How is blackball different from 8-ball?
A · Advanced · Other games · 7 of 8Blackball uses two groups of seven balls and a black, with shots not called. After the break, a group is decided by the first normal shot that pockets balls from only one group. After any foul, the incoming player gets a free shot, may play the cue ball where it lies or from baulk, and need not hit their own ball first.
How it works
- Balls: two groups of seven, in two solid colours or solids and stripes, and a black ball.
- The rack: the black on the foot spot.
- Baulk: the area behind a line one fifth of the table's length from the head cushion; "above the head string" is read as "in baulk".
- Break: from baulk; a ball must drop or two balls must cross the centre string, or it is a foul.
- The black on the break: a re-rack, with the same player breaking.
- Groups: decided by the first normal shot that pockets balls of only one group.
- Ball in hand: placed anywhere in baulk; it need not leave baulk before hitting a ball.
- Free shot: after a foul, the wrong-ball-first rule is lifted for the incoming player's first shot.
- Extra fouls: pocketing an opponent's ball without one of your own, playing before balls are spotted, any jump shot.
- Losing the rack: the black on an illegal shot or with your balls still on the table, a deliberate wrong ball first, or not trying to hit a ball on.
The glossary has the groups, the open table, the jump shot, the stalemate, the losing the rack and the break shot.
Tricky cases
A player pots a red and a yellow on the first shot after the break. Who gets which?
Nobody yet. Groups are decided only by a shot that pockets balls of one group.
After a foul, can the incoming player hit the opponent's ball first?
Yes, on the free shot, because the wrong-ball-first rule is lifted.
The cue ball is touching an object ball that is on. How must it be played?
Not towards that ball. Playing away from it counts as hitting it, because it is on.
The black drops on the break. Is that a win?
No. All the balls are re-racked and the same player breaks again.
Why the rule exists
Blackball suits the smaller tables common in pubs and clubs, where the free shot is a strong but limited penalty. Banning jump shots means a snooker must be escaped with cushions, angles and spin.
Where it differs
| Where | What changes | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Blackball | Free shot; ball in hand in baulk | WPA 8 |
| 8-ball | Called shots; ball in hand anywhere | WPA 4 |
| Snookered at blackball | The no-rail rule is lifted | WPA 8.10 |
From the rule book
World Pool-Billiard Association, Rules of Play (effective 15 September 2025), Blackball 8 (introduction) and 8.1 to 8.14. Checked 14 October 2026. Official document: the WPA Rules of Play, revised from time to time.