If you’re doing a bank shot, you need to not only hit the rail at the correct angle, but you need to put the correct amount of English on the ball so it goes where you want. You’ll need to ensure that it’s level for the optimal playing experience. Throw up some insulation and you’ll be ready to perfect your game in the comfort of your own garage. A rack (sometimes called a triangle) is a piece of equipment that is used to place billiard balls in their starting positions at the beginning of a pocket billiards game. Some players (most often amateurs) place the balls in numeric order but for the 9 ball; from the top of the triangle down and from left to right, i.e., the 1 on the foot spot, followed by the 2 then 3 in the second row, and so on. Further up the table is the pink ball, which sits midway between the blue spot and the top cushion, followed by the red balls (one each), placed in a tightly-packed triangle behind the pink. The most common shape of a rack is that of an equilateral triangle.

Now that we’ve covered the common climate-related issues, let’s talk about leveling a pool table. For this reason, template racks are almost never used for games where it is common to slow-break (i.e. not create a large spread of balls) since it is significantly more likely that the rack will interfere with slow-rolling balls. Unlike traditional racks, template racks are left on the table during the break shot and removed at the players' earliest convenience. Also pro side of the pocket; sometimes "of the pocket" is left off the phrase. Snooker is played on a large table (full, pro tournament size is 12 × 6 ft). 2008. "American Snooker" entry, pp. Official rules were first published in 1894 by the Spalding Athletic Library, as adopted by the National American Croquet Association. World Pool-Billiards Association (March 15, 2016). "Pool Billiards - The Rules of Play" (PDF). 10. Archived from the original on 5 May 2016. Retrieved 27 November 2019 - via Google News. For home or personal use, pool tables typically measure 6′ x 3′. If you have limited space, you can have the table customised to fit your room, but most Australians prefer 7′ x 3.5′. As you may already know, pool tables measure differently depending on the location where you’re playing.

If you’re interested in pool (and billiards) ball, you can read the history behind them here. A semicircle of radius 11.5 inches, called the "D", is drawn behind this line, centred on the middle of the line. A modern variation, called a template rack, is made from a thin material (usually 0.14 mm or less) that contains precision cut-outs to hold the balls in place. Rack may also be used as a verb to describe the act of setting billiard balls in their starting positions (e.g. "to rack the balls"), or as a noun to describe a set of balls that are in their starting positions (e.g. "a rack of balls", more often called a pack or a pyramid in British English). Coloured ball racking positions must be remembered with care, as each time a coloured ball is potted, it is immediately replaced to its starting position, which occurs multiple times per frame, whereas reds are not returned to the table's surface after being potted.

If the starting position spot for a coloured ball is covered by another ball, the ball is placed on the highest available spot. At that time, the fourteen pocketed balls are racked with no apex ball, and the rack is so placed so that if the apex ball were in the rack, its center would rest directly over the table's foot spot. You also win if your opponent accidentally pots the 8 ball, which is illegal. In both one-pocket and bank pool all fifteen object balls are racked entirely at random, with the center of the apex ball placed directly over the foot spot. Straight pool is played to a specific number of points agreed on prior to the match's start, with each pocketed ball being worth one point to the shooter. Purported benefits of template racks include a more consistent racking, what is billiards and their popularity has warranted specific inclusion in profession rules. Traditional racks are in the form of triangular frames, usually made from wood, plastic or metal. Diamond-shaped frames are sometimes used for the game of nine-ball (although a triangular rack can also be used) and template racks come in a variety of shapes.