Except when clearly contradicted by these additional rules, the General Rules of Pocket Billiards apply.

OBJECT OF THE GAME

Eight-Ball is a call shot game played with a cue ball and fifteen balls, numbered one through fifteen. One pool player must pocket each of the balls in the group one through seven. These would be the solid colored balls. The other pool player has the strip balls. These balls are numbered nine through fourteen. The pool player who legally hits the eight ball into one of the pockets or the player who pockets their group of balls, solid or strip wins the pool game.

CALL YOUR SHOT

In Call Your Shot, the obvious pool shots do not have to be called, but other more difficult shots the pool player should indicate which balls and pockets the pool player plans on using. The other pool player has the right to ask which pocket and ball the player plans on using. When the pool player shoots a combination or bank shot it is not considered an obvious shot. The pool player who is shooting should call both the ball and the pocket the ball they plan on using. When the pool player calls their shot it is not always necessary to indicate the number of banks, cushions, kisses, caroms, etc. Any balls that are hit into pockets during a foul should remain in the pockets. It does not matter if the balls belong to the shooter or the opponent. The opening break is not considered a called shot, so any balls dropped stay in the pockets and the player who broke the balls shall continue playing.

RACKING THE BALLS

The pool balls are racked in a triangle at the top of the pool table with the eight ball in the middle of the triangle. The first ball of the rack is located on the front tip of the triangle and should be a solid ball followed by a strip ball on each side of the solid ball. From that point the pool balls are placed in the rack in proper place on the pool table.

ORDER OF THE BREAK

The winner of the lag has the option to break or let the other pool player break. The player who wins each game breaks in the next game. The following is a list of common options that may be designated by tournament officials in advance: The pool players shall alternate breaks. The person who losses breaks in the following game. The player whom is trailing in the game count shall break in the following game.

THE LEGAL BREAK SHOT (Definition)

In order to execute an officially permitted break, the breaker must either (1) pocket one of the ball, or (2) drive at least four numbered balls to the rail. When the person whom is breaking fails to make a legal break, it is a foul in pool, and the other pool player has two options (1) accepting the pool table how it is and shooting, or (2) having the balls re-racked and having the option of shooting the break or allowing the original player to break again.

SCRATCHING ON A LEGAL BREAK

If a player scratches on a legal break shooting eight ball pool, (1) all balls pocketed remain pocketed (2) it is considered a foul, (3) the table is still open.

IF AN OBJECT BALL IS JUMPED OFF TABLE ON THE BREAK

If a pool player jumps an object ball off of the table on the break shot it is considered a foul and the inward player has two options (1) accepting the table in place and shooting, or (2) taking the cue ball in hand and behind the head string and shooting.

IF THE EIGHT BALL IS POCKETED ON THE BREAK

If the eight ball is pocketed on the break, breaker has the option to ask for the pool balls to be re-rack or have the eight ball spotted and continue shooting the game. If the person who is breaking scratches while pocketing the eight ball on the break, the arriving player has the option of having the balls re-rack or having the eight ball spotted.

IF THE TABLE IS “OPEN” (Defined)

The table is considered” open" when the choice of solid or strip balls has not yet been determined. When the table is considered open, it is a legal shoot to hit a solid first to make a stripe or vice-versa. The table is always open directly after the break shot. When the table is considered open, it is officially permitted to hit any solid or stripe first in the process of pocketing the called stripe or solid. However, when the table is considered open and the eight ball is the first ball that makes contact with, it is a foul and no stripe or solid may be scored in favor of the person who is shooting. The person who is shooting loses his or her turn. The incoming player is honored the cue ball in hand and any balls pocketed remain pocketed; and the incoming player addresses the balls with the table still open. If the table is open, all illegally pocketed balls stay pocketed.

CHOICE OF STRIPES OR SOLID

Stripes or solids is not determined on the break even if balls are made from only one or both groups, because the table is always open directly after the break. The choice of solid or strip is determined only when a player officially pockets a called ball after the break shot.

LEGAL SHOT (Defined)

On each shot the pool player who is shooting must hit one of their balls first. and pocket one of their balls legally. It is acceptable for the shooter to bank the cue ball off a rail before making contact with the solid or strip he or she is shooting for. After the pool players makes contact with his or her ball it must be pocketed. If these requirements are not met then a foul will be called.

