Point Carrom

A variant often popular with children or an odd number of players. Play is as above except that all players try to sink all carrom men, regardless of color. The nine carrom men of one color are worth one point each and the nine carrom men of the other color are worth two points each. The red queen is worth five points and may only be captured by pocketing another carrom man on the same or subsequent strike. A player reaching 17 or more points is the winner, otherwise the winner is the player with the most points after all carrom men have been pocketed.

Rules

The aim of the game is to pot one’s own nine carrom men before one’s opponent pots his/hers. However, before sinking one’s final carrom man, the Queen must be pocketed and then “covered” by pocketing one of one’s own carrom men on the same or subsequent stroke. Fouls, such as crossing the diagonal lines on the board with any part of one’s body, or potting the striker, lead to carrom men being returned to the board. The back shot is allowed, which is called thumb shots or (thumbing) . The player is allowed to play with any finger.

Equipment

The game was played on a board of lacquered plywood, normally with a 29 inch (74 cm) square playing surface. The edges of the playing surface are bounded by bumpers of wood. Instead of the balls of billiards games, carrom uses disks (also known as pucks or coins). The object of the game is to strike or flick with a finger a comparatively heavy disk called a “striker” such that it contacts lighter object disks called “carrom men” (alternatively, “carrom seeds”) and propels them into one of four corner pockets. The carrom men come in two colors denoting the two players (or, in doubles play, teams). Traditionally, these colors are white (or unstained) and black. The breaker always plays white. An additional carrom man is colored red and called the “queen”.

Origins

The origins of carrom are uncertain. The majority of sources suggest that the game is of Indian origin while some sources claim the game is of Chinese origin. The game has come from snooker. Snooker was played by the rich people so the carrom was invented for poor people. Yemen, Ethiopia, Zimbabwe and North Africa are also suggested as potential regions of origin. In the West, where the game is often similar to billiards-type games, it may have independently developed in several cases as a mixture of billiards and shuffleboard.

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