Amusing Facts About Pool

1.) The game of pool originated from a European lawn game comparable to croquet, played during the 15th century.

2.) When precisely the first pool table was made is a mystery. The first record of a pool table was recorded in 1470, during an catalog of the possessions of King Louis XI of France.

3.) It is said that the first pool tables consisted of a stone bed and cloth cover, and featured an gap in the middle to drive the pool balls into.

4.) The first ever billiard room was built in England in 1765.

5.) The Church denounced the game of pool as sinful, treacherous and damaging; play was forbidden in France during the 15th century. In early U.S. history, laws was approved prohibiting the game due to religious influences.

6.) During the time of Thomas Jefferson, pool was illegal in the state of Virginia. The dome on Thomas Jefferson's home concealed a discrete billiard room.

7.) Pool table cloths have not changed a lot in over 400 years. Nowadays, wool is still the fabric of choice to this day, though it sometimes is blended with nylon.

8.) The first pool tables had flat vertical walls for rails called “banks” due to their resemblance to riverbeds. Their only purpose was to keep the pool balls from rolling off the table; however, players soon discovered that their pool balls could bounce off the table rails, so they began to intentionally aim for them. Consequently, the "bank shot" was born.

9.) Throughout history, pool bridged the space between upper and lower classes, as persons of all societal ranks were known to play to participate in this entertaining pastime.

10.) In later years, the pool began to be perceived of as a sport. In 1873, it became the first ever sport to appoint a world champion.

11.) In 1903, the first coin-operated pool table was built. The cost for each game was one penny!

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