Billiards Vs. Pool - What’s The Difference?

Growing up, many of us have peered over the edges of pool tables - getting our first glimpses at one of the world’s most stylish and exciting indoor sports. 

While most of us understood the premise of pocketing balls using a stick, these tables have hosted a variety of different game variations through the years - with the two most popular ones being billiards and pool.

To better understand the differences between these world-famous games, it’s best to take a brief detour into the pages of billiards and pool history.

A Brief History Of Billiards And Pool

Billiards and pool have both been around for several centuries. 

Sometime around the 1600s, a variety of croquet and lawn games gained popularity in Europe. Later on, these developed into a form of billiards with pockets - which is a key feature of the modern-day pool. The main features that changed during the transition were the introduction of the table, cloth, and the cue stick.

The original billiards game was then known as carom billiards. It has now become a family term that is further divided into carrom billiard, pool, and snooker. 

The word ‘billiart’ is the French origin of ‘billiard,’ which means ‘mace.’ This was the accessory used before cue sticks became a norm. Maces took the shape of a narrow rod and had a head made of wood or metal curved at its head to hit the cue balls.

"It has been known as the "Noble Game of Billiards" since the early 1800's but there is evidence that people from all walks of life played the game since its inception."

The word ‘cue’ comes from the word ‘queue,’ which meant ‘tail’ in french. However, the term ‘pool’ has a different origin that is not related to the game at all! It referred to pooling money into a big pot, which may have referred to the collective betting money won at the end of a game.

Basically, when discussing the differences between pool and billiards, we’ll note that billiards came first. Later on, variations to the game brought in the pool and other cue ball games such as snooker.

Now that we’ve got the names out of the way, let’s take a look at the different materials and objects used to play both games.

Differences In Accessories & Equipment

Cloth 

Both games require a cloth table, but the material makes all the difference. A billiards table cloth will be much faster to play on because it uses smooth worsted wool. Pool tables are slower, using more abrasive felt for their cloth.

Pockets

This difference is simpler to understand. The presence of pockets will be necessary for a pool game, while billiards variants can be played without pockets.

Table

Although all tables are referred to as bar tables, the difference is in the dimensions. 

Billiards tables are larger than pool tables. A billiards table will usually be 9 feet by 4.7 feet, and a pool table will be anywhere from 7 feet to 9 feet. For pool, the ideal table is the one with ball return. Also remember that a billiards table may also be referred to as a pocketless table. 

Note that in more recent times, you can use the same kind of table for pool and billiards with the introduction of mutligame tables. 

Cue Balls

Billiards will use 3 balls, whereas a pool game will usually require around 9-16 balls (depending on the game).

The 3 balls used in billiards consist of one red ball and two white balls. A pool game of 15 balls will consist of 7 solid color balls, and 7 striped balls, 8 balls, and a cue ball.

The balls used for pool games are smaller at 2 1/4 inches in diameter than the billiard balls, which are much larger at 2 7/16 inches in diameter. This difference means the weight also changes. The weight will be slightly more, at 7.5 ounces from a pool ball and 6 ounces for a billiard ball.

Cue Stick

A billiards cue stick is shorter than a pool cue and has a thick butt with a conical tip. The cue stick for pool games typically has thinner shafts, smaller tips and is built longer. These simple changes make the nature of the game very different. If you may have noticed the pool game proceeding much faster than a billiards game, it is due to this. 

Pool sticks will be longer at roughly 58 inches as compared to a billiard stick at 56 inches. Attached is a video on how to identify the proper pool stick length you want to use when playing. 

Rack

A triangle rack is used in pool games to arrange the object balls. However, most billiards games do not require one. 

Commonly, triangle racks and diamond-shaped racks are used for a game of pool. Of these, the triangle rack is used when playing a game of eight ball or straight pool. The diamond rack is more popularly used when playing a nine-ball game of pool.

Comparing Both Game Objectives

A game of traditional billiards doesn’t have any pockets to begin with - what you need to focus on to score. So, the goal is not to sink balls - but to hit the rails or walls of the table. This has to be done at least thrice before making contact with the second ball, 

A Pool game requires the player to score by sinking balls into the pockets. The number of points needed for a player to be declared a winner is decided before the game begins.

Conclusion

The difference between pool and billiards may be simply the presence or absence of pockets to the observer. We, however, hope this article helped you broaden your knowledge about the many differences that exist in both games.

Why not try a few games to practice your skills? It will also help you memorize the rules more naturally.

Did you know there was difference between billiards and pool? What fact surprised you the most? 

Let us know in the comments below!