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43-435: Ten-ball is a rotation pool game similar to nine-ball , but using ten balls instead of nine, and with the 10 ball instead of the 9 as the " money ball ". Although the game has existed since the early 1960s, its popularity has risen since the early 2000s as a result of concerns that nine-ball has suffered as a result of flaws in its fundamental structure, particularly the ease with which players can often make balls from

86-751: A diameter of 2.25 inches (57 mm), plus or minus 0.005 inches (0.13 mm). Modern coin-operated pool tables generally use one of three methods to distinguish and return the cue ball to the front of the table while the numbered balls return to an inaccessible receptacle until paid for again: the cue ball is larger and heavier than the other balls, or denser and heavier, or has a magnetic core. Modern cue sticks are generally 58.5 inches (148.6 cm) long for pool while cues prior to 1980 were designed for straight pool and had an average length of 57.5 inches (146.1 cm). By comparison, carom billiards cues are generally shorter with larger tips, and snooker cues longer with smaller tips. These are games descended from

129-423: A game. The stronger player, for instance, might need 10 points to win versus 6 points for the weaker player (called a "10-6 spot "). Also, as the break shot is so critical in the game, spotting someone the breaks can be a very strong equalizer. Handicapping one player by allowing points to be scored on bank and kick shots only is a particularly challenging spot, as the free-scoring opponent has

172-432: A live chicken, and the person who successfully hit the chicken first would win the pooled money. Alternatively the term could derive from the verb to pool in the sense of combining objects or stakes. The oldest use of the word "pool" to describe a billiards-like game was made in 1797 in a Virginia newspaper. The OED defines it as generally "any of various types of billiards for two or more players" but goes on to note that

215-511: A number of instructional videos on the game. The two main reference works on one-pocket are Winning One-Pocket and One-Pocket Shots, Moves and Strategies , both written by player and gambler, Eddie Robins. The books, now out of print, often sell on the used market for over US$ 200 each. Another well-known one-pocket player is Efren Reyes . His victories in the game include the Galveston World Classic One Pocket (2009) and

258-400: A set number of shots of varying difficulty. Cowboy pool and bottle pool are games involving only a few balls which are placed at specific spots on the table. Elements of their games go back to the eighteenth century before balls needed to be racked. Bottle pool shares traits with pin billiards games such as Danish pin billiards . Cowboy pool is a descendant of English billiards . Kaisa

301-445: A shooter does not need to call their shots. Penalties for a foul are the loss of 1 point, re- spotting a previously pocketed ball if possible, and in the case of a scratch , the incoming player gets ball-in-hand behind the head string . Three consecutive fouls is a loss of game. If a player pockets an object ball in a pocket other than those at the top of the table, their turn ends and that object ball

344-423: A slight modification of continuous pool , another offshoot of fifteen-ball pool. The shooter may attempt to shoot at any object ball on the table. The goal is to reach a set number of points determined by agreement before the game. One point is scored for each object ball pocketed where no foul is made. A typical game might require a player to score 100 points to win. In professional competition, straight pool

387-468: Is a series of cue sports played on a billiard table . The table has six pockets along the rails , into which balls are shot. Of the many different pool games, the most popular include: eight-ball , blackball , nine-ball , ten-ball , seven-ball , straight pool , one-pocket , and bank pool . Eight-ball is the most frequently played discipline of pool, and it is often thought of as synonymous with "pool". The generic term pocket billiards

430-808: Is a similar game played with different equipment. As a competitive sport, pool is governed internationally by the World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA), which has multi-national, regional affiliates comprising the All Africa Pool Association (AAPA), Asian Pocket Billiard Union (APBU, including the Middle East), Billiard Congress of America (BCA, Canada and the US), Confederación Panamericana de Billar (CPB, Latin America and Caribbean), European Pocket Billiard Federation (EPBF, including Russia and

473-542: Is a strategic game for two players in which each player is assigned one of the corner pockets on the table. This is the only pocket into which that player can legally pocket balls. The first player to pocket the majority of the balls (8) into their pocket wins the game. The game requires far more defensive strategy than offensive strategy, much unlike eight-ball, nine-ball, or straight pool. Most times, accomplished players choose to position balls near their pocket instead of trying to actually pocket them. This allows them to control

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516-637: Is a surviving member of this group of games. The second and more influential game was pyramid pool . By 1850 a variant called fifteen-ball pool became popular. Both games were supplanted by continuous pool in 1888, the immediate forerunner of straight pool (1910). New games introduced at the turn of the 20th century include Kelly pool and eight-ball . The distinctive appearance of pool balls with their many colors and division between solid and striped balls came about by 1889. Prior to this, object balls were uniformly deep-red and differentiated only by numbers. English pyramid pool and life pool players were

559-465: Is respotted, unless an object ball is also potted into their designated pocket on the same shot. If the player pockets an object ball in the opponent's pocket, their turn also ends and the opponent earns a point. The first one-pocket tournament was held in 1961, promoted by the Jansco brothers. The winner of the event was Johnny Vives. Hayden W. Lingo , author of the first published rules on one-pocket, wrote

602-421: Is sometimes also used, and favored by some pool-industry bodies, but is technically a broader classification, including games such as snooker , Russian pyramid , and kaisa , which are not referred to as pool games. There are also hybrid games combining aspects of both pool and carom billiards , such as American four-ball billiards , bottle pool , cowboy pool , and English billiards . The etymology of "pool"

645-440: Is the most popular and the predominant professional game with ten-ball as the second-most prominent. There are many local and regional tours and tournaments that are contested with nine-ball. The World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA) publishes the world standardized rules. The European professional circuit has instituted rules changes to make it more difficult to achieve a legal break shot. The largest nine-ball tournaments are

688-516: Is uncertain. The Oxford English Dictionary speculates that "pool" and other games with collective stakes is derived from the French poule (literally translated "hen"), in which the poule is the collected prize, originating from jeu de la poule, a game that is thought to have been played during the Middle Ages. Supposedly, participants would put an equal amount of money into a pot and throw stones at

731-454: Is usually played to 125 points. Straight pool is a call-pocket game, meaning the player must indicate the intended object ball and pocket on every shot. The most commonly played pool game is eight-ball, which appeared at the beginning of the twentieth century. It is often thought of as synonymous with "pool". The game has numerous variations, mostly regional. It is the second most played professional pool game, after nine-ball , and for

774-420: The break shot , the player breaking (typically after winning the lag or coin flip) chooses a foot corner pocket for the rest of the game; all of that shooter's balls must be shot into that pocket. All of the opponent's balls must be made in the other foot corner pocket. One-pocket is a very flexible game for players of different skill levels, and many variations are used to handicap

817-600: The US Open Nine-ball Championship and the WPA World Nine-ball Championship for men and women. A hotly contested event is the annual Mosconi Cup , which pits invitational European and U.S. teams against each other in one-on-one and scotch doubles nine-ball matches over a period of several days. The Mosconi Cup games are played under the more stringent European rules, as of 2007. Also known as 14.1 continuous , this game originated as

860-664: The US Open One-pocket Championship (2000, 2011) and the Derby City One-pocket event (1999, 2004-2007 and 2014). One-pocket was the main game featured in the 2007 film, Turn the River , the story of a female pool hustler who plays high-stakes pool. The film ends with a nine-ball match, with the main character saying that nine-ball "seems like a chumpy game for us." The balls in a one-pocket rack are placed randomly, similar to straight pool and bank pool. Before

903-572: The World Pool-Billiard Association International Standardized Rules. But tavern eight-ball (also known as " bar pool "), typically played on smaller, coin-operated tables and in a "winner keeps the table" manner, can differ significantly even between two venues in the same city. The growth of local, regional and national amateur leagues may alleviate this confusion eventually. One-pocket owes its origins to 18th century cramp (handicapped) games. It

