
If you manage to get both balls into a corner, you could, presumably, hit them off of each other over and over and over. Balkline billiards removes the one flaw in this game.
In three-cushion billiards, you must hit three cushions before the balls roll to a stop. In one-cushion billiards, you must hit one cushion (one side of the table) before the second ball is displaced. In straight-rail billiards, as long as you hit both balls, you get a point. For starters, every type of carom billiards involves getting a point by striking both balls on the table. How much time do you have on your hands? And how much skill? Some make it easy, some make it hard, and some make it faster or slower. As with any game that's centuries old, there are variations in play. Hence why if you win the lag, you opt to go second.ĭetermine the rules you and your partner want to play by. So, obviously, when your ball is in line with your opponent's, it's very hard to hit both balls on the table. The starting player's cue is then placed on the head string (in line with the head spot), at least 6 inches (15 cm) from their opponent's cue. The opponent's cue ball is placed at the head spot, where you normally break from in pool as well. That's where the point of the triangle would be in pool, by the way. The object ball (red) is then placed at the foot spot. It's just a matter of personal preference. The person who wins the lag calls which ball they'd like to be theirs (cue ball), the white or the spot. Sometimes a yellow ball is used in place of the spot. X Research source Then you'll need three balls - one white cue ball (heretofore called "white"), one white cue ball with a black spot on it ("spot"), and one object ball, typically red. Billiards cues are actually shorter and lighter than their pool counterparts, with a shorter ferrule (the white part near the end) and a thicker butt. You'll each need a cue stick, for starters (you had these for the lag, right?). Apparently humans can handle green better than any other color. It's green so you can look at it for long periods of time. The heat gets the balls to roll more smoothly. The pros play on heated billiards tables. The area behind which you break, behind the "head string," is called the "kitchen." X Research source. The opposite rail is called the foot rail, and the long rails are called the side rails. The rail by where the first player breaks is called the short, or head, rail.
We'll cover that in the next section (strategy). Those diamonds are for you to use! If you know your geometry, you can use them to aim your shot.Here's everything you need to know (and some things you may not) when it comes to the table: You could play on a pool table (pocket billiards), but you'll soon find that the pockets get in the way and could potentially ruin the game. This "without" pockets thing is pretty important. It can be played with a third, but standard carom is with two. Carom billiards, of any variety, requires two people.