Billiard table

A billiards table with 6 pockets

A billiards table or billiard table is a table on which carom billiards games are played such as three cushion billiards, straight rail (carambole) and balkline. Regulation billiards tables are perfect rectangles, with the bed of the table (the playing surface) measuring ten feet by five feet. Although not common in the U.S., smaller size Billiards tables are occasionally seen, typically used for the Korean game of "four ball."

Pocket Billiards tables, sometimes called pool tables, are specific to the various pool games such as eight ball, nine ball, straight pool and one pocket. As the name implies, pocket billiards tables have pockets; normally six of them--one at each corner of the table ("corner pockets") and one at the midpoint of each of the longer sides ("side pockets").

The regulation size of a Pocket Billiards table's playing surface is four and one-half feet by nine feet. Non-regulation size tables come standard at four by eight feet, three and one-half by seven feet, and three feet by six feet.

Whilst most tables are perfect rectangles, there are other tables which are round, hexagonal and even zig-zag shaped. The latter, however, are all far less popular than the rectangular tables ubiquitous in many social halls, from Gentlemen's Clubs to bars.

On the sides of all varieties of billiard table are "rails" (or "cushions"), which are made from elastic materials such as synthetic or vulcanized rubber. The cushion's purpose is to rebound balls without letting them lose too much kinetic energy. The playing surface (the "Bed") on all quality tables is made of slate, typically imported from Italy.

Both the rails and slate beds are covered with billiard cloth which is most often green in color and consists of either a woven wool or wool/nylon blend called Baize Most bar tables, which get lots of play, use this slower, thicker cloth because it can stand up to heavy usage. By contrast, high quality pool cloth is usually made of a napless weave such as worsted wool. Snooker table cloth traditionally has a directional nap, upon which the balls behave differently when rolling against the direction of the nap.

Common pool table sizes for the USA are:

3.5' × 7' (1.06 m × 2.13 m) — Bar

4' × 8' (1.22 m × 2.44 m) — Home

4.25' × 8.5' (1.30 m × 2.60 m) — Commercial

4.5' × 9' (1.37 m × 2.74 m) — Tournament

In the U.S., pool is mostly played according to the Billiard Congress of America's World Standardized Rules.