Etiquette and scoring in practice
Etiquette and scoring in practice
Behave well at the club and keep score confidently.
Behaviour at the table
Snooker is played in near silence, and good etiquette is half of being welcome at a club. None of these rules are written down in the laws, but every regular player follows them.
- When your opponent is down on a shot, stand still, out of their line of sight, and do not talk.
- Stay in your seat while it is not your turn. Do not walk around the table to look at a shot.
- Call your own fouls, even if nobody else saw them, such as touching a ball with your sleeve.
- Never sit on the table or lean on it with a drink. Brush chalk dust off the cloth, and don't rest a cue on it.
- Shake hands before and after the frame, and concede graciously when you cannot win.
Keeping score
Keep a running total for each player, adding the value of each ball potted and any foul points awarded. Learn the points still on the table, because that number drives your tactics.
With all 15 reds up there are 147 points available. Each red that goes down is worth up to 8 (the red and the black), and the colours together are worth 27. So the points remaining are 8 × (reds left) + 27.
If you are further behind than the points remaining, you need snookers: you have to win foul points from your opponent to catch up. Once your opponent is ahead by more than the points left, there is no path back without snookers. Many players concede at that point.
- Example: 6 reds left means 6 × 8 + 27 = 75 points remaining.
- Once the reds are gone, 27 points remain: 2 + 3 + 4 + 5 + 6 + 7.
Watch next
At the table
Play one SCRUB game or one casual frame and keep score on paper.