The United States Billiards Association has established a Carom Pins Games Division and Ermanno Scalas, the owner of a brand new carom only room--Best Billiards LV in Las Vegas, Nevada, has been appointed as its first Director. Ermanno grew up with the carom pins games in his native Italy and is very interested in leading the effort to introduce these games here. Different versions of carom billiard pins games are played in countries around the world. The most common pins game played in some South American and European Countries is 5-pins, and this link http://www.umb.org/Rules/5Pin_Rules.pdf sets out the rules. Other pins games played in these countries are 9-pins (similar to 5-pins, but with 9 pins and different points for scoring) and Boccette (like bocce ball, but played on a carom table, with pins, and your hands—no cues). We will be posting the rules for all these games on the USBA website.

I have played these pins games with Ermanno and they are a lot of fun. I found that they combine carom and pool skills. They are played with standard size carom billiard balls, but with the addition of either 5 or 9 pins which are placed in the center of the table. Scoring is accomplished by making a carom with either the cue ball from the other player's ball to the red ball or by shooting the other player's cue ball into the red ball. But points are also scored by either the other player's ball or the red ball knocking down the pins. The other player receives points if you knock down the pins with your cue ball. Here are links to videos of games from championship 5 pins tournaments, the first in France in 2010, and the second in Argentina (I think in 2009):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlaQJ...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IH4T8...eature=related

I hope you will learn about the pins games and give them a try. You can contact Ermanno for more information about how to play these games, obtain the pins, rules, etc.

Best Billiards LV is located at 3740 East Flamingo Road, Las Vegas, Nevada. Phone: 702.990.0502 Ermanno's e-mail address is best.billiardslv@yahoo.com

Bruce Warner
President
United States Billiard Association