Snooker · Guide
Snooker rules explained
Snooker is played with 15 reds, six colours and a white. You score by potting a red, then a colour, then a red, and so on. When the reds are gone, the colours go down in order. The player with more points at the end wins the frame.
The balls and what they are worth
| Ball | Points | Starts on |
|---|---|---|
| Red (15 of them) | 1 | The triangle behind the pink |
| Yellow | 2 | Right-hand end of the D line, looking up the table from the baulk end |
| Green | 3 | Left-hand end of the D line |
| Brown | 4 | Middle of the D line |
| Blue | 5 | The centre of the table |
| Pink | 6 | Just in front of the reds |
| Black | 7 | Near the top cushion |
How a frame works
- The break-off. The first player places the white anywhere inside the D and must hit a red.
- Red, then colour. While reds are on the table, your first shot of a turn must hit a red. Pot one and you then nominate and play any colour. Pot the colour and you go back to the reds.
- Colours come back. A colour potted while reds remain is put back on its own spot. Reds stay down.
- The colours in order. After the last red and the colour that follows it, the colours must be potted in order: yellow, green, brown, blue, pink, black. These stay down.
- Your turn ends when you fail to pot, or when you foul. Everything you scored in that turn is your break.
Potting two reds in one shot is allowed and scores both. Potting a red and a colour in the same shot is a foul.
Snookers, fouls and the miss
A player is snookered when they cannot hit the ball they have to hit in a straight line, because another ball is in the way. Getting out of a snooker means hitting the right ball off a cushion or with a swerve. Fail, and it is a foul.
A foul gives your opponent at least 4 points, and more if a higher-value ball was involved, up to 7. Your opponent then chooses whether to play on or make you play again. If the referee decides you did not try hard enough to hit the right ball, they also call a miss, and your opponent can have the balls put back where they were. The fouls guide has the full list.
Winning a frame and a match
The frame goes to whoever has more points once the black is potted, unless the loser concedes first, which is normal once they are too far behind. When a player needs more points than are left on the table, they need snookers.
If the scores are level after the final black, the black is re-spotted. A coin is tossed, the winner decides who plays first, and that player shoots at it from the D. The next score or foul ends the frame.
Matches are played over an odd number of frames: best of 7 in early rounds of some events, up to best of 35 in the World Championship final.
Quick answers
- How many points is each ball worth in snooker?
- Red 1, yellow 2, green 3, brown 4, blue 5, pink 6, black 7.
- How many reds are there in snooker?
- Fifteen, plus the six colours, so 21 object balls and the white cue ball.
- Do the colours go back on the table?
- Yes, while any reds are left. Once the last red and the colour after it have gone, the colours are potted in order from yellow to black and stay down.
- What happens if a frame ends level?
- The black is put back on its spot. The players toss a coin, the winner chooses who plays first, and that player shoots from the D. The first to score, or the first to foul, decides the frame.
- How do you win a frame of snooker?
- Score more points than your opponent by the time the last ball is potted, or have your opponent concede. Matches are won by taking a set number of frames, such as best of 19.