The Physics of Pool.

The game of pool may not be as relaxing as one may think. Rather than just aimlessly hitting the cue ball around a table covered in felt, there is a set of law governing the outcome of play. These laws are known as PHYSICS. Billiards is played by striking the cue ball with a cue stick. The cue ball then collides with the other balls on the table in hopes of propelling one or more …

…ball has a small velocity, or speed. Since momentum is a vector quantity, it describes both magnitude and direction. To truly conserve momentum, the direction of the balls resulting from the collision must also cancel out with the direction of the cue ball. The get a ball to go exactly where you want it, just calculate the angle desired, and strike the cue ball with the appropriate velocity. Who said physicists weren't up for sports?