Home > Learning Center > Billiard Eight Ball

Billiard Eight Ball

The most popular game of pool in American is billiard eight ball. Eight ball doesn’t refer the number of balls, there are actually ten, eleven if the cue ball is included. The eight ball is the last ball that is hit by a player into the pocket, signifying their win if they sink it correctly. To play eight ball, a standard table with six pockets is required as well as two players.

To begin playing billiard eight ball the 10 colored and striped balls have to be arranged into the rack. There are a few ways to arrange the balls, but as long as the eight ball is in the center and the one ball is at the top of the triangle any player or opponent will be happy. Once the rack is in position it can be removed leaving the balls still arranged into a triangle. The other player uses the cue ball to break the balls apart, any that sink into a hole allow the player to continue hitting the cue and rebounding specific balls into the pockets.

Once the first player misses a shot in billiard eight ball the next player gets to shoot at the opposite balls. One player shoots for the solid balls, while the other goes for the striped ones. They rotate every miss until one person has struck every ball of theirs. Now the eight ball comes into play. The player has to choose a pocket and get the ball into that pocket. If they sink it into another pocket they lose, if they just miss, the rotation continues until either the other player has sunk their balls and the eight ball, or the other player sinks the eight ball on another shot.

Billiard Balls | Billiard Tables | Learning Center | Site Map | Links | Contact | Home

©