English billiards

Fouls (or faults): A player missing the opponents ball

added one point to his opponents total; the shooter conceded two points if that players own ball (then acting as
the cue ball) went into a pocket after striking the opponents ball; and the player conceded three points if the
cue ball was pocketed without even hitting the opponents
ball. These rules continued to exist in English billiards
until 1983, when a standard two points for all fouls was
introduced.
By contrast, in the losing game a player could only score
(2 points) by pocketing the cue ball through a carom o
the opponents ball.[3] "Winning hazard" and "losing hazard" are terms still mentioned in the ocial rules for these
two fundamental shot types, although "pot" and "in-o"
A late nineteenth century match between John Roberts, Jr and
have become the usual terms for them in British English.
Edward Diggle.
The nal element was the cannon (or carom) shot, which
[1]
[2]
English billiards, called simply billiards in Great came from carom or carambole billiards, a three-ball
Britain, where it originated, and in many former British game popular in various countries of western Continental
[4]
colonies, is a cue sport for two players or teams. Two cue Europe, especially popularized by France (and today
balls (originally both white and one marked e.g. with a also popular in many parts of Asia and South America).
black dot, but more recently one white, one yellow) and a In the 1700s, the carambole game added a red object
red object ball are used. Each player or team uses a dif- ball to the two white cue balls, and dispensed with the
[5]
ferent cue ball. It is played on a billiards table with the pockets. This ball was adopted into the English game,
[5]
same dimensions as a snooker table and points are scored which retained the pockets, and the goal was to canfor cannons and pocketing the balls. English billiards has non o both the red and the opponents ball on a sinalso, but less frequently, been referred to as the English gle shot, earning 2 points. This inuence on the English
game, the all-in game and (formerly) the common game appears to have come about through the popularity
of French tables in English coee houses; London alone
game.[3]
had over two thousand such establishments in the early
18th century.[6] One period advertisement read: A very
good French Billiard Table, little the worse for wearing,
1 History
full size, with all the materials t for French or English
play.[6]
English billiards was originally called the winning and losing carambole game, folding in the names of three prede- The three ancestral games had their British heyday in the
with a
cessor games, the winning game, the losing game and the 1770s, but had combined into English billiards,
[3]
The
skill
16-point
score
total,
by
approximately
1800.
carambole game (an early form of straight rail), that combilliard
required
in
playing
these
games
helped
retire
the
[3]
bined to form it.
mace in favour of the cue.

1.1

There are a number of pocket billiard games directly

descended from English billiards, including bull dog,
scratch pool, thirty-one pool and thirty-eight. The
last of these gave rise to the more well-known game
cowboy pool.[7][8] English Billiards was virtually unknown in the United States until 1913, when Melbourn
Inman visited the US and played the game against Willie
Hoppe. By 1915 the game had become rather popular, prompting American billiard hall proprietors of the
period to increase the number of English-style tables in

Origins

The winning game was played with two white balls, and
was a 12-point contest. To start, the player who could
strike a ball at one end of the table and get the ball to come
to rest nearest the opposite cushion without lying against
it earned the right to shoot for points rst. This is the
origin of the modern custom of "stringing" (or "lagging").
A player who pocketed the opponents ball scored two
points,[3] as is still the case in modern billiards.
1

2 RULES

their establishments.[9] It also became favored in British

colonies; the games longest-running champion was an
Australian, Walter Lindrum, who held the World Professional Billiards Championship from 1933 until his retirement in 1950. The game remains popular in the UK, although has been eclipsed by snooker.

2.1 Balls and table

There are three balls. They are the same size as snooker
balls (52.5 mm or 2 1 16 in with a tolerance of 0.05 mm)
and they must weigh the same to a tolerance of 0.5 g
within a set.[12]
The balls are designated as:

1.2

Red, an object ball;

White, the cue ball for player 1, and an
object ball for player 2;
White with a spot or yellow, cue ball for
player 2, and an object ball for player
1.[13]

