Baizewick guide
Snooker rules and scoring, explained simply
In snooker you pot a red, then a colour, and repeat until the reds are gone. Then you pot the colours in order. Most of the detail is in the fouls, and this guide covers what you need for a home game.
The balls and their values
| Ball | Points | Number on the table |
|---|---|---|
| Red | 1 | 15 |
| Yellow | 2 | 1 |
| Green | 3 | 1 |
| Brown | 4 | 1 |
| Blue | 5 | 1 |
| Pink | 6 | 1 |
| Black | 7 | 1 |
Each colour starts on its own spot. The yellow, green and brown sit on the baulk line. The blue goes in the middle of the table, the pink above the reds and the black near the top cushion.
Full-size proportions; balls drawn larger for clarity. The maximum break is 15 reds × (1 + 7) = 120, plus the colours 2 + 3 + 4 + 5 + 6 + 7 = 27, making 147.
Starting the frame
The first player breaks off with the cue ball placed anywhere in the D. The break-off must hit a red first.
Most players take a thin contact on the end red of the triangle and bring the cue ball back to baulk. That leaves little for the opponent.
The order of play
- While reds remain, the ball on is a red. Once you pot a red, you may play any colour. Nominate it if it isn’t obvious.
- If you pot the colour, it is re-spotted. Then the ball on is a red again.
- Your turn, or visit, carries on for as long as you keep potting balls on.
- Once all the reds are gone, you pot the colours in order of value: yellow, green, brown, blue, pink, black. They now stay off the table.
Fouls and penalties
A foul gives points to the opponent. The penalty is at least 4, or the value of the ball involved if that is higher, up to 7. Common fouls include:
- Failing to hit the ball on first, or missing every ball.
- Potting the cue ball (an in-off).
- Potting a ball that is not on.
- Touching any ball with the cue, a hand or clothing, other than the cue tip striking the cue ball.
- Playing with both feet off the floor.
- Pushing the cue ball instead of striking it, or deliberately making it jump over a ball.
- Playing before the balls have stopped moving or before a colour has been re-spotted.
After a foul, the opponent chooses whether to play from where the balls lie or to make the offender play again.
Snookers, free balls and misses
- Snookered: you can’t hit the ball on in a straight line. You must still try to hit it, often off a cushion.
- Free ball: if a foul leaves you snookered, you may nominate any ball as a red. It scores as a red.
- Miss: if a player fails to hit the ball on and the referee judges the attempt not good enough, a miss is called. The opponent can ask for the balls to be put back.
- Touching ball: if the cue ball rests against a ball that is on, you must play away from it without moving it.
In a friendly home game, players often agree a simpler version of the miss rule.
Winning a frame
The frame ends when the black is potted after all the other balls, or when a player concedes. The higher score wins.
If the scores are level after the final black, the black is re-spotted. The first player to score then wins, either by potting it or from a foul by the opponent.
Sometimes one player is ahead by more than the points left on the table. The player behind then needs snookers: they must force fouls to have any chance of winning. Players often concede at that point.
Breaks
A break is the total scored in one visit. A break of 100 or more is a century.
The maximum under normal conditions is 147. That is all 15 reds with 15 blacks, then all the colours.