall~enwiki,Edcolins, OldakQuill, CryptoDerk, LiDaobing, LucasVB, Phe, JoJan, Kusunose, Mzajac, Secfan, Sam Hocevar, Wallnerm~enwiki, Grunt,Chepry, Mike Rosoft, Ties, DanielCD,A-giau, Rich Farmbrough, Ericamick, Michael Zimmermann, Kwamikagami, Mwanner, Kross, Phil-Hibbs, Sietse Snel, RoyBoy, Bdoserror, Theshowmecanuck, 2005, CeeGee, Adambro, Bobo192, Wipe, Cmdrjameson, R. S. Shaw, Brim,Helix84, Pearle, Gsklee, Merope, HasharBot~enwiki, Fegor, Frodet, Stephen G. Brown, Jigen III, Wwylon, Improv, Yamla, Lightdark-ness, Mrholybrain, Hu, Snowolf, Dabbler, Cburnett, Edgr, RJFJR, Drat, Cmprince, Gene Nygaard, Pymander, Rhymeswithgod, PunkPod,Roboshed, Woohookitty, A.K.A.47, Zealander, Talskiddy, DESiegel, MrSomeone, Graham87, Mrpaulus, Jacob Finn, Rjwilmsi, NanamiKamimura, Vegaswikian, Bdegfcunbbfv, Andreas S., Fred Bradstadt, Sango123, Tommy Kronkvist, FlaBot, Jajvirta, GünniX, RexNL,Gurch, Ayla, Chobot, PKM, Quicksilvre, YurikBot, Wavelength, Kafziel, Wolfmankurd, LizL05, RussBot, Bergsten, Gaius Cornelius,CambridgeBayWeather, NawlinWiki, SEWilcoBot, TheLH, Asusa83, Cholmes75, Bigpad, Lomedae, Mikeblas, JHCaufield, Wknight94,Mütze, Kelovy, Georgewilliamherbert, Nezuji, Lt-wiki-bot, Ballchef, Closedmouth, SMcCandlish, Locketudor, Sean Whitton, Wechsel-strom, David Biddulph, John Broughton, That Guy, From That Show!, SmackBot, Reedy, Herostratus, McGeddon, Ariedartin, Nickst, Cd-con, Gjs238, Septegram, Gilliam, Buck Mulligan, Hmains, Ghosts&empties, Chris the speller, Kurykh, Keegan, Yalovets, MK8, Rmt2m,Thumperward, JoeAustralia, TheScurvyEye, MalafayaBot, The359, Octahedron80, Shalom Yechiel, Frap, BradPatrick, Racklever, VMSMosaic, Darksinthe, Sophistifunk, Fuhghettaboutit, Localzuk, Salt Yeung, Hindleyite, BryanG, Grujah, ChaChaFut, Pilotguy, Sashato-Bot, SajmonDK, NotMuchToSay, Adavidw, JackLumber, Wolfman2000, Adagio Cantabile, SilkTork, Masciare, Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington, Thraxas, Ybeer, Agathoclea, Dodo bird, Squirepants101, MrDolomite, OnBeyondZebrax, Wizard191, Veyklevar, Mikehelms,Skapur, Newone, Heckler, Tawkerbot2, Dlohcierekim, SeanMD80, Sirius.problems, Poolkris, Zahn, KnightLago, KevinTMC, Cydebot,Aristophanes68, Aleksi Kanerva, Dragomiloff, Pontus Lindengren, VPliousnine, Thijs!bot, Knakts, Mama ampon, KCliffer, Mojo Hand,Headbomb, Atechi, Hoof38, CharlotteWebb, Nick Number, Amjaabc, Amlz, Escarbot, EdJogg, Jrcue, Prolog, IronCannibal, Edokter,Dartman51, David Shankbone, JAnDbot, Husond, MER-C, Thespacedman, Andonic, Getjustin, Savant13, LittleOldMe, SteveSims, Ma-gioladitis, VoABot II, Jshepp, Khelos, CheetahMan1, Allstarecho, TronNDoE, Glen, American Pool Network (APN), Heamsa, Rette-tast, Milfmaster9, Meadwench, CommonsDelinker, Lawrence Firth, JBC3, J.delanoy, Captain panda, Sasajid, DrKay, DandyDan2007,Theru, Mschlauch, Way2xtreme, Belovedfreak, Nwbeeson, Dogbertbh, Coppelia~enwiki, Tygrrr, Rémih, RobertW12345, Idioma-bot,VolkovBot, Mr. Bouncy, AlnoktaBOT, Barneca, Philip Trueman, Tedmauro, Eve Hall, Miranda, Emonsmi, Fcb981, Anonymous Dissi-dent, Feiman, Left Side, Liko81, Beyond silence, Localmotion528, BotKung, Saturn star, Michaeldsuarez, Aritoni, Peasantclock, Allebor-goBot, Apaqca, Cousindaz, Chuck Sirloin, SieBot, Carlos Reyna, Nubiatech, BotMultichill, Czieg98629, Dga123, Keilana, Wachholder,Mtm9, Iron Ox, Oxymoron83, Lightmouse, Techman224, Rosiestep, StaticGull, Timeastor, Randy Kryn, ClueBot, Drmies, Animalsun-tied, Dawnelizabeth8i, Mrmyerz, Valandvicguapo, Excirial, NuclearWarfare, Arjayay, Razorflame, Darren23, Antalope, Apparition11,Indopug, XLinkBot, Ost316, Kasper2006, Edgepedia, User9119, McTools, Jubilo~enwiki, Wsvlqc, Fyrael, Metagraph, Fieldday-sunday,BarPoolcom, LemmeyBOT, Eremia, Tassedethe, Delibebek, Lightbot, Gail, LuK3, Legobot, Luckas-bot, Yobot, Fraggle81, Amirobot,KamikazeBot, AverySellers, ZapThunderstrike, AnomieBOT, YeshuaDavid, Jim1138, Csigabi, Yabbox, Mkljun, Citation bot, ArthurBot,LilHelpa, Xqbot, Paalappoo, Wikify567, Ubcule, GrouchoBot, RibotBOT, Mufi rockz, Orrelly Man, FrescoBot, Tobby72, Citation bot 1,Oscar747, Redrose64, HRoestBot, Catrig, Trezero, Jauhienij, White Shadows, Gburnley, Cnwilliams, Jamesm199, Markstroud, Trappistthe monk, Donut2790, DixonDBot, 1sttimeright, Rapiidoo, Bcbtcap, Unrulyevil, Hagaizenberg, Ridiculus mus, Jesse91, DARTH SIDIOUS2, Queenvanilla~enwiki, Lolcakesnubcakelol, Kiko4564, EmausBot, WikitanvirBot, Immunize, GoingBatty, Tommy2010, NikHammon-dUK8, Wikipelli, ZéroBot, Checkingfax, Mostafa.Hassan, HeartSWild, Evan-Amos, Moregofalupa, Mummostaja, ClueBot NG, CocuBot,Dsjorde, Alxmo, Frietjes, Cuesportcollege, Widr, Helpful Pixie Bot, Syntaxerr3r, Longbyte1, Prof.daily, MusikAnimal, Stateofyolan-dia, Nishank.varshney, NC9BallGuy, Ian16th, Snow Blizzard, Thepidding, Cyberbot II, ChrisGualtieri, PhilMumford, Khazar2, Obtund,NathanH28, Theinz21, DB Bond, Jda1951ga, Tentinator, Vsnares94, Sherwin35, Cboreth, Locobull, Guitarguru1989, Monkbot, ♥Golf,Rich sposato, Eengner, KasparBot, MALO dark pools pagina en wiki y falso, Aiyowolegequ, Najamstackon and Anonymous: 509

10.2 Images• File:1674_illustration-The_Billiard_Table.png Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c4/1674_

illustration-The_Billiard_Table.png License: Public domain Contributors: Appearing in introductory history chapter (p.iv) ofJoseph Bennett’s 1894 book, Billiards (publisher T. de la Rue), as taken from Charles Cotton’s 1674 book, The Compleat Gamester.Original artist: Charles Cotton

• File:Billiard_Chalk_and_Cue.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/17/Billiard_Chalk_and_Cue.jpg Li-cense: CC-BY-SA-3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: Fcb981

• File:Billiard_Rack.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b9/Billiard_Rack.jpg License: CC BY-SA 3.0 Con-tributors: Own work Original artist: 1sttimeright

• File:Billiard_ball_comparison.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b1/Billiard_ball_comparison.jpg Li-cense: GFDL Contributors: Own work Original artist: SMcCandlish

• File:Billiards-q75-1426x1200.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/08/Billiards-q75-1426x1200.jpg Li-cense: Public domain Contributors: Knight, Charles: “Old England: A Pictorial Museum” (1845) Original artist: unknown, from “Schoolof Recreation,” 1710

• File:Chalk_stub.png Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fc/Chalk_stub.png License: CC-BY-SA-3.0 Contribu-tors: Own work Original artist: Myself

• File:Commons-logo.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg License: CC-BY-SA-3.0 Contribu-tors: ? Original artist: ?

12 10 TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES

• File:Cue_and_mace.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1f/Cue_and_mace.jpg License: Public domainContributors: Google books digitized image; Original artist: Michael Phelan

• File:Early-1880s-billiards-ladies-JMBB.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3b/Early-1880s-billiards-ladies-JMBB.jpg License: Public domain Contributors: ? Original artist: ?

• File:PoolTablewithEquipment-non.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6f/PoolTablewithEquipment-non.jpg License: CC-BY-SA-3.0 Contributors: ? Original artist: ?

• File:Studenten_Billard.JPG Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d3/Studenten_Billard.JPG License: Publicdomain Contributors: R. A. Müller: Geschichte der Universität, 1990, S. 189 (Städtische Sammlungen Tübingen) Original artist:Unknown<a href='//www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4233718' title='wikidata:Q4233718'><img alt='wikidata:Q4233718' src='https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/ff/Wikidata-logo.svg/20px-Wikidata-logo.svg.png' width='20' height='11' srcset='https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/ff/Wikidata-logo.svg/30px-Wikidata-logo.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/ff/Wikidata-logo.svg/40px-Wikidata-logo.svg.png 2x' data-file-width='1050' data-file-height='590'/></a>

10.3 Content license• Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0