Pool Tournament Games

Pool tournaments are played in bars and clubs throughout the world, on both the amateur and professional level. There are many types of pool games used in tournament play, including team play and trick shots, but the most popular tournaments are eight ball, nine ball and straight pool tournaments. Each game has its own set of rules for both playing and winning, and tournaments can be single-elimination or double-elimination.

  1. Eight Ball

    • Eight ball tournaments are the most frequently played pool tournaments.

      The object of eight ball is for a player to sink his designated colored balls and the eight ball before his opponent. To start the game, one player breaks. If one or more balls are pocketed on the break, the player retains possession and shoots again. If the player sinks a ball on the next shot, the player must sink balls of the same group in subsequent shots, and his opponent is automatically assigned the other group. For example, if player one sinks a solid ball after the breaking shot, player one is solids and player two is stripes. To win the game, a player must sink all of his designated balls and then the eight ball. In tournaments, to win the match, the player must win the best of a series, for example, two out of three games or three out of five games.

    Straight Pool

    • Straight pool can make for a long tournament, depending on the skill of the players.

      Straight pool is played with all 15 balls. The balls are racked with the one ball at the head of the rack. the eight ball in the center, the five in the left foot rack and any striped ball in the right foot rack. One player breaks, and if he sinks any ball, he continues to shoot, scoring one point for each sunk ball, and losing one point per foul and his turn. When 14 of the 15 balls have been pocketed, the 14 balls are re-racked and play continues. The first person to reach the designated point amount, usually 150 in tournament play, wins the game. A match can be either one game, or a best of three.

    Nine Ball

    • Nine ball tournaments can progress quickly, due to the minimum amount of balls and game rules.

      The objective is to pocket the nine ball before your opponent. The balls are placed in the rack in numerical order, with the one being at the top of the diamond, the eight ball at the bottom and the nine ball in the center between the four and five balls. Balls must be played in numerical order; however, if a player can pocket the nine ball with a combination shot, this is allowed. It is also an automatic win if a player pockets the nine ball during a legal break. In tournament play, the round is won in either a best of three, five, or seven matches.