Popularity of billiard types / games

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Lukasz

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Popularity of billiard types / games

I would like to know what the popularity of the basic types of billiards looks like on a global scale. First is pool right, than snooker or carom?

I am interested both as a sport and practiced recreationally and entertainingly, as long as such a distinction makes sense.

Thank you
 

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Pool is too vague a term.

From my experience it would be Chinese 8 ball as a ‘played’ billiards game. Snooker is most popular as a spectator sport but Chinese 8 ball is close.

In my country, Canada, pool is synonymous with American 8 ball. In the UK its Blackball. If you were in a bar, a house and someone said ‘do you want to play pool?…those would be the games.

Like a lot of ‘most popular’ activities…depends on what is happening in China, India, USA, Indonesia, Pakistan, etc…especially the first two. It’s just sheer population numbers.

The top spectator sports in the world in order are football, cricket, field hockey, table tennis…the last 3 because they are popular in either India, Pakistan, China.
 
Lukasz said:
Popularity of billiard types / games

I would like to know what the popularity of the basic types of billiards looks like on a global scale. First is pool right, than snooker or carom?

I am interested both as a sport and practiced recreationally and entertainingly, as long as such a distinction makes sense.

Thank you
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Just curious but why is this important? Based on pure #'s Chinese 8b is played by more people than any other game. I've read that around 100MILLION play in China alone on a regular basis. There's over 200,000 pool clubs in China and that was 5yrs ago.
 
garczar said:
Just curious but why is this important? Based on pure #'s Chinese 8b is played by more people than any other game. I've read that around 100MILLION play in China alone on a regular basis. There's over 200,000 pool clubs in China and that was 5yrs ago.
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I need it for the article. So pool is number 1, second is snooker?
 
Lukasz said:
I need it for the article. So pool is number 1, second is snooker?
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I don't know. there are a bunch that play snooker worldwide now as well. billiards can't be far behind either. i don't know how you're gonna get definite answers to this. i wouldn't say pool if it wasn't for chinese 8b because it skews the #'s its way. its a specialty game only played in asia in big #'s. i'd just say 100,000,000+ play some sort of cuesports on a regular basis. nailing down #1 may be impossible. might contact the wpa but i doubt they'll have answer either.
 
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garczar said:
I don't know. there are a bunch that play snooker worldwide now as well. billiards can't be far behind either. i don't know how you're gonna get definite answers to this. i wouldn't say pool if it wasn't for chinese 8b because it skews the #'s its way. its a specialty game only played in asia in big #'s. i'd just say 100,000,000+ play some sort of cuesports on a regular basis. nailing down #1 may be impossible. might contact the wpa but i doubt they'll have answer either.
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Chinese 8b is rather pool not snooker, right? (ok, to be strict it suppose to be called hybrid).
 
Lukasz said:
Chinese 8b is rather pool not snooker, right? (ok, to be strict it suppose to be called hybrid).
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Don't quite me on any #'s. I'm just making semi-educated wag's. You're going to have to find these figs yourself. I'm probably in the ballpark but could be in the cheap seats too.
 
Lukasz said:
Chinese 8b is rather pool not snooker, right? (ok, to be strict it suppose to be called hybrid).
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It's definitely pool. Just watch any match and that becomes obvious. The rules are pretty much identical to WPA/American 8-ball. The only difference is the table specs.
 
oknazevad said:
It's definitely pool. Just watch any match and that becomes obvious. The rules are pretty much identical to WPA/American 8-ball. The only difference is the table specs.
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Big difference is any slop shot counts, even on the 8b. Its pool on a 9ft snooker table. So it is kind of a hybrid.
 
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And English-style 8-ball is pool on a 6-or-7-foot snooker table. In many ways (cloth, rail profile) American pool tables are more like carom tables with pockets.
 
Lukasz said:
What you mean "are more like carom tables with pockets"?
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As I said, American-style pool tables use smooth cloth like a carom table (as opposed to the napped cloth on snooker, English pool and Chinese pool tables) and also like carom tables have cushions with a pointed edge, as opposed to the flatter edge of British style tables.
 
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