Call your shot. The shot after the break is the one that determines color ownership – even if a ball went in during the break. For a shot to count, you’ve got to hit your color first. If you hit another player’s ball, the shot doesn’t count. If you hit the 8-ball, it’s an illegal shot (unless it’s the final 8-ball shot). [1] X Research source

Talk to people in the bar about the rules before you volunteer. Lookup local rules on the internet before you go to a bar. See if there are any rules posted in the bar or pub that you’re interested in playing in. [2] X Research source

Don’t go into a bar or pub thinking you’re going to play to the letter of official tournament rules. Most people who play pool in bars play by relatively standard rules, but there is also a wide variation of how rules are interpreted or followed. Talk to whoever it is your playing against to understand what sort of rules they expect the game to follow.

The winner will play in the next game. The winner will often go first or decide if they’re going first or not in the next game. The winner can declare special or custom rules for the next game. [4] X Research source

Ask whoever’s playing if anyone is next. Look for a chalkboard to see if there is a list of people waiting to play. Be polite and patient if there are other people waiting to play. [5] X Research source

Approach the person who owns the table and ask “Hey, I’d love to play. Are there any custom rules I should know about?” If they say yeah, make sure you understand all of the rules. If you don’t understand, ask them to explain the rule. Write them down if you don’t think you’ll remember the rules.

Don’t worry about any particular order or color-based racking. The only requirement is that the 8 ball be the front-most of the center three balls. Most people put the 1 in front. It is also good to place a stripe in one of the rear corners. [6] X Research source

If you make the ball but not exactly how you called it, you lose the rest of your turn, but the ball stays in (hey, it’s a bar table). Touching a rail on the way to a pocket is incidental and not a foul. A badly sunk ball is called “slop. " It is not necessary to call an obvious straight-in kind of shot. Calling your exact shot is very important in a bar or pub. Being able to call shots is also what separates good players from not-so-good players. [7] X Research source

The table is typically considered open after the break even if a ball was sunk on the break, so the shooter can select either color on his second shot. If you fail to sink another ball, the table is still open, until one of the players makes a fair called shot. Before a ball has been sunk that determines your color (on the first shot or two) you can legally hit any combination (except using the 8 ball).

Rules for the use of 8-ball in a legal combination, carom, shot vary from bar to bar, locale to locale. Most times it is one of the pre-game rules agreed upon by the players or in the set rules of play depending on the venue. The 8-ball is never neutral.

In official play of any kind it is never legal to hit your target ball after or at the exact instance as an opponent’s ball, even if you call it first as a “split”. A direct split is also known as a “mixed split. ” There is no such thing as a legal “mixed split. ” Local rules for this mixed “split” shot vary from bar to bar, locale to locale, etc. Most times it is one of the pre-game rules agreed upon by the players or in the set rules of play depending on the venue. [8] X Research source