Billiard Congress of America facts for kids

The Billiard Congress of America (BCA) is a very important group for cue sports like pool and billiards. It's like the main boss for these sports in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Puerto Rico. The BCA helps organize and promote cue sports. It also works with the World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA), which is the worldwide group for these sports.

The BCA started in 1948 as a non-profit organization. This means it doesn't try to make money for itself. Instead, it works to make the sport better and help players. The BCA is based in Broomfield, Colorado. Many of its members are companies that make billiard equipment.

The BCA publishes a rule book every year. This book includes the official rules for popular games like nine-ball, eight-ball, and ten-ball. It also has rules for other fun games like one pocket and bank pool. The BCA also holds a big yearly event called the International Billiards & Home Recreation Expo. Each year, the BCA also honors great players and people who have helped the sport by adding them to the BCA Hall of Fame.

How the BCA Started

The BCA has a long history. It began with a group called the National Billiard Association of America (NBAA), which started on July 25, 1921. This group quickly became the main organization for billiards in the U.S. By 1928, it had 35,000 members! It was closely connected to Brunswick-Balke-Collender, a big company that made billiard equipment.

After some challenges in the late 1930s, the NBAA changed its name in 1941 to the Billiard Association of America (BAA). This group was based in Chicago, Illinois. The BAA created a small, easy-to-use rulebook for different billiard games. This rulebook became the model for the BCA's future rulebooks. The BAA then became the BCA in 1947.

The BCA's first rulebooks were very similar to the BAA's 1946 edition. Interestingly, the popular game nine-ball wasn't even in the rules until 1967! The BCA has continued to publish its rulebooks almost every year since then.

BCA Rules and the World Stage

In 2000, the BCA made a big change. It decided to use the same rules as the World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA) for games like eight-ball and nine-ball. This was important because it meant players in the U.S. would play by the same rules as players in international competitions. By this time, the BCA had become the official U.S. partner of the WPA.

The BCA hoped that pool and carom billiards could one day become Olympic sports. This is why they moved their headquarters to Colorado Springs, which is close to the U.S. Olympic Committee. Some of these rule changes caused a bit of discussion among U.S. players, as they were used to different ways of playing certain games. For example, in some U.S. leagues, sinking the 8-ball on the first shot (the break shot) used to mean an instant win, but the new rules changed that.

BCA Hall of Fame

The Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame was created in 1966. It's a special place to honor people who have made the sport of billiards better. There are two main groups of people who get into the Hall of Fame:

• The Greatest Player: This group includes players who have played for 20 years or more, either nationally or internationally. They must have won at least one national or international championship.
• The Meritorious Service: This group is for people who have made "lasting, memorable and important contributions" to billiards. These are people who have helped the sport grow and succeed in many ways.

International Billiard & Home Recreation Expo

The BCA holds a big event every year called the Billiard Expo. It's the largest trade show in the world for cue sports, especially pool. This Expo has been held in different cities since it started in 1984, but it's most often in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The main goal of the Expo is to help companies that make, sell, and operate billiard products. It's a place for them to find new business opportunities, learn new things, see new products, and meet other people in the industry. Many different types of companies show their products there, including those that make pool tables, cues, and other equipment. You can also find billiard-themed clothes, instructional materials, and furniture for billiard halls.

Most people who attend the Expo are from the billiard industry, not just players. They are often retailers who sell billiard products or people who own billiard halls. The event helps them learn how to run their businesses better and find new products to offer.

BCA Pool League

The BCA Pool League (BCAPL) is one of the biggest amateur pool leagues in the United States. It also has a strong presence in Canada and other countries. The BCAPL used to be run by the BCA itself. However, since 2004, it has been owned and operated by CueSports International (CSI), a company that organizes billiard events.

The BCA Pool League has about 450 local leagues with over 60,000 members. Players compete on both smaller 7-foot tables and larger 9-foot tables. In the 2009/2010 season, CSI also started another league called the USA Pool League (USAPL). This league is for players who might be a bit more casual. Both the BCAPL and USAPL use the BCA rules, with some small changes for team play and wheelchair players.

Collegiate National Championship

The US Collegiate Pocket Billiards National Championship is a big tournament for college students. It has been organized by the Association of College Unions International (ACUI) since 1937. Since 1939, there have been separate competitions for men and women. The BCA supports this amateur tournament. The names of the champions from this event are listed in the BCA's official rule and record book.

United States Billiard Media Association

The United States Billiard Media Association (USBmA) was formed in January 2007. Its main job is to help choose media members for the Billiard Congress of America's Hall of Fame Board. This group also works to make billiards more visible in the media, like on TV, radio, and the internet.

Only professional media people who cover cue sports can join the USBmA. This includes writers, reporters, and public relations experts. As of February 2010, the group had 33 members, including many well-known names in U.S. cue sports publishing. The USBmA is based in Chicago, Illinois.

See also

• List of professional sports leagues
• BCA Hall of Fame