Information AboutEight Ball |
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Eight ball is a Billiards game played with a Cue Ball and 15 Billiard Ball s on a Pool Table with 6 pockets. EQUIPMENT There are eight solid-colored balls numbered 1 through 8, seven Stripe d balls numbered 9 through 15, and a solid white cue ball. The balls are usually colored as follows:
Alternatively, the 7 and 15 balls may be colored tan or magenta. PLAYING THE GAME There are four phases to the game: setup, breaking, taking turns, and pocketing the 8 ball. Setup To start the game, the colored balls are placed in a Triangle , called a "rack." The base of the rack is parallel to the short end of the pool table and positioned so the ball in the tip of the rack is located on the foot spot. The balls in the rack are pressed into contact with the foot ball, and remain in contact after the rack is removed. Within the rack, the 8-ball is centered while the two corners are each spotted with one solid ball and one stripe ball (See image). The cue ball is placed anywhere the breaker desires between the head string and its nearest short side (that is, the quarter of the table farthest from the rack), an area known as the "kitchen." The pool table is divided into two equal halves lengthwise by an imaginary line called the "long string". Two lines, the "head string" and "foot string" are perpendicular to the long string and are placed 1/4 length away from each end of the table. The intersection of the long and head strings is called the "head spot", and the intersection of the long and foot strings is called the "foot spot". Break One person is chosen to shoot first ("break" the balls apart; note that this is a different definition of the word "break" than in other billiards games, notably Snooker ) by any number of methods: flip of a coin, loser of last game breaks, winner of last game breaks, "lag", etc. If the shooter who breaks fails to make a legal break (usually defined as at least four balls hitting cushions) then the opponent can either re-rack and break, or play from the current position. If the breaker pockets a ball, it is still the same player's turn. This area of the game has two possible variations.
A common "house rule" is that if the 8 ball is potted on the break, the player wins immediately. Taking Turns A player will continue to shoot until he/she makes a fault or fails to pocket one of the object balls. Then, the other player takes his/her turn. Play alternates like this for the remainder of the game. Pocketing the 8 ball Once all the player's object balls are pocketed, he/she can now attempt to sink the 8 ball and win. To win, he/she must specify the pocket it will land in, and make it in that pocket. If it is potted in the wrong pocket, if the cue ball is potted, or if there is a fault (see below), he/she loses. If neither the cue ball nor the eight ball is potted, the player's turn is over. FAULTS When one player commits a fault, the other player gets "ball in hand", that is, may place the cue ball anywhere on the table before playing their next shot. Area of substantial disagreement in rules: some (including the BCA ) play that (after the break) the cueball may be placed anywhere, and shoot at anything. Others play that the person with ball in hand may only place the cue ball in the "kitchen", and must shoot out of the "kitchen" before hitting any ball (that is, they may not shoot at a ball inside the "kitchen" directly). However, if all their balls are inside the "kitchen", they can request that the one closest to the head string be placed on the head spot. Under BCA rules, if the cue ball is pocketed on the break, the cue ball must be placed in the "kitchen" and shot out. If he/she pots the cue ball while playing on the black, it will be an immediate foul and the opposite player will receive two shots whether or not he/she is on the black. If he/she pots the black and the cue ball he/she will automatically lose the game. APA rules:
POSSIBLE SET OF RULES Note: The rules for this game may be the most contested of any billiard game; MAKE SURE that you and your opponent agree on the rules before playing. Many people and leagues in the USA use the Billiard Congress Of America (BCA) rules as their standard. The place where you are playing may also have their own house rules, though you should still consult your opponent on whether to play by them. One possible set of rules follows, but it doesn't exactly match the BCA rules: Winning situation:
Losing situations:
Possible fault situations:
A legal stroke is defined as:
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN UK AND US In the version of pool or Eight Ball played in the United Kingdom and Australia , plain unnumbered red balls and yellow balls often replace the solid and striped balls. If not, the terms "bigs" (9-15) and "smalls" (1-7) are generally used instead. The black ball, however, still typically bears a number eight. Another difference is that the UK table has pockets just larger than the balls, whereas the American table has pockets significantly larger. The cue ball is often placed initially directly opposite the other balls, on the boundary line of the kitchen. Whether a ball contacts the rail, or the player pots one of his own balls, is irrelevant in deciding a foul. Instead, a legal move is one where the cueball first hits one of the balls in the player's own group, and does not pot the cueball, the black ball or any of the balls in the opponent's group. If the player does succeed in potting one of his own balls then he or she will often be rewarded with a free shot. After a foul stroke in the UK, the offending player will miss a turn - known as the "two shots" rule. This generally replaces the "ball in hand" rule, except in the case that the cueball is potted. In this case the opposing player, in addition to receiving a second shot, may choose where to place the cueball. Sometimes the player is limited to the semicircle ("the D"), although the horizontal boundary line of the "kitchen" can also be permitted. It should also be noted there has never been a one-shot on the black rule despite popular belief, the EPA rules can be found at http://www.epa.org.uk/wrules.php A common area of contention concerns "fouls on the black". Possibilities include:
Similarly, there is contention over two shots "carrying over". Possibilities include: #If a player has two shots, and pots a ball with the first, he still has two shots. #If a player has two shots, and pots a ball with the first, he now has one shot left. #Rule 1 applies unless the potted ball is his last coloured ball, in which case rule 2 applies. Lastly, the question of "shooting backwards" after the white ball is respotted following being potted. Possibilities here include: #A player may not hit a ball on or behind the line without hitting another ball or cushion first. #A player may not "shoot backwards", but may shoot at balls behind the line provided that the direction of motion of the white ball is forwards. #A player may shoot backwards. Further disagreement may arise over whether it is acceptable to deliberately pot the white ball (usually if a "no shooting backwards" rule is in effect, and the opponents' balls are behind the line). STANDARDIZED RULES (WORLD 8 BALL RULES) A standardized version of pool rules for professional competitions have been established. These are the rules played in most 8-ball tournaments on television. These rules are often played in amateur leagues as well. World Rules creates differences to encourage quick play and promote skill by making playing a snooker (hook) more difficult and making covering pockets less advantageous. {Link without Title} - World 8 Ball rules with English definitions. Some examples of these differences would be - On all shots, the player must cause the Cue Ball's initial contact with a ball to be with a ball "On" and then pot a ball "On" or cause the Cue Ball or any Object Ball to contact a cushion. This means that an easy snooker cannot always be played. Also - In some versions of 8 ball purposefully committing a foul (by potting an opponents ball) is not allowed. World 8 ball rules permits this. Furthermore, the cue ball (white ball) cannot be moved after a foul is committed. This means that pocketing an opponents ball sometimes means that no significant advantage is given to the opposing player. This depends on where the cue ball lies after the shot is played. Care must be taken though as playing a foul shot resulting in a snooker results in a "foul snooker". The opposing player can then play a free ball from the baulk. For further explanations of the definitions of "snooker", "fouls", "on", "Object ball" and "free ball" please visit the sites above. BLACKBALL RULES From 1st January 2006, "Blackball" rules were introduced world-wide. They are being introduced in the UK and other countries playing "small table, English pool". The idea is that blackball should unify the various existing rule-sets. Blackball takes the best parts of the all the main types of rules. These rules are sanctioned by the World Pool Association. A guide to these rules can be found at www.blackball.info {Link without Title} The governing body for blackball in Europe is the European Blackball Association. TERMINOLOGY
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