A Rule Question

onepocketron

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
The other night I was watching a match online and the shooter was running the colors at the end of the game. He was shooting the green and scratched. The green he was shooting went down table about where the pink would spot. His opponent was awarded "free ball" and was able to shoot another color for the same value as the green. Could someone explain why he did not have to shoot the green (which would have been a much more difficult shot than the duck he shot for free ball)? Why did his opponent get free ball? Thanks for your help.
 

Bob Jewett

AZB Osmium Member
Staff member
Gold Member
Silver Member
The other night I was watching a match online and the shooter was running the colors at the end of the game. He was shooting the green and scratched. The green he was shooting went down table about where the pink would spot. His opponent was awarded "free ball" and was able to shoot another color for the same value as the green. Could someone explain why he did not have to shoot the green (which would have been a much more difficult shot than the duck he shot for free ball)? Why did his opponent get free ball? Thanks for your help.
A free ball is awarded if the incoming player is snookered after a foul. A snooker is defined as being unable to hit both extreme edges of the ball on (not just "able to hit the ball directly"). Snookered with ball in hand is a special case because you must be snookered from everywhere you could legally place the white.

So with those preliminaries out of the way, it is very hard to be snookered on a green by the pink spot unless a ball is also near the green and between the green and the D. For example if the pink were still on its spot and the green ended between pink and black, a snooker would be likely even though the green might be pottable.
 
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