A cue stick (or simply cue, more specifically pool cue, snooker cue, or billiards cue), is an item of sporting A sport is an organized, competitive, and skillful physical activity requiring commitment and fair play, in which a winner can be defined by objective means. It is governed by a set of rules or customs. In a sport the key factors are the physical capabilities and skills of the competitor when determining the outcome . The physical activity equipment essential to the games of pool Pool, also known as pocket billiards, is the general term for a family of cue sports played on a pool table with six receptacles called pockets along the rails, into which balls are deposited as the main goal of play, snooker Snooker is a cue sport that is played on a large green baize-covered table with pockets in each of the four corners and in the middle of each of the long side cushions. A regular table is 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m). It is played using a cue and snooker balls: one white cue ball, 15 red balls worth one point each, and six balls of different colours: and carom billiards Carom billiards, sometimes called carambole billiards or simply carambole , is the overarching title of a family of billiards games generally played on cloth-covered, 5 by 10 feet (approximately 1.5 × 3 m) pocketless tables, which often feature heated slate beds. In its simplest form, the object of the game is to score points or "counts". It is used to strike a ball A billiard ball is a small, hard ball used in cue sports, such as carom billiards, pool, and snooker. The number, type, diameter, color, and pattern of the balls differ depending upon the specific game being played. Various particular ball properties such as hardness, friction coefficient and resilience are very important to the finer points of, usually the cue ball The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket. Cues are tapered sticks, typically about 58 inches (1.5 m) long and 18–21 ounces (510–600 g). Most cues are made of wood Wood is a hard, fibrous tissue found in many plants. It has been used for centuries for both fuel and as a construction material for several types of living areas such as houses. It is an organic material, a natural composite of cellulose fibers embedded in a matrix of lignin which resists compression. In the strict sense wood is produced as, but occasionally the wood is covered or bonded with other materials including carbon fiber Carbon fiber-reinforced polymer or carbon fiber-reinforced plastic , is a very strong, light, and expensive composite material or fiber-reinforced polymer. Similar to fiberglass (glass reinforced polymer), the composite material is commonly referred to by the name of its reinforcing fibers (carbon fiber). The polymer is most often epoxy, but other or fiberglass Fiberglass, , is material made from extremely fine fibers of glass. It is used as a reinforcing agent for many polymer products; the resulting composite material, properly known as fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) or glass-reinforced plastic (GRP), is called "fiberglass" in popular usage. Glassmakers throughout history have experimented. An obsolete term for a cue, used from the 16th to early 19th centuries, is "billiard stick".[3][4]
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History
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The forerunner of the cue was the mace The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket, an implement similar to a light-weight golf club A golf club is used in the sport of golf to hit a golf ball. Each club is composed of a shaft with a lance and a clubhead. Woods are mainly used for long-distance fairway or tee shots; irons, the most versatile class, are used for a variety of shots; putters are used mainly on the green to roll the ball into the cup, with a foot that was generally used to shove rather than strike the cue ball.[3] When the ball was frozen The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket against a rail cushion The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket, use of the mace was difficult (the foot would not fit under the edge of the cushion to strike the ball squarely), and by 1670 experienced players often used the tail or butt end of the mace instead.[3] The term "cue" comes from queue, the French French is a Romance language spoken as a first language by about 136 million people worldwide. Around 190 million people speak French as a second language, and an additional 200 million speak it as an acquired foreign language. French speaking communities are present in 57 countries and territories. Most native speakers of the language live in word for "tail", in reference to this practice,[3] a style of shooting that eventually led to the development of separate, footless cue sticks by about 1800, used initially as adjuncts to the mace,[3] which remained in use until well into the 19th century.[5] In public billiard rooms A billiard/billiards, pool or snooker hall (sometimes written poolhall, snookerhall, poolroom, etc.) is a place where people get together for playing cue sports such as pool, snooker or carom billiards. Such establishments often serve alcohol and may have gaming machines, darts, foosball and other games on the side only skilled players were initially allowed to use the cue, because the fragile cloth could be torn by novices.[3] The introduction of the cue, and the new game possibilities it engendered, led to the development of cushions with more rebound, initially stuffed with linen or cotton flocking, but eventually replaced by rubber.[3]
