The
rules for playing straight pool are pretty simple... To start, all 15 balls are
racked, broken and played... players are not restricted to playing stripes or
solids, as all balls are playable, and each ball dropped, counts as 1 point for
the person who dropped it.
All shots must be called in straight
pool.
When all of the balls are gone, except the last one, that ball,
known as the KEY BALL and the que ball are left where they are, and the other
14 balls are re-racked, omitting the apex ball.
The player then attempts
to drop the ball that was left on the table, AND breaks the rack at the same
time. This makes it critical that the player has left himself in a good
position to break the balls effectively, so that there are plenty of options
available.
If the key ball is left in the rack area, it is spotted at
the head spot, and the que ball stays where it is.
If the que ball is in
the rack area, it can be placed anywhere behind the headspot, but the key ball
is left where it was.
If both the key ball and the que ball are in the
rack area, all 15 balls are racked, and the que ball can be shot from anywhere
behing the headspot.
The game is won when one player makes the
predetermined number of points... professional players of straight pool usually
play to 150, but you can play to any number you like.
In straight pool,
you must even call your shot on the break. If you have a fairly consistant
break, you can actually call a particular ball, but usually the first break is
played as a safety. However, and this is of key importance, two balls MUST
contact a rail, as well as the que ball.
You do not have to contact the
apex ball on the break... usually, when playing straight pool, the person
breaking a full rack will try to shoot one of the lower corners of the rack,
sending the lower row to one side or the other, bring the que ball back to the
head of the table, and leaving behind only a partially broken rack between the
que and the balls that were broken. This leaves the opponent with fewer
choices. |
