Quick answer: Each player gets one colour (9 white or 9 black coins). You flick the striker from your baseline to pocket your own coins, and you keep your turn while you keep pocketing them. The red queen is worth 3 points but must be "covered" by pocketing one of your own coins right after it. Whoever clears all their coins first wins the board and scores 1 point for every coin the opponent still has on the board. The first to 25 points, or the leader after 8 boards, wins the game.
These carrom board rules for beginners follow the official Laws of Carrom of the All India Carrom Federation (AICF), written in plain English, with notes on the house rules most families play at home.
Just want to keep score? Use our free carrom score keeper online. It applies the queen and 22-point rules for you.
Carrom board, coins and striker
- Board: a smooth square playing surface of 73.5 to 74 cm, with a wooden frame and a pocket in each corner.
- Coins (carrommen): 19 in total: 9 white, 9 black and 1 red queen.
- Striker: no more than 4.13 cm across and no heavier than 15 g.
- Markings: each side has two baselines closed by red base circles, four arrows pointing at the pockets, a red centre circle and an outer circle around it.
Setting up the coins
The queen goes in the centre circle. Six coins surround it in the first ring, alternating black and white. The remaining 12 make the outer ring, alternating again, with three whites forming a "Y" shape that lines up with the whites in the first ring. All the coins sit touching each other, inside the outer circle.
Who breaks and who plays white
A toss decides who chooses: break first or pick the side. The player who breaks plays white for that board; the opponent plays black. The break alternates between players on each board.
The break counts as made if the striker touches any coin, even slightly. If it misses, you get up to two more tries. After three misses, the turn passes to the opponent, who still plays black.
How to take a shot
- Place the striker so it touches both baselines on your side, or covers the red base circle fully. It must not touch the arrow.
- Flick, don't push. The striker must be struck with a finger. A pushing motion of the elbow is a foul.
- Your elbow must not come over the playing surface, though your hand may cross the arrow line.
- You must not leave your seat or move your chair during the board.
Turns: when you play again
You keep playing as long as you pocket one of your own coins (or the queen) with a proper stroke. If you pocket nothing, pocket only the opponent's coins, or commit a foul, the turn passes to the other player. In doubles, partners sit opposite each other and the turn passes to the right.
The queen and covering
The queen is the red coin and is shared by both players. The rules around it decide most close games:
- You may pocket the queen only after you have pocketed at least one of your own coins. Pocket it earlier and it comes back to the centre and you lose your turn.
- After pocketing the queen, you must cover it by pocketing one of your own coins in the same stroke or the very next one.
- If you fail to cover it, the queen goes back to the centre circle.
- If you pocket the queen and one of your coins in the same stroke, the queen counts as covered.
- If you pocket your last coin while the queen is still on the board, you lose the board by 3 points (1 point if the opponent already has 22 or more).
Fouls, dues and penalties
A foul costs you a coin: one of your pocketed coins comes back out and the opponent places it anywhere inside the outer circle. The most common cases:
- Pocketing the striker (a "due"): you lose the turn and one of your coins comes out. If you have none pocketed yet, it is owed and comes out as soon as you pocket one.
- Striker plus your own coin, proper stroke: the coins you pocketed come back, plus one more as the due, but you keep your turn.
- Improper stroke (pushing, wrong position, touching the coins): you lose the turn, and any of your own coins pocketed come back plus a penalty coin.
- Striker and an improper stroke together: two coins come out, one as due and one as penalty.
- Coin jumps off the board: it is placed back in the centre circle; the queen gets priority.
Dues and penalties cannot cancel each other out, and they are never placed over the centre circle.
How carrom is scored (ICF rules)
- The player who pockets all their coins first wins the board.
- The winner scores 1 point for each of the opponent's coins still on the board.
- The winner also scores 3 points for the queen if they pocketed and covered it, but only while their score is 21 or less. From 22 points on, the queen adds nothing.
- The loser never scores the queen, even if they covered it.
- The most you can score in one board is 12 points (9 coins plus the queen).
Worked example
White clears all nine coins with the queen covered, while Black still has five coins on the board. White scores 5 + 3 = 8 points. If White already had 22 points, the board is worth only 5.
Winning a game and a match
- A game is 25 points or 8 boards. The first to 25 wins; if nobody reaches 25, the leader after the 8th board wins.
- If the score is level after 8 boards, one extra board is played to decide it.
- A match is the best of three games.
- Players change sides after each game.
White slam and black slam
A white slam (also called "break to finish") is pocketing all nine white coins and the queen in the very first turn. A black slam is pocketing all the remaining black coins in the first turn of play. Both are rare and celebrated in tournament play.
Common house rules
Families and clubs often change a few things. Agree on them before you start:
- Shorter games: playing to a lower target, such as 15 points, for a quick game.
- Queen value at any score: some ignore the 22-point rule and always give the queen 3 points.
- Thumbing: whether a thumb flick is allowed.
Our carrom score keeper has a house-rules switch for the queen, so you can play your way.
Frequently asked questions
Can you pocket the queen first in carrom?
No. Under official rules you must pocket at least one of your own coins first. If you pocket the queen before that, it goes back to the centre and you lose your turn.
What does covering the queen mean?
After pocketing the queen you must pocket one of your own coins in the same stroke or the next one. If you do not, the queen goes back to the centre circle.
What happens if you pocket the striker?
It is a due. You lose your turn and one of your pocketed coins comes back out for the opponent to place. If you have none pocketed yet, it is owed.
What are the most common fouls in carrom?
Pocketing the striker, pushing instead of flicking, playing from the wrong position, and touching the coins. Each costs you a coin, and most also cost your turn.
How many points is the queen worth?
3 points, given only to the board winner who covered it, and only while their score is 21 or less.
How many points do you play to in carrom?
25 points, or 8 boards, whichever comes first. A match is the best of three games.
Who plays white in carrom?
The player who breaks plays white for that board.
What is the easiest way to keep score?
Use a carrom score keeper. Enter the coins left and the queen after each board, and it adds the points and applies the 22-point rule.
More from DesiTableGames
Source: Laws of Carrom, All India Carrom Federation (indiancarrom.co.in). Board and equipment sizes are the federation's tournament standards; home boards vary.
Comments
Post a Comment