Black/Pink Rules Nomination question

[thelongbomber]

It's the end of the frame and only pink and black are left. The black is on it's spot. The pink ends up behind the black, just off center, during safety play. The cue ball is near the blue spot. The pink is nearly fully eclipsed by the black which is in front.

Player #1 fouls on the pink and misses it. A free ball is awarded. Player #2 is given the free ball and chooses black.

The question was asked: Can Player #2 nominate black, but still hit the pink first? Player #2 felt there was a small chance he might miss the black as he was trying to play a very thin contact for safety. He nominated black as the free ball, but said that he might end up hitting pink first instead and so stated that since the black is actually a pink, he can hit either black OR pink during his shot.

[jrc750]

No you have to hit the nominated ball, so must hit black first or it's a foul
What he could of done is take black as a free ball and just trickle up to it thus snookering the other player, as with only 2 colours left this is the only time you are allowed to snooker someone behind a free ball

[SnkrRef]

As jrc750 says, if you nominate a ball other than the ball on, then you must hit that nominated ball first. The ball on, pink in this case, doesn't cease to be 'on' so both the nominated ball and the ball on can be potted (six points scored here, pink would stay down and black would be spotted). Thus, if pink was over a pocket with black immediately in front of it, you can happily nominate black, play the black to play the plant onto the pink and pot it. What you can't do, if the pink and black were the other way round, is to nominate black and then play the pink as a plant onto the pink.

Again, as jrc750 says, normally you cannot lay a snooker behind your nominated free ball, but when only the pink and black and left then that is a perfectly legal shot, and one overlooked by many experienced players.

[thelongbomber]

No you have to hit the nominated ball, so must hit black first or it's a foul
What he could of done is take black as a free ball and just trickle up to it thus snookering the other player, as with only 2 colours left this is the only time you are allowed to snooker someone behind a free ball

That's how I understood the rule as well. I suggested that the nominated ball must be hit, but after the question was posed, I wasn't so sure. I do know the rule about snookering on the pink with the black as this being the only time it can be done legally.

[thelongbomber]

As jrc750 says, if you nominate a ball other than the ball on, then you must hit that nominated ball first. The ball on, pink in this case, doesn't cease to be 'on' so both the nominated ball and the ball on can be potted (six points scored here, pink would stay down and black would be spotted). Thus, if pink was over a pocket with black immediately in front of it, you can happily nominate black, play the black to play the plant onto the pink and pot it. What you can't do, if the pink and black were the other way round, is to nominate black and then play the pink as a plant onto the pink.

Again, as jrc750 says, normally you cannot lay a snooker behind your nominated free ball, but when only the pink and black and left then that is a perfectly legal shot, and one overlooked by many experienced players.

Yes, this is how I understood the rule as well.

[mythman69]

"Firstly, you MUST hit the ball you nominate first (or simultaneously with the real ball on), or it is a foul. You cannot nominate your free ball and hit the real ball on first."

Free Ball – what you can (and can't) do with it http://www.thesnookerforum.co.uk/boa...#ixzz35QDKratq

[thelongbomber]

OK, found the official rules. Rules available at http://www.worldsnooker.com/staticFi...~167232,00.pdf

On page 23, point #12 of the above link, found the official rules stating at the nominated ball must be hit

Snookered After a Foul
After a foul, if the cue-ball is snookered (see Section 2, Rule 17), the referee shall state FREE BALL.
(a) If the player next in turn elects to play the next stroke:
---(i) he may nominate any ball as the ball on; and
---(ii) any nominated ball shall be regarded as, and acquire the value of, the ball on except that, if potted, it shall then be spotted.
(b) It is a foul if the cue-ball should:
---(i) fail to hit the nominated ball first, or first simultaneously with the ball on; or
---(ii) be snookered on all Reds, or the ball on, by the free ball thus nominated, except when the Pink and Black are the only object balls remaining on the table.
(c) If the free ball is potted, it is spotted and the value of the ball on is scored.
(d) If a ball on is potted, after the cue-ball struck the nominated ball first, or simultaneously with a ball on, the ball on is scored and remains off the table.
(e) If both the nominated ball and a ball on are potted, only the ball on is scored unless it was a Red, when each ball potted is scored. The free ball is then spotted and the ball on remains off the table.
(f) If the offender is asked to play again, the free ball call becomes void.

[kadobau]

I was wrong earlier ~~~~~~~~~~~~~

[itsnoteasy]

Why didn't he just hit the other side of the black?