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946-676: The Near East), and Oceania Pocket Billiard Association (OPBA, Australia, New Zealand, Pacific islands). The WPA represents pool in the World Confederation of Billiards Sports , which in turn represents all forms of cue sports (including carom billiards and snooker ) in the International Olympic Committee . One-pocket One-pocket is similar to straight pool in that a player can shoot at any object ball regardless of its color or number. Unlike straight pool, however,

989-776: The United Kingdom the game is commonly played in pubs, and it is competitively played in leagues on both sides of the Atlantic. The most prestigious tournaments including the World Open are sponsored and sanctioned by the International Pool Tour. Rules vary widely from place to place (and between continents to such an extent that British-style eight-ball pool/blackball is properly regarded as a separate game in its own right). Pool halls in North America are increasingly settling upon

1032-489: The break stay down, with the shooter continuing their turn, unless a foul was committed. If no ball is pocketed on the break, the shooter's turn is over. The use of called shots is considered controversial among some of the game's elite, as many professional players are experts at playing multi-way shots where they may be attempting to pocket more than one ball on a given shot. Nonetheless, the rule has been adopted for professional competitions. Pool (cue sports) Pool

1075-401: The break, all shots must be called , and performing a string of break-and-runs on successive racks is statistically more difficult to achieve. Ten-ball is preferred over nine-ball by some professionals as a more challenging discipline than nine-ball. The 10 balls are racked in a triangle, with the 1 ball positioned at the apex of the rack, the 10 ball positioned in the middle of

1118-401: The break. The World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA) standardized rules for ten-ball are very similar to those for nine-ball, but with key changes to increase the difficulty of the game. In contrast to nine-ball, it is slightly harder to pocket any balls on the break shot with the more crowded rack , the initial shooter cannot instantly win the game by pocketing the 10 on

1161-412: The cue ball being pocketed. If no ball hits a rail and no ball is pocketed, a foul is declared, and the shooter's turn is over. Under WPA standardized rules, ten-ball is a call-shot game; that is, the shooter must state which ball they intend to pocket and into which pocket. The pocketed ball does not have to be the lowest-numbered ball on the table—combination and carom shots are legal, as long as

1204-436: The cue ball first makes contact with the lowest-numbered ball on the table, the nominated ball goes into the nominated pocket, and no other foul is committed, does the shooter's turn continue. The only exception to the call-shot rule is on the break, for which there is no call. If the 10 ball is pocketed on the break, it is placed back on the foot spot and the shooter's turn continues. Any other balls that are pocketed on

1247-419: The early 19th century games of pyramid pool and fifteen-ball pool which required balls to be racked due to the large number of them on the table. Of the other pyramid traditions of Continental Europe, only Russian pyramid survives. Snooker , originally known as snooker's pool, can be considered a member of this family. Rotation games require players to make legal contact with the lowest numbered ball on

1290-569: The first specific meaning of "a game in which each player uses a cue ball of a distinctive colour to pocket the balls of the other player(s) in a certain order, the winner taking all the stakes submitted at the start of the contest" is now obsolete, and its other specific definitions are all for games that originate in the United States. In the British Empire for most of the nineteenth through early twentieth century, pool referred specifically to

1333-405: The first to adopt balls with different colors. The stripes were the last addition. Pool is played on a six pocket table . Modern pool tables generally range in size from 3.5 by 7 feet (1.07 by 2.13 m), to 4.5 by 9 feet (1.37 by 2.74 m). Under World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA) official equipment specifications, pool balls weigh from 5.5 to 6 oz (160 to 170 g) and have

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1376-441: The game by forcing their opponent to be on defense instead of taking a low percentage shot that could result in a loss of game. These low percentage shots are known as "flyers" by one-pocket aficionados. Bank pool can be played with a full rack (can be a long game), but is more typically played with nine balls (frequently called "nine-ball bank"). The balls are racked in nine-ball formation, but in no particular order. The object of

