Nine ball

Nine ball is a contemporary variation of pocket billiards, and its historical beginnings are rooted in the United States and traceable to the 1920s. The game may be played in social and recreational settings by any number of players and subject to whatever rules are agreed upon beforehand, or in league and tournament settings in which the number of players and the rules are set in stone by the sponsors. During much of its history, nine ball was known as a "money" game, in both professional and recreational settings, but today in major tournament settings its reputation is untarnished.

The game

The "Rack"

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The object balls are placed in a diamond shape as shown in the illustration. The one ball is always positioned on the head spot, the nine ball is always placed in the very center, and the placement of the remaining balls is generally random. In league play, and especially in tournament play, this placement of the balls is expected to be precise; if any ball in the "rack" does not touch each adjacent ball, the player assigned the break may request a "re-rack".

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The "Break"

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One person is chosen to shoot first, or "break" the balls apart. Usually this is done by flipping a coin, or by lagging, or the winner or loser of the previous game will always shoot first in the next rack. If the shooter who breaks fails to make a legal break, the opponent can either re-rack and break, or play it as if it was any ordinary foul.

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If the breaker pockets a ball, it remains his turn.

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Play:

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The players alternate turns. The players' shots must first strike the lowest numbered ball on the table; however, the balls can be pocketed in any order. If a player hits a ball that is not the lowest numbered first (except for the push-out rule), the other player is allowed to place the cue ball anywhere on the table before he shoots.

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Winning:

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A player has won when they have legally pocketed the Nine ball, either by hitting it in with the cue ball or with a lower numbered ball in a 'combination shot'.

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Other losing situations:

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• the player faults on three consecutive turns as rules permit

Possible fault situations:

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• the player shoots the cue ball into a ball that is not the lowest numbered ball on the table
• the player pockets the cue ball ('scratching')
• the player does not have at least one foot on the floor
• the player shoots the cue ball before all other balls have come to a complete stop
• the player hits the cue ball more than once during a shot
• the player touches the cue ball with something other than the tip of the cue
• the player touches any other ball
• the player causes a ball to leave the table