Pool format
Rotation: rules and how to play
Lowest ball first, and each ball is worth its number. The pot is 120 points, so 61 wins.
| Players | 2–4 |
|---|---|
| Length | 15–30 minutes a game |
| Equipment | Full rack |
| Difficulty | Intermediate |
The object of the game
Score 61 points — more than half of the 120 on the table.
Setting up
- Rack all fifteen with the 1 at the apex, 2 and 3 in the back corners.
- Break hitting the 1 first.
The rules
Hit the lowest ball first
Same as nine-ball. Any ball pocketed on a legal stroke scores its own number, so the 15 is worth fifteen times the 1.
First to 61 wins
The maths is the appeal: with 120 points on the table, one big ball can swing a game, and you can win without pocketing the most balls.
How a night of this actually runs
It takes 2–4 and runs about 15–30 minutes a game, which is the number that decides whether it suits your room more than any rule in it does. You need full rack, and it sits at a intermediate level — so think about whether the weakest player in the room will still be enjoying it an hour in.
Compared with three strikes, the format this site is built around: that one takes any number of players, keeps everybody in the room for roughly two hours, and needs nothing but a rack and a way to count lives. Most of the games on this site are better as the game inside a night than as the shape of the night itself.
Is it any good in a bar?
Better than it gets credit for. The scoring keeps a weaker player interested because one lucky 15 is worth a lot, and games end cleanly. The bookkeeping is the obstacle.