Different Types of Billiard Games

 

 

Billiards is a group of intellectual games which began in Europe during the British Empire’s rule. Even though it was initially only practiced in Commonwealth nations, the sport has now expanded around the globe, with nations including Russia inventing their own versions.

Would you like to learn more about the various sorts of pool games? We are sure you are! But before we begin, it’s essential to understand what billiard is to fully grasp Different Types of Billiard Games.

What are Billiard Games?

Billiards is a word used to demonstrate various games performed on a rectangular tabletop with a certain amount of more petite balls and a long stick known as a cue.

A felt-like tight-fitting fabric covers the tabletop and the cushioning railing that surrounds it. French billiards or Carom is a three-ball game that is practiced on a board with no pockets.

What is the Difference Between Billiard, Pool, and Snooker?

Even though the words “pool” and “billiards” are sometimes used together, they are not synonymous. The name ‘billiards’ was initially used to refer to a specific game called ‘carom billiards,’ yet has since expanded to encompass a wide range of matches played on a board with various balls and a cue rod. See also how to pick a pool stick as its important to know for each game and how to re tip a cue.

Despite the fact that pool and carom billiard is typically performed with identical hardware, every action has its own set of regulations. On the other hand, Snooker is a game that is played using comparable gear but with its regulations.

Rules Differences

Obviously, every action includes a detailed set of regulations, as well as a variety of variants. The goal of a round of carom billiards is to rack up points, known as “counts,” by rebounding one’s shot, known as a cue ball, off of the remaining two balls on the board.

The matches in Snooker are divided into a set of frames. A participant could earn a frame by earning the most points by pocketing the multi-colored and red balls using the cue ball. The point distribution in Snooker is as follows:

• Black = 7 points
• Pink = 6 points
• Blue = 5 points
• Brown = 4
• Green = 3 points
• Yellow = 2 points
• Red balls = 1 point each

On any given turn, rules dictate which ball can be pocketed. The “on” shots are those which can be pocketed anywhere at any time throughout a turn.

For instance, upon pocketing a red ball, it must be preceded by a colored ball available on the table that another red ball must again precede. When a person pockets the wrong ball, it is called a ‘foul,’ and the individual does not receive any scores for doing so.

Several games may be classified as “pool,” but in a straight pool, participants gain scores by striking balls into the table’s corners (a technique known as “pocketing” the object ball).

Parties agree ahead of time that they will reach a particular amount of points to be considered the winners (150 points for professional games and usually 100 points for regular pub games). Every ball on the table can be pocketed, and every ball pocketed correctly earns the participant a point.

Table Differences

The majority of the pool and billiard matches are contested on a seven-foot tabletop (also referred to as a pub table), an 8-feet board (popularly called a domestic or amusement table), or a 9-feet table (named as a billiards table).

You can also refer to the 9-ball table as a professional billiard table.  Decks for carom billiards do not have pockets, but pool tables do. On the other hand, snooker tables also include pockets. The US snooker tables are generally ten feet long, whereas snooker tables in the UK snooker are 12-feet long.

Ball Differences

The amount of balls utilized is another significant variation. Now that you know about the snooker balls in detail (mentioned above), let’s have a better look at the pool balls. The amounts of balls in a complete collection of pool balls differ based on the type of game.

But a complete set includes sixteen balls, approximately 2 1/4 inches in size: eight solid color balls designated with numbers one to eight. Plus, seven balls with a striped color assigned numbers from nine to fifteen, accompanied by a ‘cue’ white ball that acts as a ‘striker.’

Different Types of Billiard Games

Pocket Billiards – Snooker

A snooker game is a billiard game that falls under the cue sports category of pockets billiard. It’s contested on a snooker tabletop with six pockets and is 12-feet long by 6-feet wide. It’s a cue game played on the world’s most extensive board.

Pool and Snooker vary in terms of respective histories, cultures, terminology, and board sizes. Together with the colored balls that have their counts (as mentioned above), every ball has a certain quantity of scores, and the individual scoring the most triumphs.

Pool Types

●       Cutthroat Pool

Cutthroat billiards differs from all the others in that it is mainly played for entertainment. The others pool games are also enjoyable, but they often include a professional component.

Based on the amount of players, every participant starts with five sequentially numbered object balls, sometimes more petite. The game’s goal is for the last participant to have at least one of the allotted object balls left aside on the table at the end. When a participant pot all of their balls before the game finishes, they are beaten.

●       8-Ball Pool

8 ball is by far the most popular form of pool game. 8-ball pool, commonly referred to as solids and stripes, is a traditional pool game enjoyed by both pros and novices.

There are six pockets on the gaming table.

The balls are gathered at the start. Then one participant distributes them by shooting a breakout stroke. When one player has cleared all of their lawfully allocated balls, the goal of the match is to place the 8-ball eventually—the rival triumphs when you place the black ball prior to cleaning your balls.

