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Game End in Billiards

A player wins when he reaches a fixed number of points, chosen at the commencement of the game or has maximum points in a timed game. A referee calls Time when a preset time period has elapsed. A stroke made at the call is allowed and points credited to the player and when play resumes, the previous positions of the balls become the starting point for the next session. When the prescribed time limit is reached in a time format game, it signals the end of the game at which point the scores may be tied. If players play on a points basis, the first to reach the set point figure wins. Players alternate turns or innings during the course of play at the table. There are rules limiting the number of cannons and other strikes so a player must be skilled as well as knowledgeable about the rules pertaining to each game play to avoid committing a foul and forging ahead towards a win.

An expert player will manipulate the cue ball so that it is always in a position to hit the next ball and pocket it and so on. If the next ball cannot be pocketed, the player plays the cue ball in a way making it difficult for the opponent to pocket a ball. This calls for a high level of skills where pocketing a ball and positioning the cue ball for the next shot have to be done precisely in order to score and succeed.

English Billiards Standard Table

Unlike pool and snooker tables, an English billiards table has a specific size measuring 11ft 8.5 inches long and 5 ft. 10 inches wide. Height of the table is fixed at 2 ft 9.5 to 10 inches measured from the ground level to the top of the cushion rail. There are six pockets in all: four at the corners and two at the longer sides of the table. The angle of opening and dimensions conform to World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association specifications. The baulk line is a straight line drawn parallel to the bottom cushion at a distance of 29 inches and the space in between is the Baulk. A "D" is inscribed at the middle of the baulk line, having a radius of 11.5 inches, facing outwards. A central longitudinal line is marked on the table and it has four spots. The Spot is 12.75 inches from the face of the top cushion. The Centre spot is placed between the top and bottom cushion faces. The Pyramid Spot occupies a position between the center spot and the top cushion's face and the final spot is located at the middle of the Baulk line.

While tables for amateurs and home use may have wooden planks, most regulation tables have a slate base covered with a regulation cloth chosen specifically for this purpose. Woolen felt was used at one time and then a special cotton cloth became the standard for billiards tables till the Second World War. Today's tables use worsted fabric or felt mainly comprising wool with Teflon coating for better performance and stain resistance.

Billiards Player and the Equipment

The best equipment does not contribute to a player winning or losing chances. Ultimately it is the expertise of the player, his talent for the game, sharp thinking ability as the game progresses and ability to understand geometry and visualization that help him use the equipments to his best advantage. The importance of the right equipment, however, cannot be minimized. To progress to professional levels, a player has to practice on the regulation sized table, using professional grade cues and balls, to develop his skills to perfection. Standard equipments also reduce fatigue and reduce chances of aching backs. For learners special training balls are available marked with rings and targets on the surface to help the player judge the sidespin, topspin or backspin generated by a hit.

Billiards table and the cue stick see a lot of variation in quality of materials used in construction and the cost. Home or amateur billiards players can make do with tables that do not necessarily have to have a slate surface. The cloth does not necessarily have to be the best professional quality and the most expensive. Similarly, cue sticks use different construction techniques and materials for the tip and the shaft. Players commonly apply chalk to the tip ends, enabling greater control over the cue ball. Newbies and amateurs need not go in for professional grade tables, balls and cues to enjoy the game of billiards. Smaller tables and simple cue sticks give enjoyment, with game play being more important than the equipments.

Hitting Techniques when Playing Billiards

Players use the term "English" to refer to the sidespin a cue ball achieves when it is hit to the left or right of the center. This changes the angle of deflection of the ball after it hits the rail. Applying English also changes the direction of the object ball when hit by the cue ball as also the cue ball's angle of travel.

The draw is a backward spin applied to the cue ball by hitting it underneath the center on the vertical axis, causing the cue ball's angle of departure to be narrowed after it is deflected off the object ball. It slows down the cue ball while giving the object ball a degree of follow. The Force Draw is a stronger draw in which the ball shoots back after hitting the object ball.

The Throw is achieved by hitting the cue ball at a sideways angle using the English, making it swerve away from the object ball on impact.

The Masse shot calls for special expertise on the part of the player as it imparts a high level of horizontal and vertical spin to the cue ball, making it curve sharply or move in a different direction without touching any other ball or the rail. This effect is achieved by a steeply angled cue.

A player hits the cue ball above its middle to drive it down into the table so that it rebounds from the surface and achieves the jump shot. This may not be permissible in some games.

Ball and the Cue

Balls used for professional game are selected to conform to specified dimensions and weight. The diameter of a ball is fixed at 2-1/16 inch and must have the same weight of around 155 to 160 grams with a tolerance of 0.5 grams per set. The balls are selected for their properties of hardness, resilience and friction coefficient.

Billiard cues are made of ash and are typically 40 inches in length but not less than 36 inches. The weight of a cue stick is around 680 grams to 700 grams. The stick is 2.25 inches in diameter and the tip of about 0.55 inch in diameter (14 mm to be exact). These cue sticks are made of hard wood and are naturally weighted for control and balance. A perfectly weighted and balanced cue enables a professional player to execute the correct shot, hitting the ball precisely at the angle he intends to with the right amount of force. Shafts can have pro taper or the European taper. Tips are commonly made of leather with a curvature. Sometimes a cue tip may be rounded in order to give a spin to the cue ball. Cues used for break and jumps have a flatter tip made of harder materials to give a forceful shot at the ball. Apparently simple in appearance, the cue is a sophisticated piece of engineering. There are ancillary equipments used in English billiards like cue rests, long cues or butts, extensions and adaptors to adjust to various playing conditions.

Billiards Strategy and Game Play

A professional player knows that success is achieved by using the right offensive and defensive tactics according to the flow of play. Offensive play looks spectacular while defensive play is not so obvious but nonetheless is used by the player to his advantage. A player gains time to plan his offensive strategy and at the same time holds ones opponent in check in a defensive move, maneuvering to a position where one eventually goes on to win by combining defense with offense at the right moment to break ahead.

Most players focus on all around play constantly making efforts to move the ball into good striking positions. If a white ball is near a spot, a player can use cannons and pot reds to gain points.

If a player strikes a cue ball, making it hit the other cue ball and the red ball in the same shot, he scores 2 points. If he hits the red with a cue ball to make it enter a pocket the player gains 3 points or a "winning hazard". Hitting the other's cue ball with the player's own cue ball and pocketing it gains the player 2 points. If a player hits the cue ball, which bounces off another ball and enters a pocket, one gains 3 points if the cue ball hits a red ball first and 2 points if it hits another player's cue ball. The player gains only 2 points if both balls are hit while the cue ball is pocketed in a play known as losing hazard.