Snooker rules and refereeing
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    • Snooker Rule Changes (2010) Explained by Referee Andy Yates
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    • EASB Snooker referee quiz: (questions without answers) >
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    • EASB Referees “Rules” Quiz: January 2011 (questions without answers) >
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  • Rules you must understand as a player
    • The Break
    • Frame, Game or Match?
    • Who takes the top scorer
    • Keeping score
    • When is the Frame over?
    • Understanding the 'Miss'
    • Understanding the 'Three Miss Rule'
    • Angled Ball (Pocket hook)
    • Seven Point Fouls
  • How do I .....
    • Rack the balls
    • Respot the colour balls
    • Re-spot the cueball after a Miss
    • Use the Ball Marker
    • Handle the rests and other furniture
    • Organise a tournament
  • So you don't like the call; now what?
  • Some information on the Equipment
    • The cue
    • The Balls
    • The Chalk
    • Videos about the table
    • The Cloth >
      • "Double Shaved"
    • The Spots
    • Scoring Software
    • Pocket Templates circa 1996
  • Guides for the Referee
    • Referees Best Practice by English Association of Snooker and Billiards
    • Referee’s Guide to Positioning by Steve Fletcher
    • Referees Guide to What to Say, and When to Say it by Clive A Brown, January 2012
    • Calling the score
  • Variations of the game
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A: X-rest or just "The Rest"
B: Spider
C: Swan-neck
D: Extended Spider

The X-rest is usually hung on hooks at either end of the table. When replacing the rests on the hooks, keep the head of the rest to your LEFT. This way we all know which end to pick up without looking.

The half-butt and extended rest are usually placed on hooks at the side of the table. Always replace the rest and butt with the head/tip towards the TOP of the table.

The other rests should be placed on the floor under the baulk end of the table with the heads pointing out so that we know which is which.

Before the match starts, check all rests for integrity. It is embarrassing to have a head fall off or a plastic foot fall of (or even be missing completely) during a frame.

(If something does fall off and strike a ball, it is not a foul if the equipment was provided by the venue for the use of the players. If the player provided his own, then he is responsible and the foul counts.)

The rules make the player responsible for picking up and restoring the various rests during the game. Referees normally assist to help keep the game flowing, but are not required to.

If the referee disturbs a ball with the rest, then there is no foul. Replace any balls to correct the situation and carry on. Should a player disturb a ball with the rest, then the foul is called and the balls remain as they came to rest.

With this in mind, you should never hand a rest to the player, nor accept it back from him, over the table; nor should you lay the rest on the table surface for him to pick up.

If you must lay the rest on the table surface, lay it on an open space, well away from any balls.

Similarly, do not pick up a rest from the table surface, especially if there is a danger of fouling a ball; have the player pick it up and hand it to you.

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