Q 01/05

In pool, what is it called when the cue ball drops into a pocket?

A) A scratch

B) A kiss

C) A feather

D) A snooker

Answer · why

A) A scratch

A scratch. In nine-ball it is a foul that gives the opponent 'ball in hand': the right to place the cue ball anywhere on the table for the next shot.

Q 02/05

In eight-ball, what does pocketing the 8 before clearing your group cost you?

A) Two shots

B) The game

C) Ball in hand

D) One point

Answer · why

B) The game

The game. That rule is one of the two changes that turned pyramid pool into eight-ball around 1900: the 8 had to go down last.

Q 03/05

In eight-ball, which balls are the stripes?

A) 1 through 7

B) 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14

C) 9 through 15

D) 1 through 8

Answer · why

C) 9 through 15

9 through 15. Nobody starts with a group: whichever kind a player first pockets legally becomes theirs, and all seven must be gone before they may sho...

Q 04/05

Where must the 8 ball sit in a standard eight-ball rack?

A) At the apex of the triangle

B) In the centre of the third row

C) In either back corner spot

D) Anywhere in the back row

Answer · why

B) In the centre of the third row

In the centre of the third row. Only two other places are fixed, a stripe in one back corner and a solid in the other; every remaining ball must go in...

Q 05/05

In nine-ball, which object sits at the front of the diamond rack?

A) The 1

B) The 9

C) The 5

D) The 7

Answer · why

A) The 1

The 1. The 9 sits in the middle of the diamond, and because it is the money ball, sinking it on a legal break ends the rack on the spot.