8-ball Billiards

8 ball is played with 15 balls and a cue ball. The goal of each player is to pocket their set of balls (solid 1-7 or stripes: 9-15) and then to pocket the 8 ball. The first player to legally pocket the 8 ball wins the game. Players do not need to call their shots in this version of 8-ball. A player's turn is over when they fail to pocket one of their balls, or if they scratch.

The break is made by Player 1, beginning from any point behind the Head String. The head string is defined by an imaginary vertical line across the table at the rightmost spot. If Player 1 pockets a ball on the break, their set of balls (stripes or solid) is selected by the first ball. If Player 1 does not pocket a ball, Player 2 shoots and the table remains open until a ball is pocketed. Pocketing the 8 ball on the break is an instant victory.

A player immediately loses the billiards game for any of the following reasons:
-Pocketing the 8 ball when they are not shooting at the 8 ball
-Scratching the cue ball while shooting at the 8 ball


Straight Pool Billiards

Straight Pool is played with 15 balls and a cue ball. There are no set of balls, and each player can shoot at ay ball on the table. The goal is to be the first to pocket 8 balls. A pleayr's turn is over when they fail to pocket a ball, or if they scratch.

The break is made by Player 1. If a ball is pocketed on the break, the player continues to shoot.

A player is allowed to shoot at any ball on the table. A point is awarded for each ball legally pocketed. When one player reaches 8 points, the game is over and that player is the winner of this game of billiards.

Outside the cue sports industry, pocket billiards is almost exclusively referred to as "pool," due to a perhaps unfortunate association with the "poolrooms" where gamblers "pooled" their money to bet remotely ("off-track") on horse races. Because these venues often provided billiard tables, the term "pool" became synonymous with billiards, and though the original "pool" game was played on a pocketless table, the name stuck to pocket billiards as it gained in popularity. Though the traditional view of billiards as a refined and noble pastime did not blend well with the low-class connotations of gambling, the billiards industry's attempts to distance itself from the term "pool" beginning in the late 19th century were largely unsuccessful. There are hundreds of pocket billiards games. Some of the more well known include eight-ball, nine-ball, straight pool, and one-pocket. The game of snooker is played on a table with pockets but is considered to be its own cue sport discipline and is governed internationally by the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association/World Snooker Association (professional) and International Billiards and Snooker Federation (amateur). There are also hybrid games combining aspects of both pocket and carom billiards, such as English billiards, American four-ball billiards, cowboy pool and bottle pool.

Pocket billiards is more popular than carom billiards in most countries of the world.[citation needed] Carom billiard games thrive in Asia, Europe and Latin America, but pool (especially in the form of nine-ball and eight-ball) and snooker are gradually taking over as the most widely played cue games.[citation needed]

As a competitive sport, pocket billiards is governed internationally by the World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA), which has national affiliates such as the US Billiard Congress of America (BCA), and which represents pocket billiards in the World Confederation of Billiard Sports which in turn represents all forms of cue sports in the International Olympic Committee.

Source: Pocket Billiards at Wikipedia