As a sport

The rst governing body of the game, the English Billiards Association, was formed in the UK in 1885, a period that saw a number of sporting bodies founded across
the British sporting world.[10] By the mid-20th century,
the principal sanctioning body was the Billiards Association and Control Council (later the Billiards and Snooker The billiard table used has the same dimensions as a
snooker table,[12] (and in many venues, both games are
Control Council).
played on the same equipment). The playing area of a
In the 19th century and up through the mid-1950s, a com- standard tournament table measures 11 feet 8 inches by
mon way for championship titles to change hands was by 5 ft 10 in (3569 mm by 1778 mm) with a tolerance of
a challenge match. A challenge was issued to a champi- 1 inch in both directions, though smaller ones, down to
2
onship title holder accompanied by stake money (accla- half size, are often found in snooker halls, pubs and home
[11]
mation) held by a third party. Up until the rst organ- billiard rooms.
ised professional tournament in 1870, all English billiards
champions were decided by challenge.
The rst champion was Jonathan Kenteld, who held the 2.2
title from 18201849, losing it to John Roberts, Sr. after
Kenteld refused his challenge. Robertss 21-year reign
lasted until he lost to William Cook in 1870. That year
was also the rst in which an English billiards challenge
match was held in the United States.[3]

Beginning the game

From 1870 to 1983 the champions were: John Roberts,

Jr., (1870, 1871, 187577, 1885); Joseph Bennett,
(1870, 188081); Charles Dawson, (18991900, 1901,
1903); H.W. Stevenson, (1901, 190911); Melbourne Inman, (190809, 191219); Willie Smith, (1920, 1923);
Tom Newman, (192122, 192427); Joe Davis, (1928
32); Walter Lindrum, (193350); Clark McConachy,
(1951-68); Rex Williams, (196876, 198283); and Fred A game in progress, red ball about to be potted.
Davis, (1980).[3]
First the players string (lag) to see who will be the starting
Over the course of the 20th century, English billiards has player; this is done by both players simultaneously hitting
been increasingly superseded as the favoured competitive a cue ball up the table hitting the top cushion and coming
spectator cue sport in the United Kingdom by the game back into baulk (the rst quarter length of the table). The
of snooker played on the same table. However, because player who gets their ball closest to the baulk cushion can
of the in-o scoring option, ball control (including for now choose which cue ball he wants to use during the
snooker) can be enhanced after much solo practice. A game and to break or let the opponent break.
common exercise is to hit the object ball from the D,
go in-o into the centre pocket while the object ball hits The red ball is placed on the spot at the top of the table
the top cushion and returns to the same position halfway (same as the black spot in snooker) and the rst player
down the table. A highly skilled player can repeat the shot begins by playing in-hand from <span title="See entry
over and over, except in competition where the sequence at: Glossary of cue sports terms the D"" style="color:
inherit; " class="">the D behind the baulk line. The
run is limited, because it constitutes a nurse shot.
other cue ball remains o the table until the opponents
rst turn, when he plays in hand from the D.

Rules

The idea is to leave the balls safe by creating either a double baulk (both object balls in baulk), or the red in baulk
with the cue-ball tight (frozen) to the top-side cushion.

2.5

2.3

Fouls

Scoring

Points are awarded as follows:

3
If the cue ball is touching an object ball, then the balls
must be respotted: red on its spot and opponents ball in
the centre spot, with the striker to play from in-hand.

Matches held under professional regulations include a rule

Cannon striking the cue ball so that it hits, in any
forcing the player to execute a shot in a way to have his
order, the other cue ball and the red ball on the same
cue ball cross the baulk line, heading towards the baulk
shot: 2 points.
cushion, once between 80 and 99 points in every 100 in a
Winning hazard (or potting, in snooker terms) running break.
striking the red ball with ones cue ball so that the
red enters a pocket: 3 points; or striking the other
cue ball with ones cue ball so that the other cue ball 2.5 Fouls
enters a pocket: 2 points.
If a foul occurs, two points are awarded to the opposing
Losing hazard (in-o in snooker terms) striking player who has the choice of playing from where the balls
ones cue ball so that it hits another ball and then lie or they can be respotted.
enters a pocket: 3 points if the red ball was hit rst;
There are a few dierent ways a foul can occur by:
2 points if the other cue ball was hit rst; 2 points if
the red and the other cue ball are hit simultaneously.
Playing/Striking the opponents cue ball or Red object ball
Combinations of the above may all be scored on the same
shot. The most that can be scored in a single shot is there Making any ball jump o the table
fore 10 the red and the other cue ball are both potted
via a cannon (the red must be struck rst), and the cue
Failing to make contact between ones cue ball and
ball is also potted, making a losing hazard o the red.
at least one object ball (Unless double baulked)
Winning is achieved by a player reaching a xed number
of points, determined at the start of the game, e.g. rst to
300 points or by a timed game.

