You like challenges? Then play snooker! It is one of the most interesting games that you can play while enjoying your drink in the pub since it engages and challenges your mind and you also enjoy competing for intellectuality with other people. No wonder Clive James once said that, “Snooker is just chess with balls.” This game can get so captivating that you will want to play whenever you see a pool table just to challenge someone and win. Fun right? Let’s learn more about this snooker game from this article we came up with.
Origin
httpss://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m-Oq7DgCXuY
The British army officers in India were the ones who came up with this game in the 19th century. They also came up with this word snooker, which according to them it referred to first timers.
The game then gained its popularity in England and was signed in as a sport in 1919 and was governed by Billiards Association & Control Club but it is currently governed by World Professional Billiards & Snooker Association. Many people learnt about the game in other countries including China since it became a leisure activity for some and others even made it a profession. This led to tournaments and championships for snooker being formed such as, The World Snooker Championship, which was first organized in 1927 by Joe Davis, one of the oldest and best players of snooker, which is still functional till date.
Others tournaments and championships have been formed with time such as Champions League (2) which just ended on 11th January, 2018 in Coventry, Dafabet Masters that has been going on from 14-21 January, 2018 in London, Coral Shoot Out which is set to begin on February, 2018 on 8th -11th, in Watford, D88 German Masters to kick off on 27th -30th January,2018 in Berlin, Germany and Ladbrokers World Grand Prix set to commence on March, 2018 from 19th -25th in Llandudno.
These tournaments have created opportunities for many people since the professional players participate in competitions and tones of money from the game.
From the latest rankings on snooker.org, we see players like Mark Selby, who is from England, he tops the list with more than 1.4 million points. He earns around 510,900 pounds. There is also Neil Robertson, an Australian, who is worth 413, 380 pounds. He recently made 294,000 pounds after making a 147 during the UK championship finals.
That is a whole lot of money, isn’t it?
Controversial playing
On the amateur level of competitions there were a lot of young males, but as it was later figured out, they were nothing but young perpetrators bending the rules of the game for their own favors. There is actually a series of gay adult-themed videos created with similar scenario. It’s called Young Perps and the name is not random, trust us. It’s all about catching these young thieves and giving them a lesson of true, harsh life… In very graphic and taboo episodes. Play within the rules guys, that’s our only advice 🙂
Want to see some previews? Try here, it’s adult only, though!
How to play snooker
Now that we know about the game’s origin, let’s actually grasp how to play the game itself! The game is played on a rectangular table, covered with a cloth green in color which should be 6 by 12 ft or 3.7m by 1.8 m. The table should have pockets on the four corners. It is played with 22 balls which have different colors and points as seen below;
- 15 red balls has 1 point each
- 1 yellow ball with 2 points
- 1 green ball with 3 points
- 1 blue ball with 5 points
- 1 black ball with 7 points
- 1 brown ball with 4 points
- 1 white ball or the cue ball
Rules of the game
The first player starts the game by hitting the white ball or the cue ball using the cue’s tip to disperse others.
The winner is determined by the number of points they make by potting a color and a red ball until the striker is not able to pot the required ball. A winner is determined by;
1. If they have more points or frames that those of the opponent after a match, which is played using an order of frames with odd numbers. The maximum points one player can acquire from one play is 147, only when they pots a black ball after each red ball and this happens when a break, which is the number of points a player has after a visit to the table, which starts with a free ball. A free ball is when a player makes a foul shot and the opponent is left stranded. The opponent is then allowed to choose any ball to replace the ball that was intended and any pot.
2. A winner could also earn points when the opponent fouls. So what is a foul?
A foul is:
- Potting of the white cue ball and hitting a ball that is not white with the cue
- Missing a ball using the cue ball
- Potting a ball that is not yet supposed to be potted
- Making a shot with the two feet on the ground, yet it is only one that should be on the ground
- Touching a cue ball with anything apart from the cue’s tip
- Playing a shot that makes the cue ball run over another ball which should be the one to hit first.
3. If the players tie on the points, to have a winner, they must play using a black ball and the player that pots the ball first becomes the winner.
The order of potting
- Pot the red color first, then the others follow, most recommended those with high values.
- The color ball is then removed from the pocket and positioned on its original position only if there is no other ball on that spot, but if there is, then it is positioned close to that spot without getting hold of another ball.
In cessation, snooker is a game that is continuing to gain much popularity and soon it might be the top sport not only based on the fan base but also the net worth the professional players earn. It is a game you can easily learn and earn too, and who knows? You might become the next Mark Selby!
Snooker is a simple game but can get quite difficult with tough competitors. The real challenge while playing is not only the way you control your cue, or how you break, or your winning streaks but it is the way your mind develops a strategy for playing the game or how your brain responds in an under-pressure situation.