Nine-ball

Nine-ball (sometimes written 9-ball) is a cue sport and a type of pool. The game was first played in the United States in the 1920s. It is played on a rectangular billiard table with pockets at each of the four corners and in the middle of each long side. Using a cue stick, players must strike the white ball to pocket 9 colored billiard balls in order. An individual game is won by the player pocketing the 9-ball. Matches are usually played as a race to a set number of games, with the player who reaches the set number winning the match.

Nine-ball

The nine-balls in a rack.
Highest governing body	World Pool-Billiard Association
First played	1920s
Characteristics
Contact	No
Team members	single competitors or doubles
Mixed gender	Yes
Equipment	Cue sports equipment
Glossary	glossary of cue sports terms
Presence
Country or region	Worldwide

Popular culture

The sport has featured in popular culture, most notably in the 1956 novel The Hustler and its 1961 film adaptation, and the 1984 novel sequel The Color of Money and 1986 film The Color of Money.

Nine-ball Media

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  Two players competing in a lag to choose who breaks first.

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  An image showing the break box used on the Euro Tour. This box limits the areas in which a break can be played from.

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  A six-ball rack, played with the leftovers of a nine-ball game; the 10 ball (the lowest) is at the apex, and the 15 is the money ball

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  Racking a seven-ball game with a special hexagonal rack and black-striped 7 ball.

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  A valid ten-ball rack; the 1 is at the apex on the foot spot, and the 10 (the money ball) is in the center.

Other websites

• Official website
• Pro9 - website detailing the many nine-ball tournaments held within the British Isles and beyond