"SAFETY" SHOT

A safety shot is used for tactical reasons. A player can decide to pocket an apparent object ball and also terminate a turn at the table by announcing a "safety" in advance. A safety shot is a legal shot. If the shooting player anticipates to play a safety by pocketing an apparent object ball, then previous to the shot, the shooter is required to declare a "safety" to the other pool player. The pool shooter is held responsible to make the other pool player alert of the intended safety shot. If the safety is not called and one of the shooter’s object balls is pocketed, the shooter will be obligated to shoot again. Any ball that is pocketed on a safety shot remains pocketed.

SCORING

The pool player is permitted to remain shooting until he or she fails to officially pocket a ball of their group. After one of the pool player has legally pocketed all of their solid or stripe balls, they then proceed to shoot the eight ball into a called pocket.

FOUL PENALTY

When a foul penalty occurs the opposing player is allowed to put the cue ball in hand. This means that the pool player can place the cue ball anywhere on the pool table This rule prevents a player from making deliberate fouls which would put the other pool player at a disadvantage. When the cue ball is in hand the pool player may use his or her hand to spot the cue ball. When placing the cue ball in position, any frontward stroke movement contacting the cue ball will be a foul.

COMBINATION SHOTS

Combination shots are legal shots. The eight ball can not be used as the first ball in a combination shot unless it is the shooter’s only remaining legal ball on the table. If the eight ball is used in a combination shot, the shot will be considered a foul.

ILLEGALLY POCKETED BALLS

An illegally pocketed ball occurs when an object ball is pocketed during the same shot in which a foul is committed. If the called ball did not go in the selected pocket or a safety is called prior to the shot it is considered an illegally pocketed ball. Illegally pocketed balls stay pocketed and are scored in favor of the shooter controlling that particular group of balls.

IF OBJECT BALLS ARE JUMPED OFF THE TABLE

If an object ball is jumped off the table, it is considered a foul and the pool player looses his or her turn. If the eight ball is jumped off the table it will result in loss of game by the pool player who shot. Any balls, besides the eight ball, that are jumped off the table are not re-spotted.

JUMP AND MASSÉ SHOT FOUL

When “cue ball fouls only" is considered the rule of play and a referee is not supervising the game , a player should be conscious that it will be considered a cue ball foul if during an effort to curve, jump or massé the cue ball around or over an impeding numbered ball that is not a legal ball, the impeding ball moves.

PLAYING THE EIGHT BALL

When the pool player is shooting for the eight ball , a scratch or foul is not considered loss of game if the eight ball is not pocketed or jumped off the table. The incoming pool player has the cue ball in hand. A combination shot can never be used to legally pocket the eight ball, except when the eight ball is the first ball to be contacted in the shot order.

LOSS OF GAME

A pool player loses the game by committing any of the following infractions: Commits a fouls when pocketing the eight ball. Pockets the eight ball during a shot on which the player was trying to pocket one of their object balls. If the pool player jumps the eight ball off the table at any point of the game. Pockets the eight ball in a pocket other than the one he or she selected. Pockets the eight ball when it is not the officially permitted object ball.

STALEMATED GAME

If, after three successive turns at the table by each player , the referee judges that trying to pocket or move an object ball will consequence in loss of game, the balls will be re-racked with the original breaker of the game breaking again. The stalemate rule may be used in spite of the number of balls on the table.

Nine Ball Rules

OBJECT OF THE GAME - The pool game named “nine-Ball” is played with a cue ball and nine object balls numbered one through nine. On each shot, the first ball the cue ball makes contact with must be the lowest numbered ball on the table, but the balls do not have to be pocketed in order. If a pool player pockets any ball on a legal shot, he or she remains at the table for an additional shot, and remains shooting until missing a shot, committing a foul, or wining the game by pocketing the nine ball. After a player misses a shot, the incoming player is required to shoot from the location left by the preceding player. After any foul the incoming player can begin with the cue ball anywhere on the table. The pool players in nine ball payers are not required to call their shots. The game is over when one of the players has won the necessary number of games. RACKING THE BALLS The object balls are racked in a diamond shape, with the one ball at the top of the diamond and on the foot spot. The nine ball is located in the center of the diamond, and the other balls are in random order. The balls are always racked as tightly as possible. The game begins with cue ball in hand behind the head string of the pool table.

ORDER OF THE BREAK The winner of the lag has the choice to break. In nine ball the winner of each game breaks in the following game, unless otherwise specified by the tournament director. The following are general options that may be selected by tournament officials in advance: Players rotate breaks. Loser breaks. The player who is trailing in the game count breaks the following game.