A double-hit or push shot

2.4

Playing a 16th consecutive hazard or 76th consecutive cannon

Other rules

If the red is potted it is respotted on the spot at the top

of the table (the black spot). After the red has been potted twice o the spot without a cannon or losing hazard,
it is respotted on the middle spot. If the middle spot is
occupied, it goes on the pyramid spot (the pink spot in
snooker). If both the middle and pyramid spots are occupied, it goes back on the spot. When potted from the
middle or pyramid spot, it returns to the spot at the top
of the table.
After a losing hazard, play continues in-hand from the
D. When playing from in-hand, a striker must touch a
ball or cushion out of baulk before striking a ball in baulk.
If playing in-hand and all balls on the table are in baulk,
and contact is not made with any ball, this is a miss; 2
points are awarded to the opponent, who must play from
where the balls have come to rest.
If an opponents cue ball is potted, it remains o the table until it is that opponents turn to play, when it is returned to that player, who may play it in-hand from the
D. There is one exception to this rule: only 15 hazards
in a row may be played, after which a cannon is needed
to continue the break. If only the red ball is on the table at the start of the break (meaning a cannon cannot be
made), then after 15 hazards the opponents ball must be
placed on the brown spot. It becomes a line ball and
may not be played directly from baulk.

Jumping ones cue ball over an object ball

When in-hand, not hitting an object ball or cushion

out of baulk before hitting a ball in baulk.

3 See also
International Billiards and Snooker Federation
IBSF World Billiards Championship
English Amateur Billiards Association
World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association
World Professional Billiards Championship

4 Notes
[1] Welcome to englishBilliards.org!". Retrieved October
2011.
[2] Everton 1986 Serves as a good example; the book refers to
English billiards simply as billiards, from cover to cover.
[3] Shamos 1999, p. 89.
[4] Shamos 1999, p. 243.

[5] Stein & Rubino 2008, p. 81

[6] Stein & Rubino 2008, p. 80
[7] Shamos 1999, pp. 6162.
[8] NYT sta 1885
[9] NYT sta 1915
[10] Midwinter 2007, p. 59
[11] Shamos 1999, p. 46.
[12] Kumar 2000, p. 101
[13] Kumar 2000, pp. 101104.

References
Everton, Clive (1986). The History of Snooker and
Billiards (rev. ver. of The Story of Billiards and
Snooker, 1979 ed.). Haywards Heath, UK: Partridge
Pr. ISBN 1-85225-013-5.
Kumar, Ashok (2000). International encyclopaedia
of sports and games 1. Mittal Publications. ISBN
81-7099-747-X. This is a tertiary source that clearly includes information from other sources but does not name
them.

Midwinter, Eric (2007). The Football Association. Parish to Planet: How Football Came to Rule
the World. Studley, UK: Know the Score Books. p.
59. ISBN 978-1-905449-30-9.
NYT sta (21 January 1885). The Thirty-eight
Game. New York Times. Retrieved December
2006. Copied from the Rochester Democrat,
which published the article on 18 January 1885
NYT sta (21 November 1915). English Billiards
Grows. Recently Imported Game Now Quite Popular Here. The New York Times. Retrieved June
2009.
Shamos, Mike (1999). The New Illustrated Encyclopedia of Billiards. New York City: Lyons Press.
ISBN 1-55821-797-5.
Stein, Victor; Rubino, Paul (2008) [1994]. The Billiard Encyclopedia (3rd ed.). New York City: Balkline Press. ISBN 978-0-615-17092-3.

External links
World Billiards (World Billiards Ltd)
Events and Ranking
International Billiards and Snooker Federation

EXTERNAL LINKS

EnglishBilliards.org general information, tutorials,

etc.
English Billiards Statistics Project player stats and
Elo rating list

Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses

7.1

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7.3

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