Billiards Table Design Explained

Billiard tables come in different sizes, but all have common design characteristics. Billiard tables are used to play many different games including snooker, American 4-ball, eight-ball and nine-ball.

Billiard table.

Spots

The playing area of a billiard table, also known as the "felt," has two spots marked by a dot. There is one near the end of the table from which one breaks, called the "head spot," and one near where the balls are set up, called the "foot spot."

Pockets

Pool tables have six pockets--one in each corner of the table and one on each side. Players shoot their target balls into these pockets.

Diamonds

There are eight equally spaced diamonds around the edge of the pool table. These markers are used to help players calculate angles.

Rails

The sides of the playing surface are called rails or banks. These cushions are most commonly used for bank shots in which the object ball is bounced off the cushion, similar to a bank shot in basketball where the ball is bounced off the backboard into the basket.

Hook

Pool tables have a hook mounting on the side of the table beneath the playing surface which is used to mount the bridge--a stick used to assist players with shots that they can't reach normally.