How to play billiards Learn and develop your skills
Learn to play billiards
To enjoy billiards as a leisure activity, you need to know the rules and master the basics. Get to know the equipment and different types of games, learn to aim, control ball trajectory, use spin and perform a cushion shot: soon you’ll have all the skills to enjoy playing billiards and to win games.
Expert coach
To guide you and help you progress, both with classic billiards and the art of the trick shot, see our videos with tips from internationally-acclaimed artistic billiards expert Florian Kohler, alias “Venom”. Twice named World Cup Of Trick Shots champion, he is a multiple record-holder, and his Youtube channel has over a million subscribers.
How to play billiards: the basics
Master the basics of billiards in a few minutes. Get to know the equipment, then learn how to correctly position your fingers to make an effective bridge, and how to position your body to hit the ball properly.
> Equipment: table, balls, cues and accessories
> Finger positioning: the different types of bridge
> Stance and hand positioning
Rules of billiards and variations of the game
There are many ways of playing billiards. Learn about the different types of games for variety! From the best-known game to the one inspired by poker, billiards is full of surprises.
> 8-ball
> 9-ball
> Straight pool (14-1)
>Poker ball
Aiming and controlling ball trajectory
It may seem obvious but a good aim is key to a good game. With Florian Kohler's detailed explanation of techniques, you’ll no longer have any excuses for missing shots. You’ll even manage to control the trajectory of the white ball after impact with the object ball.
> The ghost ball method
> Controlling white ball position after impact: tangent lines
Using spin and controlling white ball position
Stop shot, draw shot, follow shot, right or left spin: depending on the shot you have to play, you will certainly need to use one of these techniques, or even mix them. In this tutorial, learn how to perform the main spin techniques for successful shots every time!
> Main spin techniques
> White ball control
How to perform a cushion shot
By hitting a cushion before or after striking the object ball, you can get out of many difficult situations during a game. To do this effectively, you need to have a perfect command of the angle the ball will take after contact with the cushion, and be able to adjust the angle using spin to get the ball exactly where you want it.
> The mirror method
> Adjusting angles using spin