Editing Billiard table (section)

==Snooker and English billiards tables==
{{anchor|Snooker tables|Snooker|English billiards}}[[File:Snooker table drawing 2.svg|thumb|Snooker table, drawn to scale]]
A table designed for the games [[snooker]] and [[English billiards]] is usually called a '''snooker table'''.

===Dimensions===
The playing area of a tournament snooker table, as standardized by the [[World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association]] (WPBSA) and the amateur [[International Billiards and Snooker Federation]] (IBSF),<ref name="wsrulessnooker">{{cite web|date=November 2014|title=Official Rules of the Games of Snooker and English Billiards|url=http://www.wpbsa.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/official-rules-of-the-game.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160715114453/http://www.wpbsa.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/official-rules-of-the-game.pdf|archive-date=July 15, 2016|access-date=July 1, 2016|publisher=[[World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association|The World Professional Billiards & Snooker Association Limited]]}}</ref><ref name="IBSF 2011">{{cite web |url= http://www.ibsf.info/rules-snooker.shtml |title=Rules of the Game of Snooker |date=2011 |publisher=[[International Billiards and Snooker Federation]] |location=Reims, France |access-date=25 December 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120101220441/http://www.ibsf.info/rules-snooker.shtml |archive-date=1 January 2012}}</ref> measures 11&nbsp;feet&nbsp;8.5&nbsp;inches&nbsp;by&nbsp;5&nbsp;ft&nbsp;10&nbsp;in (3569&nbsp;mm&nbsp;by&nbsp;1778&nbsp;mm<!--Yes, the source was this precise.-->) with a tolerance of ±&nbsp;0.5&nbsp;in (13&nbsp;mm),<ref name="WPBSA 2011">{{WPBSA 2011|9–10|accessdate=24 December 2014}}</ref> though commonly referred to as 12&nbsp;ft&nbsp;by&nbsp;6&nbsp;ft, the nominal outer dimensions including the rails. Smaller tables, approximately 10&nbsp;ft&nbsp;by&nbsp;5&nbsp;ft down to half size, are also sometimes used in [[Public house|pubs]], homes and smaller [[snooker hall]]s. The height from the floor to the top of the cushion is between 2&nbsp;ft&nbsp;9.5&nbsp;in and 2&nbsp;ft&nbsp;10.5&nbsp;in (851&nbsp;mm and 876&nbsp;mm).<ref name="WPBSA 2011" />

===Pockets===
A snooker table has six pockets, one at each corner and one at the centre of each of the longest side cushions. The pockets are around 86&nbsp;mm (3.5&nbsp;in),{{clarify|date=February 2010|reason=3.5 in is 89 mm! Which is it, and convert more accurately, please. Also, what is actually being measured?}} though high-class tournaments may use slightly smaller pockets to increase difficulty. The amount of {{cuegloss|Undercut|undercut}} (trimmed underside of the rubber cushion's protruding {{cuegloss|Nose|nose}} at the pocket opening),<ref name="SnookerGames">{{cite web |url=http://www.snookergames.co.uk/glossary1.html |title=Definitions of Terms used in Snooker and English Billiards |last=Stooke |first=Michael P. |work=SnookerGames.co.uk |publisher=self-published |location=Dorset, England |date=14 March 2010 |access-date=25 December 2011 |archive-date=17 April 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120417173644/http://www.snookergames.co.uk/glossary1.html |url-status=dead }}{{tertiary|biblio=yes}} Stooke is a snooker instructor and writer whose work appears to be presumptively reliable, based on the sources he does cite throughout his materials.</ref>{{rp|8}} if any, has a strong effect on how easily a ball is accepted by the pocket (the "{{cuegloss|Pocket speed|pocket speed}}"). On snooker and English billiards tables, the pocket entries are rounded, while pool tables have sharp "{{cuegloss|Knuckle|knuckles}}". This affects how accurate shots need to be to get into a pocket, and how fast they can be when not dead-on, including shots that run along and against a cushion, making snooker more difficult to play than pool. According to the WPBSA official rule book, "the pocket openings shall conform to the {{cuegloss|Pocket template|templates}} owned and authorised by The World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA)".<ref name="WPBSA 2011" /> The WPBSA and IBSF rule books' equipment sections do not actually specify the measurements and shapes of these proprietary templates<ref name="IBSF 2011" /><ref name="WPBSA 2011" /> which change from time to time, requiring that the templates be dated.<ref name="BCCSS">{{cite web |url= http://pooltableindia.weebly.com/snooker-table.html |title=Standard Size of the Snooker Table|date=1995|publisher=India Cue Sports Society |location=Delhi, New Delhi, India |access-date=25 December 2011}}</ref> The organizations do not recognize tournament play or records ([[Highest snooker break|maximum breaks]], etc.) if not performed on tables that conform to then-current templates.<ref name="BCCSS" /><ref name="FCSnooker">{{cite web |url= http://www.fcsnooker.co.uk/latest%20links/147_breaks.htm |title=Maximum Breaks (Professional Competition Only) |at="Unofficial 147s" section |work=FCSnooker.co.uk |publisher=The Frank Callan Suite |location=Preston, England |date=2009 |access-date=24 December 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120108113450/http://www.fcsnooker.co.uk/latest%20links/147_breaks.htm |archive-date=8 January 2012}} FCS is a snooker equipment manufacturer that also runs a snooker statistics site.</ref>