●       Straight Pool

Because the goal of a straight pool is to obtain a fixed amount of points, you may hit whatever object ball on the board.

You receive a score for every ball that is legitimately potted, and you will have to keep doing it until you achieve the agreed-upon limit, perhaps 125. The participant must shout out the ball they want to strike and the pocket they want to hit.

●       9-Ball Pool

This famous match is run with 10 balls – 1 cue ball and 9 object balls – on a 6 pool table. The goal of the game is to bag the 9-ball legitimately.

Whenever you strike the cue ball into the least numbered target ball and drive any of them into the railings, you’ve made a legitimate shot. You don’t have to pocket the balls in any particular order as long as you start with the lowest-numbered ball.

●       10-Ball Pool

The regulations are identical to those of the 9-Ball Pool, except that all shots must be recognized save the breakthrough shot. As a result, it is played primarily by experts.

●       Bank Pool

Participants must pot the called strokes into designated pockets following hitting them against the cushions in bank billiards.

In this form of pool, there are almost no combination kiss shots or kick shot; the cue must contact the target ball directly. To win the game, you must place all of the balls in the rack.

●       Open-Pocket Pool

Exactly two pockets are operational in a one-pocket pool, which differs from those other forms of billiards in which every participant has their pocket.

A score is earned each instant you pot a ball into your pocket. You can strike whatever object ball, irrespective of color or number, and the match is won by the first individual who pockets all the eight balls. It’s a strike to put the ball in the incorrect pocket after originally designating a pocket, and 3 successive penalties mean the rival wins the game.

Billiard Types

●       Three-cushioned Billiards

Three-cushion billiards aim to bounce the cue ball into play from the object balls and make three or more contacts with the help of railing cushions before the ball striking the last target ball.

Every person receives their cue ball (yellow or white), with red serving as the impartial. It would be best to first strike a target ball, following the sequence wherein you strike the cushions, and the other ball is irrelevant.

●       Artistic Billiards

Billiards, sometimes known as fantasy or artistic billiards, is a cue game wherein participants contest by striking the ball for a total of 76 strokes of varying degrees of challenges.

Every shot has a point score, which ranges between 4 for the “easiest” stroke to 12 for the “more difficult.” You’d receive 500 points when you can obtain a top score on all 76 balls.

●       Four-Ball Billiard

The play takes its title from the two white balls and two red balls, which players use to contest the game. Several of the white balls are frequently dotted to draw the eye (in many instances, participants use yellow balls). The whites (or yellow) balls are used as cues by the contestants.

When the cue ball hits and bounces off any couple of either of the three balls on the billiard board, the player gets the point. Players receive 2 points when the cue ball strikes exactly three other balls. When you only hit a single target ball, you lose all of your scores and pass the cue tip to the other player.

●       Cushion Caroms Billiard

The casual game was formerly called cushion caroms. It’s contested on a tabletop that looks like a balklines’ board, with one red ball and two cue balls.

Every player must strike the cue ball against both object balls and the railing at least one time prior to the second object ball being stroked in the match.

You receive a score when this occurs; if no ball is shot, you lose points. The person who wins is the one to achieve the agreed-upon quantity of points.

●       Balkline and Straight Line

Balkline is a generic word for carom billiards, contested with two cue balls followed by a red target ball.  The ten-foot-by-five-foot gaming board does not include any pockets, but it has balk areas denoted by balklines.

Audiences argued that perhaps the competition was always too simple prior to the balklines were introduced and that the best performers were scoring quite so many points. Balklines got introduced as a consequence, making the experience increasingly hard for participants and entertaining for audiences.

When there were no balklines in the game, which was previously named straight rail, players would have to strike all target balls using the cue ball in a single swipe to win. When a participant achieves the number of scores decided upon by the other contestants, they prevail.

There are several varieties of billiard competitions, including Russian pyramid and English billiard, in addition to Snooker, pools, and caroms.

How to Get better at Pool: Easy Tips to Learn!

Before we signed off, we deemed it essential to present the billiard lovers who have stayed with us throughout with beneficial tips to learn the game in a better way. They can now begin practicing their favorite billiard games using practical routine tips by focusing on the fundamentals such as:

• Practice your grip on the cue
• Get better with your cue execution
• Bridges are essential – practice them!
• Improve your overall stance
• Align your body with the overall positioning
• Ensure your eyes are right on top of the cue and the bridge
• Vital to master your pre-shot routine, and that comes with practice
• Have a pre-stroke routine
• Practice your stroke execution as much as you can

Conclusion

Now that you have learned everything about the Different Types of Billiard Games, you have a wide variety of billiard activities to choose from. Many of these are classified as carom billiards, while others are classified as pocket snooker.

Cue games, like other categories, are constantly evolving. When you look into the future of the sport, you should anticipate seeing more billiards varieties as professionals strive to make the sport more competitive and exciting.