Nine-ball (sometimes written 9-ball) is a cue sport and a type of pool. The game comes from 1920s in the United States. It is played on a rectangular billiard table with pockets at each of the four corners and in the middle of each long side. Using a cue stick, players must strike the white ball to pocket 9 colored billiard balls in order. An individual game is won by the player pocketing the 9-ball. Matches are usually played as a race to a set number of games, with the player who reaches the set number winning the match.