Regent Snooker Lounge

by The Library of Congress

Billiards, what a wonderful game it is. But billiards is also a very skillful game. It takes practice, the ability to laugh at oneself, and did I say practice? When you decide that you want to learn to play billiards it helps if you know what type of game you want to play. There is 8-ball, 9-ball, Snooker and several more. Several publications can be bought from your favorite store. “The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Pool and Billiards”, 2nd Edition by Ewa Mataya Laurance and Thomas C. Shaw, is one such book. Another might be “Byrne’s Complete Book of Pool Shots: 350 Moves Every Player Should Know” by Robert Byrne. There are many available and should be the first place you turn when you have a desire to play billiards well.

The next thing that you will need is a “pool cue” or “billiard stick”. You will want one that is straight, balanced well and is the weight that feels the best for you. Pool Cues come in weights from 14oz – 22oz. You can order pool cues from dealers at the weight you want. Expect to pay any where from .00 at your local Wal-Mart to ,000.00 plus at a reputable dealer who will give you almost any thing you can think of. Color, wrap, farrel and pool cue tips can be custom ordered for a price. Having a decent pool cue can make all the difference in how well you play.

You will also need good pool cue chalk. “Masters” or “Silver Cup” are the only two of the brands of chalk available. These chalks come in boxes of twelve and any hue of color you might like. Chalk is used to put on the tip of your pool cue so when the ball and cue come in contact they don’t slip. While we are talking about chalk you can also get chalk holders that are useful in making your chalk distinguishable from others. These also come in all sorts of fun assortments.

Some players use baby powder on their cue. There is debate about whether your cue likes that powder or not. Many choose to loose the powder and use a glove. The glove helps your hand to slide easily on the cue stick. And since you are not using powder for this, they keep your cue free from sticky build up. Gloves can be worn on the right hand or left and come in many colors. Specialized pool training tools are available such as laser cues, training balls and other electronic training devices. All of these items can be purchase at a billiard store or some of the better sports shops. They come in different varieties and at a cost to fit almost every need.

If you decide to make billiards your game, try out a few of these items. Having these items can help understand the fundamentals to pool a little better. And of course besides owning these helpful billiard supplies, always practice, practice, and did I forget to mention practice?

by New York Public Library

Article by Paul Travis

The game of billiards, also commonly referred to as “pool” is popular in many regions throughout the world and almost ubiquitous in every bar, lounge, gaming center recreational center in America. You’ve almost certainly played the game or at least seen a pool table somewhere in your life. While you may know a great deal or very little about the items associated with billiard, this simple guide is intended to discuss briefly some details of the six major pieces of equipment involved.

The largest and most prominent piece of billiards equipment is obviously the table. The entire game takes place on the table. Pool tables are half as wide as they are long and are typically seven, eight or nine feet long. Serious pool halls will have the 9 foot tables for serious players. Bars will generally have coin-op, 7 foot tables to save space. Most 8 foot tables are designed for homeowners who need a balance of quality and size.

Billiards tables have six pockets; rubber bumpers between the pockets, a base made of thick, smooth and level solid slate, and is covered in a cloth playing surface. The cloth playing surface is commonly called the “felt.” While it has the feel of felt, it is actually a fabric called baize. Baize is a woven fabric of wool that is sometimes blended with nylon.

Another obvious part of a billiards game is the balls. Most commonly in modern play there is fifteen balls number from one to fifteen, plus the solid white cue ball. However, a popular game variation uses only nine. The balls are colored, with balls 1 through 8 being solid colors and balls 9 through 15 being marked with a colored band. In billiards the game is played by trying to hit balls into the pockets buy first hitting them with the cue ball. The cue ball is set in motion by a cue, often referred to as a “pool stick” or “pool cue.”

Cues are made of wood, are round and taper down from the grip to the tip. The tip is made of leather and is the point which strikes the cue ball. The tip of a billiards cue is usually covered in applied chalk.

A more subtle piece of billiards equipment is the chalk. Chalk comes in cubes that are roughly 1 inch. Before each shot players apply the chalk to the tip of their cues. The chalk creates friction as the tip of the cue strikes the cue ball and allows for some forgiveness for less than perfect shots.

Another subtle piece of billiards equipment is called the rack. The rack is only used to help set the game up. It’s a wood or plastic triangle used to form up to 15 balls in a triangle formation.

Finally, there is a tool called the bridge, sometimes called a “rake”. The bridge is much like a cue with the addition of a rake shaped piece of metal at the tip. The bridge is used to assist a player in making long shots on the cue ball. The bridge is placed on the table, the cue is rested in the rake and the bridge increases the players reach to make the shot. While there are other items associated with billiards, these are a few of the basics that every player should know.

About the Author

Paul Travis writes for a living, and has written articles about billiard supplies such as pool cues and billiard balls. He plays pool regularly at home.

