BEIJING 2008 Olympia Flame ~ Snooker

Snooker is a cue sport that is played on a large baize-covered table with pockets in each of the four corners and in the middle of each of the long side cushions. A regulation (full-size) table is 12 ft × 6 ft (3.6 m x 1.8 m). It is played using a cue, one white ball (the cue ball), 15 red balls (worth 1 point each) and 6 balls of different colours (worth 2–7 points each).[1] A player (or team) wins a frame (individual game) of snooker by scoring more points than the opponent(s), using the cue ball to pot the red and coloured balls. A player wins a match when he wins a certain number of frames.

The object of the game is to score more points than the opponent by potting balls in a predefined order. At the start of a frame the balls are positioned as shown and the players take it in turns to hit a shot, their aim being to pot one of the red balls and score a point. If they do pot at least one red, then it remains in the pocket and they are allowed another shot - this time the aim being to pot one of the colours (points value, 2 points for the yellow, 3 for the green, 4 for the brown, 5 for the blue, 6 for the pink and 7 for the black). If successful, then they gain the value of the colour potted.

It is returned to its correct position on the table and they must try to pot another red again. This process continues until they fail to pot the desired ball, at which point their opponent comes back to the table to play the next shot. The game continues in this manner until all the reds are potted and only the 6 colours are left on the table; at that point the aim is then to pot the colours in the above order. When a colour is potted in this phase of a frame, it remains off the table. When the final ball is potted, the frame is over and the player with the most points wins it.[1]. A match where five frames would be the winner is called a 'best of nine', because that would be the maximum number frames that could be played.