1419-443: The game is simple: to be the first player to bank five balls in any order (eight balls when played with a full rack). Penalties and fouls are similar to one pocket in that the player committing the foul must spot a ball for each foul. This must be done before the incoming player shoots. Artistic pool is the competitive discipline of trick shots inspired by its carom equivalent . Played on pool or snooker tables, players must complete

1462-443: The game of life pool . Although skittle pool is played on a pocketless carom billiards table, the term pool later stuck to all new games of pocket billiards as the sport gained in popularity in the United States, and so outside the cue sports industry, which has long favored the more formal term pocket billiards , the common name for the sport has remained pool . The OxfordDictionaries.com definition no longer even provides

1505-413: The game to chess, with a beginning, middle, and end game, and similar strategic elements. A player must be careful not to leave the opponent with a good shot, or the opponent may be able to capitalize on a successful shot for successive shots and never let the original player shoot again. A player may even intentionally pocket a ball into their opponent’s pocket, thereby conceding a point, in order to prevent

1548-505: The last several decades ahead of straight pool . The goal of eight-ball, which is played with a full rack of fifteen balls and the cue ball, is to claim a suit (commonly stripes or solids in the US, and reds or yellows in the UK), pocket all of them, then legally pocket the 8 ball, while denying one's opponent opportunities to do the same with their suit, and without sinking the 8 ball early by accident. In

1591-473: The obsolete meaning found in the print edition, and refers only to the typical game "using two sets [each] of seven coloured and numbered balls ... with one black ball and a white cue ball" on a table with pockets. With the exception of one-pocket , games typically called "pool" today are descended from two English games imported to the United States during the 19th century. The first was English billiards which became American four-ball billiards , essentially

1634-566: The opponent from being able to pocket that ball and use it to get shape (ideal cue ball position) on a subsequent next shot. The game is very popular with gamblers, and frequently attracts high stakes. One-pocket plays a major role in the yearly Derby City Classic that is played in Louisville, Kentucky , each January. One of the most famous players of the game is Grady "the Professor" Mathews , who has written articles and published

1677-479: The rack, and the other balls placed randomly throughout, with the apex ball on the foot spot. Some leagues and tournaments (such as the US Open 10 Ball) may stipulate that the 2 and 3 balls are to be at the back corners of the triangle. As a rotation game, to make a legal hit in ten-ball, the cue ball must contact the lowest numbered ball first, and subsequently at least one ball must hit any rail or be pocketed, without

1720-550: The rules adopted as the basis for the tournament rules. American pool player and entertainer Rudolph "Minnesota Fats" Wanderone allegedly said the game of one-pocket was like chess (later admitting that he had actually never played a game of chess). On the other hand, Wanderone's public rival, Willie Mosconi , called one-pocket a gimmick game for gamblers. Well known one pocket players and commentators such as Hall of famer Danny DiLiberto , Accu-Stats host Billy Incardona , and Mosconi Cup coach Jeremy Jones have often compared

1763-403: The same game but with an extra red object ball to increase scoring opportunities. It was the most popular billiards game in the mid-19th century until dethroned by the carom game straight rail . American four-ball tournaments tried switching to carom tables in the 1870s but this did not save it from being doomed to obscurity; the last professional tournament was held in 1876. Cowboy pool

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1806-411: The shooter pockets the nominated ball in the nominated pocket without committing any foul. Flukes —shots that go in an unintended pocket (usually by random chance)—do not count; if a player pockets only balls other than the nominated ball, or pockets the nominated ball in the wrong pocket, the pocketed balls stay down, but the shooter's turn is over, as though they missed the shot completely. Only if

1849-410: The table or a foul is called. The earliest rotation game, originally known as 61 , started off as a variant of fifteen-ball pool during the mid-nineteenth century. The name "rotation" came from how the balls were placed around the table in its unracked offshoot Chicago . 61 has spawned many variations of its own such as American rotation , nine-ball , ten-ball , and Kelly pool . Of these, nine-ball

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