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by Center for Jewish History, NYC

Article by Vincent Wilson

Finding good pool billiards equipment is one of the most important decisions you have to make for your game room. Again, very simply, no matter how skilled you might be at pool, without the best equipment you can never achieve your full potential. Also, you can never enjoy the game of pool as much as you possibly could.

Of course, when looking for the right pool and billiards equipment, you want to look for nice equipment; however, you don’t want to break the bank in this process; unfortunately, billiards equipment has the reputation of only being for the wealthy because of how it expense of the equipment can be.

This doesn’t have to be the case. When you follow these important tips and guidelines come you can actually find billiards equipment for very cheap prices, and still for very good quality.

First of all, the most important step is to make a list of all the billiards equipment you will need, whether it be sticks, billiards table, balls, etc. No matter what it might be, making a list of the most important part so that you know what to look for.

Also, you what you might want to check with any friends you know who play billiards, find out from them all the equipment you’ll need, so that you don’t forget any important things. Once you know this, now it’s time to start comparing prices and equipment from the different stores.

Here’s a quick tip; instead of going on your local pool store for your pool and billiards equipment, try either looking in the paper for used billiards equipment, or even on the Internet. When you do it this way you can find equipment that is much cheaper than your typical retail prices, but still a very good quality.

Often times, your local paper could give you a lot of different equipment sources to help you find the best equipment for you. Also, going on eBay is a great idea as well; you can find billiards equipment you want on eBay very cheaply, and often times below wholesale prices.

Of course, no matter how much equipment you are looking for, by far the most important decision you will have to make is the billiards table. This is all about the price and the quality.

While you certainly don’t want to pay a dirt cheap price to get a table, you don’t want to pay top dollar either. You can often times find very nice tables are very affordable prices.

As I said, instead of going on your local stores, you can certainly find these in the paper and also on the Internet. In fact, when you do go to discount stores, such as department stores, most the time they only sell billiards tables for kids. These are not usually full-size, don’t have real slate, and therefore only have cheaper material.

Also, make sure you don’t purchase a newer cheap pool table, because these are almost always a low quality. There is a reason that they are selling for so cheap when their new; they don’t offer very good quality, and the manufacturer doesn’t have a lot of confidence in their material. The only time you should buy a cheaper tables is when it is used; as I said before, you can find use equipment that is very good quality, but only when you know to look for.

Also, another very good tip is to only shop for popular brand names, when looking for the right pool tables. These almost always have a lot of style and last you a lifetime. Therefore, try to stay away from either newer companies or companies that do not have a lot of reviews about them, because the only way you can find out how good a good quality these tables are is to simply buy them and try them out.

Therefore, you are essentially guinea pig; however, when you purchase a popular for your table that many people have before, you can be sure of their quality and overall quality of the table. Finally, avoid purchasing snooker tables; these most times don’t have great resale value due to their cheap quality. Hopefully these pool and billiards equipment tips will to find the best billiards as quickly as possible, and without spending a fortune.

About the Author

For great tips on finding the rightbilliards gloves, check out poolandpokertips.com, a popular site that helps you findpersonalized poker cards and much more.

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by The Library of Congress

Injuries, billiards and billiard equipment, it is difficult to put these three words in one sentence as most of us consider billiards as fun and are just not aware of the physical strain the game can put on our muscles.

Once you are aware of the injuries and muscle strain which billiards can produce, you can learn about steps to avoid these common injuries and be prepared to reduce sprain. The height of a person determines his reach and his ability of using pool cues during the game. The game tests the reach of a player which in turn produces twists and can induce body pain.

Using billiard and pool accessories along with billiard equipments correctly involves choosing them depending upon how comfortable you are with the set of equipment. Also, if you take proper care of your billiard equipments, they work better and then there are less chances of getting muscle strain or pulling.

Common injuries which happen during a normal game of billiards are as follows:

Muscle Pull and Muscle Strain

A player has to bend his body and his back a lot which increases the chance of pulling and straining a muscle.

Different Types of Body Pain

Different types of body pain include neck pain, back pain, wrist pain, hand pain etc. These problems arise due to using billiard equipments incorrectly or after long hours of practice. There are other medical conditions which have medical terms associated with them.

Most of the common injuries caused while playing billiards can be avoided by using the correct billiard equipment and also by using them properly. Following are some of the steps which reduce the chances of injuries

A proper work or at least a warm-up before the game helps you to stay calm and relaxes your body

Many players play for long hours so it is advised to take sufficient breaks during those times.

Stretching, yoga and power yoga also put a player at case.

Good intake of fluids like water and fruit juices is not only refreshing but helps you prepare for a long game.

Using billiard equipment correctly is also one of the most importance steps as wrong posture, body movements and bending can harm your body muscles.

Billiards is a game of excitement which tests your skills of handling the pool cues to move the pool balls effectively. Beginners and even professional billiards players would benefit a lot by simple stretching and other exercises before or even during the game.

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