The idea of the cue initially was to try to strike the cue-ball as centrally as possible to avoid a miscue The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket.[3] The concept of spin The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket on the cue ball was discovered before cue-tips had been invented; e.g. striking the bottom of the cue ball to make it go backwards upon contact with an object ball The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket.[3] François Mingaud was studying the game of billiards while being held in Paris Paris ([paʁi] in French, pronounced /ˈpærɪs/ in English) is the capital and largest city of France. It is situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region (or Paris Region, French: Région parisienne). The city of Paris, within its administrative limits largely unchanged since 1860, has an estimated as a political prisoner, and experimented with a leather cue tip. In 1807, he was released and demonstrated his invention.[3] Mingaud is also credited with the discovery that by raising the cue vertically, to the position adopted by the mace, he could perform what is now known as a massé The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket shot.[3]
In pre-tip days, it was common for players to twist the ends of their cue into a plaster The term plaster can refer to gypsum plaster , lime plaster, or cement plaster wall or ceiling so that a chalk-like deposit would form on the end, reducing the chance of a miscue.[3] The first systematic marketing of chalk was by John Carr, a marker in John Bartley's billiard rooms in Bath Bath is a city in the ceremonial county of Somerset in the south west of England. It is situated 97 miles (156 km) west of London and 13 miles (21 km) south-east of Bristol. The population of the city is 83,992. It was granted city status by Royal Charter by Queen Elizabeth I in 1590, and was made a county borough in 1889 which gave it. Between Carr and Bartley, it was discovered how "side The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket" (sidespin The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket) could be used to the advantage of players, and Carr began selling chalk in small boxes. He called it "twisting powder", and the magical impression this gave the public enabled him to sell it for a higher price than if they realized it was simply chalk in a small box.[3] "English The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket", an American term for sidespin, derives from the British discovery of sidespin's effects, as "massé" comes from the French word for "mace".[3]
Types
Pool and snooker cues average around 57 inches in length (148 cms) and are of three major types. The simplest type is a one-piece cue; these are generally stocked in pool halls for communal use. They have a uniform taper, meaning they decrease in diameter evenly from the end or butt to the tip. A second type is the two-piece cue, divided in the middle for ease of transport, usually in a cue case. A third variety is another two-piece cue, but with a joint located three-quarters down the cue (usually 12 or 16 inches away from the butt), known as a "three-quarter two-piece", used primarily by snooker players.
Pool
A typical two-piece cue for pocket billiards is usually made mostly of hard rock maple, with a fiberglass Fiberglass, , is material made from extremely fine fibers of glass. It is used as a reinforcing agent for many polymer products; the resulting composite material, properly known as fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) or glass-reinforced plastic (GRP), is called "fiberglass" in popular usage. Glassmakers throughout history have experimented or phenolic resin Phenolic resin can include any of various synthetic thermosetting resins such as Bakelite, obtained by the reaction of phenols with simple aldehydes such as formaldehyde. Phenolics can be used to make molded products including pool balls, laboratory countertops, and as coatings and adhesives ferrule The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket, usually 0.75 to 1 inch (19 to 25 mm) long, and steel joint The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket collars The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket and pin The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket. Pool cues average around 58 inches (150 cm) long, are commonly available in 17–21 ounces (0.48–0.60 kg) weights, with 19 ounces (0.54 kg) being the most common, and usually have a tip The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket diameter in the range of 12.75 – 13.25 mm.[6] A conical taper The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket, with the shaft The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket gradually shrinking in diameter from joint to ferrule, is favored by some, but the "pro" taper is increasingly popular, straight for most of the length of the shaft from ferrule back, flaring to joint diameter only in the last 1⁄4 to 1⁄3 of the shaft. While there are many custom cuemakers, a very large number of quality pool cues are manufactured in bulk. In recent years, more technological materials such as fiberglass, carbon fiber Carbon fiber , alternatively graphite fiber, carbon graphite or CF, is a material consisting of extremely thin fibers about 0.005–0.010 mm in diameter and composed mostly of carbon atoms. The carbon atoms are bonded together in microscopic crystals that are more or less aligned parallel to the long axis of the fiber. The crystal alignment makes, aluminum Aluminium (UK: /ˌæljʉˈmɪniəm/ AL-yew-MIN-ee-əm) or aluminum (US: /əˈluːmɨnəm/ ( listen) ə-LOO-mi-nəm) is a silvery white member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al and its atomic number is 13. It is not soluble in water under normal circumstances. Aluminium is the most abundant metal in the Earth's crust,, etc., have been increasingly used for shafts and butts, and there has been a trend toward experimentation with rubber Natural rubber is an elastomer that was originally derived from latex, a milky colloid found in the sap of some plants. The plants would be ‘tapped’, that is, an incision made into the bark of the tree and the latex sap collected and refined into a usable rubber. The purified form of natural rubber is the chemical polyisoprene, which can also, memory foam Memory foam is polyurethane with additional chemicals increasing its viscosity and density. It is often referred to as visco-elastic polyurethane foam. In some formulations, it is firmer when cooler. Higher density memory foam reacts to body heat, allowing it to mold to a warm human body in a few minutes. A lower density memory foam is pressure- and other soft wraps The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket.
