American Rules
Like anything that crosses continents, the rules for snooker in some countries are different from the American rules. In this chapter you'll learn a little bit about both. Even if you never play the international rules, you should know them since you may encounter different terminology and slightly varying rules in your travels. Let's start with the American rules and terminology before we get into the international version of the game.
The Object of the American Game
Snooker is a point-scoring game and the object is obviously to score the most points. You are awarded points when you legally pocket the balls, and when your opponent fouls. Points are evaluated by the color of the balls.
Color |
Value |
Black ball |
7 points |
Pink ball |
6 points |
Blue ball |
5 points |
Brown ball |
4 points |
Green ball |
3 points |
Yellow ball |
2 points |
Red ball |
1 point each |
Snooker table layout on the break. The numbers show the point values of each of the colored balls.
The Break
The break is not too much different from pool, but you start with cue-ball-in-hand within the D-zone. Remember that's only a radius of about 9 inches. The goal on the break is to pocket one red ball or to at least drive two red balls into a cushion. If you don't do either of these things, it is a foul. If you foul, your opponent can either accept the table as is after your break, or he or she can request that you break again.
Lagging for the break is the standard procedure to determine who breaks first in snooker, while in the international version numbers are drawn (as in a lottery).
How to Play
Okay, so you've broken the rack and it's legal. Now what? Well, obviously you are going to continue to try and pocket balls and score those points. This is where you'll have to shuffle your thinking just a little more from what you know about pool.
When there are red balls on the table, the incoming player is required to first pocket a red ball. The ball you are required to pocket first is called your “on-ball.” You don't have to call the red ball that you are trying to pocket. You have to alternate between striking a red ball and a color ball on each stroke. If you don't pocket your on-ball, it is considered a foul.
After you sink a red ball, your on-ball becomes a color ball. At this point you will have to call your shot. So, if you are going for the blue ball, you need to announce that. You cannot strike a color ball if you don't announce it first. Red balls are never spotted. You can pocket as many as you want on any play.
Fouls
Now here's the challenge — a chance to put your new billiard techniques to good use: You have to pocket the color balls “cleanly,” meaning that they cannot touch any other ball on their way into the pocket or the shot is considered a foul. As long as there are red balls on the table you can pocket any color ball you want, but once the reds are gone, you must pocket the remaining color balls in order of their numerical value (smallest to greatest).
You cannot pocket two or more color balls at a time — that is considered a foul, and pocketing balls out of numerical order is also considered a foul (after the red balls are cleared). So it's one color ball at a time and the shot has to be a clean shot into the pocket.
Other essentials to be aware of:
If you pocket a color ball when your on-ball is a red, it is a foul.
The incoming player is responsible for spotting the color balls back on the table.
Each time you return to the table (after your opponent misses or fouls), your on-ball is the lowest-valued color ball on the table.
If you can pocket all the color balls in one inning, you will receive 100 points.
Snookered!
The exclamation that Colonel Chamberlain claims to have coined back in the early days of snooker not only applies to the name of the game, but to something that could happen to you during play. To be “snookered” means that your cue ball is not in any direct line with an on-ball. It's in an “impossible” situation (not unlike being behind the 8 ball!). If your on-ball is surrounded by other balls that you cannot strike, you are “snookered.” This means you will have to strike a ball that is not obstructed (if there is one). If you miss this shot, the value of the ball you played will be added to the score of each of your opponents. So you don't want to be “snookered!”
Position and Safety Play
What if all the balls are trapped behind clusters of red balls? That's the fun part — not unlike nine ball. You have to find a way to pocket those color balls to score the big points so you can use those handy techniques you've been practicing all this time. Position and safety play will certainly come in handy here. You can strike the red balls and get them out of the way, but remember, the red balls are only worth 1 point and if you clear the table of them, you might be setting up some clean shots for your opponent.
The Win
Once all the color balls have been legally pocketed, you add up the points. The player with the most points is the winner. If there's a tie, the black ball is spotted back on its original spot and the players lag to see who shoots first. The winner of the lag takes cue-ball-in-hand within the D-zone and shoots to pocket the black ball. The first player to pocket the black ball is the winner.
Spotting Rules
When you are just starting out, you may find yourself spotting quite frequently, but don't get frustrated. This is a new game to you and you'll get the hang of it if you stick with it. You may have struggled with scratching when you first started to play pool, and in this game you may find yourself pocketing the wrong shots early on.
Here are some rules about spotting balls:
Reds are never spotted.
Colors are always spotted back to their original locations at the start of the game.
If another ball is blocking the original location of a ball to be spotted, you must spot the fouled ball on the original place of the highest color (an unblocked place).
If all the spots are blocked, you must place the fouled ball as close to its original location as possible.
Scratching
If you scratch, your opponent takes cue-ball-in-hand within the D-zone. If your opponent fouls, you will receive 7 points. You receive 7 points for each foul made in the game. The player at the table next can either accept the table as is, or have the player who fouled shoot again. You need to examine the table carefully before deciding what you want to do. If the table looks advantageous to you, then take the table as is, but if it looks like you are not going to have a clean shot, let your opponent shoot again.
