Billiards

Billiards is a game played on a large flat table with balls and pockets. It has similarities with other cue and ball games such as pool and snooker

A billiards table is rectangular in shape, perfectly flat and covered with green baize. There are six pockets; one at each corner and one in the middle of the two long sides. Unlike snooker, billiards is played with just three balls.

Other versions of the game are bar billiards and pocket billiards

Snooker[edit]

Snooker is a sport played on a green baize table between two opponents.

The table has 6 'pockets', 4 at the corners and 2 in the center of the longer sides, into which the players attempt to pot different colored balls using a cue and a white cue ball.

The aim of the sport is to score more points than your opponent

Apart from the cue ball, snooker uses 15 red balls and 6 'colors'. These are yellow, green, brown, blue, pink and black. Players take turns striking the cue ball with their cue to try to pot one of the other balls. Players can only attempt to pot 'colors' after having potted one of the 15 reds.

Reds score one point and the colors from 2 to 7 points. After all the reds have been potted a frame ends with players potting the colors in order.

Origins[edit]

Snooker originated in India during the British Raj where it was very popular in the officers' mess. Snooker is still played mostly in the United Kingdom and in former British colonies such as Canada, Australia and Singapore.

World Championship[edit]

The Snooker World Championship is held every year at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England. The current world champion is John Higgins from Wishaw, Scotland.

See also[edit]

• Three-ball
• British Inventions
• Category:American Inventions
• Category:British Inventions