Billiards Vault

Definition of Added

Used with an amount to signify money added to a tournament prize fund in addition to the amount accumulated from entry fees (e.g. "$500 added").

24 Random Essential Billiards Terms

To play a shot with the stroke and speed that makes it easiest to pocket the object ball, even at the expense of sacrificing position.
When the cue ball is tucked behind the corner of a pocket, therefore not allowing a direct shot at the object ball without it bouncing of the corner of the rail.
A British term for a pot that requires very fine contact between cue ball and object ball. See also feather.
The Equalizer Handicap System is the handicap system developed by the American Poolplayers Association. It makes it feasible for a beginner to have a nearly equal chance in a match against a more highly skilled player.
A pool cue designed for breaking. Along with sometimes having unusual weight or balance to build maximum speed for the cue ball, some break cues have stiffer shafts and special breaking cue tips to transfer energy more efficiently to the cue ball.
This is an object sometimes placed underneath the cue tip.
The pool player who is at the table taking their shot.
A ball that is easily made from many positions on the table but which is left untouched while the rack is played, so that in the event the player gets out of position, the shooter has an insurance shot. Typically an insurance ball will be in or near the jaws of a pocket.
Sometimes called a snake shot. A carom billiards shot, common in three-cushion billiards, where the cue ball is shot with reverse english at a relatively shallow angle down the rail, and spins backwards off the adjacent rail back into the first rail.
Having the cue ball stop precisely where intended.
Having the cue ball stop at or near the center of the table on a forceful break shot (the breaking ideal in many games such as nine-ball);
Used by itself often with "low" and "high": "that's a low-percentage shot for me", "I should really take the high-percentage one".
This is a kind of cue made of only two pieces of wood, and joined together using an advanced adhesive along the points of the cue. This connection gives the cue a flawless look and a fluid feel when shooting.
A semicircle with an 11½ inch (291 mm) radius, drawn behind a snooker table's baulk line, centred on the middle of the line, and resembling the upper case letter "D" in shape. The "D" is also used in English billiards and sometimes also in blackball and other pool games played on British-style tables.
When the contact between the cue ball and object ball is dead center.
This is to have control on the cue ball in your shots.
This is a simple method of gambling where bets are determined between each game instead of playing matches.
Play, from the opening break shot until one player has won (or the game has been halted for some reason by a referee). Games are the units that make up matches, races (in some senses of that term) and rounds. Essentially the same as frame, except with regards to straight pool, which is a multi-rack game.
When a ball is in firm contact with a cushion or another ball.
In the carom games, any shot where the end result is all the balls near each other; ideally, in position for the start of a nurse on the next stroke.
A common way to keep track of games won when playing for small money is to use a coin that is placed under the rail next to the diamonds on the rail. The center diamond at the head of the table is taken as zero, and each diamond from that is considered to be one game. To go 'around the world' is to beat your opponent so badly that the coin travels all the way around the diamonds on the table.
A misnomer for hand talc.
To contact the chosen object ball in such a way to make it bank off a rail before being pocketed.
This is the running score of a player during his inning of play. The sum of the continuously scored points, or where the player stands in the run on the table.
Also in the zone. Describes an extended period of functioning in dead stroke ("She's in the zone").