Five-pin billiards

Five-pin billiards or simply five-pins or 5-pins (Italian: [biliardo dei] cinque birilli;[1] Spanish: [billar de] cinco quillas or casín), is today usually a carom billiards form of cue sport, though sometimes still played on a pocket table.

In addition to the customary three balls of most carom games, it makes use of a set of five upright pins (skittles) arranged in a "+" pattern at the center of the table.

The game is popular especially in Italy (where it originated) and Argentina, but also in some other parts of Latin America and Europe, with international, televised professional tournaments (for the carom version only).

[2] Professional and regulated amateur play today exclusively uses pocketless tables and equal-sized balls.

Professional competition began in 1965,[1] and play is centered in billiard parlors, with players competing in provincial, regional, and national federations.

[5] The slate bed of the table must be heated to about 5 degrees C (9 degrees F) above room temperature, which helps to keep moisture out of the cloth to aid the balls rolling and rebounding in a consistent manner, and generally makes the table play "faster".

[9][10] As the name implies, the game makes use of five upright pins called skittles in English (so-called since at least 1634),[3] birilli (singular birillo) in Italian and quillas in Spanish, which look like miniature bowling pins, 25 mm (0.98 in) tall, and with 7 mm (0.28 in) round, flat-bottomed bases.

Because the Italian-rules championships organized by the Italian Federation of Billiard Sport (FIBiS) are international, televised events, and often hosted outside of Italy, the FIBiS rules are the global de facto standard,[2] and have been incorporated into the rules promulgated by the Union Mondiale de Billard.

Determining who goes first can be done by any means (lag usually, but also coin toss, tournament stipulations about player order, etc.).

[2] Unlike in the major carom game three-cushion billiards, there is no requirement to hit one or more cushions at any time.

Any points earned by the shooter on a foul shot are awarded to the opponent (except when, as noted above, pin value is not calculated).

[citation needed] Ball-in-hand on fouls is not entirely free; the incoming shooter after a ball-in-hand foul can only place his/her cue ball on the opposite half of the table from the other cue ball, and must shoot from the end (short part) not side of the table.

The game also requires a good understanding of carom angles and the effects of "English" (sidespin) on the cue ball.

Organized by the Union Mondiale de Billard (UMB), and inaugurated in 2019, the Five-pins National Team World Championship is an international event.