Pool and Billiards

Pool and billiards are part of the family of games known as "cue sports," which involve using a tapered stick called a "cue" to strike balls on a table. Pool is the most common cue sport, and it evolved from billiards, which developed in Europe sometime during the fifteenth century. Sports historians believe that billiards was originally an outdoor game, played on short grass. The green felt used on modern pool tables was chosen to represent the green grass originally used as a playing surface. The name "billiards" may have developed from the French word bille, meaning "marble" or "ball."

In early versions of indoor billiards, players used thick sticks called "maces" to hit billiard balls along the table. In the late seventeenth century, players abandoned the maces in favor of tapered sticks. The name "cue" developed from the term the French used for the end of the stick, which was called the queue ("tail").

Billiards developed rapidly during the nineteenth century due in part to industrial manufacturing. A leather tip was added to the cue stick, allowing players to hit the ball in such a way as to cause it to spin in various directions. English players introduced this technique to American billiards players, which led to the American term "English" to refer to applying spin to the ball. Chalk also became an important part of the game, applied both to the cue and to the player's hands to modify friction.

Irish immigrant Michael Phelan wrote the first book on billiards for American audiences during the 1850s, and this publication helped to popularize the game. The term "pool" originally referred to the betting or gambling pools that often accompanied billiards games. In the nineteenth century, the term "pool" came to refer to a billiards variant played with sixteen balls.

The most common modern pool games are eight-ball, straight pool, and nine-ball. All three games developed between 1900 and 1920 and rapidly became the most popular cue sports in the United States. Championship pool games have been held in the United States since the 1870s, and since that time, a small number of players have made pool their primary occupation. In the 1940s and 1950s, the popularity of pool declined, and several professional championships were suspended; however, the release of the 1961 film The Hustler revived interest in the game and led to a nationwide increase in the number of pool halls.

The Billiards Congress of America (BCA) was established in 1948 by a group of dedicated players to promote the game and organize competitions. The BCA and other organizations around the world grew in popularity with the advent of televised pool and billiards competitions. In 1987, the World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA) was organized to manage and promote international pool game competitions. In 1990, the World Confederation of Billiards Sports (WCBS) convened for the first time in Bristol, United Kingdom. The WCBS is an umbrella organization for pool, snooker, and carom that billiards was founded to meet International Olympic Committee (IOC) requirements for the three sports disciplines to be considered for inclusion in subsequent Olympic Games. Although the IOC recognized billiards sports, comprising all three disciplines, as a single sport category in 1998, the committee has yet to include billiards sports in subsequent Olympics programs.

Pool Cues

• Standard pool cues: Most standard cues are made of wood, though some have other materials including graphite and carbon fiber. Most cues are between fifty-seven and fifty-eight inches in length. Some companies manufacture smaller cues for children and smaller players.
• Bridge: A bridge is a specialized type of pool cue that has a metal or wooden frame on the narrow end. The bridge can be set on the table to guide certain types of shots.

Pool Balls

Different types of pool/billiard ball sets are required for various types of games. For instance, the cue game known as snooker uses a specialized set of red and white balls, while eight-ball and nine-ball use sets of numbered balls in solid and striped varieties.

• American-style pool ball set, which includes numbered balls 57.15 millimeters in diameter
• Snooker ball set, which includes solid red, colored, and white balls that measure 52.5 millimeters in diameter
• British style ball set, which includes numbered balls that measure 56 millimeters in diameter
• Training balls, white cue balls that have various markings printed on them to help beginners train in certain types of shots and learn how to hit the ball to achieve certain types of spin effects

Other Supplies

• Chalk is used to treat the tips of pool cues and the hands of the player in order to alter friction and resistance.
• Gloves are sometimes worn to protect the hands from friction burns and to provide a smooth shooting surface.
• Ball racks come in different types depending on the type of game, including diamond shaped racks for nine-ball and triangular racks for eight-ball.

Techniques

There are various cue sports, many of which require specialized ball sets. The most popular versions of the sport in the United States are eight-ball and nine-ball pool. In the United Kingdom, snooker is another popular cue sport played in pool and billiards parlors.

Basic eight-ball pool is played with sixteen balls, including a cue ball (solid white) and fifteen numbered balls divided into solid balls and striped balls. Players are assigned to either striped or solid target balls, and the player must sink all of the balls belonging to his or her target group, followed by the eight-ball, into pockets on the sides of the table. Numerous varieties of eight-ball pool exist and typically differ only in a few basic rules.

In nine-ball pool, players compete to sink balls according to increasing numbers from one to nine, with the goal of legally pocketing the nine-ball. Players must use the cue ball to strike the lowest number ball on the table and must either sink that ball or drive any other ball to the side of the table. If a player hits the wrong ball or fails to sink a shot, he or she receives a "foul," and play transfers to the opponent.

In snooker, players alternate shooting at one of fifteen red balls on the table. When a player successfully sinks one of the red balls, which are each worth one point, he or she is then allowed to attempt to sink one of the other colored balls, which are worth various points assigned to each color. The game is won when one player reaches a certain point value determined before the game.

Trends

Trick shot or "artistic pool" involves making unusual or creative shots that can involve sinking balls, jumping balls, or a variety of other techniques. Trick shot activities are not new to the sport, and many early billiards players performed trick shots to exhibit their skill with the cue stick. In the 1990s, the BCA officially recognized trick shot or artistic pool as a legitimate competitive category, leading to the expansion of artistic pool competitions around the world. Players involved in artistic competitions are judged for the creativity of their shots, among many other criteria. The WPA officially sanctioned artistic pool competitions for the first time in 2000, and online videos of trick shots have increased the popularity of the sport in the twenty-first century.

Pool and Billiards for Fun vs. Profit

Most individuals who play pool or billiards do so for enjoyment and recreation, though there are hundreds of professional pool players around the world who have turned their hobby into a lucrative profession. Prizes for pool competitions can range from less than a hundred dollars to more than one million dollars, depending on the level of competition. Mid-level pros can earn about $50,000 annually, while top players' earnings can range into the millions. In addition to playing in competitions, individuals can profit from pool playing by teaching classes either as private instructors or through an organization that provides classes in billiards.

Learning More

Organizations  

Billiards Congress of America <http://www.bca-pool.com>

World Confederation of Billiards Sports <https://www.wcbs.sport/>

World Pool-Billiard Association <http://www.wpa-pool.com>

Books  

Alciatore, David G. The Illustrated Principles of Pool and Billiards. New York: Sterling, 2004. Print.

Billiards Congress of America. Billiards: The Official Rules and Records Book. Guilford: Lyons, 2005. Print.

Broadfoot, William, et al. Billiards. London: Longman, 1896. Print.

Hendricks, William. History of Billiards: A Complete History of Billiards Evolution. Illinois: Hendricks, 1974. Print.

Kanov, Gerry, and Shari Stauch. Precision Pool. Champaign: Human Kinetics, 2008. Print.

Stein, Victor, and Paul Rubino. The Billiard Encyclopedia: An Illustrated History of the Sport. New York: Balkline, 2008. Print.

Magazines  

Billiards Digest

Pool and Billiard Magazine

Snooker Scene