Game Rules 03 Billiards Guide
What is 8-Ball?
The rules, and how to play.
8-Ball is a pocket billiards game played and loved all over the world. The fifteen object balls are divided into two groups, solids and stripes, and the player who pockets every ball in their own group and then the 8-ball wins the rack.
At a glance
Key points
- Balls
- One cue ball and fifteen object balls numbered 1 to 15. Sixteen balls in all
- How to win
- Pocket your whole group (1 to 7 or 9 to 15), then pocket the 8, and the rack is yours
- Groups
- After the break, the group (solids or stripes) of the first ball you legally pocket becomes yours
- Rack
- Triangle (five rows). The 8 in the middle of the third row; a solid and a stripe in the two back corners
- Call shot
- Yes (except on the break). Under the NBA rules each tournament decides whether to use it; under the WPA rules it is required
This page follows the Nippon Billiard Association (NBA) “Pocket Billiards Competition Rules” (June 2026 revision, in Japanese). Where the World Standardized Rules (WPA Rules of Play, in effect since September 2025) differ, we have added a note each time, under “Under the World Rules (WPA).” At a tournament, that event’s own regulations take precedence.
01Balls used
Counting the cue ball, the game uses 16 balls. The NBA rules call balls 1 to 7 “low balls” and balls 9 to 15 “high balls.”
Each player takes either the solids or the stripes for the game. Once groups are decided, the cue ball must always hit a ball from your own group first.
02Object of the game
You win by pocketing every ball in your group (solids or stripes) and then sinking the 8-ball, as a called shot, in the pocket you named.
The name “8-Ball” comes from the way the game is decided at the end, by sinking the black 8. The 🎱 emoji is that very ball.
03Racking
The fifteen balls are set in a triangle rack. The apex ball goes on the foot spot, and the 8 goes in the middle of the third row. In the two back corners, place one solid and one stripe. There are no rules for where the other balls go. [NBA Ch. 12, Art. 3]
↑ Breaking end (head)
↓ Foot rail end
| Position | Ball | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Apex (foot spot) | Any ball | No set number |
| Middle of the third row | The 8 | Always fixed |
| Two corners of the back row (fifth row) | One solid, one stripe | Either side is fine |
| Others | Remaining balls | Placed freely |
04How play proceeds
- Lag to decide who shoots first
- The first player breaks
- Groups are decided while the table is open
- Pocket the balls of your group with called shots (in any order)
- Once your group is cleared, go for the 8-ball with a called shot
- Make the 8 and the rack is yours
05Break shot
The first player breaks from anywhere in the kitchen (behind the head string). No call is needed, and any object ball may be hit first. The break must either pocket at least one object ball or drive at least four object balls (not counting the cue ball) to a cushion. [NBA Ch. 12, Art. 4, Para. 1]
If the 8-ball is pocketed on the break
It is not a loss. You may choose either to re-rack and break again, or to spot the 8 on the foot spot and carry on. [NBA Ch. 12, Art. 4, Para. 4] Under the WPA rules, the choice belongs to the breaker. [WPA 4.3(e)]
Treating an 8 on the break as an instant rack win (a “break ace,” as it is called in Japan) is a house or tournament rule. It is worth checking beforehand.
If you scratch on the break
The turn passes to the opponent, who places the cue ball behind the head string (in the kitchen) and shoots. To play an object ball that lies behind the head string, the cue ball must first cross the head string before it makes contact. Pocketed object balls stay down (the 8 alone is either spotted on the foot spot, or the balls are re-racked and broken again). [NBA Ch. 12, Art. 4, Para. 5]
There are two ways to decide who breaks: “winner breaks,” where the winner of the previous rack breaks, and “alternate break,” where the players take turns. [NBA Ch. 12, Art. 4, Para. 6]
06How groups are decided
Right after the break, neither player has a group yet: the table is “open.” While it is open, you may play at either a solid or a stripe. Balls pocketed on the break do not decide the groups.
