Billiards Etiquette

by Clifton Tang

Probably billiards are played by almost everywhere in every country that most of us may miss or not know some basic etiquette of playing billiards. Actually most os them are just basic down right common sense and courtesy, please respect the billiards sport, don't get yourself rowdy over a miscue and tarnish it's image.The very basic and important rule is do not make yourself a distraction to the player. Making sudden loud noise and fast movements may distract the player. But most of all, never stand or cross in the line of sight of the player. What is the line of sight? It is purely the path of the eye of the player focusing along his billiard cue tip ball. If you are unintentionally in the line of sight of the player, simply stop moving of cause acute movements of the body until the player completes his shot, just be courteous. This too applies to your neighbouring billiards table who is playing, be polite, who knows, you may make more friends this way and probably gain more knowledge in billiards.Also be cautious when you move around the billiard table, your opposite player may suddenly jerk up his billiard cue from behind and hit you and get hurt. He may even spread his legs to get a more stable stance, this way you can get yourself being tripped over by his legs.When you are in a situation where you and the opposite player occupying the same spot or position for the next shot, be polite and allow him to play first. It is always better to have the other billiard player go for the shot first, there is a reason to it. When the first billiard player is engaging the shot, believe you me, he is not completely focused on the shot; because he knows and is conscious that someone is looking over his shoulders and waiting for his turn, this way he will have lesser time to plan his shot. If you play last, all this pressure is gone, you can fully concentrate on your shot. Well, what do you know, you have killed two birds in one stone, first you gain a little respect by being courteous, second you have a better shot.Taking too much time to plan a shot is not too nice either, it is irritating. Imagine your opponents are standing there waiting for you to make the next move, you can be sure they will not call you for pool or billiards the next outing. It just kills the fun out of it. Usually, professional billiard players use a 45 minutes shot clock, and of course that is quite an unreasonable time length for a beginner or and amateur. But make it a benchmark, it will step up the pace of the game and most importantly it will help you to make faster decisions on making a shot.I am going to tell you something that most of us miss, chalking. After chalking your billiard cue, leave the chalk on its side of the billiards table rail. Why? If you leave the chalk facing down with the blue chalk touching the billiards table rail, the powder that is left on the table will stain the shirt of the next person when lying on the billiard table to make his shot. If you leave the chalk facing up, you will stain the shirt directly.And remember not to have the habit of chalking your billiard cue tip after every shot. Your opponent may need the chalk for his shot and you are doing the chalking. Let him have the chalk first, you will always have the time to chlak your billiard cue tip when it is your turn to shoot.And lastly, don't walk away with the chalk after chalking your billiard cue tip. Here are just some of the billiard etiquette that I have shared, I will bring you some more some other time, so stay tuned.

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