| There are two main types of pool table, upon | | | | 14. Green and white |
| which are played two quite different versions of | | | | 15. Brown (or burgundy) and white (tan and white |
| the game. | | | | in some ball sets) |
| Table Size | | | | The standard size for American pool balls is 2" |
| English pool tables range in size from 6ft to 8ft, | | | | ¼ with the pockets finished to a larger size |
| though the official tournament size is 7ft. These | | | | than those on an English pool table. |
| sizes refer to the overall length of the table from | | | | Both English and American pool ball sets have a |
| 'rail to rail'. The playing surface of the competition | | | | white cue ball as standard, which can feature red |
| size table is 6ft by 3ft. | | | | 'target' spots (though these are more typically |
| American pool tables are usually 8ft or 9ft, with | | | | seen on practice cue balls). In both English and |
| the official competition size being the 9ft table. | | | | American pool balls, Aramith (a Belgian |
| Again the size refers to the total length of the | | | | manufacturer) are recognised as the industry |
| table, and the playing surface on the 9ft | | | | leader in pool balls. |
| competition table is 8ft x 4.5ft. In bars and clubs | | | | Cloth |
| you do sometimes find 7ft American pool tables, | | | | English pool tables all have napped cloth, and the |
| referred to as 'bar boxes' because of their small | | | | current official choice is Strachan West of England |
| size. | | | | wool. The cloth is available in various weights |
| Pool Balls & Pocket Size | | | | which affect the speed of play and ball behaviour. |
| The ball sets used on English pool tables comprise | | | | American pool tables feature 'speedball' worsted |
| 7 red, 7 yellow and 1 black balls. On modern | | | | cloth, which has not nap. This makes the cloth |
| tables the reds and yellows are solid colour, with | | | | much faster, and combined with the larger, |
| the black having an '8' in a white circle upon it. The | | | | heavier balls changes the character of the game |
| standard size for a 6ft, 7ft or 8ft English pool | | | | significantly from English pool. |
| table is 2", with pockets usually being around an | | | | Play |
| inch larger to accommodate the balls. | | | | The difference in table and ball size means that |
| The ball sets used on American pool tables are | | | | play on an American pool table is much faster, |
| numbered 1-15, which are split into 'solids' and | | | | and potentially more technical than English pool. |
| 'stripes. Numbers 1-7 make up the solids, 8 is the | | | | The larger balls mean the use of masse (high |
| black ball, and 9-15 the stripes. The set as | | | | speed spin/side shots normally used in Carom |
| standard is: | | | | billiards) is more prevalent, and in recent years it |
| 1. Yellow | | | | has become much more popular than the English |
| 2. Blue | | | | version. |
| 3. Red | | | | The popularity of '9 Ball' has contributed here, |
| 4. Purple (pink in some ball sets) | | | | which is a faster version of pool played with just |
| 5. Orange | | | | the balls numbered 1-9. The balls are racked in a |
| 6. Green | | | | diamond in ascending order from baulk to the |
| 7. Brown or burgundy (tan in some ball sets) | | | | bottom of the table. The aim of the game is to |
| 8. Black | | | | pot the 9, but the balls must be potted in |
| 9. Yellow and white | | | | ascending numerical order. Cannons and trick |
| 10. Blue and white | | | | shots are allowed however, and you could get |
| 11. Red and white | | | | lucky and have a 'golden break'. This quick version |
| 12. Purple and white (pink and white in some ball | | | | of pool has become extremely popular in bars and |
| sets) | | | | clubs. |
| 13. Orange and white | | | | |