different games on snooker table

[ref300]

Have played a game called Poison Ball - may go by other names.
A combination of Billiards (Cannons only - 2 pts - any 2 object balls, except Brown) & potting.

Black in top pockets only
Pink anywhere
Blue Centre pockets
Green - its corner pocket
Yellow - its corner pocket

The Brown is poison ball & if touched by any ball - loss of points.

Total points are usually 31 & too keep all players guessing a numbered marble for each player deducted from 31.

You must score exactly the required points.

[The Statman]

surely it became a (billiards or snooker table) once the colour positions were added

If you read the rules of snooker from the very beginning, one of the opening paragraphs is something like "Snooker is played on an English billiard table..."

The spots are required in billiards so there has been no modification of the markings. Otherwise, we would remove the baulk line outside the D.

[Terry Davidson]

For the people here who are anal about whether it's a 'billiard' or 'snooker' table I think if you're trying to be precise you had better think about this.

Have any of you ever played on a pure billiard table from let's say early in the 1900's? I have recently had the chance to play snooker on a beautiful 1910 Burroughs & Watts billiards table with steel blocked cushions and original billiard pockets.

It was not an enjoyable frame of snooker due to the pocket size and the way they were cut.

So here's what I'm saying...yes, to be more precise it is a 'billiards' table, however the modern 'snooker' table has differently cut pockets from the tables produced say before the 1940's and they are designed for SNOOKER and not billiards any more.

So I think the terminology, when referring to today's tables, should be 'snooker table' (even though they now play the billiards championships on these new-fangled tables with these 'huge' pockets)

Terry

[dantuck_7]

Anyone else play Killer Pool?

Russ

Yep I've played killer a few times, almost had a couple of fights, when we got onto playing for a whole £1 per person!!


What is the use for the brown spot in billiards?

[totlxtc]

Yep I've played killer a few times, almost had a couple of fights, when we got onto playing for a whole £1 per person!!


What is the use for the brown spot in billiards?

We have several variations of Killer.

1) Money in per player, 3 lives, Breaking player has 2 shots to start.

2) Money in per player, 3 lives, Old glass beer tankard placed in center. If current player hits tankard with any ball on the table then a charge is paid into the tankard. Winning player takes all money. Breaking player has 2 shots to start.

3) Same as above but played with bar stool. Can be interesting cueing through the stool legs.

[The Statman]

What is the use for the brown spot in billiards?

There is one occasion where you come to the table without your opponent's white. Obviously you are limited to 15 shots without a cannon involved, so after 15 turns you would have nothing to play.

If your opponent's white is off the table as a result of your opponent's last stroke, then after your fifteenth shot it can come back – it goes on the brown spot or, if that's occupied, one of the corners of the D (can't remember which one!). Or the other way around – whichever corner it is or, if occupied, on the brown spot.

[The Statman]

We used to play bowls – a great game. Not sure if it has official rules but these were ours:

White is jack; one player has 4 reds and the other 4 colours.

White is sent from the brown's spot to any point in the 'in' area of the table – which is, anywhere above the baulk line (including the line) excluding the semicircular area around the brown spot which would prevent a ball from being placed on it.

First player places his ball on the brown spot, aiming to get as close to the jack as possible. It must strike two cushions before touching another ball, and land in the 'in' area to be a valid shot; if not it becomes a dead ball and is removed. Any live ball moved before the second cushion is struck is returned to its original position. (In reality, when a player is going to play a shot which might hit a ball before the second cushion - especially at speed - he will usually warn the other player to be on his guard to quickly stop it from travelling any further if it fouls. Otherwise things can get very messy!)

Next 7 turns go likewise. Balls may enter the baulk area, and cushions in the baulk area do count, but must come to rest 'in'.

Scoring is in normal bowls format, i.e. the player who has the nearest ball scores one point for every ball closer to the jack than his opponent's nearest. If the jack is forced out of play, the end ends immediately and one point goes to the other player.

Winner of the end takes the jack and first shot in the next end.

[100-uper]

For the people here who are anal about whether it's a 'billiard' or 'snooker' table I think if you're trying to be precise you had better think about this.

Have any of you ever played on a pure billiard table from let's say early in the 1900's? I have recently had the chance to play snooker on a beautiful 1910 Burroughs & Watts billiards table with steel blocked cushions and original billiard pockets.

It was not an enjoyable frame of snooker due to the pocket size and the way they were cut.

So here's what I'm saying...yes, to be more precise it is a 'billiards' table, however the modern 'snooker' table has differently cut pockets from the tables produced say before the 1940's and they are designed for SNOOKER and not billiards any more.

So I think the terminology, when referring to today's tables, should be 'snooker table' (even though they now play the billiards championships on these new-fangled tables with these 'huge' pockets)

Terry

That might be a good case ... if it was correct.

In fact, regardless of your experience on the old B&W, the specified size of the pocket has not changed since the Billiard Association introduced the "standard" table in 1896. Even this table was based on the design currently used at that time. They just wrote down the specification. Same shape of cushion, same dimensions and width of pocket opening, then as now.

There was a table with a smaller pocket introduced in 1870 which they called a "championship" billiard table. This had 3 inch pockets. Very tight indeed. But this design was separate from the ordinary billiard table and was discontinued when the "standard" table was introduced.

If you had made the balls bigger, raised the cushion height and widened the pockets then you could legitimately claim a design change specific to snooker, but all these remain essentially as they have been since rubber cushions were introduced.

Good try, but doesn't bear close scrutiny :snooker: