Balkline Billiards
How to Play Balkline Billiards
Online Balkline Billiards Info
Balkline is a game which evolved from Straight Line billiards in the late 19th century. Balkline plays much like Straightline, though it sections the billiard table into sections which the ball must travel. The balkline rules were meant to make billiard more challenging for the players and more entertaining for onlookers. Since the invention of balkline rules, balkline billiards has become the generic term for many different forms of carom billiards.
The Origins of Balkline
Straight Line had a large following from the 1850's to the 1870's, but after the first major tournaments, fans of the game grew bored with the relative ease players had in scoring.
Straight line players developed several techniques to make scoring almost automatic in certain instances. The use of "crotching" shots allowed players to trap the ball in the corner of the table and score at will. This was banned in 1862, but the "nursing" of shots continued unabated. In this way, the shooter barely hit the cue ball, meaning none of the three balls moved much at all. This was hardly compelling for the crowd at straight line tournaments.
At a disastrous 1879 tournament, an American player scored 690 shots in a row. A Frenchman posted over 1,500 points in an inning the next year, while an American posted over 5,000 points in 1890. These impressive yet repetitive results directly led to the invention of balkline rules.
A form of Balkline appeared late in 1879, usually called by the name limited-rail or champion's game. These rules sectioned off the table, creating diagonal lines (which were called balklines) on the felt on the ends and towards the corners of the tables. The balls could not enter these spaces, which was meant to end the practice of nursing.
Unfortunately, these rules were insufficient, because the players learned they could nurse the balls near to one balkline, then simply reverse their shooting and nurse the balls in the direction of the other balkline.
After this failure, modern balkline was invented. Here's a general overview of those balkline rules.
Balkline Rules
In modern balkline, the table is sectioned into eight rectangular areas. This not only eliminates crotching, but makes nursing more difficult. The balls must not remain in any one rectangle for more than one or two shots.
Balkline Game Designations
There are many variations of balkline. Each is given a number designation to distinguish what type of game it is. There are two numbers involved, which are separated with a decimal.
The number before the decimal indicates the size of the space between the balklines. For instance, 18. balkline is a game where there are 18 inches between balklines.
The number after the decimal indicates the number of shots the balls can stay inside a balkline before it must move out. For instance, .1 would indicate 1 shot per balkline, while .2 would indicate 2 shots. 18.2 balkline is a common game in the sport.
The Anchor Nurse Shot
These new rules did not stop the nurse shot. If a player could arrange to have the two object balls on either side of a balkline, then that player could hit the balls in such a way that they hardly moved, but circumvented the balkline rules. If the two balls are not in the same box, then one could technically hit them in place for indefinite amount of time. This in turn led to a new rule, the Parker's Box.
The Parker's Box
The Parker's Box was a small 3-and-1/2 inch rectangle on either side of a balkline. If the balls remained inside the Parker's box for more than five shots, then the balls were in balk. This cut down on unlimited shot-making, but in turn led to a new type of shot: the chuck nurse or rocking cannon.
The Chuck Nurse
The Chuck Nurse shot required one object ball to be just outside the Parker's Box, but fit firmly against the rail. This ball would be hit, leaving it in place. The cue would then carom off the first ball and hit the second, but only hard enough to make a second shot possible. Using this techique, players of the early twentieth century were able to amass over 1,000 points at a time.
The Anchor Space
The Anchor Space was invented to combat the Chuck Nurse. This increased the size of the Parker's box to 7 inches, effectively doubling the box. This made chuck nurse shots too difficult to be of much use to the player.
The Anchor Space was adopted for tournaments as early as 1914. With this addition, modern balkline took form. Balkline remains popular in Europe and the Asia to this day, though it is a forgotten game throughout most of the United States. Even in Europe, balkline today is less popular than three cushion billiards or pocket billiards.
Variations of Balkline Billiards
There are many variations of balkline being played these days. Among the most common are 14.1, 18., 45.1, 47.1, 8.2, 10.2, 12.2, 12+1/2.2, 13.2, 14.2, 18.2, 28.2, 38.2, 39.2, 42.2, 45.2, 47.2, 57.2 and 71.2.