Pocket billiards is played on a generally rectangular table that includes a flat, felt-covered hard playing surface (such as felt-covered slate) that is twice as long as it is wide. A billiards table has a total of six pockets, including one pocket located at each of the four corners of the rectangle, and one pocket located in the center of the two long side boundaries, or rails, or bumpers of the table. Varying numbers of object balls, identical in diameter and small enough to be able to enter each of the pockets smoothly, are used as targets. One white ball, commonly known as the cue ball, which may have a slightly larger diameter than the object balls but still be small enough to enter each pocket smoothly, is struck by a player utilizing a cue stick who aims the cue ball to strike one or more of the object balls. Typically, the goal of a pocket billiard game player is to strike the cue ball so that it rolls towards and contacts one or more of the object balls to result in one or more of the object balls entering the pocket(s). In most pocket billiard games there is a penalty if the cue ball enters one of the pockets.
Various types of pocket billiard or “pool” games are known. An example is a pool game conventionally called “Nine-Ball” that is played with nine object balls, labeled with numbers 1 to 9. To start a Nine-Ball game, the nine object balls are gathered together into a diamond-shaped “rack” at the foot of the pool table. The ball nearest to the center of the table is called the “apex ball”, and it is positioned on a “foot” spot typically found on the felt surface of the pool table. The rack is then removed so that a first player can take an opening or “break” shot (by forcefully shooting the cue ball by striking it with the tip of a cue stick) to scatter the object balls widely and to hopefully “sink” or pocket at least one of them. This is known as an “open break” and according to the Nine-Ball rules, at least four object balls must contact some cushion for the shot to be legal. The player who is successful at pocketing a ball on the break shot may continue playing. As play continues, Nine-Ball rules require the shooting player to shoot the cue ball to first contact the lowest-numbered ball remaining on the table. The player who first pockets the Nine-Ball legally is the winner of the “rack”, and a Nine-Ball match is won by the first player who wins a predetermined number of racks.
A problem with Nine-Ball is that professional players are so skilled that a substantial chance exists that the player who opens the game will “run out”, which means that he or she will pocket a ball on the break shot and then sink all the remaining object balls in numerical order to win the game. The rules specify that the winner of a rack of a Nine-Ball game may break the next rack, so a skilled player could win several games in a row without the opponent taking a single shot. This aspect of Nine-Ball reduces competitiveness, exacts a heavy penalty for failing to pocket a ball, and from a spectator viewpoint can be boring to watch. In addition, a player who fouls by failing to contact the lowest-numbered ball or who “scratches” by pocketing the cue ball not only loses her turn, but is also subjected to a severe penalty called “cue ball in hand”. This rule permits the next player (opponent) to place the cue ball anywhere on the table before shooting, which means that a single foul or scratch can easily lead to the loss of that Nine-Ball game.
One of the most popular pocket billiard games in the United States is called “Eight-Ball”, and it is played with a standard rack of 15 object balls that are placed in a triangular rack. One group of object balls are numbered 1 through 7 and bear solid colors in addition to numerals. Thus, the balls in this group are known as “solids”. Each ball in the group of balls numbered 9 through 15 includes a stripe in addition to a numeral, and therefore these balls are known as “stripes”. The “8-Ball” itself is typically solid black in color and has a white circle bearing the number “8”. To start a game of Eight-Ball, the balls are racked in the triangle so that the solids and stripes balls alternate and the 8-Ball is in the center and thus surrounded by the object balls. When the rack is removed, the apex ball lies on the foot spot on the billiard table surface and the first player must attempt an opening break. When a player first legally pockets an object ball (during or after the break shot), the “group” or “type” (solids or stripes) to which that ball belongs become that player's group for the remainder of that game. Thus, during play of an Eight-Ball game, the player must shoot the cue ball to first contact a ball of his or her group and then can keep playing as long as a ball of that group is legally pocketed. After all of the balls of a player's group have been pocketed (for example, the player sank all of the “solids”) then that player can attempt to pocket the Eight-Ball. The player who first legally pockets the 8-Ball is the winner. According to the rules of Eight-Ball, the break shot for subsequent games alternates between players, regardless of who won the preceding game.
During play of an Eight-Ball game, the balls of a player's group (solids or stripes) do not have to be contacted or pocketed in any particular order, and thus the player at the beginning of a rack has numerous balls that he can shoot at which may allow him or her to run the table. Therefore, Eight-Ball suffers from the same deficiencies as Nine-Ball because a skilled player can easily run the table. Furthermore, like in Nine-Ball, the penalty for a foul in Eight-Ball is cue ball in hand. Thus, competitiveness is reduced, and spectators may also find Eight-Ball boring to watch.
Another pocket billiards game that is popular in the United Kingdom is called “Snooker”. It is played on a 12-foot long table having narrow pockets with 21 small object balls consisting of 15 solid red object balls and six other object balls (known in the UK as “colors”), each of a different solid color. At the beginning of the game, the 15 red balls are racked in a triangle, while the colors balls are placed on predefined spots on the table. The general object of Snooker is to alternately pocket a red ball and then a color ball, and then another red ball and another color ball, until no more red balls remain on the table. When that point is reached, the remaining colors balls must be pocketed in a predetermined order. Any colors ball that is pocketed immediately after a red ball is pocketed is returned to the table. A player receives one point for pocketing a red and a greater number of points for pocketing a colors ball. Although the balls themselves do not bear numerals, the colors balls are assigned point values that range from two to seven points. Snooker possesses a complex system of penalties for infractions of the rules. For example, a foul occurs when a player fails to contact a colors ball when required, or when she fails to contact a red ball when required, and the penalty for that is to add from four to seven points to the opponent's score. The “frame” terminates when all balls have been pocketed, and the player with the larger number of points at that time is the winner.
In Snooker, it is not considered an advantage to play a break shot because of the low probability of pocketing a ball. Therefore, a frame of Snooker typically begins with players attempting to position the cue ball in a disadvantaged location for their opponent, rather than trying to pocket a ball. Thus, in contrast to Nine-Ball or Eight-Ball (which can be too rapid), Snooker can be a very slow game. Even if the players never miss a shot, a total of thirty-six balls must be pocketed before the frame ends. (Fifteen reds, each followed by a colors ball, and then followed by the six colors balls in order.) In addition, the narrow pockets of the Snooker table increases the difficulty of pocketing balls, so that a single frame may take more than 30 minutes for professional players to play, and considerably longer for beginners. Moreover, since points are awarded for defensive play (i.e. placing the cue ball in such a position that the opponent cannot hit the required ball), stretches of play may occur in which the players are not even attempting to pocket a ball. Such defensive play lengthens the Snooker game and causes tedium for both the players and the spectators.
Accordingly, a need exists for a pocket billiards game that is more challenging than Nine-Ball and/or Eight Ball (i.e., is more difficult for a player to run out), while at the same time plays faster than Snooker. There is also a need for a team billiards game requiring two or more players on each team that incorporates strategy and tactics in a high-energy manner, wherein the team players must focus and concentrate on all of the moving balls on the table surface while at the same time one player is aiming to pocket a team ball, and when any uncertainty arises the shooting player is able to ask his or her teammate for assistance.
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