Rules of Snooker - The Table

The Table

Snooker is played on a rectangular snooker table with six pockets, one at each corner and one in the middle of each long side. The table usually has a slate base, covered in green baize. At one end of the table (the baulk end) is the baulk line, which is 29 inches (74 cm) from the baulk cushion (the short cushion at the baulk end). A semicircle of radius 11+1⁄₂ inches (29 cm), called the D, is drawn behind this line, centred on the middle of the line. The cushion at the other end of the table is known as the top cushion.

A regulation (full-size) table is 12 ft × 6 ft (3.7 m × 1.8 m); because of the large size of these tables, smaller tables are common in homes, pubs and other places where space is limited. These are often around 6 feet (1.8 m) in length, and all the dimensions and markings are scaled down accordingly. The balls used are sometimes also scaled down, and/or reduced in number (in the case of the reds) such that the longest row of balls in the rack is omitted.