LEGAL BREAK SHOT

The rules governing the break shot are the same as for other shots excluding: The pool player who is breaking must strike the one ball first and either pocket a ball or force at least four numbered balls to hit the rail. If the cue ball is hit off the table or pocketed, or the requirements of the opening break are not met, it is considered a foul, and the incoming pool player has cue ball in hand wherever he or she chooses on the table. During the break if an object ball jumps off the table, it is considered a foul and the incoming pool player gets to place the cue ball in hand anywhere on the table. The object ball is not re-spotted unless it was the nine ball and in that case it will be placed back on the table.Diamond Shaped Rack The one ball is required to be on the foot spot The nine ball is required to be placed in the center of the rack.

CONTINUING PLAY After a legal break, the shooter has the option to play a “push out.” If the person who breaks pockets one or more balls on a legal break, he or she continues to shoot until they miss a shot, foul, or win the game. If the player misses or fouls, the other player starts to shoot until missing, committing a foul, or winning the game. The game is over when the nine ball is pocketed on a legal shot, or the game is forfeited.

PUSH OUT The person shooting immediately after a legal break may play a push out in an effort to relocate the cue ball into a improved position. On a push out, the cue ball is not obligated to contact any object ball or any rail, but the rest of the foul rules still are relevant. The player must declare the intention of playing a push out before the shot is taken, or the shot is considered to be a regular shot. Any ball which is pocketed on a push out does not count and remains pocketed excluding the nine ball. Subsequently after a legal push out, the next player is allowed to shoot from that position or to pass the shot back to the player who pushed out. A push out is not considered to be a foul as long as no rules are violated. An illegal push out shall be penalized according to the kind of foul committed. When a player scratches on the break, the next player is not able to play a push out.

FOULS When a foul is committed, the player must surrender their turn at the table and none of the balls pocketed on the foul shot are re-spotted. Unless it is the nine ball, it is re-spotted. The incoming player is awarded ball in hand.

BAD HIT A bad hit is when an object ball contacted by the cue ball and it is not the lowest numbered ball on the table, the shot is a foul.

NO RAIL If there is no object ball pocketed and a failure to drive the cue ball or any numbered ball to a rail after the cue ball contacts the object ball is considered a foul.

IN HAND The pool player may place the cue ball wherever they choose on the table when the ball is considered in hand. You are not allowed to place the cue in direct contact with an object ball. The player can continue to adjust the position of the cue ball until shooting.

OBJECT BALLS JUMPED OFF THE TABLE It is considered to be a foul if any ball is driven off the table. The ball that is jumped off the table is not re-spotted. Only if the nine ball is hit off the table it will be re-spotted. JUMP AND MASSÉ SHOT FOUL If a nine ball game is not refereed, it will be considered a cue ball foul if during an effort to curve, jump or massé the cue ball over or around an impeding numbered ball, the impeding ball moves.

THREE CONSECUTIVE FOULS If a player fouls three successive times on three consecutive shots without making an superseding legal shot, the game is lost. The three fouls have to take place in one game. The caution must be specified between the second and third fouls. A player’s inning starts when it is officially permitted to take a shot and ends at the end of a shot on which he or she fouls, misses or wins, or when he or she fouls between shots.

END OF GAME A nine ball game begins as soon as the cue ball crosses over the head string during the opening break. The one ball is required to be legally contacted on the break shot. The game ends when a legal shot pockets the nine ball, or when a player forfeits the game as the consequence of a foul.

American Snooker Rules

TYPE OF GAME American Snooker is a cousin of Snooker as it is played broadly around the world, the regulations giving it a distinctive direction toward the configuration of many American pocket billiard games. It is normally played on either 4 1/2' x 9', 5' x 10' or 6' x 12' Snooker tables, with cushions that are more slender than other pocket billiard tables, and curve smoothly into the pocket openings. The balls used are either 2 1/16" or 2 1/8" diameter. (See BCA Specifications.)

PLAYERS Two player game

BALLS USED Snooker balls are used. There are fifteen object balls that are not numbered and are solid red. These balls are called reds. There are six object balls that may or may not be numbered , these are called colored. There is also a cue ball used in this game. The point values for object balls are the following: red-one, yellow-two, green-three, brown-four, blue-five, pink-six, black-seven.

THE RACK The play starts with balls placed as in Diagram.

THE OBJECT OF THE GAME To score a superior number of points than your challenger.

SCORING Points are scored in two different ways. Pool players are honored points for fouls made by the challenger and by legally pocketing reds or colors. Each legally pocketed red ball is worth one point. Every legally pocketed color ball also has a point value. The game is over when all balls have been pocketed. Ifthe black seven ball is the only ball left on the table, the game ends with the first score or foul. If the players’ scores are identical after that scoring, the black ball is spotted on its previous position and the players lag for the option of shooting at, or assigning their challenger to shoot at the black ball with the cue ball in hand inside the 0. The first player who scores or foulsends the game.

OPENING BREAK The pool player who is breaking has cue ball in hand within the “0”.He or she must do the following: Make the cue ball to contact a red ball before contacting a color ball, and Cause a red ball to come in contact with a cushion or drop into a pocket, and Cause the cue ball to come into contact with a cushion after it hits a red ball. Failure to convene these requirements is considered a foul and a breaking infringement. A foul is scored and incoming player has the following choices: Accepting the table as is and shooting, or; Requiring the offender to break again.

RULES OF PLAY A ball that is legally pocketed enables the shooter to resume at the table until he or she fails to legally pocket a ball. During every shot a player must meet the terms of the proper requirements of Rules of Play five and six, plus cause the cue ball or an object ball to get in touch with a cushion or drop in a pocket following the cue ball has contacted a legal object ball. Failure to do so is considered a foul. As long as there are reds are on the table, an inward bound player always has a red as his or her legal object ball. Any red balls that are pocketed during a legal shot are considered legally pocketed balls. The player does not have to call any specific red balls, pockets or method of pocketing. When a player has a red ball as his or her “on ball” they must make the cue ball first come into contact with a red ball. Failure to do so is considered a foul. After a player has scored a red ball, his or her next legal object is a color, as long as reds linger on the table the player is obliged to rotate play between reds and colors . When reds remain on the table and a color is his or her object, the player is required to choose prior to shooting which color ball is there object and cause the cue ball’s first contact with a ball to be with that color ball. If a Player does not succeed to meet these requirements, it is considered a foul. If the pool player is on a red ball and they pocket a color, it is considered a foul.

If the pool player is on a color ball and they pocket any other ball, it is considered a foul. It is considered a foul if a player deliberately causes the cue ball to jump by any means. While reds linger on the pool table, each pocketed color ball is spotted previous to the next stroke. If a pool player shooting after a color has been spotted plays while that ball is wrongly spotted the shot taken is considered a foul. If a shooting player shoots twice following such a mistake without it being declared by the opponent or referee, he or she is free of punishment and continues shooting and scoring normally as though the spotting mistake merely never happened. If a player fouls and the inward bound player is blocked from seeing any part of a ball, the pool player may eliminate the impeding ball and continue to shoot the ball. The pool player cannot score by pocketing this ball on that had been blocked, and the next player proceeds to the table when the stroke is completed. When there are no reds remaining on the table, the player’s balls become the colors, in rising numerical order (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7). These legally pocketed colors are not spotted after each is pocketed; they stay off the table.

ILLEGALLY POCKETED BALL

Red balls that are illegally pocketed are not spotted. They stay off the table. Color balls illegally pocketed are spotted.

IF OBJECT BALLS ARE JUMPED OFF THE TABLE If reds are jumped off the table they are not spotted. Colors that are jumped off the table are spotted. The stroke is considered a foul, and the penalty for fouls is as followed.

SPOTTING THE BALLS

Reds are never spotted. Colors are to be spotted at the start of the game. If a color’s spot is unavailable it is positioned on the spot of the maximum value color that is vacant. If all spots are occupied, the color is potted as close as possible to its initial spot on a straight line between its spot and the closest point on the foot pad.

CUE BALL AFTER JUMPING OFF THE TABLE OR SCRATCH

The incoming player has cue ball in hand inside the D. When cue ball is in hand inside the 0 there is no limit as to what balls may be played. The player has the option to playball regardless of where it is on the table.

PENALTY FOR FOULS

Seven points are added to non-fouling player’s score for each foul committed. The incoming player has the choice of either accepting the location and shooting, or requiring the offending player to shoot again. If the foul is a cue ball jumped off the table or a cue ball scratch, the cue ball is placed in hand within the 0 for either player. If the foul is other than cue ball jumping off the table or scratching, the cue ball remains in location. If a pool player pockets a ball and fouls, the player is not accredited with any points.