After the break, while the table is open, the first player to legally pocket a ball takes that ball’s group. [NBA Ch. 12, Art. 6]
How groups are decided: examples
You pocket the 3 (a solid): you take the solids, your opponent the stripes
You pocket the 11 (a stripe): you take the stripes, your opponent the solids
07Call shot
Under the NBA rules, each tournament decides whether to use call shot in 8-Ball. When it is used, before every shot except the break you name the ball you will pocket and the pocket it will go in (this applies while the table is open as well). Once groups are decided, you may not call a ball from your opponent’s group. [NBA Ch. 12, Art. 5]
- Called shot made: keep shooting. Any other balls pocketed on the same shot (including your opponent’s) stay down [ibid., Para. 1]
- Called ball missed: the turn passes. Any other balls that went in are not returned
- Safety called: the turn passes. Any object balls that went in are not returned [ibid., Para. 2]
- Foul: the turn passes, and your opponent gets ball in hand
08How to win
- You pocket every ball in your group, then put the 8-ball in the pocket you called
- Your opponent commits an instant-loss penalty (see the next section)
- Your opponent loses on three fouls
09Instant loss
The following are not fouls: they are penalties that cost you the rack on the spot, except on the break shot. [NBA Ch. 12, Art. 7, Para. 4]
- Fouling on the shot that pockets the 8-ball (for example, the cue ball follows the 8 into a pocket)
- Pocketing the 8-ball in a pocket other than the one you called
- Pocketing the 8-ball while the table is open
- Pocketing the 8-ball while balls of your group remain (including pocketing your last group ball and the 8 on the same shot)
- Driving the 8-ball off the table
10Main fouls
After a foul, your opponent receives Ball in hand (they may place the cue ball anywhere on the table and play). For fouls on the break, see the “Break shot” section. [NBA Ch. 12, Art. 7]
| Foul | What happens |
|---|---|
| Bad hit | The cue ball did not hit a ball from your own group first (while the table is open, either group will do) |
| No rail | After the cue ball hit a group ball, no ball reached a cushion and no object ball was pocketed |
| Scratch | The cue ball goes into a pocket |
| Touching a ball | Touched the cue ball or an object ball with the body or cue, other than in a stroke |
| Ball off the table | The cue ball or an object ball left the table |
| Double hit | Struck the cue ball twice with the cue |
| Both feet off the floor | Both feet were off the floor during the shot |
| Three fouls | The same player fouls three times in a row in the same rack and loses that rack (under the NBA rules; it does not apply unless the player was warned of “two fouls” after the second one) [NBA Ch. 12, Art. 7, Para. 3] |
For definitions of fouls and how each game treats them, see the List of Fouls.
11Match format and rack handicaps
8-Ball matches, too, are played until one player wins an agreed number of racks. In a “5-saki” match, whoever wins five racks first takes the match; in English this is written “Race to 5.”
| Notation | What happens |
|---|---|
| Race to 5 (5-saki) | First to five racks wins. Common for casual games and practice matches |
| Race to 7 (7-saki) | A standard length for tournament qualifiers and main draws |
| Race to 9 (9-saki) | Set when a longer match is wanted, such as a final |
When the players differ in strength, a rack handicap is used. When a stronger player meets a newer one, giving each a different number of racks to win makes for a closer contest.
In 8-Ball, a method called an “object-ball handicap” is also used. It reduces the number of balls one player must pocket: of the usual seven group balls, for example, “after four, you may go for the 8.”
12Frequently asked questions
What does the “8” in “8-Ball” mean?
The game is named for the way it ends: whoever pockets the black 8-ball last wins. The 🎱 emoji shows that very ball. In English it is written “eight-ball.”
What if I pocket one of my opponent’s balls?
If the ball you called went in as well, you keep shooting. Your opponent’s ball stays down.
If your own ball does not go in and only your opponent’s does, it is not a foul; the turn simply passes (the ball stays down). If the cue ball hit your opponent’s ball first, however, it is a foul.
How are solids and stripes decided?
After the break, the group of the first ball a player legally pockets becomes that player’s group. Balls pocketed on the break do not decide it.
Do I lose if the 8 goes in on the break?
No. You may choose either to re-rack and break again, or to spot the 8 on the foot spot and carry on.
How do you rack for 8-Ball?
Set the fifteen balls in a triangle, with the 8 in the middle of the third row and one solid and one stripe in the two back corners. The other balls may go anywhere.
How many balls are used in 8-Ball?
One cue ball and fifteen object balls numbered 1 to 15. Sixteen in all.
👉 Once you know the rules: lessons and match streams in Billiards in Depth