Billiards—Tools Of The Game
Learning how to play billiards can be a ton of fun, and there’s much to learn along the way, but here, we’ll discuss a few of the tools needed to play billiards and pool successfully. Billiards Balls Perhaps the tool that comes to mind first is the billiard balls. Every game has different balls. Those differences may be the size or quantity of the balls, the colors or the design. For example, carom billiard balls are rather large compared to other games. With a 2 7/16 inch diameter, these balls are bigger than regular pool balls, which are usually 2 ¼ inches in diameter. Pool balls are by far America’s most popular balls, although snooker follows close behind with a diameter of 2 1/16 inches. Billiards Tables Of course, you can’t just play the game with nothing but the balls—you will need a great table as well! Like the balls, there are many design features and styles that you can pick when choosing a pool table. The main rule that stays consistent here is that of the length being double the width. The tables are covered in a special cloth, which most of us call felt. It’s actually a type of woven wool or even nylon blend. It can also be called the baize. Due to the tables in most taverns being played on so often, the wear and tear on them will definitely show a lot faster. So, those tables will many times be made with a more sturdy cloth, but it causes the balls to be a little slower. Faster cloth or wool covering is used in...
Pool and Billiards—What’s the Difference?
The term used to describe the sport as a whole, has been billiards. It’s a name that most of us know and is still used generically for all games played with a cue stick and balls on a pool table. But the usage of the word has become more inclusive among competition players in certain geographic areas and groups. Take the United Kingdom for instance—there the word billiards is used specifically for English Billiards, yet in the USA, it might only be used to refer to carom games or even to eight-ball by a minority (For many players, this is the only cue game they know of). Presently, the two can be inter-changed to have the same meaning. It’s assumed that if people refer to one, then they are also speaking of the other one. There are some technical differences, however. In billiards, smaller balls are used and there are only three balls-yellow, red, and white. The yellow or white ball can be the striker balls. You can think of it as a pool game without pockets on the table. On standard billiards tables, the cloth makes the balls much faster. In three cushion billiards, the object of the game is to strike the object ball, go three rails, strike the other ball, or you could go three rails and aim to strike both of the object balls with the carom, which is also known as a cue ball. Many of us have a general idea of pool games and pool tables. Some may know about the variations in pool, like eight-ball, nine-ball or cut throat. Most of us...
Getting the Feel of a Billiards Table
Billiards tables and playing conditions vary substantially, however we have to have the ability to adapt to whatever conditions we’re faced with, and we have to change rapidly. To change, we simply have to take a look at a few things, and shoot a couple of “Reference Shots.”. We have to deal with huge distinctions in table size, varying from 3 x 6 up to 5 x 10. Big pockets are best Fabric makes a big difference, ranging from really slow and sometimes inaccurate “fuzzy” fabric to really fast and really precise worsted wool “no-nap” cloth. Cloth will be really fast and slippery when brand-new; and, slower and stickier as it is used and as it gets dirty. After all, where do you believe all that chalk goes, every shot? It enters into and under the fabric. The vigor of the cushions affects banks and kicks. Throw influences every cut shot. Here are 4 things to do to rapidly get up to speed for any billiards table: 1. Pocket Size– Pockets vary in size. Larger pockets accept more shot error than smaller pockets. Balls are 2-1/4″ in diameter. Take two balls and hold them in a corner pocket, side by side, simply at the point where they will fall in if you let go of them. How much space exists between the balls and the jaws of the pocket? If the balls jam into the jaws, the pockets are very tight. If there is an inch of area between the balls and the jaws, those pockets are containers. It assists to understand exactly what you actually have. 2. Table...