===Cushions===
The cushions (sometimes known as rails, though that term properly applies to the wood sections to which the cushions are attached) are usually made of [[vulcanized rubber]].{{citation needed|date=October 2022}}

===Markings===
The {{Cuegloss|Baulk|baulk}} area is marked by a {{cuegloss|Baulk line|baulk line}} drawn on the cloth across the width of the table at {{convert|29|in|mm}} from and parallel to the face of the {{Cuegloss|Bottom cushion|bottom cushion}}.<ref name="WPBSA 2011" /> A semicircle with a radius of {{convert|11.5|in|mm}} centred on this line within baulk forms {{Cuegloss|the D|the "D"}}<ref name="WPBSA 2011" /> in which the cue ball must be placed when breaking or after the cue ball has been {{Cuegloss|Pot|potted}} or shot off the table. The position of four of {{Cuegloss|Colour ball|the colours}} are marked along the {{Cuegloss|Long string|long string}} (lengthwise centre) of the table, perpendicular to the baulk line: the {{Cuegloss|Black spot|black spot}}, {{convert|12.75|in|mm}} from the {{Cuegloss|Top cushion|top cushion}}; the {{Cuegloss|Centre spot|centre spot}} or {{Cuegloss|Blue spot|blue spot}}, located at the midpoint between the bottom and top {{Cuegloss|Cushion|cushions}}; the {{Cuegloss|Pyramid spot|pyramid spot}} or {{Cuegloss|Pink spot|pink spot}}, located midway between the centre spot and the top cushion; and the {{Cuegloss|Baulk spot|baulk spot}} or {{Cuegloss|Brown spot|brown spot}}, located at the midpoint of the baulk line<ref name="WPBSA 2011" /> (and, thus of the "D"). Due to its obviousness, the brown spot is not always marked (neither are the unmistakable {{cuegloss|Green spot|green}} and {{cuegloss|Yellow spot|yellow spots}},<ref name="WPBSA 2011" /> at the left and right intersections, respectively, of the baulk line and the "D{{"'}}s curve.<ref name="Shamos 1999" />{{rp|116, 278}}<ref name="WPBSA 2011" /> The exact placing of these markings are different on smaller tables, but proportional to the full-size model.{{citation needed|date=October 2022}}

===Bed===
The {{cuegloss|Playing area|playing surface}} of a good-quality snooker table has a {{cuegloss|Bed|bed}} of [[slate]]<ref name="themenscave">{{cite web |date=10 October 2017 |title=Pool Table Buyer's Guide |url=https://www.themenscave.sg/blog/pool-table-guide/ |access-date=12 October 2017 |work=TheMensCave.sg}}</ref> and is covered with [[baize]] cloth, traditionally green, though many other colours are now available. The thickness of this cloth determines the table's {{cuegloss|Speed|speed}} (lack of friction) and responsiveness to {{cuegloss|Spin|spin}}, thicker cloths being longer lasting but slower and less responsive. The [[Nap (textile)|nap]] of the cloth can affect the run of the balls, especially on slower shots and shots played with {{cuegloss|Sidespin|sidespin}} applied to the {{cuegloss|Cue ball|cue ball}}. A snooker table traditionally has the nap running from the baulk to the top end and is brushed and ironed in this direction.{{citation needed|date=October 2022}}