By Mike Tattersall

Many people enjoy playing pool as a hobby, whether they play in bars or have purchased a table for their homes. Everyone has seen someone playing the game, watching pros pocket balls in impossible situations or watching them make bets across the table after a few mugs of beer. This entices others to start playing if they don't already play themselves, but don't quite know all the rules. It's important to learn where the proper place to hit the ball is so that you may avoid losing your turn in pool.

Losing your turn in pool is never fun, especially when playing against someone who is pretty skilled at the game. If someone pockets their ball of choice, they get another turn. Should you miss your turn, it could be your last before a chain of pockets leads to a loss on your behalf. So what are the different ways that cause you to lose your turn? These ways can usually be easily avoided, but require precision to hit the correct ball.

When one loses their turn, they "scratch." One common way for a player to scratch is by hitting the cue ball without it hitting any other ball. Another way is for the cue ball to hit stripes if you are solids, or vice versa. Both of these should be avoided by figuring out any sort of way to hit either the solid or striped ball, depending which one you are. Hopefully, if you hit the opponent's ball, you don't accidentally pocket it! Not only would you lose your turn, but that's one less ball for them to hit!

Although you may hit your own ball into a pocket, should the cue ball follow it or should it fall into another pocket, this too is a scratch. Always be sure not to hit the cue ball too hard if your ball is close to the pocket, because that will guarantee it will hitch a ride down the same tube.

At the end of the game, when only the 8 ball remains, should you hit the 8 ball (or even if you do not) and the cue ball falls in, not only does this result in losing your turn, but it also results in the loss of the game. This can get very frustrating, so most novices tend to leave out this rule until they have practiced enough to gain more skill.

Keep in mind whenever it is your turn to do whatever it takes to hit your ball. One technique includes hitting the cue ball off the side of the table and bouncing it at an angle towards the other balls. Also, to avoid losing your turn, even if you know for a fact that you cannot pocket any of your balls, try to at least make sure the cue ball touches one. Your turn will be over, but your opponent won't be allowed to place the ball wherever they please.