Snooker

Snooker is a cue sport that is typically played on a table covered with a green cloth or baize, with pockets situated in each of the four corners and a further two, commonly referred to as the middle, or side pockets, that sit in the middle of each of the long side cushions. The (baize) cloth on a snooker table has a directional nap running from the baulk end of the table towards the end with the (black ball) spot. This affects how a ball rolls depending on which direction it is hit or shot. A regular (full-size) table is 12 x 6 ft (3.7 x 1.8 m). It is played using a cue and 22 snooker balls: one white cue ball, 15 red balls worth one point each, and six balls of different colours: yellow (2 points), green (3), brown (4), blue (5), pink (6) and black (7). A player (or team) wins a frame (individual game) of snooker by scoring more points than the opponent(s), using the cue ball to pot the red and coloured balls. A player receives additional points if the opponent commits a foul. If the scores are equal when all the balls have been potted, the black is placed back on its spot as a tiebreaker. A player wins a match when a predetermined number of frames have been won.

Snooker, generally regarded as having been invented in India by British Army officers, is popular in many of the English-speaking and Commonwealth countries, with top professional players attaining multi-million-pound career earnings from the game. The sport is now increasingly popular in China.