Carom
Main article: Carom billiards#Cues Carom billiards, sometimes called carambole billiards or simply carambole , is the overarching title of a family of billiards games generally played on cloth-covered, 5 by 10 feet (approximately 1.5 × 3 m) pocketless tables, which often feature heated slate beds. In its simplest form, the object of the game is to score points or "counts"Carom billiards cues tend to be shorter and lighter than pool cues, with a shorter ferrule, a thicker butt The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket and joint, a wooden joint pin (ideally) and collarless wood-to-wood joint, a conical taper, and a smaller tip diameter. Typical dimensions are 54–56 inches (140–140 cm) long, 16.5–18.5 ounces (0.47–0.52 kg) in weight, with a 11–12 mm diameter tip.[6] The specialization makes the cue stiffer, for handling the heavier billiard balls and acting to reduce deflection The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket.[1]:79, 241 The wood used in carom cues can vary widely, and most quality carom cues are hand made.
Snooker
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Cues designed for snooker will usually be slightly longer than those for pool,[clarification needed] and may come with detachable butt extensions The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket that can make the cue 6 inches (15 cm) or more longer still. Many snooker cues are jointed 2⁄3 or even 3⁄4 of the way back toward the butt bumper The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket, providing an unusually long shaft, rather than at the half-way point, where pool and carom cues are jointed. This necessitates an extra-long cue case. Some models are jointed in two places, with the long shaft having a smooth and hard to notice wood-to-wood joint. Snooker cue tips are usually from 8.5 – 11 mm in diameter, to provide more accuracy and finesse with snooker balls, smaller than pool and carom varieties. Snooker butts are usually flat on one side, so that the cue may be lain flat on the table bed The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket and slid along the baize Baize is a coarse woollen cloth, sometimes called "felt" in American English based on a similarity in appearance.[citation needed] under a cushion The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket to strike the cushion-ward side of the cue ball The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket when it is frozen The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket to the cushion (such a shot is not legal in pool or carom games under most rulesets). The very tactile flat part of the butt also helps the player develop a very specific way of holding the cue, consistent on every shot, so that the stroke The following is an encyclopedic glossary of traditional English-language terms used in the three overarching cue sports disciplines: pocket billiards , which denotes a host of games played on a table with six pockets; carom billiards referring to the various carom games played on a table without pockets; and snooker, played on a large pocket is more uniform, shot after shot (snooker, in the case of many if not most shots, requires quite a bit more precision than pool).
Specialty
Manufacturers also provide a variety of specialty cues tailored to specific shots. Pool break cues have often thin tips made from very hard leather or phenolic resin to ensure that the full force of the stroke is transferred to the cue ball during the break shot, and to avoid excessive wear-and-tear on the tips and ferrules of players' main shooting cues. Phenolic-tipped break cues often have a merged phenolic ferrule-tip, instead of two separate pieces.
Jump cues are shorter, lighter (12 ounces and less) cues that make performing a legal jump shot easier, and also often have a very hard tip. Some standard-sized break cues include a two-piece butt allowing a player to remove the lower, heavier half of the butt to produce a jump cue; these are usually referred to as jump–break or break–jump cues. The uncommon massé cue is short and heavy, with a wider tip to aid in making massé shots.
Practitioners of artistic billiards and artistic pool sometimes have twenty or more cues, each specifically tailored to a particular trick shot. Other specialty cues have multiple sections, between which weights can be added. Another specialization is the butt extension, which can be slipped over or screwed into the normal butt, to lengthen the cue and reduce dependency on the mechanical bridge.
A high quality two-piece cue with a nearly invisible wood-to-wood joint, so that it looks like a cheap one-piece house cue, is called a sneaky pete.[7] Such a cue may be used by a hustler to temporarily fool unsuspecting gamblers into thinking that he or she is a novice.
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Mon, 23 Aug 2010 23:06:45 GMT+00:00
The Guardian He smiles, and as though on cue , an elderly gentleman in straw hat and striped tie walks past, bends low to Hanagan's ear and wishes him luck to win the ...
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Christopher Grant
Sat, 24 Jul 2010 19:15:00 GM
The gentleman Forbes sips hot coffee all while leaning on his . cue stick. contemplating his next shot. After a moment, he swallows the last of the coffee, balances the silver cup on the arm of a chair and leans across the table and starts ...
